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GENERAL LEN
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Ener aved for Mt Boys AGRICULTURAL ACCOUNT of E Rent
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| N | | | 4 Or E GE e NAN LONDON Y S+——— [ER In 30 30| || | PL THE FE| E Thurroc EEX: - We LE fis A 1 rT| rf Tilbury 5 O C 45 AN| ; Fèrt THE-N ORE E C Mueba rires IL S A SS(4, Sutton É SS 2 SE EN Ÿ Pa epn CA TEN | rHone ir/ I The\\wDouits j FA D; fg arl A 5 E<> f SAE PS\ A A> CS ORO 7/9 SU N D lim, 4 y D ES ¡Barlon M Bartemnmou td E ed 7 Te Sjrous Á NL Siudli S LE ie ACobhaR 2 BOLZI> pg i fl NE ad Î ZA@| Hoo(fen LZH H RR) E a N_EJ e ta 7 E dua wing(ro IL\ YM le PE/ IN TEEORETLAND dL. c HK E[Ss dos RE Y 7 htc tabte>=== y 7 zo SEE ulled(vrch 12$ 4 y/ 0 S| 2'¿béou- 2 Lf Sfode land\ E ias Cus WA AD 7 E N E=> cu PRA rer E é 2 rock 75 78 E tam Fe LS Il> =[E TN) S 3 B iioe Hogs X| <2 è MMAIDSTODY Za e RE a SS|J; D Y E(Y ge xXFOl& tc D: loston.— i ETS oW e Wormfell&=| do in A ct vd Shad> È) rom Cidlford 7 Y\ BEI 11 EN E So_burvé SÁ Pa SLS YA& TE, AER Neun 42 ew e I y tlio By, regate Spy Se“oha 10 RT Él 4 Vluïo EZ Ô Vars Z| Ms E ¿ Ta riotllgmn Che& /Basm ere\ E —SA 2E F 2 wü Gk 2 Lec D EE N eN—— Ote Fc A un 6/ E,_= E-= RÉ En am 00 SS: Abbil ZE ¡1 I;(M Hace IA= A aya) E N| to(T0 Adept te> e E atu Pn*FStalisfCl 2(6 Tatolai fi 2 N=| È: NL(01 GE 6 4 R:f He E Rag Sutton PD Te iL L R E x(2 S I\z gba| Y B. gino O Ca 8 Str 5 h- RN bo ZSE Bi e- ul(ate| N ZA E L ARE FE Sulton fon his RENN Sn E a L| a LP x MES TT// Kine uner u| E Tfaundens:g E SEL> Greer£ amn/ afzintiam& El LLS N AS ES eN a ÎlStélliuo; aun Donn| iE Ap DOE= SS 5 A J |= RAE S E lec A RS Tid<A e 45 D ond y| =: EA es 2? EY fes 2(ar doe EA- Tr end es daS MZ- Á vStowling| H AA 5 EF E 4 DA>/ as Derg\ | Mt- Uf Áturtdy y GE>>>> Ly BA n L|), SÉ! mj ge E LH| — M= ERS ll= en VS,"—R J Y Aj adfes cari VALTL FU POU S ; Go VEST R ST Ved MER PS| drug L/R LA A E C) Zio, er ZZ 9 C( oies“ Gts e 6H: Rato dn, DEA RN L S G6 fee N| Lore| GAA- Ef 1, ZST Y( AZ—»/Promlty R- A e n E- Sara A ZA SEEN tc/ Yite<-> C040. X:/ TE 6 16A E hs Gd e/ Lr ZA MD ENTERDI LW_ Gupta. Bohningbw LL- La Wi T Y A 4({Afllar ;\ EES RE 2=/ E _>= 2 N_Pe fenden)> Y toodel reh»Orlésrone A bile agua R Di Vibes F : 8 E zd Gs 0 L l LE. N AS— SS Ale Mn RA pr(tii FZ R-_——: LTE fe D 8/ bly Ande î(E Eu B ulla— P | PS ZA Sureparsh— I E E! uds /+9) i Be zn, ZE VG E H a den tech Á iz N À |/ LG TEL\Zin 0, 7 DE——(<(- Î)| CAY ende k AP A(|| *S and;|| «SS> Bos EE 4D PD| D Y E fe T.Tof LÜ TEE Ÿ S| LI LT“er five 0| BR| LL FPlenden Gs El :\ E Lo| E 2 RYE êrr E 1| <2 LS ar S( A e CA| GL SRA + i ito AG| 7 BIS Ç Scale of Miles À To SU S-= MIM O EE TT———L Un 2] Hy CARL FPO Y E 5: a———= E LAs J E x;:- E 2 EE n ES 2:| P Stewing the Boundaries of the Chalk and Rag? stone Hills e Wealds and the Maxrshes&| >- the1“by Fellow ez A PV Pnic te 3 Zy Proun and tie last tv Gren 6|| x SE E 2 4& d 4 À) N T| | The fed pots onthe Vdlow denote the Drstrit of deep rich Lands mentioned inthe body D(1% 105| D X Y( 4 EE A N N E 15: | ofthe Wori to be mítñe vuautios of Deal Sandwich&Faversham ZheN. Wpart ofthe Wealds| |»“| IS SEZ- E | zs Stony the rest& the higher parts of Shepey vOxneyT? are a deep Clay. The N& NW parts oft the( halkRange are Gravdb LS E 50| ES 2 TE E pl dn. e TTT Y IT Tm IE Li Un Ll itaaas TWL Dr mmT Ir————— E EEA EEE E{ Y TT> le East from 1/0 T. ondon J N E ||| 5/0|„ongtude„AasSTt rom Lo Lonc 2c 3 9 o 2/0 310 D||—| || e- MESSI EEE ETO 2
TEE

A
GENERAL VV LEW OF THÈ AGR EGU LT. UVRE OF: THE| COUNTY QF KENT; Obſervations on theMeans of itsImprovement.|
Drawn up for| The Confideration of the Board of Agriculture
AND INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT, 4 From the original Report tranſmitted to the Board;
WITH ADDITIONAL REMARKS OF SEVERAL RESPEC- TABLE COUNTRY GENTLEMEN AND FARMERS,
By John Boys, of Belſhanger, Farmer.
ESSA KÓN(4 { i FMI Kent, 1n the Commentaries Cæfſar writ, YTD 4 S S S ¡: ¿ Is term’d the civil’ft place of all this iſle;\ At 1, te MARI Sweet 1s the country, becauſe full of riches,:\: LARES The peop!e liberal, valiant, ative, wealthy. R eE SHAKSPEARE E
ZOON DON:
PRINTED FOR CG NICOL, PAL L-MALL, Bookſeller to his Majeſty, and the Board of Agriculture; 44d fold Dy N[ Irs° Ro bin /0n, Pate rnofte F-TOW 5 Te Sewell, Corn full;
Cadell and Davies Strand, William Cree 1, E: linburg À 3 and John Archer, Dublin.
e——

E
ADVERTISEMENT,
| THE great deſire that has been very generally expreſſed for having the AGRICULTURAL SUR- VEYs of the KINGDOM reprinted, with the additional communications which have been received ſince the ORIGINAL ReEPoRTs were circulated, has 1n- CUcedithe BoARD OF AGRICULTURE tO COME LO a reſolution of reprinting ſuch as may appear on
the whole fit for publication. It 1s proper at the
ſame time to add, that the Board does not conſider itſelf reſponſible for any fa& or obſervation con- tained in the Reports thus reprinted, as it 1s 1m- poſſible to conſider them yet in a perfect tates and that it will thankfully acknowledge any additional information which may ſtill be communicated: An invitation, of which, it is hoped, many will avail || themſelves, as there 1s no circumſtance from which H any one can derive more real ſat'sfaction, than thac of contributing, by every poſſible means, to promote
the Improvement of his Country.
Joux SINCLAR, Bart. he Preſident, MP. London.
London, Jan. 1796.
| | N. B. Letters to the Board may be addreſſed to Sir /
IB

= =
E R | Wy / LY Y) \\ Y FN | LF } | ' Y | | | | | BF| | \} { (Y "4
| | | | |

FOR REPRINTING
Agricultural Surveys.
By the PRESIDENT of the BoaRD of AGRICULTURE,
Pn
BOARD eſtabliſhed for the purpoſe of making
every eſſential enquiry into the Agricultural State, and the means of promoting the Intertial Improve- ment of a powerful Empire, will neceſlarily have it in view to examine the ſources of public proſperity, in re- gard to various important particulars, Perhaps the fol- lowing is the moſt natural order for carrying on fuch
important inveſtigations; namely, to aſcertain,
1. The riches to be obtained from the ſurface of the national territory;
2. The mineral, or ſubterraneous treaſures, of which the country is poſſeſſed;
3. The wealth to be derived from its ſtreams, rivers, canals, inland navigations, coaſts, and fiſheries; and,
4. The means of promoting the Improvement of the people, in regard to their health, induſtry, and morals, founded on a flatiſiical ſurvey, or a mi- nute and careful enguiry into the aQual ſtate of every parochial diſtri in the kingdom, and the circumítances of its inhabitants.
Under one or other of theſe heads, every point of real
importance that can tend to promote the general hap-
pineſs of a great nation, ſeems to be included, ATA
Iveniſt-

EVT)
Inveſtigations of ſo extenſive and ſo complicated a na=- ture, muſt require, it is evident, a confiderable ſpace of time before thcy can be completed. Diíleiing indeed in many reſpects from each other, it is better E that they ſhould be undertaken at diferent periods. and ſe= parately confidered. Under that 1mpreihon, the Board of Agriculture has hitherto direQed its attention to the firſt point only: namely, the cultivation of the ſurface, and the reſources to be derived from it.
That the fas eſſential for ſuch an inveſtigaticn might
D
be colle&ed with more celerit y and advantage
ce, a number of intelligent and reſpe@able individuals were appointed to furniſh the Board with accounts of the ſtate bf huf- bandry, and the means of improving the diÆerent diſ- triés of the kingdom. The returns they ſent were printed, and circulated by every means the— of Agriculture could deviſe, in the diſtri&s to whic hey reſpedively related; and, in conſequence of that cir- culation, a great maſs of additional valuable information has been obtained. For the purpoſe of commul nicating that information to the; public in general, but more eſ- pecially to thoſe E the moſt intereſted therein, the Board has reſolved to reprint the Survey of each County, as ſoon as it ſeemed to be fit for publication; and among ſeveral equally advanced, the counties of Norfolk k‘and Lancaſter were pitched upon for the commencement of
the propoſed publication; it bein ng thought moſt adyiſe-
O > VLL =)
able to begin with one county on the eaſtern, and ano- ther on the weſtern coaſt of the iſland. When al] theſe Surveys ſhall have been thus reprinted, it will be at- tended with little difcu 1lty to draw up an abfſtradQ of the whole(which will not N exceed two or three volumes quarto) to be laid before His M ajefſty and both Houſes of Parliament; and after wards, a general Report
On

E pP
E
CR
on the preſent ſtate of the country, and the means of its improvement, may be ſyſtematically arranged, accord- ing to the various ſubje&s conned@ed with agriculture. Thus, every individual in the kingdom may have,
1, An account of the huſbandry of his own particular
county z; Ofr,
2. À general view ofthe agricultural ſtate of the king= dom at large, according to the counties, or diſ=
triés, into which it is divided; or,
3. An arranged ſyſtem of information on agricultural ſubje4s, whether accumulated by the Board
ſince its eſtabliſhment, or previouſly known;z
And thus information reſpeQing the State of the king=- dom, and Agricultural Knowledge in general, will be
attainable with every poſible advantage,
In reprinting theſe Reports, it was judged neceſſary that they ſhould be drawn up according to one uniform model; and after fully confidering the ſubje&, the fol- lowing form was pitched upon, as one that would include in it all the particulars which it was neceffary to notice in an Agricultural Survey., Às the other Reports will be reprinted in the ſame manner, the reader will thus be enabled to find out at once where any point is treated
oï to which he may wiſh to dire his attention,
PISA
4
L— i rA ri iii O A R R ÉD na Mie eich

Vd GX) PLAN OF THE REPRINTED REPORTS.
Preliminary Obſervations. CHAP,|
L, Geographical State and Circumſtances, SECT, I.—Situation and Extent. 2. Diviſions. 3.—Climate, 4—Soll and Surface, 5. Minerals, 6.— Water. I State of Property: SECT. 1,—Efſtates, and their Management, 2.— LT enures, ITL Bwldings. SECT. 1.—Houſes of Proprietors, 2— Farm- Houſes and Offices, and Repairs. 3:.—Cottages, IV. Mode of Occupation. SECT. I,—Size of Farms.—CharaQer of the Farmers. 2.—Rent—in Money—in Kind—in Perſonal Services. 3.—T ythes. 4.— Poor Rates, 5.— Leaſes, 6.—Expence and Proût, V. Implements.
LL Incloſfing.—Fences.—Gates. VII. Arable Lana. DECT. t.— Tillage, 2.—Fallowing.
3:—Rotation of Crops,
——
|)
| e 7>)
Nl

( i:) Chap. VITI, continued. SECT. 4.—Crops commonly cultivated: their Seed, Culture, Produce,&c,*
5.—Crops not commonly cultivated, CHAP.
VIII. Graf.
SECT. 1.—Natural Meadows and Paſtures, 2— Artificial Graſſes, 3.—Hay Harvefſ, 4— Feeding,
IX. Gardens and Orchards. X. Woods and Plantations.
XI. Waſtes. AII. Improvements. SECT, L— Draining,
2.—Paring and Burning, 3.—Manuring, 4.—Weeding. 5.—Watering.
*# Where the quantity is conſiderable, the information reſpeing the
Crops commonly cultivated, may be arranged under the following heads: hoe,
- tillage::: x. Preparation,$ 286» l 6. Culture whilſt growing4 weeding, | manure. S: feeding. 2 SOrt. 7. Harveſt, 3. Steeping. 8. Threſhing. 4. Seed(quantity ſown,) 9. Produce. 5. Time of ſowing. 10. ManufaQure of bread.
In general, the ſame heads will ſuit the following grains: Barley, Oats. Beans. Rye. Peaſe. Buck-wheat. Vetches-- Application.
Cole-ſceed- GULES | Seed. Dawn Hede= Kept on graſs.- in houſes,
Turnips+
CHAP,

GL) CEAP. NTI. Live. Stock: SECT, I.—Cattle, 2—OhecePs 3.—Hor'es, and their Uſe in Huſban dry compared to Oxen, 4— Hogs. 5—Rabbits, 6.— Poultry. 7— Pigeons» O Bees XIV. Rural Economy. SFCT.I.— Labour— Servants—LabourersS=— Hours of Labour. 2.— Proviſions. 3.— Fuel. XY. Political Economy, as conneed with or affd@ing Agriculture. SecrT,. L—Roads, 2— CAS zZ.— Fairs. Weekly Markets, 5.—Commerce. 6.—ManufaQures. -— Poor. 8.— Population. CV[. Obſtacles to Improvement, Including General Obſervations on Agricultural Legiſlation and Police. XVII. Miſcellaneous Obſervations. SECT. L.— Agricultural Societies 2,— Weights and Meaſures Concluſion.—Mecans of Improvement, and the Mea= (ures calculated for that Purpoſe.
Appendix.

+—
«
PER FECTTON in ſuch enquiries is not 1n the power of any body of men to obtain at once, whatever may be the extent of their views, or the vigour of their exertions- If Lewis XIV. cager to have his kingdom known, and poſſeſled of boundleſs power to efffett it, failed ſo much in the attempt, that, of all the provinces in his kingdom, only one was ſo deſcribed as to ſecure the approbation of poſterity*, it will not be thought frange that a Board, poſſeſſed of means ſo extremely limited, ſhould find it difficult to reach even that degree of perfeétion which perhaps might have been attainable with more extenúve powers. The candid Reader cannot exped in theſe Re- ports more than a certain portion of uſeful information, ſo arranged as to render them a baſis for further and more detailed enguiries. The attention‘of the intelli-
* See Voltaire’s Age of Lewis XIV. vol. il. p. 127, 128, edit. 1752,
The following extra from that work will explain the circumſtance above alluded to.
« TJ ewis had no Colbert, nor Louvois, when, about the year 1698, « for the inſtruétion of the Duke of Burgundy, he ordered each of the « intendants to draw up a particular deſcription of his province. By « this means an exact account of the kingdom might have been obtained,
« and a juſt enumeration of the inhabitants. It was an uſeful work, « though all the intendants had not the capacity and attention of Mon-
« ſieur de Lamoignon de Baville. Had what the king directed been as
« well executed in rd to every province, as it was by this magiſ- « trate in the account of Languedoc, the colletion would have been
«« one of the moſt valuable monuments of the age. Some of them are « well done; but the plan was irregular and imperfect, bec uſe all the «“ intendants were not reſtrained to one and the ſame. It were to be « wiſhed, that each of them had given, in columns, the number of « inhabitants in each eleCtion 5 the nobles, the citizens, the labourers, « the artizans, the mechanics; the cattle of every kind; the good, the « indifferent, and the bad lands; all the clergy. regular and ſecular, « their revenues; thoſe of the towns, and thoſe of the communities.
« All theſe heads, in moî of their accounts, are confuſed and 1moer- « fe; and it is frequently neceſſary to ſearch with great care and pains « to find what is wanted. The deſign was excellent, and would have & been of the greateſt uſe, had it been executed with judgment and «“ uniformity,” Si gent

CW)
gent Cultivators of the kingdom, however, will doubt- leſs be excited; and the minds of men in general, gradu- ally brought to confider favourably Of an undertaking which will enable all to contribute to the national ſores oí knowledge, upon topics ſo truly intereſting as thoſe which concern the Agricultural Intereſts of their coun-
try: intereſts which on juſt principles never can be im- proved, until the preſent fate of the kingdom 1s fully Known, and the means of its future# 1mPprovement aſcer=-
tained with minuteneſs and ACCUYACY
P
- DD EF A 4 e Y 4
Ls L JA, Le
ai: Sint

R aer e E Fr ZEE
PAR EFA CE,
HE original Report having been printed by
the Board of Agriculture, and circulated for the purpoſe of procuring additional remarks, was returned to me by the Board, with a variety of uſe- ful hints, obſervations, and correQions; of which I have endeavoured to avail myſelf in this publica- tion, to the advantage, I truſt, of thoſe who may take the trouble of peruſing it. It 1s ſtill, however, Not 10” complete as‘could bé wiſhed for; butta generous and candid public will excuſe any 1m-
perfections to be found in it, however numerous, and will conſider them as almoſt unavoidable, when E E oa if 15 KNOWN that 1f Was originally the WorK oÏï one individual, unlettered, and immerſed in the cares oí a numerous family, and an extenſive buſineſs.
n WH
e N elfter da Vr LAA A

Neither pains nor expence have been pared to
procure 1nformation; and the refult is faithfully detailed. Having been brought up under a father who had the reputation of being a good prac- tical farmer, and having been all my life engaged in the cultivation of different ſoils, and in grazing, I preſume to think myſelf qualified to form opinions on the various ſyſtems of huſbandry; but when I recommend any practice, my readers may be affured that I do ſo, not from theory only, but from my
own experience.
[f the wealth and population of this Iſland may be expected to increaſe with the improvements that may be made in the cultivation of its ſoils to the utmoſt point of perfe&tion, what glorious proſpects are opened to our view, by the eſtabliſh- ment of a Board of Agriculture, whoſe great obje&t it will be to collet fats, diffuſe know- ledge, and reward excellence, in the department over which it is appointed by the wiſdom of
Parliament toa preſide!
AGRICUETORAE
iR

ured fd hfully father prac- neaged TAZINE, pinions when LT e aſſured
rom my
and may Jvements
its(oils
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Ty P; ry II) MY TINY 11D IL?(Œ?][N D M 11 Y[Y TL}, | KENTISH TURN-WRESDST PLOUGH

AGRICULTURAL SURVEY OF
i E A
CEA BTE RAL
GEOGRAPHICAL STATE AND CIRCUMSTANCES.
DEC T.I.— Situation and Extent.
HIS county forms the ſouth-eaſt angle or corner of
the kingdom, and probably derives its name from
that circumſtance. Tts figure is quadrilateral; and it is
bounded on the north ſide by the river Fhamés, the
county of Eſſex, and the German Ocean: on the ſouth
by the county of Suſſex; on the caſt by the Britiſh Chan- nel; and on the weſt by the county of Surrey,
It is about ſixty-three miles in length, from Deptford to the point of the North Foreland, comprehending be- tween theſe extremities about one degree and twenty- nine minutes of longitude; and meaſures on the eaft ſide, in a dired line from the North Foreland to Dengeneſs- Point, nearly forty miles, between the latitudes of 50°, 54 and. 519, 23/7, 20” north,
B SECT.

AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
DECT. II— Divifimmns.
AGs county 1s divided into two grand diſftri&s, Weſt and Eaſt Kent; the former containing the Lath of Scray z; the other comprizing the Laths of St. Auguſtine and Shepway, with the upper diviſion of Scray.
The county contains about fourteen hundred ſquare miles, or eight hundred ninety-x thouſand acres*, ſixty-three hundreds, four hundred and thirteen pariſhes, two cities, twelve corporate towns, thirty-nine market towns, nine thouſand freeholds, forty thouſand houſes, and two hun- dred thouſand inhabitants,
It ſends eighteen members to parliament, pays nearly a twenty-fourth part of the land-tax, and provides nine hundred and fixty men for the national militia,
Two chains of hills run through the middle of Kent, called the Upper and Lower; or, the Chalk and Gravel Hills. The northern range and whole north ſide of the €ounty are compoſed principally of chalk and flints; the ſouthern of iron and ragſtone: more weſterly, towards Surrey, clay and gravel prevail upon the eminences,
Below this laft range lies the Weald: an extenfive and nearly level tra& of land, rich and fertile at ſome places; where fine pafſturage and timber are produced.
The north part of Shepey is high ground; but it is moßly low and marſhy on the ſouth ſide. where two ſtreams, running into the Swale, form the iſlets of Elm- ley and Harty.
Thanet had a fall claim to the title of an iſland when
# By meaſuring all the finuoßities of the coaſt, I make the circumfe- rence of Kent 165 miles; bur the proper boundary for aſcertaining the contents cannot be more than 1 0 miles; which, reduced to a ſquare of ſour lides, gives 1406,25 íquare miles, or 900,000 fatute acres: from which ſhould Ve deduéted all the public waters, equal perhaps to ten ſquare miles; which reduces the meaſure to. 893,600 acres.
Note èy William Boys, Eſg.
the
ds

OF KENT. 2 the Rutupine Port was in its proſperity; but its preten- fion to the appellation is now barely kept up by a ſmall iewer communicating with the Stour and the ſca. The bed of that once famous harbour now forms valuable tracts of marſhes, comprehending above twenty-five thou- ſand acres. Thanet, including Stonar, contains nearly forty-one ſquare miles, or about twenty-ſeven thouſand Acres,
The Rother riſes in Suſſex, and empties itſelf into the ſea at Rye, forming the harbour of that port. Jthad:for= merly another outlet at Romney, the dry channel of which 1s fill vifible, From Rye it proceeds to Apledore, and then, by a curvature, forms the Iſle of OXneys which 1s about ten miles in circumference, and conſiſts of a ridge of upland, running through its middle, and of low fertile marſhes towards the river,
The Weald of Kent, before mentioned, was formerly covered entirely with woods+. It has now many ſmall towns and villages; but is more thinly inhabited than the other parts of the county{, and of courſe much leſs cultivated.
Romney-Marſh is an extenſive tras of rich marſh- land, at the ſouth corner of the county, originally in-
+ As a proof of this, the manors aboye the hill, which ſeparate the middle of Kent from the Weald, have many öf them a loúg ſlip of land each, reaching ten or twelve miles into the Weald 5 which farms pay quit-rents to them. Note ¿y a Middle Kent Farmer.
+ I do not think it leſs populous than the be cultivated parts of Faſt Kent; which, conſiſting of large farms, the harveſt-work of which, hoeing,&c, is done by labourers from other parts; whereas in the Weald it is otherwiſe; for being parcelled out generally into ſmall farms, the whole work 1s done by the reſident labourers and the fara mers themſelves: and this of courſe is in favour of its population.
Note by the ſame Middle Kent Farmer.
The public are much obliged to this Gentleman for a great number of very ſenſible and pertinent remarks; but in this.-inſtance, reſpecting the population of the Weald not being lefs than the beſt cultivated parts sf Kent, he is certainly miſtaken. Editor.
B 2 cloſed

N) AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
cloſed from the ſea, by a ftrong wall, thrown up between the towns of Romney and Hythe.
Much of the Iſle of Thanet was naturally very thin light land; but the greater part of it having belonged to the Religious, who were the wealthieſt and moſt intelli- gent people, and the beſt farmers cf the time, no pains ox coft were ſpared to improve the ſoil. The ſea furniſhed an inexhauſtible ſupply of manure, which was brought by the tides to all the borders of the upland, quite round the iſland; and moſt likely was liberally and judiciouſly applied by the Monks and their tenants; and their ſuc- ceſlors to the preſent time, have not negle&ed to profit by their example. Owing to theſe circumſtances, Thanet always was, and moſt likely always will be, famous for its fertility; and the Monkiſh tale of Thanet’s deriving its ſuperior fruitfulneſs from its having been the aſylum of St. Auguſtine, is not ſo far from the truth as it may at firſt appear. Old hiſtorians faid,‘“ Felix tellus Tanet ſua & fecunditate;’” and modern writers of huſbandry ſpeak of it as one of the fineſt gardens 1n the kingdom,
In ſhort, 1s there another diſtri& in Great Britain, or in the world, of the ſame extent, in ſuch a fate of culti- vatión,—where the farmers are ſo wealthy and intelligent, where land, naturally of ſo inferior a quality, 1s let for ſo much money, and produces ſuch abundant crops?
The whole iſland confiſted formerly of ten pariſhes, Viz. I. St. Giles, alias Sarre, now united with 2. St. N1i- cholas at Wade; 3. Monkton; 4. Birchingtonz 5. Wood- Church 0 NRE OC ohn e Bap OSE eS ter the Apofile; 9. St. Laurence; and, 10. Stonore; and. it contains about 3500 acres of excellent marſh land, and 23,000 acres of arable: all the lower part of the latter bordering upon the marſhes, and ſome parts of the hill, where there 1s a good depth of earth, are exceedingly pro- dudtiye;
e GE
PRC

OF KENT,
5 dudive; and the principal part of the remainder, altho” naturally a poor thin light mould on a chalky bottom, 1s made exceedingly fertile by the excellence of the ſyſtem under which it is cultivated. By an exa account taken of Minſter, in Thanet, January 1, 1774, there were found to be in that pariſh 149 houſes, 696 inhabitants, Viz. 359 males, and 337 females: of theſe, in ſixteen farm- houſes, inhabited by tradeſmen, labourers, and widows, there were 249 males, and 280 females. The average number of inhabitants, male and female, to éach farm- houſe 1s 10,43753 to each of the other houſes SOTA and to the whole number of houſes 4,6067711. And by another account taken in 1773, of St. Lawrence, includ- ing Ramſgate which contains more than two-thirds of the houſes and inhabitants of the whole pariſh, there were found in that pariſh 699 houſes and 2726 inhabit- ants, And again in 1792, there were found 825 houſes, and bor inhabitants: which is an increaſe of 126 houſes, and of 875 inhabitants in that pariſh in nineteen Years, The population in the latter period 4, 3b9 per houſe,
That part of the county uſually called Eaſt Kent, is of two kinds; one very opcn and dry, the other much in- cloſed with woods and coppices. The open part lies be= tween the city of Canterbury and the towns of Dover and Deals; and the incloſed part of thé tra extends from Dover, by Elcham and Aíhford, to Rochéfſter in length, and from the Iſle of Shepey to Lenham,&c. 1ñ breadth, The chief of the woodlands of Eaſt Kent arc diſperſed between the great road from Rocheſter to Dover, and the chalk-hill that runs from Folkſtone by Charing to Det- ling.
Theſe woods furniſh the country with fire-wood, til- lers for huſbandry uſes, and the dock-yards with timber for ſhip-building; but the moſt material part of their
B3 produce

6 AGRICULTURAL SURVELY
produce is the immenſe quantity of hop-poles cut out for the neighbouring plantations,
All that part of Eaſt Kent which lies within the Vicl- nity of the towns of Faverſham, Sandwich, and Deal, 18 moſtly arable, extremely fertile, and under the molt excel- lent ſyſtem of management; which will be deſcribed in its proper place,
The Iſle of Shepey is ſeparated from the refit of the county by an arm of the ſea, called the Swale, navigable for ſhips of 200 tons burthen. It is ſaid to have derived its name from the number of ſheep that were continually feeding on it. It 1s about eleven miles in length, and eight in its greateſt breadth, and contains the pariſhes of
1, Minfſer, with the ville of Sheerneſs;
2, Queenborough, which ſends two members to parliament;
2 12a De
de VMWiarden s
5. Leyſdown;
6. Elmley, and its Iſle;
TE andts les
« The land of this iſland riſes from the ſhores of the é rivers, on the ſouth-eaſt and weſt bounds of it, towards € its center; but on the north fide, it ſeems, by the height < of its cliffs, to have once extended much farther. The cé cliffs are in length about fix miles, and gradually de- «e Cline at cach end; the more elevated parts continuing « about two-thirds as far as they extend; and they are «“ at the very higheſt of them about Minſter, not leſs « than ninety feet in perpendicular height above the « beach or ſhore;- and, conſiſting of clay and being & waſhed at their baſis by the tides which beat againſt « them, more eſpecially when driven by ftrong north- é caft winds, they are continually waſhing and falling
€ down
A

OF KENT. EL
€ down upon the ſhore: and ſo great is the loſs of land TABOO NER Parts at omeUmes nen acre las “ ſunk down in one maſs from that height, upon the ſea- ‘ ſhore below. Some farms have loſt many acres within atheſeifewr years? Hafted’s Kent.
About four-fifths of this-iſland conſiſts of graſs land, of two ſorts; namely, marſh- land and upland paſture: the former has a very liberal ſhare of rich and good fatting land; but great part of the latter is very poor breeding land, that will hardly ſupport an ewe and an half per acre. Mofßſt of the arable land is exceedingly fertile in wheat and beans, eſpecially towards the north fide, in the pariſhes of Minſter and Laßt Church.
“ The incloſures on the hills are ſmali, and are ſur- rounded with thick hedge rows of elm: and the whole of the country is exceedingly pleaſant in fine weather, being interſperſed with hill and dale, and frequent houſes and cottages. The roads throughout the iſland
6c 6c [14 44
‘t are very good all the year, owing to the great plenty
of gravel and beach, and but little wear in it. The proſpeëts are very pleaſing and extenſive on every fide
«e There is hardly any coppice-wood throughout the Ceo SDE E E furze grounds and
buſhy ſhaws on the hill, which afford ſhelter for many Chartes anda fey Pheaſants and partridges, Good freſh 44
water 1s very ſcarce in moſt Parto ther andi bes tween BaſtiChurel and Minſter therelarer a few ſprings, and notwithſtanding they riſe very near the ſea, the water is perfeAly good and freſh. << Mheaîr 1s very thick, and much ſubje& to noxious vapour, ariſing from the vaſt quantity of marſhes in and near ît, which makes it very unwholeſome: inſo- much, that few people of ſubſtance live in it, eſpeci- B 4“ally

©. RE
REDE
“—=RrERE
H /
L) AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
« ally in the low land marſhy parts, where the inhabit « ants are few indeed, and confift chiefly of cookers.
« The garriſon and dock of Sheernefſs, its environs, ée and town of Queenborough, the reader, however, will «e except from this obſervation; where there are many é gentlemen of property and ſubſtance conftantly refſi- e dent,” Hafted’s Kent.
The cliffs on the north fide of this iſland belong to the three manors of Minfter, Shurland, and Warden; he owners of which let them out to the proprietors of the copperas works, who employ the neighbouring poor to colle& the pyrites, or copperas ſtones from the ſhores and which they dépoßt in heaps on the cliff, at the rate of one ſhilling per buſhel for their labour, until a ſufficient quantity is procured to load a veſſel, to take it away. The liberty of colle&ing the copperas on the ſea- ſhore, is let by the lords of the manors for ſixty pounds per annum.
The weſtern part of this county conſiſts of a great va=- riety of ſoils and ſyſtems of management. It is much more incloſed than the eaſtern part, and produces more timber and underwood.
The beft cultivated is the north fide of the diftri&, from Rainham to Dartford: a tra of five or ſix miles in breadth. Parallel to this is a ſpace of like breadth, of exceeding cold, ſ&iff, flinty clay, which is generally“ ploughed with ſix horſes: this is the flat top of the chalk- hill that runs from the ſeca, by Folkftone, through the county, to the borders of Surrey, near Weſterham, The ſoil of this ſlip of land is nearly alike, and 1s but of ſmall value, on account of the great expence of cultivation.
It is the higheſt land in the county, and 1s, from thence, by ſome called The Hog’s Back of Kent. Be- tween this hill and the borders of the Weald and county
of

f<
OF KENT, 9
of Surrey, is an incloſed country, with much gentle hill and dale, the hulls ſhelving in almoſt every direétion, with ſeveral varieties of the ragſtone ſoils, This part produces great quantities of hops and fruit, with ſome corn and graſs; alſo timber and underwood, and has many pieces of common and waſte land*,
The upper part, or weſt end, of this diſtri, is alſo much 1ncloſed with many coppices of timber and under- wood: great part of the latter goes to the metropolis, in different kinds of faggots. The corn and hay that are not conſumed in the neighbourhood, go likewiſe for the moß part to London.
The Weald. This diſtri& of the county was in ancient times an immenſe wood or foreſt, inhabited only by herds of deer and hogs, and belonged wholly to the King. By degrees it became peopled, and interſperſed with villages and towns; and by piece-meal, was for the moſt part cleared of its wood, and converted into tillage and paſture. There are, however, ſome woodlands Kill in their original ftate.
The reputed boundary of the Weald begins at the margin of Romney Maríh, and runs along the top of the Ragfſtone-hill, above the churches of Kingſnorth, Great Chart, Pluckley, Sutton, Linton, Hunton, Valden, acroſs the Medway by Tefſton and Wateringbury, From thence it proceeds by Hert's Hill, River-Hill, Idle-Hill, to Welleftreet, on the borders of Surrey, and then 1n umion with the boundary lines of the county of Suſſex, taking in the Iſle of Oxnecy, goes on to Apledore and the borders of Romney Marſh. It is ſomewhat remark-
*# The inhabitants divide the county into three parts, Eaſt, Middle, and Weſt Kent: and, according to the ancient provincial adage, Weſt Kent 1s healthy, but not wealthy; Eaſt Kent is wealthy, but not healthy 5 but Middle Kent 1s borh healthy and wealthy.
Note èy a Middle Kent Farmer.
Perhaps more fanciful than truc. Editor.
able,

IO AGRIGUETCERA CIS URNES
able, that the ſloping part of the ſtone-hill, which vités Tates E fe m the ragſtone ſhelf above, ſhould be ſo thickly covered with villages, whoſe churches ſtand about half way up the flope of the hill; while the neighbouring
J j Y
chalk hill-ridge, which ſeparates the ragftone ſhelf from
the hill above it, has not a ſingle village or church UPON The ftone-hill, in the extent of between twenty and
thirty miles, has ten or twelve pariſh churches upon lte
Romney Marſh is a ſpacious level of exceedingly rich land, lying at the ſouth corner of the county. Its ſhape IS nearly that of a parallelogram, whoſe length from the íoot of the hill at Aldington to the ſea-ſhore, between Dengeneſs and Rye, is about twelve miles; and breadth, from the borders of the Weald of Kent by Warehorn, to the ſea-ſhore, between Romney and Dimchurch, is nearly eight miles, It contains the two corporate towns of E ey and Lydd, and ſixteen other pariſhes. The quantity of land contained in this level, that is within the county of Kent, 1s about forty-four thouſand acres. The adjoining level of Guilford Marſh is, the greater part of it, 1n the county of Suſſex,
It is divided into three ſeparate diftris; viz. Romney= Marſh, which contains about twenty-four thouſand acres 3 Walland-Marſh about twelve thoufand, and Denge=- Marſh E eight thouſand acres 4. Harris, in his hif- tory of Kent, in ſpeaking of Romney Marſh, obſerves, “ that it was the firſt land which was inned or gained « from the ſea 1n Britain. For the laws, fatuates, and € ordinances for the conſervation of this marſh, are
«(like our common laws) without any known original z;
* This 1s accounted for by the great fertility of the ſoil on the one, and the want of it on the other. Note by a Middle Kent Farmer.
TV Claus E. H. 3. D, inter M, 6 and 7, in the Tower Records; alſo, Dg dü on Embankment. N CCADEINE

>
OF KENT. IT
« being at firſt conſtitutions, probably made by ſome, «e eyen by the old Britiſh Kings, or rulers in Kent, as « well as by the Saxons during the Heptarchy. For in < the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Henry the Third, € they are called ancient and approved cuſtoms.” This Marſh is defended from the ſea by an immenſe bank of earth(called Dimchurch Wall) of more than three miles in length. The face next the ſea 1s covered with com- mon faggot-wood, and hop-poles faſtened down by oak pilés and overlaths, which prevent the ſea from waſhing away the earth. The ſupport of the wall, and the drainage of this marſh, amount to the ſum of four thou- ſand pounds per annum; which ſum is raiſed by a ſcot per acre, on the whole level of Romney Marſh. The other two diftri&s of Walland and Denge Marſh, are each ſcotted ſeparately, to defray their own expences of drain- ASC OC
The land 1s not all equally good; ſome, chiefly near the ſea-ſhore, is a poor ſandy gravel, which bears a little graſs in the ſpring, that ſoon burns up in the ſammer;z and ſome, along the foot of the hills which ſurround the landſide of the Marſh, is wet and poor. But the great maſs of land, the center of the whole Marſh, is wonder=- fully rich and fertile.
There are but few oxen fed here, compared with what other rich marſh lands uſually keep: but the number of ſheep bred and fed, exceeds perhaps any diftri& of the like extent in the kingdom,
The ſcattered inhabitants of the Marſh are chiefly lookers and bailiffs, whoſe employers reſide in the upland parts of the county, or in the neighbouring towns,
Fletences are either ditches TO IOalk pots and rails; there being but very few hedges or trees 1n the Marſh, except a few about ſome of the villages, Immenſe quan-
titics

12 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
tities of oak pofíts and rails are annually brought out of the woodlands of the Weald of Kent, for the repairs of the fences,
SECT. III— Climate.
THE proximity to the German Ocean and Britiſh Channel, renders this county very ſubje& to cold ſea- winds, which often, near the ſhore in the ſpring of the year, injure the tender ſhoots of corn and herbage of every kind; eſpecially when, after a few days of fine warm weather, a north-eaſt wind ſucceeds,
The prevailing winds of this county are, north-eaſt and ſouth-weſt, When the former ſets in and continucs for any length of time, which is often the caſe in Winter, a ſevere froſt is always the conſequence z; the air is then exceedingly keen and ſharp; ponds are frozen to the depth of ten or twelve inches; and turnips are deſtroyed, The ſouth-weſt part of the county 1s more incloſed; and, being under ſhelter of the ridge of hills running from Folkſtone-hill to Wrotham,&c. is ſomewhat warmer às to climate; but the ſoil in this part being much of it a cold moift clay, the harveft is later than in thoſe Parts of the county which are more expoſed to the winds before mentioned,
The efffed of the climate on Agriculture will perhaps be beſt ſhown, by ſtating the time when the wheat har- veſt commences z which, in the moſt early parts of the county(viz. the Iſles of Shepey and Rance IS 02 very forward harveſt, by the 2oth of July, and in general in the laſt week of that month; 1n Eaſt Kent, between Canterbury and Dover, about fix or ſeven days later, ac- cording to ſoil and ſituation; and fill later, by ten or twelve days, on the cold hills which run through the
middle of the county, SECT
4
5]

OF KENT. 13
DECT. IV,— Soil and Surface.
ISLE OF THANET«
Tue bottom ſoil of the whole iſland, or what modern writers 1n huſbandry call the ſubſoil, is a dry, hard, rock chalk, The tops of the ridges are about ſixty feet above the level of the ſeca, and are covered with a dry, looſes chalky mould, from four to fix inches deep: it has a mixture of ſmall flints, and 1s, without manure, a very poor ſoil, The vales between the ridges and the flat lands on the hills, have a depth of dry loamy ſoil, from one to three feet, with leſs chalk, and of much better guality.
The weſt end of the iſland, even on the hills, has a good mould, from one to two feet deep, a little inclining to fiffneſs; but the deepeſt and beſt ſoil is that which lies on the ſouth ſide of the ſouthernmoſt ridge, running weſtward from Ramſgate to Monkton: it is there a deep rich ſandy loam, and moßly dry enough to be ploughed Hat, without any water- furrows. The ſil of the marſhes 1s a fiff clay, mixed with ſea- ſand and ſmall marine ſhells.
EAST KENT,
The open part of the diftriÆ& between Canterbury, Dover, and Deal, is of various ſoils, no one pariſh or farm being perfe&ly ſimilar in all its parts, The princi- pal ſoils are, 1, Chalk; 2d, Loam;z 3d, frong Cledsge 5 4th, Hazel Mould; gth,{if Clay. Befſides theſe, there are ſome ſmall tra&s of flints, gravel, and ſand.
The chalk-ſoils are of various depths; from three to ix or ſeven inches of looſe, chalky mould, on a rock chalk bottom, and are moßiy found on the tops and ſides of the
ridges

4 GRICUETORATISURNET
ridges of this diſtri, At ſome places there is a little mixture of ſmall flints, and at others, of black light mould, provincially called Black Hover. This laß, in an unimproved fate, is the worſt land in this diſtri; and the whole of theſe chalky ſoils are much negle&ed, and conſequently of little value; but where they happen to be improved, by paring and burning, deſtroying the charlock, with good manure afterwards, they become very good land for turnips, barley, clover, and wheat; and ſome parts produce tolerable crops of ſainfoin.
The loamy ſoil is a very dry, ſoft, light mould, from ſix to ten 1nches deep, on a red ſoftclay, which is good brick- earth, and lies in a ſtratum of from three to ſeven feet deep, under which is generally a layer of chalky marl, and then the rock chalk. This ſoil is very good, ploughs light, and may be worked at all ſeaſons; and produces good crops, 1f well managed, of all ſorts-of corn and graſs,
The ftrong cledge is a-ſiff tenaceous earth with a ſmall proportion of flints, and, at ſome places, ſmall particles of chalk: it is from fix to ten inches deep, on aæ hard rock chalk, and is found on the tops of the hills, When wet, it ſticks like birdlime; and when thoroughly dry, the clods are ſo hard as not to be broken with the heavieſt roll, Tt is very difficult to work, except when it 1s between wet and dry, This land, when well managed, and the ſeaſons are favourable for the work, produces good crops of wheat, clover, and oats; but when unkindly ſeaſons happen, and dry ſummers ſucceed, it 18 very unprodudQive.
The hazel mould is a light ſoil on a clay bottom, more or leſs mixed with flints and ſand, It is dry, and forms very kindly land for barley and wheat upon clover lays. Beans are ſometimes blighted on this ſort of land, as is
wheat
E

OF KENT. 1s
wheat alſo on bean or pea-ftubble, but more particularly the latter; for which reaſon wheat 1s very ſeldom ſown
fter péaſe.|
‘The ſuif clay lies on the tops of the highel This ſoil is general Hy wet which ariſes only from the rains in winter; for the ſprings are above 300 feet deep on the Tock chalk, lt has at Tome places a layer of a yellow coloured clay between the ſurface mould and the rock,
Flints.—This land, or rather ſurface of fones, occurs only in ſmall tras in the vallies about Dover and Stock-
bury, near Maidſtone. It conſiſts of beds of flints, with
hardly any mould to be ſeen. This 1s very expenſive to plough; but, under good management, with plenty of
manure, 1s very produdive in wheat, TE. and beans, There is very little gravelly ſo1l, and not much fand in this diftri&; a little of the latter, however, is ſeen in the vicinity of Hyith 1e and Folkftone. This is very light land to work, and excellent for turnips, barley, clover, wheat, peaſe, and potatoes.
The fat rich lands in the vicinity of Faverſham, Sand-
wich, and Deal. confiſt of two ſorts of- ſoil: namely, — EA
SE:: i rich ſandy loam, with a greater or leſs mixture of ſands and fuff clay, ſome of which, in the lower Parts, 18‘ra=
ther wet. The ſurface of the firſt is ſeven or elghtinches
deep, with a ſubſoil, varying in depth, of Rrong loam,
7
clay, or chalk, This ſoil is always plouched with four
horſes; is very dry and kindly to work at all ſeaſons, and no E or water-furrows are required Tt produces great crops of wheat, beans, barley, oats, and peaſe,
y
and ſoinetimes canary and radiſh.
The fif wet clay is that which has a frong clay bot- tom, or any E that ho ps Wäter, It lies low, is ſubjed to land-ſprings, and of cloſe texture
1
admit a quick filtration of water
E mes—
| \ | | M

16 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
This, when properly drained, and kept cleaned from weeds, and otherwiſe well managed in favourable ſeaſons, 1s excellent land, and produces good crops of wheat, beans, and canary; but is generally very expenhúve to keep 1n good order,
ISLE OF SHEBEY
Almoſt the whole of this iſle is a deep, frong, fuŒÆ clay. Some parts are ſo very ſticky in the winter time, that theplough wheels get loaded with dirt in one maſs, ſo as to form the ſhape of a grindftone, and are often overturned wuth the great weight of mould, colle&ed unegually upon the wheels; on which account foot- ploughs are ſometimes uſed, The horſes ſhoes are fre- quently torn off, by the hinder foot ftriking its ſhoe againſt the heel of the fore one, before it can diſen= gage itſelf from the ſoil. The beſt time to plough theſe ſoils, 1t is ſaid, is when they are thoroughly wet. Some of the upper parts of the iſland have a few gravelly fields; but thoſe are very wet in winter, and are rather fiff, The chief part of the upland paſture is a ſtiff clay, covered with ant-hillsz it is very wet in winter, ſubjed& to burn in a dry ſummer, and to ſplit open to a great depth. The ſoil of the marſhes is alſo a ſtiff clay underneath; originally a ſediment of the ſea, Its ſurface for an inch or two in depth 1s a vegetable mould, much enriched from the land having been thickly covered with ſheep for a long ſeries of years,
WEST: KENT.
The varieties of ſoil in this part are, 1. Chalk; 2. Loam;z 3: Clay 14. Gravelsys Sand 5 E Haſloek 7 Pinnoeks 9. Coomb; 9. Hazel Mould.
The chalky ſoils are found on the hides of hills, and at different

OF KENT.: Yi different places along the borders of the Thames, between Dartford and Rocheſter: they arc from five to ſeven or cight inches thick, of a looſe chalky mould, on a rock
chalk bottom. Thoſe of the greateſt depth of ſurface, that are well cultivated with a due proportion of manure, are very produêive in corn and ſeeds, and yield great crops of ſainfoin,
The loamy ſoils are found at diferent places, chiefly in the vallies, This land is of light tillage; and, when well managed, is very produßQive of corn, ſeeds, and hops; and is of various depths,
The clay ſoil is of two ſorts. That which lies at the top of the chalk-hills is much mixed with flints, is a cold ſoil, and ſo very tenacious, as to reguire ſix frong horſes to plough an acre per day in winter; and when left un- ploughed till dry in the ſummer, it is hardly praticable to get through it with eight horſes; and ſometimes, in Very dry weather, impoſfible. This ſort is from eight to four- teen inches deep on the rock chalk, and at ſome places a Riff yellow clay lies between,
The other ſort of clay 1s a cold, wet, ſtiff kind, with a ſmall mixture of ragſtone, and is chiefly found in the low grounds of the weſtern part of the country, Both ſorts are of ſmall value, being very expenſive to culti- Vate; and, except the ſeaſons are very favourable, they produce but poor crops, It ſometimes happens that this
Jand yields a great crop of wheat; which, like a Prize in the lottery, tempts the fortunate adventurer to try his luck again, with great loſs of labour and waße of ſub= ſtance, SE
Gravelly ſoils are chiefly found about Dartford and Blackheath, which produce early green peaſe, turnips, winter tares, rye, peaſe, oats, and ſome wheat. Theſe C grayels

vs AGRICULTURAL-SURVEY
gravels are from five to eight inches deep, with a ſubſoil of rocky gravel or ſand. There aré other ſoils, called Gravel, in the. lower part of this diſtri&, which are æ mixture of the ſmall pieces of Kentiſh rag, ſand, and Jloams the ſmall particles of ſtone predominating, SIVE it the title of Gravel, This ſort produces, when well cultivated,- good crops of turnips, oats, clover, and wheat. i
The ſandy parts of this diſtri& are in general very poor, being moſtly of the black ſort, and are chiefly found on commons and heaths, There are ſome how- ever in cultivation, which produce excellent turnips and corn.
Hafſſock, or fone- ſhatter, is a ſoil, the ſurface of which 1s a mixture of ſandy loam, with a great portion of ſmall pieces of light coloured Kentiſh ragſtone. It is from fix inches to a foot or two deep; the ſubſoil a ſolid rock of fone. This land produces great quantitics of hops, apples, cherries, filberts; and likewiſe good tur- nips, potatoes, ſeeds, and corn; alſo much excellent hay on old graſs lands, j
Pinnock. This land is very bad to till, and extremely poor. It is a ficky red clay, mixed with ſmall ſtones; but although it is deemed poor for cultivation of grain, Nc, yet it produces very fine cheſnut-wood, and filberts likewiſe grow well upon it. This ſort of land alſo lies upon the rock,
The Coomby ſoil of Weſt Kent is an extreme fi moift clay, mixed with ſones and flints of different ſorts. It ploughs ſo heavy as always to require ſix horſes, and ſometimes, when dry and hard, eight are neceſlary 5 even then, frequently not more than half an acre is ploughed in a day. This ſort of land is found in the : parts

OF KENT.
T9 parts about Seal and Wrotham, and is nearly the ſame as deſcribed under the title ot Clay,
A-fine hazel mould 1s found on the ſides of the hills,
and in the vallies, at different places throughout the whole diſtri.
THE WEALD,
The Weald of Kent has the reputation of being an entire maſs of clay; but, on examination, it is found to contain the following varieties of ſoil, namely, 1. Clay; 2. Hazel Mould; 3. Sand; 4. Ragſtone Gravel,
The clay is either fÆiff and exceedingly heavy, or a wet ſort, which ploughs ſomewhat lighter. The firſt is chiefly found on the eminences, or their ſloping ſides, The ſarface is about ſeven or eight inches deep, under which 1s a fratum of fi yellow clay, about a foot or two thick, with a ſubſoil in ſome parts of excellent marl, The ſecond ſort of clay lies in the lower parts, 1s ex=- tremely wet after ſhowers of rain, and a long time in getting dry; which often occaſions a late ſowing, and 2 backward harveſt; and frequently the wheat ſeaſon is totally loſt, The furface of this land is ſeven or eight inches deep; the ſubſoil is at ſome places a yellow clay, and at others a ſoft ſandſtone rock, which is often uſed for mending roads. Four horſes with difficulty plough an acre per day in theſe ſoils, In ſome pariſhes
bordering on Suſſex, the ploughing work 1s done by oxen; four or five pair are generally fixed to a plough, and do about the ſame quantity a day as four horſes,
The hazel mould is a clay ſoil of a drier nature, from having a conſiderable mixture of ſand; it ploughs liohts and 1s the beft land in the Weald.
Sandy ſoils are of two ſorts, black and white; the black is little regarded, but the white is much improved
C2 by

20 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
by marl and lime. The little there is of this ſoil in the diftri&, produces turnips, barley, clover, and wheat, and the ſubſoil is the ſoft ſandſtone.
The ragfſtone gravel 1s found only in ſmall patches; and 1s of little value in its preſent ſtate, being covered with furze, heath, and broom.
EEA
| |
ROMNEY MARSH.
Almoſt the whole ſurface of this ſpacious level of fine marſh-land, is the ſediment of the ſea. It confiſts chiefly of a ſoft loam and clay, with a greater or a leſs mixture of ſea-ſand; there are, however, near the ſea-ſhore, ſome ſmall tras of blowing ſand, and ſome ſea-beach, which are of very little value,
The principal part of the ſoil being a fine ſoft loam, with a mixture of ſea-ſand, and having lain time out of mind in graſs, covered with ſheep in winter and ſummer, its turf is wonderfully thick and fine; and the graſs 1t produces 1s of a fattening quality, equal, if not ſuperior, to any in the kingdom. The other parts, which are in- ferior, are thoſe which have a leſs portion of ſca-ſand, and are a füff clay; or thoſe which have too much ſand, or gravel, and are in conſequence apt to burn in dry ſummers; and theſe are the lands which are uſed as breeding grounds.
The ſubſo1l 1s frequently ſeen in alternate layers of clay and ſand, and ſometimes beach and ſand,
SECT. VV.— Mixtrals,
Ï cannot give a better account of this ſubjeét than by copying the words of the very ingenious hiſtorian* of
* Edward Haſted, Eſq. tis
Él: “2d

OF KENT. 21
this county, who has diligently ſought for every ſpecies of information,
« On the top of Shooter’s Hill, in the pariſh of Eltham, & 1s a mineral ſpring, which 1s ſaid conſtantly to over- « flow, and never to be frozen in the ſevereft winter, In « the pariſh of Bromley is another, which riſes at the foot «“ of a declivity, at a ſmall diſtance eaſtward from the Bi- «“ ſhop’s palace. The ſoil through which it paſſes is «€ gravel, and it 1flues immediately from a bed of pure « white ſand. The courſe of the ſpring ſeems to be about «“ north north-eaſt and ſouth ſouth-weſt from its aperturez << ¡ts opening is towards the latter; and as Shooter’s Hill c&c bears about north north-eaſt from its aperture, it pro- &< bably comes from thence. The water of this ſpring < being found to be a good chaly beate, was, by the Biſhop's <c orders, immediately ſecured from the mixture of other «““ waters, and incloſed, in hopes that it might prove be= ce nefcial(to ſuch asf ſhould drink 1.«Since Which, « numbers of people, eſpecially of the middling and “ poorer ſort, have been remarkably relieved by it from < various 1infirmities and diſeaſes, which were not only « afäing, but ſome of them dangerous. Above Well- « Place, which 1s a farm-houſe in Penſhurſt Park, there <c 1s a fine ſpring, called Kidder's Well; which, having <c been chymically analyzed, is found to be a fronger «c chalybeate than thoſe called Tunbridge Wells, <c The pariſh of Penſhurft, as well as the neighbouring <6 ones, abounds in veins of iron ore; and moft of thie « ſprings in them are more or leſs chalvbeate. « The whole neighbourhood of Tunbridge Wells « abounds with ſprings of mineral water; but as the ‘< properties of all are nearly the ſame, only thoſe two, « which at the firſt diſcovery of them were adjudged thé é“ beſt, are held in any particular eſtimation. i C23«helle

22 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
Theſe two wells are incloſed with a handſome ſtone- « wall, Over the ſprings are placed two convenient ba- « ſons of Portland ftone, with perforations at the bottom, €“ through which they receive the water; which at the ſpring is extremely clear and bright. Its taſte is fteely, but not diſagreeable; it has hardly any ſmell, though “ ſometimes, in a denſe air, its ferruginous exhalations are very diſtinguiſhable, Inñ point of heat, it is in- “ variably temperate; the ſpring lying ſo deep in the « earth, that neither the heat of ſummer nor the cold of & winter affeds it. € When this water is firſt taken up, its particles con- <c tinne to reft till it 1s warmed to nearly the heat of the <“ atmoſphere; then a few airy globules begin to ſeparate & themſelves, and adhere to the ſides of the glaſs, and in a few hours a light copper cóloured ſcum‘begins to «e float on the ſurface; after which an ochreous ſediment € ſettles at the bottom. Long continued rains ſometimes “ give the water a milky appearance; but do not other- “ wiſe ſenſibly affe& it. From the experiments of dif- € ferènt phyſicians, it appears, that the compotent parts of this water.are feely particles, marine ſalts, an oily € matter, an ochreous ſubſtance, finiple water, and a vo=- é latile vitriolic ſpirit too ſubtile for any chymical ana- € lyſis, In weight, it isin ſeven ounces anda quarter, four & grains lighter than the German Spa(to which it is é preferable on that account) and ten grains lighter than € common water. It requires five drops of oleum ſul- € phuris, or elixir of vitriol, to a quart of water, to pre- & ſerve its virtues toa diſtance from the ſpring. This & water is ſaid to be an impregnation of rain in ſome “ of the neighbouring eminences, which abound in € iron mineral; where it is further enriched with the “ marine ſalts and all the valuable ingredients which ““ con=-
e ams— =

OF KENT. 23
“ conftitute it a light and pure chalybeate; which in- «“ ſtantly ſearches the moſt remote receſſes of the hu- « man frame, warms and invigorates the relaxed con- « ſtitution, reſtores the weakened fibres to their due tone “ and elaſticity, removes thoſe obſtruétions to which the “ minuter veſlels of the body are liable, and is conſe- < quently adapted to moft cold chronical diſorders, low- «“ neſs of ſpirits, weak digeſtions, and nervous complaints,
«“ At Sydenham, in the pariſh of Lewiſham, there are < ſome ſprings of medicinal purging water, which, from é“ their nearneſs to Dulwich, in the county of Surry, bear “ the name ot Dulwich Wells; though there are ſome < of the ſame Kind in that pariſh, but they are of an in- & ferior quality, and not ſo plentiful in quantity.
«“ Theſe ſprings in this hamlet are at the foot ofa & hill, about twelve in number, The hill and ground adjoining 1s a ftiff clay, with ſome wood upon it, é Theſe are next to thoſe of Epſom, being diſcovered « about the year 1640,
« The hole dug is about nine feet deep, and the water € about half a yard deep; being emptied every day, « The bottom is a loam, as 1s the hill; and where the « water ifaes in, is found the lapis lutoſo-vitriolicus, € which glitters with vitriolic ſparkles, and is divided <6 1nto parcels by the trichitis,
€ This water purges very quickz it is bitter, like the 6 Epſom waters; it curdles with ſoap or milk, equally “ to them, and much more than thoſe at Richmond,
«“ Dr. Allen publiſhed his account of theſe wells in the «“ year 1699; though there had been before, in 1681, a & treatiſe on them, publiſhed at London, in 12mo, by «Dr. John Peter, Phyfician, under the name of Lew- « 1ſham, vulgarly called Dulwich Wells, in Kent; in E74“ which
M m EP
7.
76
——— EL”

24 AGRICULTURAL SURVEV
é which were ſhewn the time and manner of their dif & covery, the minerals with which they arc impregnated, « and the ſeveral diſeaſes experience has found them < good for, with dire&ions for the uſe of them; and <“ in No, 461, p. 835, of the Philoſophical Tranſadtions, <“ is an account of a new purging ſpring at the Green « Man at Dulwich, 1739, by Mr. Martyn.
«“ Near the weſt end of the bridge, oppoſite the Store- € keeper?’s houſe of the royal powder-mills at Faverſham, <c there 1s a ftrong chalybeate ſpring, which on trial has “ been proved to be nearly equal to thoſe of Tunbridge ee ells y
SECT VN— Poter.
Tu1s county poſſeſſes advantages ſuperior to any other in point of navigation, from its extenſive range of ſea-coaft, and the two great navigable rivers, the Thames and Medway, beſides thoſe of leſs note, the Stour and the Rother. The two former are navigable for the largeſt ſhips to Woolwich and Chatham, and for ſmall craft to a very great diſtance.“ The Stour and the Rother ad- “ mit coaſting- veſſels to Sandwich and Rye. The ‘ Ravenſborn, the Cray, and the Darent, are ſmall & creeks or freams that fall into the Thames; the firſt € at Deptford, the others in one channel at Longreach. «“« Moſt of the marſh-land of this county 1s along the margin, or at the mouths of theſe rivers, or has been formerly covered with the waters ot ancient havens € and ports, now in a great meaſure obliterated. Theſe « rivers likewiſe have formed iſlands towards their “ mouths. Thus the Thames and the Medway, at their $ extremities, contributed their waters jointly to the ſe- “ paration of the Iſle of Graine from the main land, but cc the
d

OF KENT. 25
iſ« the channel is now filled up, The Swale, one of the e,€€ mouths of the Medway, in like manner cuts of Es«« Shepey from the continent of Eaſt Kent. Graine is 1d« throughout low and marſhy, and is about three miles 5 6 and a half long, and two and a half wide.” eN | Hafied's Kent, (t=: L m,\ as| 5e RS | i CHAPTER II 1- f\ STATE OF PROPER TS; 5\ d| cf| to| SEC T.I,— Efiates. d- Î R\ E property in land in this county is very much ll y divided, there being few extenſive poſſeſſions but 8| what are interſe&ed by other perſons property; and, ac-
< cements a good underſtanding between the gentry and ‘ yeomen, their lands being everywhere ſo much inter- x“ mixed one with the other, obliges them to a mutual
Y| cording to Mr. Hafſted,“ this diſtribution of freeholds \
S{“ civility for their own intereſt and convenience; nor are
E“ the latter ſo much dependent on the gentry as the inha-
Ä“ bitants of moſt other counties, by copyhold or cuſtomary| Y€“ tenures, of which there are very few in it; which fate> Y E‘of freedom is produétive of good-will and kindneſs from| y E the one ſort to the other; there being no part of the
(è)
cé king-

26 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
< kingdom where the people are more quietly governed, “ or ſubinit with more pleaſure to the laws and magif- “e tracy, of the country
The number of yeomanry of this county ſeems annu- ally on the increaſe, by the eſtates which are divided and ſold to the occupiers. There is no deſcription of per- fons who can afford to give ſo much money for the pur- chaſe of an eftate as thoſe who buy for their own occu- pation. Many in the eaſtern part of this county have been ſo ſold, within theſe few years, for forty, and ſome for fifty years purchaſe, and upwards,
“ The number of freeholds in the county of Kent, are €“ ſuppoſed to be about nine thouſand; which is ſurpriz- «Inos confidering the large poſſeſſions which the two “ epiſcopal dioceſes, the two cathedrals of Canterbury
“ and Rochefter, and ſeveral of the colleges of Oxford «
-
and Cambridge, and other bodies corporate, are en- < titled to in it; which, ata rack-rent, are computed at & upwards of 80,000 /. per annum, befides parſonages and portions of tithes,” FHafted.
e G
SECT. II.— Tenurese
“ Tue focage tenures of ancient demeſne, and gavet- kind, prevail over this county, The former of which «“ confiſts of thoſe lands and manors which were the “ ancient inheritance of the crown, and a@ually in thé ‘« hands of it in the time of King Edward the Confeſſor, «“ or William the Conqueror; and which appear to have “ been ſo by the great ſurvey of Doomſday, in the Exche- é“ quer, in which they are entered, under the title of «e Terra Regis.
« Moft of theſe have been, from time to time, granted €. out to private ſubjeâ@s, but the tenants of them under ““ the crown, were not all of the ſame order and degree; cc ETOME

OF KENT. 27
« ſome of them continued for a long time in abſoluté
« yilleinage, dependent on the will of the lord; and thoſe 4
C)
that ſucceeded them in their tenures, now differ from « common copy holders in only a few points. Others were in a great meaſure enfranchiſed by the royal favour, « holding their lands by the better ſort of villein-ſervi- «c ces: all which are now changed into pecuniary rents; & in conſideration of which they had many immunities « and privileges granted to them; ſuch as to try the «“ right of their property in a peculiar court of their own, called a court of ancient demeſne; not to pay « toll, or taxes; not to contribute to the expences of «“ the knights of the ſhire; not to be put upon juries, « andthe like,
« The latter of theſe, the ſocage tenure of gavel- « kind, prevails in general over this county; to which, & within the bounds of it, there are certain ſpecial cuſ- 6 toms inherent, called anciently Conſuetudines Kantiæ, 66 being the common law of Kent.
Various are the opinions of our antiquaries, con- C
Gs
cerning the etymology of the word Gavelkind; but
LJ
« that which is moft natural, and beſt ſupported both by
€ reaſon and authority, is drawn from the nature of the [4
Gi
ſervices. € According to this expoſition of the term, it 1s de-
LA)
«“ rived from the Saxon word GAFOL, or GAVEL, which
€
GG
fignifies rent, or a cuſtomary performance of huſban- c
“e
dry works; and, therefore, they called the lands, which yield this kind of ſervice, Gavelkind; that is, the kind of land that yields rent.
[4
LA
[4
LN
<c If this is the true etymology, it 1s plain that gavel- « Kind, taken in the firi@efſt ſenſe of the word, denotes
«“ the tenure of the land only; and that the partibility, 6
-
and other cuſtomary qualities, are rather extrinfie “ and

28 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY;
and accidental to gavelkind, from the cuſtomary laws of the place, than neceflarily comprehended under that term.
« Gavelkind lands are not peculiar to the county of Kent; there are many inſtances of them in different parts of this realm, which are ſaid to partake of the nature and cuſtom of gavelkind: a Rile they have af- ſumed fince the diſgavelling ſtatute of the 31ft of King Henry VIIL; before which they are never mentioned as gavelkind land, but only that they were fuch as were partible, and had been parted: and ſo peculiar is this tenure eſteemed to be to this county, that, whereas in all other places, the claimant is obliged to ſet forth particularly the cuſtom whereon he founds his right to the lands, as being of the nature and tenure of gavelkind; in this county it is ſufficient to ſhew the cuſtom at large, and to ſay that the lands lie 1n Kent, and are of the nature of gavelkind; of which all lands lying 1n the county are preſumed to be, till the contrary be made to appear. And this is the reaſon why the books called Gavelkind in this county, by a bigher appellation that is given to any ather cuſtom, viz. the common law of Kent.”
Hafted’s Kent,

CAPT ER TI:
BUE DINGS.
SECcT. I.— Houſes of Proprietors.
HERE are between twenty and thirty noblemens
ſeats in this county, beſides many elegant and large manñons of the gentry, and abundance of modern bui!r houſes of great value belonging to merchants, and other wealthy tradeſmen of the metropolis,&c. To give a par- ticular deſcription of every ſeat and manſion, wul very far exceed the limits of this work, and take more time than 18 allowed for completing 1t. I hope, therefore, that I ſhall be excuſed in referring the Honourable Poard and reader to Haſted’s hiſtory of this county, where every ſcat, manfion, and park, are ably and ele- gantly deſcribed,
DECT. II.— Farm-Houſes and Offices,
THERE are ſome few inſtances of modern built houſes íor the uſe of the farmers; but the chief part are very old, large, and ill contrived, the upper ftories generally proje&ting over the under ones, Theſe old houſes are, in many parts of the county, built with cheſnut, where now no cheſnut-timber is to be ſeen: the offices about them are as badly contrived as the houſes themſelves, This part ot the rural œconomy of this county ſtands much in need of a reform. On moſt of the middle and finall fized farm-houſes and offices, thatch 1s the com-
mon
| | | |

30 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
mon coverings which is put on, particularly in the eaſt= ern part, much worſe than in any other part of the kingdom that has fallen under my view. The ſtubble of wheat 1s raked up for this purpoſe; which being often done in the winter, when by rainy ſeaſons it is become
, half rotten, of courſe cannot laft a long time on a build-
ing, The farm-houſes in the Iſle of Thanet are, in gene- ral, exceedingly neat and convenients and from ſome of them are ſeen the moſt beautiful proſpeQs of Eaßt Kent, the Downs, and coaft of France.
DECT. II,— Cottages,
TEE cottages are of ſach various kinds, that it is im- poſlible to give any other account of them, than to ſay that they are 1n general comfortable habitations for far- ming labourers, They are built, ſome with bricks and tiles; but the greater part, eſpecially of the oldeſt, with plaiſtered wall, and are covered with thatch, There are very few but what have a ſufficient plot of land annexed to them for the growth of vegetables; and a great many in ſome parts of the county afford keep for a cow. Thoſe, which have a garden of from twenty to thirty perches, uſually let from 2/4. to 3! per annum, ſome more and athers leſs, according to ſituation and other circum- Rances: thoſe which have land enough to keep a cow, let from 4. to 5. per annum,
Some writers on this ſubje& have taken confiderable pains to ſhew, it would be a great advantage for every cottager to have two or three acres of land, that they might each keep a cow and two or three hogs, and raiſe plenty of potatoes: but gentlemen who recommend this, in their humanity to the individuals who are to be bene- fitted, loſe fight of what would be the miſchievous ces

OTF KENT.
x
C>S
«feds to the community, by the loſs of their labour.& will venture with great confidence to predid, that if every farming cottager, or, in other words, every farmer's labourer 1n the kingdom, could be ſo accommodated, a famine would inevitably be the conſequence in a ſhort ſpace of time; for my experience has taught me to ob- ſerve, that few men willlabour hard any farther than ne- ceflity compels them to do o; and it is clear, that any cottager who has two or three acres of land, keeps a cow, and two or three hogs, and grows plenty of pota- toes, is not much neceſlitated to labour for others.
CAPRE R N
MODE OF OCCUPATION
SECT...— Size of Farms, and Charaëtler of the -/; Vd
Farmers.
FAHE ſize of farms is generally greateſt in the pooref parts of the county, Many ſmall farms,
of from ten to fourteen acres each, are found‘in the richeft ſoils, and few there excéed 200 acres; but where land 1s poor, there are many as large as 300 acres,‘and ſome 600, or more. Many writers on agriculture have condemned the pradtice of adding ſmall farms together, únder an 1dea that it tends to increaſe the price of pro-
GAA
yifons,

42 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
viſions, and decreaſe population; but from all the obſér= vations that I have made for the laſt twenty years, I am perſuaded that the large farmers, generally ſpeaking, make the land more produttive in the groſs than the iímaller farmers do, becauſe they generally make greater exertions in 1mproving their land; and of courſe, large farms muſt have a tendency to lower the price of pro- vifions, It 1s very true, that a number of ſmall farmers on a gwen tra of land, will rear more poultry and eggs, and perhaps make more butter, than one farmer on the ſame quantity of land; but the one farmer will raiſe more mutton, wool, beef, and pork, and grow mog corn; and will employ a much greater number of labourers than the ſmall farmers on the ſame tra& of land: and confegquently population will be increaſed rather than be diminiſhed by large farms. At any rate, there ought to be no reſtraint, as ſome writers have recommended, in the letting of farms; for if it were ſo, men of large capitals could not be accommodated; by which many of the moſt ſpirited improvers in agriculture would be driven perhaps out of the kingdom z and if not, their money would either lie idle, or be employed in ſome other purſuit with much leſs advantage to the commrnu- nity.
The occupiers of the ſmall farms in general, work themſelves much harder, and fare worſe than other labourers, or many journeymen mechanics. Thoſe of the higher claſs, the large occupiers and principal yeomanry, are a very reſpetable claſs of ſociety, and have a great weight in the political ſcale of the county.
Mr. Haſted ſays,€“ The yeomanry which in moſt
& other parts of the kingdom is confined to the common
« people only, as indeed the name ſhews, for it is ſo & called from the Saxon word GEMEN, which ſignifies és common,
quii
IR e RE

OF KENT. 33
«€ common, is extended much higher in Kent; for it € here likewiſe comprehends the principal farmers and & landholders, who, either. from their education or in« “ tercourſe of life, are not eſteemed by the gentry of ‘€ equal rank with themſelves; and yet, in point of wealth “ and poſſeſſions, they are frequently ſaperior to many of “ them, who though they write themſelves Yeomen, “ yet are uſually and very properly ſtyled Gentlemen- « Farmers; for beſides the largeneſs of their holdings, € which are from 400. to 1200/. per annum, they have, Cno eneral, good eſtates and freeholds of their OWN, & and ſome, even to the amount of what hehre: 2 Beſides the yeomen, before mentioned, there is an 1n=- finite number of farmers, not having or poſſeſſing a free- hold, who occupy from 40! to 200/4 or 400/. a year. The ſmaller farmers are in general a very induſtrious and ſober ſet of men, fare hard, and live with great frugality. The great occupiers, who have property in ſock of from 1 to 2, or 3000! live, as they ought, more at their eaſe: but as to making of fortunes by far= ming, there is no ſuch thing that ever came to my know=- ledge; the competition is too great to admit of it; in- ſances have been known of great wealth being left by old farmers, who have never had any other occupation; but then they have, perhaps, had no family, or never ſpent any thing beyond the expences of a common la- bourer, ſo that the fortune has been ſaved by the ſimple operation of compound intereſt; or, perhaps, theſe per- ſons have held their farms for a long ſeries of years, at a rent of great favour.

|
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E nr PERL E TTE OA m ZU AO ae Y iu Gs R. 4
AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
SEcT. IL— Rents.
THERE are many farms which let as low as gs per acre; and others, at every other price between that ſum and 30s.; while ſome particular fields of rich land, in the vicinity of great towns, as pafture, garden, hop-ground,&c. may let as high as 3, 4, or 51, per acre,
The rent is, I believe, invariably paid in money z; all ancient cuſtoms of paying in kind, and perſonal ſervices, being aboliſhed or compounded for, except in ſome trifling caſes; where a landlord fipulates for a load or two of firaw annually, or the carriage of a few coals, the keep of a young hound, or ſome ſuch thing of little con- ſequence,
The payments are uſually made half-yearly; that which is due at Lady-day, at Midſammer; and that due at Michælmas, at Chriſtmas; generally allowing the tenant one quarter’s credit, In ſome few inſtances, a half ycar is given them, paying one half year under another, Perhaps I may not be very wide of the truth, 1E Relate the average rent of the county to be 15s per acre z which will make for the whole, 896,000 acres, 672,000!
Sx cT. III.— Tithes.
IN many parts of this county, the tithes are colle&ted in kind; in others, they are compounded for on terms which will be hereafter mentioned.
In the Iſe of Thanet, the whole of the re&torial tithes are colleâ&ed, but the vicarial are chiefly compounded for; part is neither colle&ed nor compounded at pre-
fent, nor has been for ſome years, owing to a litigation about

OF KENT. 35
about the right to the tithe of turnips,&c. In the
caftern part of the county, the reâorial are almoſt in-
variably paid in kind, and the vicarial moßly compoun-
ded for, excepting in ſome inſtances, where there Are
diſagreements between the vicars and their pariſhioners,
The rich lands about the towns of Faverſham, Sänd=
s wich, and Deal, have their tithes chiefly colle&ed, In
the Iſle of Shepey, the ſame. There.have been ſome
diſagreements reſpe&ing the vicarial tithes in the pariſh
of Minſter, which are now ſettled, by paying 2s,
Per„pound‘on“ther rent, and: an addition of 6d.
Per acre for uplands, 9d. for marſh lands, and
1s for mowing meadows; by which, an acre of
upland, that lets for gs, per acre, pays Is. to the lay-
improprietor; an acre of marſh land, that lets for 10s,
Pays 1s. gd; and an acre of meadow, that lets | |
R———————
for 14 pays 3s. or, reduced to a fraCion,
The poor land pays 7a[7 its irettiin Téa Gs
The middling--7-40ths leia] Hrue:
| The beſt- 6-40ths
About Maidſtone, the tithe of corn is generally com- pounded for; wheat, from 6 to 7s, per acre; and Lent= corn, from 4 to 5s. per acre,
In the Weald of Kent, tithes are compounded for; wheat from 5 to 6s. Per acre; oats 3s,; beans, peaſe, and barley, from 3 to 4s.; ſceds and meadow, 2s. In Romney Marſh, the graſs lands(except in the pariſh of Lydd*) pay a modus in lieu of tithe; ſome' of 44. ſome 84. and others 1s. per acre; and corn lands pay a
compoſition of from 4 to 6s, Some pariſhes pay=
* The modus for this pariſh was deſtroyed ſome ycars fince, to the pariſhioners deſiring to have it lowered: fented, and afterwards recovered the tithes.
[Dari ing
owing to which the vicar con-

4Ó AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
ing the low modus of graſs, if it 1s mown, pay Is per acre. À fair commutation for tithe, I think, would occafon a great number of improvements in agriculture; for even in the Iſle of Thanet, where the land in general is cultivated in the moft ſuperior file, there are ſome improvements yet to make; for there are ſeveral fields of poor thin chalky lands, on the hills, in the vicinity of Margate and Ramſgate, that were never known to have any manure carried on themz; which, doubtleſs, would pay very well for mending, after a few years, 1f the occupier had the whole of the produce to himſelf; but the miſchief is, that if he is at a great ex- pence in purchaſing town-dung, or getting ſea-weeds up the cliffs for this land, he is probably a conſiderable loſer the firſt two or three years by his induſtry; when at the ſame time, the tithe-gatherer, who 1s at no part of the expence, trouble, or hazard, gets corn each year, perhaps equal in value to two or three years purchaſe of the land in its unimproved fate: hence it 1s, that ſome of the poor lands lie negle&ed. Tf a fair commutation for tithe# could be deviſed, ſo as to ſatisfy all parties, there can be no doubt but that the produ of this iſland, great as it already 1s, would be much increaſed by the additional ſtock of produ&ions from that circumftance
4$|| There
+ IT cannot believe that the tithe was ever confidered by the farmers as an objedtion to Improvement. I do not believe it was ever thought of: ten to one are too great odds, Note by W. B. Efſg.
+ Having ſent a manuſcript copy of this report to an ingenious friend in Thanet, he returned it with the following remark:
« Whatever may be the 111 effedts of tithe taken in kind, or whether any, I ſhall not here enquire into, but only remark, that the thin chalky land on the hills, in the vicinity of Margate and Ramſgate, are. not indebted to the tithe-gatherer for their little produce, but to the inability of the occupiers, who are, generally ſpeaking, in mean circum- Kances; carters, machine-drivers,&c.&c. who plough,&c. whes they can, 1n ſeaſon or out of ſeaſon. The ſame kind of land in the oc- cupation of the wealthy farmers, exhibits a very different appearance to
the

E CDES DE
OF KENT. 37
There would be another very conſiderable advantage to the public, in the ſaving of labour in harvefß, by the corn being carried into the occupier’s barns in much leſs time than it is carried into thoſe of the parſonage: the latter being frequently at a great diſtance from ſome part of the pariſh, much time is ſpent in getting the corn home. The value of the difference of the labourer, be- tween carrying the tithe-corn into the parſonage and far- er's barn, is juſt ſo much loſs to the public; and if rightly calculated for the whole kingdom, would amount to an immenſe ſum*$, Among the diſadvantages to
DES the
the eye of the ſpe&ator; and produces a more ample return to the pocket of the occupier.”
This 1s molt certainly the caſe in ſome meaſure; but there is a much greater quantity of poor unimproved land occupied by farmers, than by carters and machine-drivers. Naſh Court Farn, near Margate, has ſeveral ſcore acres, which in all probability would have been manured before this time, had they been tithe-free. Editor.
$ What is meant by a fair commutation for tithe, I know not. An equivalent, or a commutation that would ſatisfy all parties, is perhaps impoſible. The public good, however, certainly requires, that the moſt equitable one that can be deviſed ſhould take place, whether the parties immediately concerned are ſatisfied or not. The Surveyor’s reaſonings are undoubtedly juſt and conclußve, and the objections of his correſpondent, however plaußble they may appear to the ſuperficial obſerver, are of no weight as to the main obje in queſtion.
Note by an unknown Gentleman, tranſmitted to the Hoyourable Board of Agriculture.
|| All the great, or corn tithes, are in lay-hands(excepting a ſmall portion of Minſter) and are all taken in kind; and this report fates agriculture in a very flouriſhing fate in Thanet. It would, perhaps, enlighten the queſtion, if a fair compariſon could be made with fri&t impartiality between a tithe-free farm and ſome of the beſt cultivated and managed farms ſubje&t to the tithe-gatherers in Thanet and Eaſt Kent. The local advantage of an inexhaußible ſupply of manure from the ſea, is ſufficient to counterbalance the diſadvantage of payment of tithe in kind, and ſeems to be the true reaſon why ſo much of the poor land has been improved, Note ¿y a Clergyman in Thanet.
# There are very few inſtances of the clergy taking tithe in kind in this county. Remark by the Rev. Mr. Price of Lymage.
But they let them to others that do, which is the ſame thing to the cultivator. Editor.
Ds To
—
ps a R E

8 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
the public in the colleRion of tithe in kind, the quarrels between neighbours, who perhaps would otherwiſe te
2 «D
very good friends, 1s a very material one; and more particularly where the tithe-gatherer happens to be the clergyman;zs but this is ſeldom the caſe in the Iſle of Thanet, the tithe there being moſtly in lay-hands.
There are immenſe quantities of poor laad in Eaſt Kent, wliich experience has proved, might be made to pro- duce good crops of turnips and clover, that never yet have produced either; but the expence is ſo great to the occupier, with the idea before him that another may reap the greateſt benefit, that hardly any perſon is will- Ing to ſet about improving his lands on ſuch terms. Crops of wheat and barley have been lately produced upon ſome of the chalky downs, by means of improvements from turf-burning, that were worth more than the fee- ſimple of the land on which they grew. But they were raiſed on lands that paid no tithe; and that circumſtance was the principal inducement to make the exertion. Let tithes be compounded for, 1f it were only for one term of twenty years, and turnips, clover, mutton, and wool, would increaſe in an aſtoniſhing degree. Farmers then
To this may be added,.the loſs by weather and the depredations of cattle,&c. to which the tithe-gatherer is particularly ſubje& in a wet harveſt. A note èy H. G. Fauſſett, Eſg.
+ The author is a tithe-gatherer to a conſiderable amount, and of courſe intereſted in the collection of tithe; but ſeeing, as he does, the many obftruétions to all agricultural improvements, together with many other inconveniencies and loſſes to the public, by means of tithes; and being called upan for his opinion, he feels it his duty to give his ſentiments.
As this note is intended to give weight to the author?s obſervations on tithe, his candour would have been more conſpicuous, had he ſtated the proportion of land he pays the tithe of, and what he colles, and Jeft the public to judge how far he is intereſted in the colleétion.
Remark dy a Clergvman.
Ve çolledts full three times as much tithe as he pays. Editor. would

OF KENT. 39
would have the ſatisfa&ion of reaping the fruits of their own labour; and would ſet about turf-burning, and every ſcheme they could deviſe, to mend that land which they now care but little about,
SECcT. IV.— Poor Rates,
THe expences of the poor vary ſo exceedingly in the different pariſhes throughout this county, that it will be impoſible for me to make any exa report on this ſab- jet, Some pariſhes expend no more than ba, in the pound on their rents, while many others exceed even 5 OO IESA general complaint, that theſe expences are annually on the increaſe, There are, however, ſeveral corporations lately ere&ed, under Mr. Gil- bert’'s a of parliament, which are yet 1n their infancy» but, even in this early NagEJhey afford a fair proſpe&t of anſwering the intentipz of reducing the poor rates: at all events they di diſc age idlenefs, and bring UP Poor children in habits of virtue and induſtry, The exa& expences of the poor, for the laſt three years, in the ten pariſhes of the Iſle of Thanet, I have been favoured with by the diferent pariſh-oflicers, and are as follows:
St, Poor. Police, LS LA Sarre, about S000 O Ste icholas 722 9.0 Monkton 0720 O Birchington uo eo O Se PE Woodchurch 2532 0 0 Mingßer 1449 OO L4606 0 0
Of this ſum the pariſh of Minſter has expended in rents for poor people, who were not able to pay them,
D4 From

4s AGRICULTURAL SURVEY Poor. Police,
AL Pe 7 LG Brought over 4606 o o
St. John Baptiſt 37986 o 0 1700 SERBeteritne A Doltlce 072 HOS St. Lawrence 4019 0 0 Dtonore 241 090 54417 0 0 Average of 3 years, L 4805 13 4
158,666! 13s. 4d
or annual expence of maintaining the poor of the Iſle of Thanet; which 1s, for every acre of land, 3s. btd,
If the expences of the poor rates for the whole county may, with any degree of propriety, be eſtimated from this particular average, viz. 3s 6d. per acre,— then for 896,000 acres in the county, the whole amount is
1791, 0— 17925, 14
In the juriſdiétion of
ES, From Eaſter 1790, to Eaſter 1791, 8 gg 0 7 6 2416
1792, 10— 1793, 19 1
the County. Of Sandwich. Of Dover. St. Lawrence, Ramſgate, The whole of only part; The remainder of Birchington, Minſter, all; St. T.awrence, Ditto of Mar- Monkton, all; Sarre, gate, St. Nicholas, The remainder of Dittoof'St. Pe. only part, at. Nicholas. ter, TF
Note by a friend in Thanet.
One very great impediment to any efffe&tual reform in the manage- ment of the poor in Thanet, ariſes from the diferent juriſdiCions of the county, of Sandwich, and of Dover within it.
+ Theſe local jurifdi&ions are very inconvenient, both to the county at large and to the places themſelves. The power of magi- frates is rendered of ſmall€effe&t; and many a ſturdy rogue eſcapes the puniſhment he deſerves, Note èy H. G. Fauſſci, Eſq.
This

| |
DEEE E E I em
OF KENT. ar
"This may perhaps be erroneous, becauſe, in the ten pariſhes of the iſland, there are two populous towns, whereas in the 413 pariſhes of the county there are only forty-one towns, including the two cities, which is nearly double the number of towns in the iſland in proportion to the county; but, 1n oppoſition to this, my informa=- tion from the Weald of Kent 1s, that poor rates there are very high; generally ſpeaking, from 3 to ds. in the pound, and ſome as high as 7s. ſo that, upon the whole, this eſtimate for the county may perhaps b& not far from the truth,
SECT. VV.— Leaſes.
There are many eftates in Kent held by lefſces, under the churches of Canterbury and Rocheßferz; and ſome under the Crown; others under the colleges of the univer=- fities of Oxford and Cambridge. Many are held on three lives, under fines of renewal as they drop; others under twenty-one years, renewable every ſeven, on pdying a fine as may be agreed upon by the parties, and ſubje&t to à ſmall annual rent.
The value of theſe leaſes varies much, according to local circumſtances; but it 1s generally eſtimated at about fourteen years purchaſe.
The leaſes granted to the occupying tenants are al- ways for years; from ſeven to eleven, fourteeh, and twenty-one: fourtecn 1s the moſt uſual term: the time of entering 1s generally on the 1oth of Oâ&ober, The barns, and farm-yard for foddering cattle, are always reſerved to the outgoing tenants until May-day fol- lowing.
The uſual covenants are for the landlord to repair all buildings, gates, ftiles, and bridges; alſo timber-fences, and the lead of gtaís windows; and to pay the land-tax,
quit-
ÉE A DEDE

42 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
quit-rents, and wall-ſcotts, where there are any. The tenants covenant to find carriage for all materials for re- Pairs, with ſtraw for thatch, and beer for workmen.
In ſome caſes the tenants pay half the workmanſhip of repairs; and they are generally reftrained from ſelling fraw, and in ſome parts of the county hay, except on the condition of buying for every load of hay ſold, a certain quantity of dung; which is an excellent cove- nant for both parties, becauſe it has a tendency to pre- vent an eftate being injured by carrying away its pro- duce without a ſuitable return. Many of the leaſes of the preſent time are mere copies of old ones, that have been handed down through ſeveral generations, and are by ſome farmers, if ever they read them, but little un- derſtood. Leaſes ſhould be ſimplified, and made as ſhort as poſſible, and written in terms eaſily comprehended by the meaneft capacity; all repetitions ſhould be avoided, and no covenants whatever inſerted but what are ab- ſolutely neceſſary, Some farmers are bound to ſow wheat after beans, on land not fit to produce beans; to leave a quantity of podware gratten* for a wheat tilth on farms, where ſome ſorts of podware are the worſt tilth Known to ſow wheat upon z and on dry upland farms, where turnips and clover are known improvements, there is not the leaſt mention of theſe articles, not even a cove- nant to leave an acre of cither at the end of the term, nor to deſtroy wild oats, charlock, or thiftles,
For want of a reform in this department of farming buſineſs, eſtates are often much injured, and incoming tenants half ruined in getting their farms in good order, It is the intereſt of every tenant, having a term of years in his farm, not only to keep it in a good condition, but
* A local term for ſubble. to

OF KENT. 43
to improve it till within the laſt two or three years; and, conſeguently, not many reftri&ions are neceſſary during that period. It is requiſite, therefore, only to make it equally his intereſt to keep the farm in good condition during the remainder of the term; which would be moſt ettfeCtually done, by compelling him or his heirs to allow for damages, as the clergy do for dilapidations.
Leaſes of twenty-one years, for all parties concerned, are, 1n my humble opinion, preferable to ſhorter ones z becauſe every tenant can afford to SIVE MONC TENG hEe has the ſecurity of enjoying the benefit of his own im- provementsz; and tenants can get more profit from land they occupy in ſecurity; becauſe then they keep it in good order, and ſpend their money freely on im- provements: by which an increaſe of every kind of agri- cultural produ@ion is raiſed; and the tenant, landlord, and public, are all benefited by the meaſure.
SECT. VI.— Expence and Profit.
I ſhall not pretend to give the Honourable Board, and the public, a particular and accurate account of the ex- pence and profit of the agriculture of this county: it is abſolutely out of my power to make ſuch a ftatement z; and I ſhall aim only at giving a general idea of the ſub- JE:
The prevailing opinion, for a great length of time, has been, that the average expences of a farm, in the common routine of management, are twice the rent z but my obſervations of late convince me, that the ex- pence is much more, and often three, four, and ſome- times, five times the rent, Generally ſpeaking, he is the beſt farmer, and makes the moſt profit, whoſe expences are greateßt, provided his money is laid out with judgment and œconomy.
The

44 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
The expence of ftocking a farm, and carrying on the buſineſs of the year, is from three to four, and in ſome caſes 54 per acrez and always highef when in the hands of the moſt ikilful and ſpirited cultivators, The ignorant, timid, and penúrious farmer is at the leaſt expence in cultivating his land; but, for that reaſon, he has the leaſt produce from it. Individuals and the fate are moſt benefited by a ſpirited culuvation,
With regard to profit, ten or twelve per cent. is uſu- ally made on the capital employed; more or leſs in pro- portion to the Kill, ſpirit, and induftry of the agri- culturiſt.
Suppofing the opinions heretofore fated, as to the rent, Rock, and produce, to be nearly the truth, then the ac- count of the whole county will ſtand thus:
Rent for 896,000 acres, at Tos:£672,000 Average produce(ſay thrice that ſum) 2,0: 6,000 Capital employed, at 31. per acre* 92,688,000 Prot, ſtated at the average produce, of eleven per cent, on the capital| 395,680 employed Jj
Allowing the farmers five per cent. each for their capi tal(the value, if it were not employed in agriculture) then the value of the agricultural induſtry of the farmers of this county will be fix per cent, of the capital, or £161,280.
Where gentlemen take farms into their own hands, generally ſpeaking, their produce and profit muſt be fated at conſiderably leſs; for, from a want of practical knowledge of the ſubje&, and not condeſcending to ſtoop to the minutiæ of the buſineß, they are ſubje& to various
* Too little for arable farms; but taking graſs-land, wood, waſte,&c. may perhaps be near the truth.
impoſitions
—_—=—
SLL

OF KENT. 45
impoſitions from their tradeſmen and labourers; which oc- caſfion much loſs of time and profit. Some inſtances, however, occur of ſpirit and great application producing efes creditable to the owners, and beneficial to ſuch of their neighbours who are wiſe enough to follow good examples.
CHaPTER: Y.
IMPLEMENTS.
HE Kentiſh turn-wreſt plough is almoſt the only
one uſed or known. Some few inſtances of trials
of the Suffolk ploughs, which go with two horſes abreaſt, and are driven by the ploughman, occur, but they have not been found to anſwer the purpoſe of the farmers of thiscounty, and are in conſequence laid aſide for the native implements; which, for all ſorts of ſoils, and all required depths of ploughing;, 1s the beſt I have ever ſeen and tried, It confits of a beam of oak ten feet long, five inches deep, and four broad; behind which is a foot, five inches by three and a half, and three feet and a half long; on the top of which the handles are placed; the foot is tenoned to the end of the beam, and mortiſed at the bottom to the end of the chep. Through the beam, at two fect five inches diſtance from the foot, is a ſheath of oak ſeven inches

46 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
inches wide, and one and a half thick, which 1s moëtiſed into the chep in an oblique dire&ion, ſo that the point of the ſhare 1s twenty-two inches diſtant from the beam. The chep to which the ſhare is fixed 1s five feet long, four inches wide, and five inches deep, The ſhare is of hammered iron, weighs about thirty-two pounds, is twenty inches long, and from four inches and a half to ſeven inches wide at the point.
The upper end of the beam refts on a carriage with two wheels, three feet two inches high, On the axle- tree 1s a gallows, on which 1s a ſliding bolſter, to let up and down. Through the centre of the axle is a claſp- 1ron, to which 1s fixed a ſtrong chain, called a tow, that comes over the beam, ſo fixed, as by means of notches (or a pin called a check) to let the whole plough out a greater length from the axle, thereby letting it down to a greater depth.
This implement, altogether, is moft certainly a very heavy one, and, from its confſtru@tion, muſt be made very ſtout; as otherwiſe either the beam or chep wilt break with the force of four ítrong horſes, when it comes ſuddenly againft a rock, or any fifff place in the ſoil, a hard beaten path, or root of a tree,&c. It is remarkable for going well among Mints and rocks, With theſe ploughs the ſoil may be turned up a great depth, and laid quite flat, without any kind of furrow being left open; which 1s a great advantage in a dry ſoil. They coft, with every kind of tackle fixed for drawing them, entirely new, about s!. gs. each.
With theſe ploughs four horſes" are generally uſed in Eaſt Kent; and there an acre and a half is the common day?’s work, a little more or leſs, in proportion to the ſtiff- neſs or l!ghtneſs of the ſoil: but in the weſtern part of
the county, from the tenacity of the ſail, it is neceſſary to make

OF KENT. 49 “inake the ploughs much ftouter, and to uſe fix horſes, the plough there being drawn by a long large iron link, called a tow, which comes from the axle of the carriage round the heel of the plough. In that part of the county they ſeldom plough more than an acre in a day, and ſometimes not half ſo much, even when ſix horſes arc employed,
In the Weald of Kent they have a foot-plough with a turn-wrefß, for breaking up lays. They coft 2! 15s. each.
A double plough from a Gentleman in Suffolk has been ſent to me; and I have ſpared no exertion or atten- tion in giving it a fair trial; but it has not iucceeded, The many flints which lie faft in the ſtiff ſoils, are con- tinually throwing the plough out of the land; added to which, the deep open furrows and the uneven ſurface left by this inſtrument, are inſurmountable obje&ions, eſpe- cially where drill machines are much uſed.
A great variety of ploughs and machines for drilling cvery ſpecies of grain is uſed 1n this county, The beſt by far for drilling wheat, barley, oats, peaſe, tares,&c. are made by Mr. Wellard af Deal, TEN are drawn by two horſes abreaſt, in a double pair of ſhafts; drill ſeven rows at a time, each ſeven inches apart; and are ſo con- trived as to drill any quantity required per acre They are very ſimple in their conftru&ion, and not liable to get out of order. They coft 14/. 10s. each
Harrows confiſt of four beams of aſh, cach four feet and a half long, and two inches and a half ſquare, framed together ſo as to be four feet and a half wide behind, and four feet before: there are ſix or ſeven teeth of 1ron in each beam, which when new are eleven inches long, and weigh about a pound and a quarter each, One boy uſually leads a pair of horſes, each drawing one harrow. They

43 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
They cof, with a frong iron chain, called here a Har- row-frap, about a guinea,
The carriages uſed for carrying corn to market,&c. are called Hutches, drawn by four horſes; generally loaded with from ſeven to twelve quarters of corn, ac- cording to its weight and the diſtance it is carried. They are thirteen feet long, are made crooked at the fides, that the width cannot be poſitively aſcertained; but are gene- rally three feet wide before, and four behind at the bot- tom; and about fix or eight inches wider at top, and twenty deep: they are boarded at the fides and ends cloſe enough to carry ſand. If made with wooden axletrees» they coſt about twenty guineasz; if with iron, twenty- five,
The dung-carts are of various dimenfions, but moſily àbout ſeven feet long, and twenty inches deep, four feet broad behind, and three feet ten inches before z are uſ- ually drawn by two horſes, and with broad wheels; and with every thing new and well made, cof about eight guineas«
Rolls of various ſizes are uſed for breaking the clods; they are made nine feet long, and from fourteen to twenty-four inches in diameter; coſt from gz! to 10,
Wheat is reaped with a toothed fickle; barley and oats are mown with a long ſcythe and cradle; they are then bound into ſheaves, being drawn together on one foot till the bundle is of ſize ſufficient for a band made of two lengths of the corn twiſted together.
Horſe-rakes are uſed for dragging together the looſe barley left by the binders; they are made of oak, twelve feet long, with iron teeth fourteen inches in length and five apart; the beam is cut four inches by three, Theſe
rakes are drawn by one horſe led by a boy, with a man behind

behind to lift it up every time it is filled with the corn. Price from 18s, to 1/1. 4s.|
Wheat fſtubble-rakes are uſed to drag that article toge=- ther, made on the ſame principle as the laſt mentioned, but much heavier, and two feet ſhorter: the beam is five inches by four, drawn by two horſes. Coft about 21. 25s.
On the Riff ſoils the Weſt Kent double‘harrows are uſed, each of which requires two horſes; they have ſix beams, each with fix teeth projecting ten or twelve inches from the wood, They coft 2/, 10s, each,
Rollers of ſone are uſed to break the Ri ſoils, drawn by ſx horſes: they coft from 121. to 141. each,
Near Maidſtone, Hutches are made to contain two chaldrons of coals; and coſt 302. In moſt other parts they carry a chaldron and a-half; and coft about 256 each.
In the Weald of Kent, carriages, called bavin tugs, are chiefly'uſed for faggots; and many uſe them for corn and hay. They carry 150 faggots; each four feet long, and three girt. The hind and-fore‘wheels are fourteen feet apart; by which the length of the carriage 1s ſo much, that the load lies very low, and 1s thereby leſs lia= ble tobe turned over; ajvhicht+otherwiſg-xvöuld.often be the caſe in the roads of the Weald. This implement coſts about 15, or 16!,
Tmplements and Appendages to the Blop Grounds,
Every hop-plantation of four or five acres, requires an oaft about ſixteen feet ſquare, which, built ſubſtantially with the requiſite ſtowage room, coſts from I 50!, to 200.
This is furniſhed with a ſet of picking baſkets, about twelve in number, which coſt about 55 Od. each; alſo a good ſcale-beam, with weights‘and ſcales; which, together, coſt about s/,
E A ſhim,
OF KENT. 49

¿o AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
A ſhim, made with a frame like a wheelbarrow, is eſteemed the beſt ſort; it coſts about 2/4 2s This im= plement is a very uſeful and convenient one likewiſe for tearing up weeds on ſummer-fallows.
A harrow to be drawn by one horſe, with a ſmall wheel in front, to go round at the ends of the plantations and a pair of handles to be holden by the man who fol- lows it, in order to keep it from bruiſing the binds, This implement coſts about I/. Is
A large iron peeler to make holes in the land for the poles, cofts 6s. or 75, A hop-dog, to wrench up the poles, cofts 5s
The fir, and I believe the only threſhing mill in the county, is at Betſtranger, which I erected about three years ago. By a number of improvements, and after many alterations, I have the ſatisfa@ion to find it anſwers my purpoſe extremely well, It reguires four horſes, about eight men and four boys to remove the corn from a diſtant part of the barn, feed the mill, attend a winnow- ing-fan, and ſtack the raw. With this aſſiſtance, when the corn yields well, it will threſh and half-clean three quarters of wheat, or four of barley, or five of oats, per hour; by which I find there is a ſaving of nearly one half of the expence of threſhing, beſides the advantage of getting the corn out cleaner from the raw. There 1s, however, no ſmall inconvenience attending it in ſo large 2 quantity of raw, chaff,&c. being got out at one times when perhaps it is not wanted; and by that means, it is cither waſted or ſpoiled by negle& before it comes to ule,
Expence
ml uy

hend?
OF KENT,
Expence and Produce of a Day's Threfhings
Eight men, at 1s, 84. each>© 13 4 Four boys, at 1s. each- o iG Four horſes, at 2s. 6d. each= OO 10 Cleaning and meaſuring 24 quarters of Z O. 0 O wheat, at 3d. cach-
R
LTL M
which is about 1s. 44. per guarter, or, as before fated, about half price,
Ss Se ds Cleaning and meaſuring 32 quarters of 8 0 barley, at 24.=} Other expences, as above S I 1058 A I I5 4
which is ſomewhat more than half price, barley being uſually threſhed of late at about 1s. 6d. per quarter,
LZ
Cleaning and meaſuring 40 quarters 24
oats, at Id. per guarter- 3 Other expences, as above” A Fa TONUS
which is a little more than half price, they being uſually threſhed at about 1s. 3d. per quarter.
This mill will threſh every kind of corn cleaner than it 18 uſually done by the common mode. To aſcertain which, I ſometime ſince got ſeveral neighbouring farmers to have thirty-ſix pounds of wheat fraw threſhed perfe&ly clean in their reſpeQive barns, and then I had the ſame
PEZ weight

$2 AGRICUETOURAL SURVEY
weight cf ſtraw threſhed after it came from the mill; and I foúnd that the average produce of corn left in the ſtraw, by the common mode of threſhing, was half a pint in every thirty-ſix pounds of raw, more than 1s left by the mill,
The horſe-wheel is twelve feet diameter, in which there are 120 wooden cogs, which work into a caft 1ron nut, with fourteen cogs on the end of a horizontal ſhaft z at the other end of which, within fide the barn, 1s a ſpur- wheel, with fifty-ſeven wooden cogs, which work into a nut, fixed on an iron ſpindle, in which 1s fourteen cogs. On this ſpindle the cylinder 1s placed; it 1s five feet longs and three feet in diameter, and it has four beaters lined with thin iron plate fixed upon it, each projecting from the face of the cylinder about two inches and a quarter,
When the horſes walk a tolerable pace, the cylinder revolves upwards of 200 times per minute, making nine Or ten hundred ſtrokes in that ſpace of Ume Fhe beaters, by the revolution of the cylinder, meet two fluted wooden rollers working in contrary direGions, by a wheel fixed on the horizontal ſhaft; they are the ſame length of the cylinder, and five inches diameter, and revolve near thirty times per minute.
The corn 1s drawn in between theſe two rollers, from of a feeding-boarád, as broad as the cylinder is long.
The beaters ftrike the corn upwards, by which the ftraw and corn together are thrown over the cylinder, and drop down on a grating; through which the corn and chaff fali into a hopper, and from thence, paſs away before a winnowing-fan, by which the chaff 1s ſeparated from the corn. The ftraw 1s puſhed of the grating by a perſon who fands by it, and from thence 1s by others conveyed either out into the farm-yard, or ſtacked in the
: barn

0m
OF KENT.(ef
barn for future uſe, The corn, with the remaining chaff, &c. is then paſſed through a winnowing machine, and by that made perfely clean.
CAA PT ER NE
INCLOSING—FENCES.—GATES.
HERE is no portion of Kent that is occupied by a a community of perſons, as 1n many other counties, Our commons for live ſtock are generally much covered with furze, thorns, brakes, or heath, with a mixture of plots of poor graſs-land; the cattle and ſheep feeding upon them, are of courſe in a half-ſtarved ſtate. The total deſtruétion of all commonable rights, by a general a(t of parliament for incloſing, is an obje&, in my humble opinion, of the greateſt magnitude to the intereſts of this kingdom in general, and to this county in particular. There have been ſome exertions for ac- compliſhing a diviſion and incloſure of an extenſive com- mon in Eaſt Kent, within theſe few years; which failed for want of unanimity among the perſons concerned,
The fences in the uplands conſiſt of old hedges, ſuch as nature has formed; quickſet hedges raiſed from the berries of the white thorn, and dead hedges, made from
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54 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
the ſpare buſhes from the old hedge-rows.- Turf banks and fone walls are not ereâted for fences in this county,
In Romney Marſh, an immenſe guantity of oaken poſs and rails are uſed; which are brought ready pre- pared from the neighbouring woody part of the county, The old hedges, of natural growth, arc uſually cut down at from ten to twenty years old; and the fences are then made anew at the expence of 34, per rod, if the hedge 1s bounds; and 2d. without binding. Ten or eleven fakes, and double that number of binders, are generally allowed to every rod. If there is a ditch along the hedse, it 1s uſually ſcowered out at the ſame time, for SU Perirod, 3f about three feet wide, and two deepz but if wider and deeper, then a greater price is given in proportion.
Quickſet hedges are planted on the bank, made by the mould, dug from out of a ditch three feet wide, and two fcet deep; and an hundred plants are allowed to every three rods. The beſt plants are bought of the nur- ſerymen, at 1s. per hundred. Sometimes plants are gathered out of the wood for 44. per hundred, by the labourers; but they never ſucceed ſo well as good clean grown nurſery plants, There are other methods uſed; ſome approving a broader and deeper ditch, while others prefer planting on level ground: but the method moſt in uſe, 1s the one above mentioned, The dead hedges are made with white and black thorn-buſhes, at the expence of from 2d. to 3d. per rod for workmanſhip. Thoſe made with black thorn only, and well Raked and bound, will laſt five or ſix years,
The water-ditches, as fences in the marſh lands, are from eight to fourteen feet wide; and from three to five feet deep, with ſides ſomewhat ſloping z; they are emptied of the mud and rotten vegetable matter, once in eight or ten years; the expence of which operation, for thoſe O

OF KENT. cs
of middling dimenſions, is about 184, per rod; for thoſe of greater width, and being full of mud, 2s. per rod, or more. The poft and rail-fences in Romney Marſh are all made of oak, at the expence of 9s, per rod, if of three rails; but if of four, then 13s. per rod. The digging of new ditches cofts about 24. per cubic yard,
Gates, Such as are in common uſe are made of oak, with five bars, at 16s, per gate, for the wood-work only z iron hangings at 6d, per pound. In thoſe parts of the county where oak is moft plentiful, the price is ſome- what lower. The gates about gentlemens ſeats are of various forms, materials, and prices,
CEAPTER. NIL
DECT. I.— Ziliages
HE general method of cultivating the land is with
the common turn-wreft plough, already deſcribed;
by which every kind of ſoil, however full of flints, is turned up to any depth, even to fourteen or fifteen inches, when neceſſary; and the land, by its operation, 1s left as level as ifit were dug with the ſpade; which is a great advantage in dry ſoils: for ſuch, admitting a quick filtration of the water, require neither furrows or ridges» and the moiſture is equally difffaſed over the ſarface of tae earth; which cannot poſſibly be effe&ted where it is
ÉL 4 laid

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EDO:
56 AGRICUEBTORAD SURVEY
laid in high ridges, The uſual depth of ploughing for all corn crops, is from five to ſeven inches; the poor light ſoils being generally turned up the ſhalloweß, and the rich loams the deepeſt. Such parts of the low lands, or ſpringy hills, which are wet, are ploughed with the turn-wreft plough, in flat ridges; ſome half a rod. and others a rod in width; the furrows between them, after the corn is harrowed in, are opened with an old ptough, with a wreft at each fide’; by which means the water in wet ſeaſons paſſes of, and the land 1s covered with an even crop, ſo that the marks of the furrows are hardly to be perceived in the crop when the corn 1s out in ear:—a very diferent, and ſurely much more beautiful objeâ to view, than the crops on high round ridges, where the tops are always the only good crop, and the lower parts generally a poor half-ſtarved one.
The ploughmen are generally as complete workmen as in any other part of the kingdom,'T hey have a pride in making good work; but their natural fondneſs of the horſes, frequently prompts them to take up their plough to a ſhallower depth when their maßter's back is turned, in order to caſe their horſes; which ſhews the neceſſity of a conſtant and vigilant attendance of the far- mer to h1s ploughmen.
The even ſurface left by the turn-wreſt plouch, is particularly favourable to the operations of the mower: and likewiſe is very convenient to the laying land down to paſture, Upon the whole, the tillage of land is no- where conduêed in ſuch a ſuperior file as in many parts of this county; and nowhere are to be ſeen ſuch good crops on poor ſoils, or crops in general ſo clean and free from weeds,
SECT,
“e L
——

OF KENT. 57
S ECS 1 Ls_—— Fallowing.
THERE 1s not any part of agriculture which has
LL
occaſioned more diſcuſſion 1nd controverſy among
writers on huſbandry, than this ſubje& of Fallowing. By many, it is ſaid to be too little praiſed; and by others, too much ſo, By ſome, fallowing is condemned altogether; and by others, it is ſtrongly recommended as the only method to deſtroy weeds, and meliorate and enrich the ſoil. I ſhall merely report what is the practice of this county in general, make a few obſervations on the neceſſity and utility of it, and then give ſuch 1nftruc- tions for making a good fallow, as my own experience, on a large ſeale, for twenty-five years paſt, has taught me to think the beſt.
Tt is to be underſtood, that by a fallow, or ſammer- fallow, 1s meant land that bears no crop whatever for One Yeah and 1s Wwelll cültiyated at proper 1ntervals during the whole of that time; for if a crop of turnips, tares, or rye, for green food for ſheep are produced, the land cannot be truly ſaid to be a complete fallow, On the high lands of the Iſle of Thanet, fallowing 1s the uſual pradice every fourth year for barley; but perhaps, not quite ſo much as formerly, becauſe a greater quan- ity of turnips are ſown; and a crop of peaſe 1s ſome- times ſubſtituted for a fallow,
On the cold fifff lands on the hills running acrofſs the county, from Dover to Wrotham, fallowing for wheat every fourth year, is the general pra&ice. In Eaft Kent, fallows are always made on poor lands, more or leſs, as occaßon requires; in ſome caſes, to get the land clean from weeds; and in others, where weeds do not abound, to make a good tilth for a crop of wheat, if a fſi and
barley,

¿8 AGRICUETODRAE SURVEY
barley, if a light ſoil, On the very worfßt ſoils, where wheat 1s never ſown, fallows are frequently made for oats or barley, and for getting land into fine tilth for rye-graſs, or other ſeeds,
In the Ifle of Shepey, fallows are made cv ry x or eight years for wheat; and in the Weald of Kent, the farmers are bound by the covenants of their leaſes to make ſummer-fallows, and to lime for wheat,
On the clay and ſtiff ſoils of Weſt Kent, fallows are ifually made for wheat; and in all parts of the county where ſainfoin is intended to be ſown, a good ſummer- fallow is invariably made by the beſt huſbandmen,
When any kind of ſoil has borne three or four crops of corn 1n ſucceſſion, and is become full of weeds, a well made ſummer-fallow is certainly requiſite, not only to deſtroy the weeds, but likewiſe to meliorate and in=- vigorate the ſoil: it is the moſt certain cure, the ſpeedieft, and, in the end, the cheapeſt.
There are r1any kinds of land which, no doubt may; by a proper ſucceſſion of crops, and a vigilant attendance with the hoe and hand-weeding, be kept tolerably clean from weeds for a long ſeries of years, without the inter= vention of a ſummer-fallow. But it muft be admitted, that there are other untoward ſoils, which all the art and induftry of man cannot keep perfe&tly clean and in
“ good order for any length of time, without a fallow:
and there are other ſoils, which, if they could be kept tolerably free from weeds for a long time, might per= haps be more improved, and nore profitably managed by a fallow every four or five years,
The ſoils that are eaſieſt kept clean without a fallow, are the dry ſandy loams, chalk, and gravel, which can be worked almoſt at any time, however wet; and readily admit the operation of drilling and hoeing at all ſeaſons»
Thoſe

La
1
OF KENTS 59
Thoſe which moft reguire fallowing, are the if, wet ſoils, that will not admit the operation of the ploughs and harrows but at certain intervals, when the land is between wet and dry; opportunities of working fuch ſoils are frequently loſt by bad ſeaſons; in which cafe, weeds will undoubtédly increaſe, and it is then impoſſible to eradicate them but by making a good ſummer-fallow, or what is by ſome called a fallow-crop(viz.) cabbages, or winter-tares; neither of which will perhaps turn to ſo good an account in the end as a complete ſummer- fallow.:
The cold wet clays of this county, even 1f they are tolerably clear from weeds, are ſubjeâ, after two or three crops, to run together; and they then become ſo exceed- ingly ſtiff and cold, that, without the intervention of 2 fummer-fallow to meliorate the ſoil, very poor crops only are to be expeQed; whereas, when a good fallow is made, an abundant crop of wheat, and two or three good crops of ſpring corn, are frequently produced, The conſtant pra&tice of making ſummer- fallows in many counties for wheat, and ſowing beans broad-caft after it, and then recurring to a fallow again, 1s moſt certainly a bad pradtice; and for landlords to compel their tenants to make a fallow every third year on all kinds of ſoils, as 1s the pradQice in ſome other counties, is the height of abſurdity; and it is no wonder that fo many writers are found who condemn fallowing in toto, when they ſee ſo frequently the miſchievous efes of fallowing under ſuch management,
To make ſummer-fallows on light land, ſuch as hazel, loam, ſand, gravel, or chalk, to ſow wheat upon, 1s ex- tremely wrong ¿becauſe experience teaches us, that wheat, under ſuch management, is very ſubje& to mil- dew, and to be root-fallen, All ßRiÆ ſoils, not full of
manure,

60 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
manure, nor very rich, may with ſafety be ſown with wheat on a fallow; and all light ſoils are a fine tilth for bariey.
A good ſummer-fallow 1s the beſt preparation for a crop oí clover; and a clover-lay, of all the tilths known, 1s the beſt for every other crop. But to ſow clover on moßſt ſoils, without a previous fallow, is a certain me- thod of running the land to couch-grafs.
To make a good fallow, all kind of ſoils ſhould be ploughed about five inches deep before Chriſtmas; and as ſoon as the land 1s tolerably dry in March, it ſhould be croſs-ploughed about fix inches deep. Stif ſoils muſt be left rough, until meliorated by rain, and then worked fine when between wet and dryz and all light ſoils im- mediately harrowed cloſe after the plough, in order to promote the vegetation of ſcedling weeds, that they may be deſtroyed by ſubſequent ploughings, which muft be repeated two or three times more, at intervals, as opportunities occur, during the months of May, June, and July; every time reducing the land fine immediately after each ploughing, while the land 1s moift, for the purpoſe before mentioned, of promoting the vegetation of weeds. Particular care ſhould be taken not to touch the land either with the plough or harrows, when it 1s the leaft wet, as that only kneads it together, and creates more Work to reduce it; beſides locking up many of the ſeeds of weeds within the hard clods, and thereby pre- venting vegetation; by which ſuch ſeeds are reſerved for miſchievous efes in the following crops of corn.
Some farmers in this county, and many in ſome others, never plough their fallows until they have finiſhed their barley-ſowing in the ſpring; and then, perhaps, not again until the land is overgrown with weeds. I have ſometimes ſcen dung carried out, and laid in heaps, for
ſpreading
(je
: 2000

OI RENT. 61
ſpreading on fuch fallows, among green thiſtles and other ground,
Fallows had better never be made at all, than be done
weeds above the
in ſuch a ſlovyenly manner.
SECT. III,— Rotation of Crops,
FSTE OF THANET-«
THE general ſyſtem, or plan of management, 1n the Iſle of Thanet, on all the thin light ſoils, has been, time out of mind, one of four courſes, viz.
Fallow,
Barley,
Clover,
NV eats but ſubje&t‘to ſeveral variations, which have much increaſed of late. The ſoil having been greatly im- proved during the laſt fifty years of excellent manage- ment, it 1s found that the courſe may be extended to advantage by ſubſtituting peaſe for fallow, thus:
Peaſe, Barley,
Beans,
Wheat, and then return to a fallow as before, and ſometimes,
though but ſeldom(and then generally confidered as bad
management) a crop of barley 1s taken after the wheat, thus:
Barley,
Beans,
Whe ils
Fallowr(rp allOW, CTC
P,
J
It 1s to be underſtood here, that the foundation of all Sood management, and the ſyſtem moft praiſed, is the firít

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A——— D> HIE Zn
és AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
firſt mentioned of four courſes; and it is by this ſyſtem, with the plenty of manure from the ſea-weed, that great part of this ifland, which 1s naturally as poor land as any 1n the kingdom, is made to produce ſuch excellent crops of corn of the firſt quality.
The deep rich ſandy loam before deſcribed, and ſome of the beſt of the land at the weſt end of the iſland, are cultivated under the round tilth ſyſtem of Eaft Kent, viz,
Beans, Wheat Barley.
‘The proceſs under the four courſe ſyſtem 15s, after raking up the ſtubble of the wheat, and ftacking it near the farm-yard for littering hog-pounds, thatching,&c. to plough the land five or fix inches deep as ſoon as poſlible in the autumn, which 1s croſs-ploughed when the land is tolerably dry in the ſpring, and repeated two or three times during the ſummer months, Between the times of ploughing, colleé&tions of mould, farm-yard dung, ſea- weed,&c. are formed in convenient fhtuations in the fields, which are turned over in the autumn, and in froſty weather carried out on the fallow, at the rate of from forty to forty-five cart-loads per acre. This manure is ſpread and ploughed in as ſoon as opportunity offers; and the barley 1s drilled in, at the raté of three buſhels per acre, or ſown broad-caſt, four buſhels per acre, the. rt diy. weck 10. February or‘March: and if for clover or trefoil the next year, thoſe ſeeds arc ſown with the barley: the clover or trefoil lies only one years and is ploughed about five or fix inches deep in Novem- ber, and ſown with wheat,
If no ſceds are ſown among the barley, the ſubble is ploughed in about fix inches deepin the winter, and harrow- ed the firſt dry week in February; and then beans are dril-
led in furrows eighteen or twenty inches apart, at the rate of

—
E<A i
OF. KENT, 62
of four buſhels per acres the furrows are harrowed, and the land generally rolled down ſmooth, As ſoon as the beans appear they are horſe-hoed, and ſometimes imme- diately harrowed acroſs the furrowsz; and then, as ſoon as they have recovered the harrowing, they are hande hoed with a hoe about five inches broad, at each fide of the furrow, at the expence of 3s. per acre; which operation 1s repeated in May, or the firſt week in June, at 4s, bd. per acre; the ground is then ſtirred with an earthen plate, to raiſe a quantity of mould againſt theic ſtems.
As ſoon as the beans are harveſted, the land is ſcufflled with the broad ſhare, and made per SS clean by har- rowing, and burning the weeds, if any, and then ploughed for wheat. In both caſes, whether E or bean- ſtubble, the wheat is uſually ſown three buſhels PEVACrez after having been feeped in ſalt water from five to twelve hours, and mixed with ſlaked lime. When peaſe follow the wheat, they are drilled in, and managed in every re- ped the ſame as the bean-crop, except harrowing after the horſe-hoe. The barley and other crops after peafſe, are managed the ſame as 1f the land had been a ſummer- fallow, inſtead of peaſe. Under the round tilth ſyſtem, the bean and wheat crops are managed the ſame as be- fore mentioned; but the barley is uſually ſown later, in order to give time, by thrice E to'clean the land and the manure 1s generally ſpread on the 6 PE Eb for beans.
Radiſh-ſced is frequently ſown on theſe lands in- ſtead of beans, for the London market; and canary-ſeed in lieu of wheat, both on the Gatita and bean-fſRtub- bles, The radiſh is ſown in March, on furrows made with a two or three-cheped* plough, about ten inches * A provincial term for a piece cf wood on which the ſhare is fixed,
apart,

64 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
apart, two or three gallons of ſeed per acre: as ſoon 4s they appear, every other row 1s cut up with a horſe-hoe, leaving the rows twenty inches apart, When the plants get two or three rough leaves, they are hoed out to the diſtance of from ten to fifteen inches apart in the rows, and then kept clean by a ſecond horſe and hand-hoeing» 1f neceſſary,
The crop is ſeldom fit to reap till O&ober, and ſome times is out in the fields till near Chriſtmas, without re- ceiving any injury from the wet weather; it being ne- ceſlary that it ſhould have much rain to rot the pods, that it may threſh well,
Canary is own the firſt dry week in February, on furrows ten or eleven inches apart(the land being pre- viouſly made fine and light on the ſurface) about four or five gallons per acre; and as ſoon as the furrows can be ſcen, they are hoed with a Dutch hoe, at the expence of 15, 8 per acre, and kept clean by repeated hoeings, when neceſſary, during the ſummer, It 1s generally ripe by the beginning of September. Like radiſhes, it requires much time in the field, and ſeldom ſufters by wet wea-
ther. EAST KENT
Chalky ſoil forms a very confiderable part of the diſtri& under farvey. This ſort of land cannot be ſaid to be under any ſettled ſyſtem of management, for there are almoſt as many ſchemes of praice as far- mers; much of it is down-land, or ſheep-walks; ſome of which(although no very material part) has been ſo time out of mind; and ſome tenants are reftrained(very inju- diciouſly) from breaking up thoſe old downs, The prac- tice has been chiefly, when‘old ſheep-walks have been ploughed up, to do it in wet weather, in the midſt of winter, when other arable lands are too wet to work with
advantage z and the principal inducement has been that
oí
Pal

OF KENT. 6e
of employing the teams when they would probably be doing miſchief on better ſoils, This ſort of land, when ſo ploughed, is uſually ſown in March, with black or grey oats, which, from being generally over-run with charlock(provincially called Kinkle) produces very poor crops, ſometimes hardly worth harveſting. The crop of oats is generally ſucceeded by a faliow; perhaps ſown with coleſeed, and then oats with ſeeds*; and after that crop, if the land can be folded, a ſlight crop of wheat is obtained; but that only on ſome of the beſt parts of the field, where there is a greater depth of ſoil, or the flat tops of ſome downs, where there is a ſoil ſomewhat Riffer and better than the ſlopes of the hills, Some of the courſes of crops of the down- lands, when ploughed, are as under, viz.
Ts D 2 Down-land, Down-land. Down- land. Oats Oats Oats Coleſced Fallow Fallow Oats Oats Oats Seeds Clover or rye graſs Sainfoin, from five Oats Oats to ten years Fallow Fallow
4s is. 6, Down-land. Down-land. Down-land, burnt, Oats Peaſe Taurnips ſame year Tares Coleſced Barley Coleſced Oats Clover Oats Clover Wheat Seeds Wheat Turnips,&c. Wheat Fallow Fallow
* Clover and Trefoi!, F 7. Downa

66 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
e 9s 9. Downſhare Turnips Downſhare Turnips Downfſhare Turnips Turnips Wheat Barley Barley Barley Clover Sainfoin Oats Wheat Oats Fallow Rye Graſs,
The five firſt and laft are the prevailing courſes, and are each of them very bad, as they generally tend to im- poveriſh the ſoil, and make it worſe, if poſſible, than be- fore; for whatever grows upon it 1s carried to the barr among other crops, and the raw goes to the general maſs of dung, and increaſes the heap for the better ſort of land. Scarcely any body thinks of dunging this ſoil, and it is conſequently impoveriſhed, by being robbed of every thing it produces. But it is not ſo with the ſixth, ſeventh, and eighth courſes, for there the burnt turf pro- duces turnips almoſt to a certainty; and by folding theſe of with ſheep, much manure is left on the land, and æ ſtout crop of barley and clover obtained; the clover being again folded off, a good crop of wheat is produced, and the Tand is in a gradual courſe of 1mprovement. The ninth, and laſt mentioned, 1s the courſe after down- ſharing that has hitherto generally prevailed; and is the. moſt deftru&@ive plan that can be deviſed, It is this in- judicious management of downſhare land that has brought the praQice of downſharing into diſrepute, Four crops of white corn in ſucceſſion, with rye graſs at laſt, would impoveriſh the beſt land in the kingdom; what then muft it do on ſome of the worſt? Even 1f rich land was well manured for a crop of wheat, and that ſucceedéd by three crops of white corn and rye graſs, it muft inevita-
bly become poorz and then the coat of manure might with
d4

OF. KENT. 67
with as much propriety and juſtice be condemned for having done the injury, as the downſhare for having hurt the land before mentioned. In ſhort, it is not downs=< ſharing, but the wrong management afterwards that is deſtru&ive. Downſharing is the greateſt improvement yet Known for chalky ſoils, if rightly managed.
Loamy ſoils are uſually under the round tilth ſyſtem of Faß Kent, viz.
i Barley, Beans, Wheat.
The barley is a cleanſing crop, by being fir ploughed in winter, and then twice or thrice more in dry weather in the ſpring, before the barley is ſown. Some farmers, whoſe land is very clean, plough only twice,‘and then drill the barley in April, in rows from ſeven to ten inches apart, hoeing and hand-weeding the intervals, Four buſhels are ſown broad-cafß, and from two and an half to three drilled per acre, Barley is mown, and after lying a week or two, is bound in ſheaves, and ſct up 1nto ſhocks of ten at a place, to be tithed. When the wheat-ſowing 1s over, and the dung intended for beans is carried out, the barley ſtubbles are then ploughed in. The beans are put in rows, from eighteen to twenty inches apart, if boxed in, four buſhels per acre; it drilled or dropped by hand, three only; the crop is horſe and hand-hoed, as in the Iſle of Thanet; and the whole, with the ſucceeding wheat crop, is managed as mentioned in that dißtri&. DCE Page 03,
The frong cledge is generally under a four courſe
ſyßem of
Fallow, On Fallow, Oats Wheat, Clover, Clover, y Wheat; Wheat. Po The E—— E N,
E LEE E
7 EP MAZE ER-— E
EE E
i m emura ra

——— REER iL;—
"M 68 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
The oats and clover are ſown, in a dry ſeaſon, in M| March; the clover is generally fed with ſheep, and folded M for wheat, which is ſown early, that the work may be | finiſhed before much wet weather ſets in. If the fal- MO low is cropped with wheat, it is ſown the end of O&ober,, Y or beginning of November; the clover-ſeced in that caſe 1s ſown on the wheat inthe ſpring, and covered with a roll only; for this ſoil is generally too much pulverized | with froſt to admit harrowing at that time, The clover Y/ is fed of by ſhecp, as before mentioned, and the crops i ' I
M of wheat and oats are harveſted as on the other ſoils al- || ready deſcribed. 4 The hazel mould is under different ſyſtems at diferent If places, according to the fancy of the farmer, or ſituation|| M ef his land. Some purſue the Norfolk ſyſtem of| C ‘Turnips,s T | Barley,\ Clover,|' | Wheat; N others the Eaſt Kent, of / Barley, j | Beans, i i Wheat; ù | and others Peas, | Barley, j/ Clover, Wheat, Some ſow early peaſe and turnips the ſame year. 19 This ſort of ſoil being'dryÿ, and very caſy tillaged land, j may be managed as well under one courſe as another. / If the occupier has with it a tra of grazing land, he finds turnips and‘clover convenient, and purſues the Norfolk ſyſtem; on the other hand, if he has no grals-land, or |f has the corn-tithes himſelf, he finds it moſt advantageous
LS

OF KENT. 69 to purſue the Eaſt Kent ſyſtem. The methods uſed for
ſowing and harrowing the ſeveral crops, are the ſame as before mentioned z; it 1s needleſs, therefore, to repeat them here. The fi clays on the tops of the chalk-hills are under
a four courſe ſyſtem of
Fallow,
Wheat,
Beans,
Barley; and a very good one it is for ſuch a ſoil, The fal- low gives an opportunity of getting a fine early wheat ſeaſon, which 1s very neceſſary on this cold backward land. The wheat ftubble is ploughed ſoon in the winter, by which the froft brings the ſurface into fine order for
drilling the beans as ſoon as the land gets dry in the ſpring.
The beans are horſe and hand-hoed to keep the land clean for the barley-crop, which is put into the land at two ploughings only. The corn is harveſted in the ſame manner as on other ſoils, but is much later than on any other ſort of land. The wheat-harveft uſually commen- ces about fourteen or eighteen days later than in the Iſle of Thanet, or towards the end of Auguſt, and other Crops in the ſame proportion,
THE LAND IN THE VICINITY OF SANDWITH, FAVERSHAM, AND DEAL,
The dry loamy ſoils are cultivated in the round tilth ſyſtem of Eaſt Kent; namely,
Bailey, Beans, Wheat, A few oats are ſown inſtead of barley, and peaſe in- P32 ſtead D— ERR e SEZ e—
E————A——RERES TE RT e—
hi
Fin ree:
Lime RA» Amen: A wS
LL EA

R E E Tr a E:—————
|| |>0 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
un fead of beans; and ſometimes a crop of canary is ſown
H
||=
vA| on the bean-ſtubble inſtead of wheat.
4 i Barley is ſown or drilled on the third ploughing, at the
4 Í end of April and beginning of May: the quantity of ſeed
H ſown, and other management, the ſame as before deſcribed|
} on the loamy ſoils of Eaſt Kent. When the land is ma-/|
1 AO nured, the dung 1s generally laid upon the barley-ftubble
| i for beans, at the rate of forty or fifty cart loads per acre;
\|| when ploughed, the beans are drilled, or dropped by hand,|
Y from three to four buſhels per acre z the crop 1s frequently|
| 18 horſe and hand-hoed three times each, and always kept N perfedtly clean from weeds. It 1s harveſted as in other || Parts; after which the land is ploughed once entirely
: Ñat, and ſown with wheat chiefly 1n the month of No=- (f vember. The crop of wheat is carefully hand-weeded
M e! 1n the ſummer months, and the harveſt uſually commen-|
V4 ces a few days later than in the Iſles of Shepey and Tha-|
N net, or about the firſt week in Auguſt.
| The ſtiff wet clay of the lower parts of this diſtrict is|
|| much ofit under a two courſe ſyſtem of beans and wheat
| alternately. The beans are always put in rows, twenty
M inches apart; they are frequently planted by women
1 âropping them by hand, while a man follows and covers
y them with the looſe mould which he cuts and draws from| ti
| the next furrow, with an infrument called a planting=-
/ hoe. Wheat is ſown broad-caft before the rainy ſeaſon E|
commences 1n the autumn; and this land 1s laid in flat
jj
———
ridges of half a rod or a rod in width: after ſowing, the ridge-furrows are opened, to let o the water in winter. The beſt of theſe RiffÆ wet lands are often ſown with| y canary, inſtead of wheat, and garden-beans are planted|€ inſtead of common ticks; theſe are the windſor and toker in beans, which are dropped by hand, at the rate of ſix Wa buſhels per acre, in rows twenty inches apart,-They \ ſome=
ads te EC R dM C
E e et è
a AE
X Ene aAa
|} | | |

Nn
OF KENT."1
times produce very abundant crops, and great profit; at other times, when too much land is planted, and the crop happens to be indifferent, they ſell at low prices, and turn to a very bad account; and at ſuch times are given to fattening bullocks, ſheep, and pigs. Both the bean and canary-crops are kept clean by repeated hoeings, The canary is cut in September, at the expence of 6s. or 7s, per Acre, and 1s left a great while in the field, in lamps of half a ſheaf at a place, before it is fit to carry into the barn, The expence of thraſhing this ſced is 6s. or 7s. per quarter; and its chaff is the beſt horſe-food of the kind that comes out of the barns,
ISLE OF SHEPEY
The general rotation here is beans and wheat alter- nately; and when the land gets foul, or the farmer thinks it wants reſt, he ſubſtitutes a fallow for the bean-crop, which is done once in fix or eight years, On the gra velly parts they ſow a few oats, and ſometimes barley. Some turnips are ſown; but from the land holding the wet ſo late in the ſpring, they are of little uſe to the grazier, If the cabbage-culture is beneficial in any fitua- tion, it muſt be a great acquiſition in this iſland, as a ſubſtitute for turnips; and the ſoil is well known to be particularly favourable to their growth.
Much clover is ſown with great ſucceſs; and the lay 1s the farmer's favourite tilth for the wheat. The land is ploughed in the winter for beans, with four horſes, which plough about an acre ina day with much diffi- culty. The beans are drilled in rows, about twenty inches apart, as ſoon as the land will admit of it in the ſpring; they are horſc-hoed twice, and hoed and weeded by hand once. The beans are harveſted as in other parts
F 4 of
/ 4
aevi
Emmen
E E E
E
nti SAVE gle
|
| È

72 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
of the county, and the ftubbles are ploughed only once, and then ſown with wheat in O&ober: the land is laid in flat ridges with open furrows, to carry away the water in winter. The harveſt uſually commences as early as in any part of Kent. The wheat which this iſland pro- duces, 1s generally the beſt that goes to London market; 1t frequently weighs fſixty-four pounds, the Winchefter- buſhel; and, from its early harveſt, is of a fine colour, and the bran of courſe is very thin, The beans alſo are a very good ſample; both the crops of wheat and beans are very large, when the land is in good order.
The clover that is ſown in this iſland is mown twice; the firſt time for hay, and the ſecond for ſced. From the earlineſs of the ſoil, the hay is got off ſoon cnough for the ſecond cutting to come in good time for the ſecd-crop, This ſtiff ſoil, with a good harveſt ſeaſon, produces fre- quently great crops of very excellent ſeed,
THE UPLAND FARMS OF WEST KENT.
The mode of cultivation, or rotation of crops, varies ſo much through this part of the county, that it is 1mpoli- ble to lay down any particular ſyſtem as the praûice of the diftri&t; every farmer follows that plan which he thinks will anſwer his purpoſe beſt; and hardlv any two neighbours adopt the, ſame mode. Many that ſet out with a particular ſyſtem in view, are driven from it by an unkindly ſeaſon, and the untowardnefſs of the oil.
The chalky lands, when under the plough, are cropped with turnips, barley, clover, and wheat, for one, two, or three courſes, and then laid to ſainfoin or rye-grafſs for a few years; after which the ſame courſe is again followed. This 1s eaſy tillage-land with four horſes: the value of Ploughing an acre 1s 75s or 8s,
he
SEO E<A

0r
TA
A REEE E AT A D SE mr AI
OF KENT. 73
The clay ſoils, where they have ſettled ſyſtems and fa- vourable ſeaſons which admit the purſuing them, are under the foll owing courſes, Viz,
Fallow, Fallow, Fallow, Wheat, Wheat, Wheat, Clover and Trefoil, Clover and Trefoil, Oats, Wheat, Oats, Peaſe.
On the hill above Wrotham,&c. Fallow, Wheat Clover, Wheat,«Oats, They frequently ſow ſainfoin or rye-graſs for a few years, and then break up with a fallow, and purſue the ſame courſe again. This land is ploughed with fix, and ſometimes eight horſes, Value of ploughing an acre,
from 12s. to 16s, The gravel and ſandy ſoils,
Turnips, Turnips, Turnips, Turnipss Barley, Oats, Barley, Barley,
Clover, Clover, Ciover, Clover, Wheat, Wheat, MWibeat Peaſe. Oats,
It is dry land and ploughs light; value of ploughing 6s. Or 75. PCr.Acres
The haſſock, or ftone-ſhatter ſoils, are under one of the following ſyfems:
Turnips, Turnips, Barley or Oats, Barley, Clover, Clover, Wheat, Wheat, Peaſe, Beans, Wheat.
This land works kindly, and is ploughed with four horſes, for about 7s. or 8s. per acre.
Coomby and pinnacky ſoils are nearly under the ſame ſyſtem as the clay already deſcribed.
The

it
ada ———— E
cr=
74 AGRICULTURAL*SURVEY
The hazel-mould is frequently managed with four courſes: turnips, barley, clover, and wheat, with varta- tions of ſubſtituting oats for barley, and peaſe for wheat; and ſometimes after wheat and clover-lay, a crop of peaſe.
On the tra& of land between the borders of the Thames and the hill, the gravelly ſoils are often cropped with early peaſe, which are gathered green for the London market; and then turnips the fame year, ſucceeded by oats, clover, and wheat, in ſucceſſion. Sometimes rye and winter-tares are ſown, to be fed of with ewes and lambs in the ſpring, and then followed by turnips,&c.
The poor chalky land of this part is cultivated as at other places, and ſown with ſainfoinz; great crops of which are produced by the afſliſtance of ſoot, aſhes,&c. from London,
The beft land of the vallics is, much of it, under a ſyſtem of fix courſes; namely, turnips, barley, clover, wheat, beans, and wheat.
For turnips, on the chalky and other poor ſoils, the land 1s ploughed in the winter, and croſs-ploughed in a dry time in the ſpring, as in other parts of the county al- ready mentioned; and generally manured with farm- yard dung, and mould from hedges and ditches, before the third or fourth time of ploughing, unleſs manure 1s carried out for the preceding crop of wheat; for without the land 1s in good heart, the pooreſt ſorts, eſpecially, will not produce good turnips. They are fed of with ſheep, and the land, if it is ſtiff, is ſown with oats on one
twice ploughed. The clover-ſced is ſown on both crops
before the laſt harrowins: a great part of the cloves.
© I 1s mown for hay, and then fed off the remainder of the ſummer; when it is ploughed once and ſown with
wheat; for which crop a clover-lay 1s eſteemed here on theſe
ai mD

OF KENT. 75
theſe ſoils, as well as in other parts of Kent, the beſt tilth known.
The ftiff red clays and coomby ſoils, are always ſam- mer-fallowed for wheat; three or four ploughings are Siven, as time and ſeaſons will allow; but bad ſummer- fallows are frequently made on ſuch land, notwithſtanding every exertion of the huſbandman. They are ſown as early as opportunity will admit, and the ſame rule 1s ob- ſerved when cropped with oats or peaſe; for as the culti- vator cañnor always ſow when he wiſhes; he muſt there- fore do it when he can. When theſe ſorts of land are laid down with ſeeds, what the Norfolk farmers call layers, they are ſown with rye-grafſs, clover, and trefoil; they continue two or three years, and are then ploughed in the winter, and made a ſaummer-fallow for wheat, with the ſame courſe as before.
The ſandy and gravelly ſoils, intended for turnips, are frequently ſown with rye, which is fed off with ſheep pre- vious to ſowing the turnip-ſeed. This may be of great advantage to the fheep, ſhould there be a ſcarcity of food in the ſprings but it muſt tend to exhauft the ſoil, and weaken the turnips, unleſs the ſheep get great part of their food by day on graſs-land, or other feed, and go to the rye by way of folding the land at night; or if the land 1s to be manured for turnips, there 1s no fear of A Crop; in that caſe, the ſowing of rye may be excellent management; and indeed, every plan is excellent on theſe ſoils that tends to ſecure good crops of turnips; for that is the very eſſence and ſpirit of good huſbandry,
Not only the manure of the ſheep in feeding of the turnips on theſe looſe lands, but the treading of their feet is of great ſervice.
The barley and oats are ſown as early as poſſible, and Arc mown as 1n other parts of the county; but here they
Aare

ada
RCT PTE
i irr zz—— ER-
76 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
4
are not bound in ſheaves, but raked together by hand, aná carried into the barn looſe, where they are trodden with a horſe, The clover is mown for hay, and fed after with ſheep till autumn, and then once ploughed for wheat.
The ftone-ſhatter, loamy ſoils, and hazel-mould, are of a light dry nature, and may be worked almoft at any time. Theſe are made into good tilths for turnips and frequently produce fine crops without any manure, The ſooner the turnips are fed of, and the land ſown, the better the produce in general of barley and oats; al- though great crops are ſometimes obtained by a late ſowing, if kindly ſhowers ſoon ſucceed; but late ſowings, with a ſucceſſion of dry weather, generally fail. The clover crop and wheat ſowing are managed as before- mentioned on other ſoils; only it 1s to be remembered, that the ſecond growth of clover on theſe, as well as all other ſoils, 1s ſometimes ſaved for ſeed, but not in any great quantity, When beans or peaſe are put in on the wheat-ftubble, the operation is performed by drilling acroſs the furrow as ſoon as the land is dry in the ſpring; the crops are managed in other reſpects by hocing,&c, as in Eaft Kent, and the bean-ftubble is ſown with wheat, as deſcribed in that diftri&.
The early peaſe for gathering green, are drilled in rows, eigt or nine to the rod, in the end of November, or be=- ginning of December; they are generally ſold by the acre, to perſons who gather them, and ſend them by wa- ter from Graveſend, or by land-carriage to the London market. The pea-fſraw, when ftacked dry, is eſteemed very good fodder for cattle and ſheep. The land is immediately ploughed and ſown with turnips. Manure 1s not always, but ſhould be, carried out for peaſe, by
which no time is loſt in getting the turnip ſowing for- Ward 8

E C e
QOEUAXENT?! 77 ward; and the manure 1s by that means well worked among the ſoil, to the immediate benefit of the young turnips, which 1s of the utmoſt importance z for by a rapid growth, they get out of the way of their great enemy the flea,
Rye and winter-tares are ſown in great quantities near London, for ſpring-feed for early lambs; they are fed of in good time for a crop of turnips.
The general management of this diſtri&, when com- pared with that of many other counties, may be ſaid to be very good; but it will by no means bear a compariſon with ſome of the eaftern parts of this county for cleanli- nef of crops, and general aQivity in the articles of la- bour; which are material circumſtances in ſeed time and, harveft.
The chalky ſoils are always ſubje& to charlock; and are frequently ſcen quite yellow in June and July with that plant in bloom, overtopping the crops of corn,
THE WEALD ¡OF KENT-
The covenants in the leaſes between landlords and tenants, point out the ſyſtem to be purſued; which is fallow, wheat, oats, clover, or layers for two. or three years. The tenants are bound to lay one hundred buſhels of lime per acre on the fallows for wheat; and generally put on double that quantity.
This-lime is made of chalk, from the hill before mentioned, and is brought from the diſtance of twenty miles to ſome of the pariſhes, though there is excellent limeſtone in the centre of the Weald; and even 1n the pariſh ot Betherſden, famous for a fine limeſtone, called Betherſden Marble, chalk-lime is preferred; and the chalk
to make it is procured from a conſiderable diftance, Chalk-

78 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
Chalk-lime is applied to fi clay-lands, and fonc-lime to ſandy ſoils.
The old lays are ploughed late in ſpring; generally in the month of Max for the firſt time.
They are croſs-ploughed and well harrowed, as oppor=- tunity offers, during the ſummer, in dry weather.
The lime is diſperſed in heaps, of a load or two at 2 place, during the ſummer, and ſpread with a ſhovel out of a cart before the laſt ploughing for wheat; which is generally ſown in the month of O&ober, and reaped 1n the middle of Auguſt.
The wheat-ftubble is cleared in the autumn and uſed for thatch, littering the bullock-yards,&c. The land is ptough- ed lixor ſeyen inches deep, and the oats are ſown with the clover ſeed, without any other ploughing, as ſoon as the land gets dry in the ſpring. The ſoft wet clay-ſoils are generally ſown with rye-graſs and clover together. The crops of ſeeds are mown for hay, and then fed of until the land is ploughed, except in ſome caſes where clover is ſown alone on the beſt land, which is mown twice the firſt time for hay, and the ſecond for ſeed. In the beit land, beans and peaſe are ſown on the clover-lays, and on the old layers of graſs: peaſe frequently ſucceed; beans very ſeldom, The hazel mould and beſt ſandy ſoils are under the four courſe ſyſtem of turnips, barley, clover, and wheat. The turnips are frequently carried of the land; which ſo exhaufts the ſoil, that the clover-Tays are often ploughed up for a ſummer-fallow.
ROMNEY MARSH.
The very ſmall portion of land under the plough is wonderfully produäive in wheat, beans, oats, and peaſe, The quantity annually broken up is thought to increaſe,
owing

OF KENT, 79
owing to the moderate compoſition taken by the clergy in lieu of tithe, and the aſtoniſhing produce of the land, The pradice of ploughing, however, 1s not general; and the greateſt quantity in any one perſon's hands, hardly exceeds eighty acres; very few have half ſo much, and moßlt of the tenants none,
The firſt crop, when the marſh-land is ploughed, is uſually peaſe; the ſecond peaſe or beans; and thea wheat ſucceeded by beans, and wheat alternately for a few years, with ſometimes a variation of a crop of oats or peaſe,
SEE T. IV,— Crops commonly cultivated: their Seed, Culture, Produce,&S'c.
THE crops moft commonly grown in Kent, are wheat, barley, beans, oats, and peaſez alſo hops, canary-ſced, tadiſh-feed, turnips, and colewort: theſe are the prin- cipal ones, and are found almoſt on every farm, having a ſoil adapted for them. The quantity of ſced ſown, and method of culture, are mentioned under the title Rotatisa ef Crops.
Wheat, The number of ſorts of this grain is annually increaſing, by importation from forcign countries,
Of the old ſorts, are the brown and yellow Lammas; the White Straw, Fulham, and the White or Egg Shell. The Brown Lámmas, till within theſe twenty or thirty years paſt, was the ſort chiefly cultivated in this county; but it is now giving way to a variety of new ſpecies, as weil as.ſome-of the other old ſorts.
By ſome experiments I made in the years 1777 and 1782*, I found this the leaſt produdQive of the ſeveral kinds; and-have never fince ſown any of it,
® cc Annals of Agriculture, vol. 4, page 280.
This

RTP?
ada
157.) AE
80 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
This 1s the common brown-frawed wheat: it SroWs with a long jointed ear, the chaff of a dark brown colour ¿ the ſtraw 1s long and apt to fall; the hull or bran thin, and flour very white, and the corn mellow in grinding s for which reaſons it 1s eſteemed by the millers as the beſt of the old ſorts for their uſe.
The Yellow Lammas reſembles the Brown in every re- ſped, except that the colour of the grain is of a yellow hue, and the chaff of a ſomewhat lighter colour.
The white ftrawed wheat takes its name from the colour of its ear z 1n other counties it bears the appella- tion of the Kentiſh White Straw. This kind ſends out a greater number of ſtems from the fool, or plant, than the other ſorts; and by that means 1s often a very thick crop on the land. The ftraw is generally ſomewhat ſhorter than that of many other kinds, and not quite ſo liable to fall in rainy ſeaſons. It is on theſe accounts much ſown in the eaſtern part of this county: but, from its dull colour, its having a thick bran, and often grinding very feely, it 1s not much approved of by the millers,
The Fulham alſo produces a white firaw, which grows ſhort and coarſe: this kind is very produdive, eſpecially on poor land; but the grain is very coarſe, and the bran thick: from which circumſtances it is the leaſt valuable to the millers of any kind yet mentioned,:
The White, or Egg Shell wheat, 1s known by its pro- ducing a white raw, a ſmaoth white chaff, and very white grain z; the bran of which 1s ſomewhat thick, but the flour remarkably white, It works mellow in grind- 1ng, is very early ripe, and ſo free in the car, as to blow out in windy weather, This kind, from rich ſandy
loamss
Vom ht,
b hte. andits ind, feld: in a Open
The (0Untry brown Plump, free, 2 1s cha Meat, the mil
The 1s Lene
Pump,
Try Dro

OF KENT. ST
ud loams, is often a beautiful ſample; and when ſo, brings Ire the higheſt price of any ſort. n, The new ſorts of wheat, which have been introduced into ° this county within theſe laſt twenty or thirty years, are the e Hoary White, the Nonpareil, the Pilbeam, the Square Ear, and the Hoary Brown; with a variety of other ſorts ps very lately introduced, and but little known, wy The Hoary White, by ſome called the Velvet Eared, is by far the moſt valuable, becaufe it is very produttive, s and the beft for the millers uſe. The ſtraw is white and ſhort, the chais covered with a thick fine down, ſome- what of a browniſh hue; the grain is remarkably ſmall, and of a dull white colour; the bran Very, thin, Soxthat i ſome grains are almoſt tranſparent when held up to the boht, It grinds very mellow, and makes a beautiful fine white flour. From the quantity of down upon the chaff, and its ſmall ears binding up very cloſe in the ſheaf, this kind, in a rainy ſeaſon, is apt to vegetate very Heel In the field; on which account it is not ſo proper to cultivate in a moiß climate, and in ſmall 1ncloſures, that are not open to the winds and ſun,
The Nonpareil is a ſort ſaid to be brought into this country from America z it has a bright ftraw with a brown ear; and the grain is very white, large, and plump. It is very produdive on all ſoils, thraſhes very Îree, and yields, in that operation, the greater part of its chaff; thereby producing a great quantity of horſe- L meat. It grinds very mellow, and is well eſteemed by Ï the millers, if The Pilbeam 1s a brown wheat, growing very Rif, and - 1s generally thick on the land. The grain 1s ſmall and 10 plump, ſomewhat of a yellow brown. Itis ſaid to be j very productive on rich lands, and is a valuable kind to , G mix

82 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
mix with others, but will not of itſelf make a good loaf of bread, from its not working properly in the a of fer- mentation. The bakers ſay it will not riſe well after the yeaſt 1s put to it.
The Square Eared wheat is a very produdive kind; but, from its being apt to drop out in the field before it 18 ripe, and, in conſequence, to blow out in gales of wind, it 18 not much cultivated,
The Hoary Brown is but lately introduced, and there- fore little known.
Beſides thoſe already enumerated, there are the two ſorts of rivet wheat, the white and brown; neither of which are much cultivated in Kent. They both ripen late in the ſeaſon, and arc ſo very coarſe and feely, as to be unût for making bréad, unleſs mixed with a large proportion of a better ſort of flour. They, however, pro- duce very abundant crops on frong wet lands, and are faleable at inferior prices.
Steeping, Salt water from the ſea, where it 1s CcoRn- venient, and where not ſo, brine, has been till within theſe three or four years, invariably uſed in Kent for the purpoſe of fteeping wheat for ſowing. After ſoaking it for a few hours, it is taken out, and a ſufficient quan- ity of lime to dry it for ſowing, IS ted OVER n caſe of wet weather or froſt, it will keep in this fate for a long time without injury.
This method has been praiſed, time out of mind, with a view to prevent the ſmut or collar; but it often
proves 1neffeual,
Mr. Wyborn of Hull, in this neighbourhood, whoſe wheat one year, after the uſual proceſs of brining, Was uncommonly full of ſmut-balls, endeavoured to inveſti- gate the nature of this diſtemper; and, by a happy com- bination of reaſoning and experiment, diſcovered, that
1

OF KENT. 83
lui it was an infeQious diſeaſe, and curable by arſenic. His LE letter on the ſubjedÂ, in the Annals of Agriculture, merits r the the attention of every pradical farmer. It ſhould be known, however, that if the wheat ſtands much more uf, than ten or twelve hours in the ſolution of arſenic, Vege it 18 tation will be totally deſtroyed, wind, The time for ſowing wheat on the wet and cold lands, is early in ORober: on fiff cledge and drier clay ſoils lette ſomewhat cold, about the middle of that month; but the general time for the county, is the month of Novem- tro ber. It, however, ſometimes happens, by badnefſs of weas= er of ther and other untoward circumítances, that a confider= ripen able quantity is ſown the firſt weck in December; but Jy ds the more early ſowings generally produce the ſtrongeſt arge Crops. pro- The growing wheat, by all good managers, is gene=- \ are rally weeded in the months of June and beginning of July, by cutting up thiftles and other weeds with a ſmall $ CN angular hook, and pulling up charlock and ſome other within weeds by hand; that which is drilled, is frequently hoed 1 for in the month of March or April, if neceſſary, Many king writers on huſbandry recommend drilling, with a view uan- to keep the land clean by hoeing, and thereby ſupercede Y bA the neceflity of making ſummer-fallows: but thoſe au- te fot thors fhould recolled, that if all the crops were drilled, 1t : would require more than treble the preſent number of Wind, huſbandmen to perform the operation of hocing them z often and therefore ſummer-fallows muſt be continued, until
the population 1s ſufficiently increaſed to clean the land without them.
The time of harveſting is mentioned under the ſcion Ciumate, Chap. 1ſt,
The thraſhing of wheat is performed with a flail on an oaken floor on moſt farms of 80/. rent and upwards; but
iC& 2 on

84 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
on ſmaller farms, on an earthen floor, It is univerſally in Kent, cleaned with a caſting-ſhovel, and flat broom, called a ſpry, which ſweeps of the chaff and white coats with the ſmall pieces of raw that fly among the corn. This method of cleaning corn is certainly the moſt expe- ditious and beſt, where the barn-floor 1s large, and of a ſufficient length: but in a ſmall room, the winnowing machines will do it better, and perhaps cheaper.
In any county like this, where the ſoil is ſo extremely Various, It 1s 1mpoſlible to make any accurate eftimate of the produce of the wheat crop. There are many ſituations where two quarters per acre are a very good crop; while double that quantity on ſome others, 1s but a very 1ndifterent one: twenty- two buſhels per acre may probably be nearly the annual average growth. The fine white wheats, eſpecially the hoary white of this county, make moſt excellent bread of the whole meal, when properly ground and manufa@ured in the following manner. Toa buſhel of meal, add a pint of good yeaſt well mixed with two or three gallons of warm water; ftir the whole well together, and let it work fix or eight hours before it is put into the oven, This is the common farm- houſe bread of Eaft Kent; but in ſome parts, where the coarſer kinds of wheat are uſed, the broad bran 1s taken out,
Barley. There are only two ſorts of this grain culti- vated; the common long cared Engliſh barley, and the ſhort eared ſprat-barley: the latter 1s only ſown on ſome of the richeſt parts of the ſoil, where the common kind 1s likely to grow too fout, and fall, This grain is never fteeped; the quantity uſually ſown 1s four buſhels per acre; if a drill plough is uſed, three and a half is enough, The time of ſowing is from Candlemas to the twelfth
of

OF KENT.| 85
of May, according to ſoil, ſituation, and other circum- ſtances It Always weeded--in the. ſame mañner as wheat, and the harveſt commences, for that ſown early on dry warm ſoils, about the twenty-fifth of July, and continues at different parts of the county till the middle of September.
Ît is always mown with a ſcythe and cradle, and in Eaſt Kent bound into ſheaves; but the Weſt Kent far- mers generally carry it into the barn looſe, The Pro- duce is from-one and a‘half to ſeven quarters per acre: the average may probably be twenty-ſix buſhels per acre.
Beans Of this grain we have the following ſorts, viz, Common Ticks; large Flat Ticks, or May Beans; Small or Eflex Ticks, and- French Ticks: and: of the garden=- beans, the Toker, Windſor, Long Pod, Spaniſh or Liſ- bon, and Mazagan; beſides a few other varieties culti- vated only in ſmall quantities for ſupplying the London ſcedſmen,.
The firſt is the ſort moſt generally cultivated by the Kentiſh farmers, and is uſed for fattening hogs, and as food for horſes, Theſe are uſually either drilled, dropped by hand, or boxed, in furrows eighteen inches apart, from three and a half to four buſhels per acre, in February and March; in either caſe they are generally hand and horſe-hoed twice, and ſometimes three times, and laſily hand-weeded. The crop 1s reaped about the end of Auguſt or beginning of September, and thraſhed by a flail, cleaned with the caſting-ſhovel and ſpry, and then ſifted to take out the dirt and ſmall beans. The produce 1s from two to ſix quarters per acre, in Propor- tion to the fRrength of the land and management. The May-beans are a larger ſort of ticks, and ſomewhat earlier 1ipe: they are ſometimes very produdive; but,
C73 Deing
ES e TIE LD 4= E arme, Ci 2:_————— z

86 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
being larger, are in conſequence not ſo heavy, and there= tore of rather leſs value per quarter, Four buſhels, and ſometimes four and a half, of this kind are dropped in by hand per acre. In every other reſpe& they are ma- naged the ſame as Common Ticks,
The Eſſex Ticks are a much ſmaller ſort than the common T'ick, and of a rounder ſhape. They ripen fix or eight days later than the firſt mentioned, and are not ſo produttive, but more valuable, being heavier.
The ſmall French Ticks are a fill leſs ſort, being about as big as a moderate ſized pea, and nearly circular; this is the lateſt ripening ſort known, and moßſt valua- ble when dry, on account of their great weight. Tt is ſaid, they will grow on ſome ſorts of poor land, not well adapted for the larger kinds; but they are not very productive. Three buſhels per acre of theſe two mall kinds, is a ſufficient guantity to ſeed the land when drilled; which is the beſt method by far of putting them in.
The Toker is the largeſt garden-bean, and ſome- what of an oval ſhape. Many of thém are found an inch and a half in length, The quantity of ſeed is uſually about five and a half or fix buſhels to the acre. The beaús are“ dropped‘by‘hand, iù rows about twenty inches apart, as ſoon as the land is ſufficiently dry in the ſpring. This crop is kept perfe&ly free from weeds during the ſummer, and is pulled up by hand in harveft: it 1s ſet up in lumps, of a ſheaf at a place to dry, in a conical form, the but-end being ſpread out as wide as poſible, to prevent their being blown down. They are threſhed and cleaned, like other ſorts, and then culled by women, to take out every rotten and ſtained bean before they are ſent to
market, The produce is ſometimes very abundant, and

R e E EZ ZA E ES I at SP:(o Bi A,
OF KENT, 87
5 and the price varies accordingly; the former from three : to ten quarters per acre; and the latter from 8s. to 140 EA per quarter, «iti The Windſor bean is ſomewhat leſs than the former, not ſo long, and more approaching to a ſquare form, Us This kind is managed in every reſpe&t as the Toker, x only reguiring a little leſs ſeed: its produce is gene- aids rally ſomewhat leſs, and value a little more. The Long Pod is about half the ſize of the Toker; it eing is an eárlier ſort, and much uſed by the London gar lar; deners, The quantity of ſeed is about four buſhels and lua a half to the acre, always dropped by the hand in rows Ît is about eighteen inches apart. This ſort is harveſted, , not thraſhed, and managed, in other reſpe&s, the ſame as not the other garden-beans, and the produce is from three ‘170 to lix quarters per acte: their value is more uniform lE than that of the other kinds, ſeldom arriving at any ing great price, being more generally cultivated, on account of their ſuperior hardineſs, \me- The Spaniſh, or Liſbon, is a fill ſmaller kind, and ound ripens about the ſame time. The Mazagan is the ſmall- rof eſt of garden-beans, and earlieſt ripe. els The Spaniſh is dropped in by hand, about four buſhels ‘id and a half per acre, in rows eighteen inches apart. The and Mazagan 1s frequently drilled four buſhels per acre, kept Theſe two ſorts are reaped as common beans: the pro- 1 duce of the firſt is from three to five quarters, and ſome- ofa times much more, per acre; and the ſecond from two car Í and a half to four and a half. ei Oats, The ſorts of this grain are the large Poland, j ¿ad the Brue, the Tartarian White, the Siberian and De=/ nit vonſhire Black oats, and the Red and Grey. 4 Z s The Poland are ſown, about four buſhels and a half 4 M per acre, from the beginning of February to the middle| i # G4 of 4 and zt i

08 AGRICUET URAL SURVEY
of May: the firſt ſown, if the land is in good order, are always the beſt ſample, and generally the beſt crop. This kind being uſually ſown on the beſt land, the crop is hand-weeded by women and children, and it is mown with a ſcythe and cradle, unleſs too ſtout, and then it is reaped like wheat, with a ſickle, The harveſt com- mences for the early ſown crops, on dry warm ſoils, often by the twentieth of July, and ends, for the late ſown ones, on cold ſoils, as late as the end of September; but the general oat-harveſt is in the month of Auguſt. The crop is thraſhed with the common fail. The ge- neral produce of this kind is from three to ſx quarters per acre,
The Brue* oats take their name from a town in Hol- Tand, or Flanders, from whence they were originally imported into this country.
There are many white oats cultivated under diferent names in this county, as the Effex, the Hertfordſhire, the Twin oat,&c. all which 1 take to be the Brue oat. It is an early kind, and very produdtive on deep rich lands, and will yield a good crop on moft ſoils that are not very poor. Four buſhels are uſually ſown per acre; the management, in other reſpedts, the ſame as the Po- land; the produce generally ſomewhat greater.
The Tartarian are a very late ſort, but very produc- tivez they are extremely light, not much eſteemed, and but very little cultivated.
The Siberian Black oat is a very large, long grain; 1t was firſt introduced into this county about twenty- five years ago, by Mr. Reynolds of Adiſham; who alſo introduced the Turnip-rooted cabbage, which fill bears his name.
Theſe oats are very apt to drop out in the field, and
* Perhaps a corruption of Bruges,
req uire
SZR nmr BARRET

OF KENT. 89
require as good land as white oats; but, from their co- Jour, they are not quite fo valuable. They are leſs cul- tivated now than formerly. From the large ſize of the grain, it is neceſſary to ſow five or ſix buſhels per acre They are ſown early, and are a very forward ſort. The produce is about the ſame as white oats.
The Small, or Devonſhire Black oats, are moſt com- monly ſown on chalky downs, and, being very hardy, will grow on almoft any poor ſoil; but, like every thing elſe, are moſt produQive on good land, and ſuch as is in the beſt order. Four buſhels per acre is the common quantity ſown on the poor lands of this county; but ſome farmers, on very bad land frequently ſow more; that quantity, however, is quite ſufficient if the land is perfedly clean. This kind being very hardy, and ripening late, cannot be ſown too ſoon, provided the land is dry and in good order.
The poor chalky downs, where this ſort of oats is uſu- ally ſown, are very full of charlock, which in very few caſes is ever taken out of the cropz but it ought always to be done; for it is quite contrary to reaſon and common ſenſe to expe& poor land to produce a crop of corn and weeds at the ſame time.
The harveſting and thraſhing are the ſame as of other ſorts, and the produce on poor land is from one and a half to three quarters per acre. If ſown on tolerable good land, or on poor chalky down-land, in good order after turnips, the produce is ſometimes very abundant, even fix or ſeven quarters per acre, The Red oats are but very little cultivated, and not much known in Kent; they are chiefly grown on the poor cold ſtiff lands: the raw of them is faid to be particularly valuable to cut into chaff; their management is the ſame, in every re- ſped, as that of the Black oats,
The

90 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
he Grey oats are a very long, thin, poor, light grain,
and are cultivated chiefly, on accounc of their producing
the moſt ſtraw, on very poor land, for the purpoſe of cutting into cha for horſes, They are ſown early, harveſted and thraſhed as other ſorts, and produce on extreme poor land, where hardly any thing will grow, a tolerable crop,
Peaſe, Of this pulſe we have the following varietics commonly cultivated by the farmers, viz. the Reading and Leadman’s Dwarfs, for breaking peas and fattening hogs; the Grey Polt; Nutmeg Grey; Early Dun, in Faſt Kent, called Sutton?s Greys, from their firſt being introduced by a farmer of that name z; and Shep=- erd’s Grey peaſe: all of which are for fattening hogs; beſides theſe kinds, there are many others cultivated for fupplying the London ſeedſmen. The varieties of the Farly and Marrowfat-peaſe, for the ſeedſmens uſe, are too numerous to be particularized in a general report of this nature.
All the kinds of peaſe are drilled in rows, about eighteen inches apart, from the middle of February till the end of March, and ſometimes later, when untoward ſeaſons intervene: Theſe crops are cultivated, during the ſummer, with horſe and hand-hoes, the ſame as the bean crops; and are harveſted from the middle of July till the end of September, as they become ripe. They are reaped with a hook, called a podware hook, and thraſhed as other crops of corn. The produce is from one and a half to five quarters per acre. Leadman’s Dwarf and the Early Grey peaſe, are thought to be the moît prolific.
The Early Charlton and Hop-ſpur peaſe frequently
aye of the ground in time to get a good crop of turnips. Hops

OF RENTS 9
Hops are ſeparately deſcribed, under the title of Can- terbury and Maidſtone Plantations,&'c.
Canary Seed. There are three kinds of tilths for this crop; viz. ſummer-fallow, bean-ſtubble, and clover- lay; the laßt the beſt. If the land is not very rich, a coat of rotten dung is frequently ſpread for it. Whether manured or not, the tillage neceſſary is to plough the land the firſt opportunity that ofers after wheat ſow- ing is done; and, as ſoon as the land is tolerably áry in the ſpring, furrows are made about eleven or twelve inches apart, and the ſeed is ſown broad-caſt, about four or five gallons per acre, and well harrowed in; when the blade appears, and the rows are diſtin&, intervals are immediately hoed with a Dutch hoe, and afterwards, in May ór June, the hoeing is repeated with a common hoe; carefully cutting up every weed, and thinning the plants in the furrows, if they are too thick, It is cut in the harveſt, which is always later than any Ccorn-croPp, with a hook, called a twibil, and a hink; by which it is laid in lamps, or wads, of about half a ſheaf each.
The ſeed clings remarkably to the huſk; and, in order to detach it, the crop muft be left a long time on the ground to receive moiſture ſufficient to deſtroy the texture of the envelopement, otherwiſe it would be hardly poſſible to thraſh out the ſeed. The wads are turned from time to time to have the full benefit of the rains and ſun; it has ſometimes continued in the field till December without vegetating, or ſufering any kind of injury.
The produce is from three to five quarters per acre; and it is ſold to the ſeedſmen in London, who ſend it to all parts of Europe for feeding ſmall birds, which are
kept:
the

92 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
kept in cages. The ofal of this article is a moſt excel= lent food for horſes.
Radiſh Seed. This crop is much cultivated on the beſt rich loamy ſoils of Thanet and Eaſt Kent,“for ſupplying the London ſeedſmen. The land ſhould be clean, full of manure, and ploughed a good depth in the early part of the winter. The ſorts are the early Short Lop, the Salmon, and the Turnip-rooted.
The ſeed is ſown on furrows, about ten inches apart, in a dry time in the month of March, about two or three gallons per acre. As ſoon as the plants appear, every other row is cut up with a horſe-hoe, leaving the rows twenty inches apart. When the plants get two or three.rough leaves, they are hoed out in rows, and are then kept clean by repeated horſe and hand-hoeing, when neceſſary, leaving the plants at about eighteen inches diſtance. The crop is ſeldom ft to reap till Odtober, and ſometimes is out in the fields till Chrißt- mas, without receiving injury from wet weather; it being neceſſary that it ſhould have much rain to rot the pods, that it may thraſh well, The produce is from eight to twenty-four buſhels per acre: and it is ſold to the London ſeedſmen, who ſend it to all parts of the kingdom for retailing to the gardeners,
Turnips. This plant is more ſown with us every year. Thirty years ago, hardly one farmer in a hun- dred grew any; and now there are few, eſpecially in the upland parts, that do not ſow ſome EVEIy Veas
The preparation for turnips is to plough the land in the winter, and two or three times more, as opportunities oer, during the ſummer months; and to manure before the laßt ploughing with farm-yard dung, mixed with mould colleted from hedges and ditches, unleſs the land was manured for the preceding crop of corne
If

OF RENT: 93
Tf the land is not in good heart, it will not produce good turnips.\
The ſorts of turnips are the Red, White, and Green Round, the Tankard and Tap-rooted turnips, The fir is moſt generally preferred; but the other kinds have each their reſpe@ive advocates. The Tankard ftands high above ground, and is a good ſort to feed of betore the froſt ſets in; after that, they are not ſo uſe- ful, being more liable to injury from froſt than oóther ſorts. The Red Round is eſteemed a very hardy kind.
The time of ſowing commences, on poor lands, in the end of May; but the general ſowing is about New Midſummer-day: good crops are, however, often ob- tained by ſowing the laſt week in July, and ſometimes the firſt week in Auguſt; the lateſt ſown are the ſweeteſt, and ſtand the frofít beit.
This crop is always hoed by hand, at the expence of from 6s. to 7s. per acre: ſometimes a ſecond hoeing is given, at half price.
The principal, and by far moſt profitable application of this crop, is to fold them of with ſheep. Some few are drawn and carried away for fattening cattle, either by fſtrewing them on graſs-land, or fſtall-feeding; but this is terribly deſtructive to the land from whence the crop is taken,
Cole Seed is much cultivated on the poor lands of the eaſtern part of the county, under the ſame manage- ment as turnips; but it is ſeldom hoed, and conſequently much over- run with charleck Sometimes, although rarely, it is ſown for ſeed; but is moſt commonly fed of with lean flocks of ſheep, Cattle and ſheep, when poor, are very ſubje& to be blown(burſted) with eat- ing greedily of this plant.
SECT,

AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
SECT, V.= Crops not commonly cultivated.
THERE are ſeveral other ſorts of grain and ſeeds which are not ſo generally cultivated as thoſe men- tioned in the preceding ſe&ion, but which are produc- tive and profitable in certain diftri&ts, under proper management; and which I ſhall arrange by themſelves. Theſe are tares, clover, trefoil, ſanfoin, Iucern, burnet, ſpinach, kidney-beans, creſſes, muſtard, potatoes, fláx, woad, madder, and cabbages,
Tares. Of this grain there are two kinds: the winter and ſpring tare. The firſt is ſown in the middle and end of September, about two buſhels per acre, upon Tand that has borne a crop of any ſort of grain, either to feed of with cattle and ſheep in April, or to mow for ſoiling in May. The ſpring tares are ſown and drilled as peaſe, early in the ſpring, either for ſoiling in July and Auguſt, or to ſtand for a crop of ſeed; the produce of which is from twelve to ſixteen buſhels per acre 0n poor land; and on that of better quality a little more. This grain is ſeldom ſown on the beſt land, on account of its running too much to ſtraw.
[learn from a note, ſigned T. H. that the ſowing of winter and ſpring tares, to fold any ſheep on in the ſpring and ſummer, is among the greateſt improvements at preſent on the ftrong ſoil of the Weald of Kent, where turnips hardly ever anfwer; and that the ſheep thrive and improve greatly, if allowed a ſufficient quan- tity of that food; the land at the ſame time becomes an
excellent wheat tilth*, The ſame perſon obſerves, from
# Without impeaching this praâice on the ftrong ſoil of the Weald, I have to obſerve, that I have often tried it on both£iÆ and light ſoils, and have invariably found it a bad tilth for wheac, Editor.
ths

R u ISE FE
OF KENT. 9s
the information of a ſenfible intelligent farmer of Tun- bridge, that folding on clover has there turned to a fill better account.
Clover. The common red clover, the ſort called Cow- graſs, and the white, commonly called Dutch clover, are the only ſorts cultivated in Kent. They are all ſown among barley or oats, in the ſpring, upon land that is clean and in good order. The firſt ſort is ſometimes mown three, or even on rich warm ſoils, four times in the ſummer; but the general cuſtom is to mow the firſt growth, and feed the remainder; or to feed it at firſt till the beginning of June, and then ſave it for a crop of ſeed.
Sometimes two crops of hay are taken; and much clover on poor land farms is fed of with fiocks of ſheep, entirely folding the land over for wheat; for which crop no tilth whatever 1s ſo good.
A crop of clover ſeed is uſoally from two to four buſhels per acre: ſometimes, however, the extraordinary quantity of eight buſhels has been obtained, This is a biennial plant.
Cow-graſs is a ſpecies of clover, which is mown only once in a ſummer. This plant is perennial.
The white, or Dutch clover, is found in almoſt every meadow in this country; it is cultivated on ſome farms for ſupplying the London market; where, for theſe few years‘paſt, there has been a great demand fot it. AIL the ſorts are mown for ſeed with a ſcythe, and the ſeeds are thraſhed of with a fla] from the raw, and then ground in a mill, or worked out with flails, at about 4s. or. 5s. per buſhel. The produce is from two to ſx buſhels per acre.
Trefoil is ſown in the ſpring, with the crops cf bärley and oats, about two gallons of ſeed per acre; the crop
iS
— y EED EE: E A EES A

96 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
is fine food for ſheep to graze in the ſummer months, on chalky and other poor dry ſoils. When it is intended for ſeed, the crop is mown about the firſt or ſecond week in July; and it is freguently thraſhed of the firaw in the field on a ſfail-cloth, and then ſold by the quarter to perſons who have mills and colle& it, who grind the ſeed out of the huſk, and then ſell it to other merchants in the diferent towns and villages, for retailing to the farmers in thoſe counties where it ſel- dom is ſaved. The produce in the huſk is from two to ten quarters per acre, and each quarter produces about two buſhels of clean ſeed.
Sainfoin. This is the moſt valuable of all the graſſes cultivated in this county: and is much gtown on the chalk-land of the eaſtern part: it is ſown among Lent- corn on clean land, at from four to five and a half buſh- els per acre; it is mown for hay in June, and its produce is from ten to ſixty hundred weight of dried hay, fit to ſtack, per acre. Thoſe who cultivate this plant ſhould obſerve, that if it is fed of with ſheep, it is very ſoon deſtroyed; whereas, if ſown on clean dry land, after a good ſummer-fallow, and preſerved from ſheep, it will laſt in the ground ten or twelve years. The aftermath 1s excellent to feed cattle, and the produce is ſometimes very abundant.
Lucern. This is a very valuable plant to cultivate on dry lands for ſoiling horſes in the ſummer months; but it is ſeldom made into hay, The tillage reguired for it is a well made ſummer-fallow, ploughed as deep as poſible, with a good covering of manure. It is generally ſown with a thin crop of barley, from 16 to 20 pounds per acre: coal-aſhes or ſoot are ſown over the crop in
the ſpring, and ſometimes a covering of rotten dung is ſpread upon it early in the winter. The produce from
áry

E n m E: E EE TTT TRE
R
OF KENT. 97
dry good land is very abundant, and four crops are uſually obtained in a ſummer.
Burnet is very tittie cultivated; it grows naturally
on chalky ſoils, and affords herbage in the winter and ſpring months; but it is not much liked either by cattle or ſheep. It is ſown, about one buſhel and a half or two buſhels per acre, among barley or oats; it is mown for ſeed in July, and being very ſubjed to drop its ſeed before it is ripe, it ſhould be mown early. It produces from eight to twenty buſhels per acre. Spinach Seed is grown in the Iſle of Thanet and Eáſt Kent, to ſupply the London ſeedſmen. There are two ſorts, the prickly and the round; both are ſown in furrows, about twelve or fourteen inches apart; the prickly, fix gallons per acre, and the round four. Early in March, when the plants have leaves about an inch or two in length, they are hoed out to the diſtance of four or five inches. When the crop is in full bloom, thé greater part of the male plants are drawn out by hand, and given profitably to young pigs; by which operation, the female plants have more room to grow, and perfedt their ſeed. The crop is pulled up when ïIpe, and thraſhed in a field on a cloth, or carried to the barn. The produce is from two to five quarters pér acre,
Kidney Beans are much cultivated about the town of Sandwich, and in the Iſle of Thanet, for ſupplying the London ſeedſmen. The tillage for the crop is the ſame as for a crop of beans or peaſe; and the ma- nure is rotten dung ploughed in, There is 2 great ya= riety of ſorts; thoſe chiefly cultivated are, the black ſpeckle, the Canterbury dwarfs, the white dwarfs, the red ſpeckle, the ſcarlet, and the white Dutch runners. From five to ten gallons per acre, is the guantity of ſeed to drop in an acre of land, in proportion to the ſize
OL

fi 138 (MY 1
|
(1B
98 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
of the ſort; the ſmaller the bean, the leſs quantity, The time of planting this crop is from the eighth to the twentieth of May; if earlier, it is in danger of being deſtroyed by a froſty morning. It is hoed and kept perte&ly clean from weeds, and harveſted, by being pulled up by the roots as the plants become ripe, in autumn. The early ſorts are ft by the end of Au=- guſt, and the late ones are frequently not ripe till OQo- ber; thoſe which ripen late, and are in danger of being hurt by wet weather, are frequently tied up in ſmall bunches, and hung upon poles to ripen, and, when thoroughly dry, are thraſhed and ſent to market. The produce is from ten to twenty buſhels per acre.
Creſſes and White Muſtard are ſometimes ſown for the London ſeedſmen: The method of tillage is to narrow the ploughed land, and ftrike furrows about eleven or twelve inches apart, and then ſow the ſeed, two or three gallons per acre, in March. The crop is hoed and kept. clean from weeds, and is reaped in July, and thraſhed on a ſail-cloth in the field. The produce is from eight to twenty buſhels per acre.
Potatoes. This crop is more cultivated by the far- Mers every year. Various methods of tillage are uſed for this plant; in general, dung is ploughed in, and. then furrows are made, twenty inches apart, with a plough, in which pieces of potatoes are dropped, about fourteen inches aſunder, by hand, and are then covered by ſplitting the furrows. Sometimes they are covered with 2 planting-hoe. The other methods uſed, are dibbling them in, and dropping the pieces of potatoes in every other furrow after the plough, while ploughing in the dung. The quantity of ſeed is about ſix ſacks per acre, each weighing near two hundred pounds. The time of planting is from March to the úrft week. in
May.

o E RS E i E L> ERA MLT Lie dt
OF KENT: 99
0 May. The crop is taken up by ſplitting thé farrows f with a plough, while women and children pick up the ] potatoes, and put them into ſacks. Sometimes the crop | 1s dug up with forks by the ſack, for ſixpence each, The produce is from eighty to one hundred and fifty ſacks per acre. There is a great Variety of ſorts in cul- tivatioñ; but thoſe chiefly uſed, are the white kidney, the early brown, the champion, and the peach, with the Surinam, called here the hog=-potatoe.
The method of keeping them is, to lay them up in out-houſes, well covered with wheat-ſtraw; but it is ſaid, that it is much better to bury them in ridges in the field, firſt covering them with ſtraw, and then with
mould. Large quantities have beeti cultivated by ſome far=-
mers in this county, for fſtall-feeding cattle, and for
teeding hogs; and favourable accounts liave been re-
lated of this prattice; but from the obſervations 1 have : made on the ſubje&, I cannot ſpeak in favout of it; to me it appears to be an unprofitable pradtice.
Flax. The beſt tilth for this crop is a ſammer-fal- low, and next to that, a clover-lay: it is often ſown after wheat and beans.
The land is ploughed in the winter, and in March is harrowed fine, and the ſeed is then ſown at the rate of two buſhels and a half per acre. It is weeded by hand in the month of May, and pulled up in July; the expence of which, with turning and binding into ſheaves, is Ibs. per âcre: the length is from two to two feet and a half; but it is of little value when of the ſhorteſt length./
The produce of ſeed is from eight to twelve buſhels; and of flax, from one to two packs of 240 pounds each,
HT
MY
i4 ; A
= C) ORDRE RELE ARE u pant ene ttb e ma
PCRACre,
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Y /
TR rer R R\
- M
190 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
The quality of the flax of this county is like that which is imported from Holland; but ſomewhat in- ferior.:
When the ſeed is beaten of in the barn, the fſraw
1s taken to the ditches in ſmall bundles, where it lies
from ten to fourteen days, to prepare it for ſwingling. The better the flax, the more watering it reguires; and the warmer the water, the ſooner it ripens; but if it lies too long; it 1s ſpoiled,
The expence of ſwingling is 2% 4d. per fone of fourteen pounds weight,
A hounty of 44, per ſtone is paid by government to the cultivator.
Woad, This plant is much cultivated in the weſterd bart of this county on poor, ſi, and on ſome chalky lands. It is ſown, about ten or twelvelb. per acre, among beans before the laft hoeing, in the beginning of July. Ie requires no culture while growing, except the land is foul, and over-run with weeds; in which caſe, the weeds muſt be drawn out by hand, or cut up with a nar- row hoe. When the plants haye produced their bloom Up to the top of the ſtem, it is time to pull them up, which generally happens by the firſt week in Julyz they are then tied‘up by a ſingle ſtalk in ſmall handfuls, and ſet up in a conical form to ripen; and, when thoroughly dry, the ſeed is ſhaken out on à cloth, or into a tub; the plants are then bound with rope-yarn into bundles, each weighing thirty pounds; fixty of theſe bundles make a load of woad, which ſells from 44 FOTOS
It is often ſo great a drug, that it lies in ſtacks or in barns for ſeveral years, for want of a market z; and it has ſometimes been ſo very ſcarce, as to ſell for above 21/.
per

2600
OF KENT. IO
per load. The produce is from half 4 load to a load and a half per acre,
It is generally ſold by the growers to ſpeculating mer- chants, who ſupply the dyers with it, as opportunities oer.
Modder. This is a plant alſo uſed by the dyers, which has been formerly much cultivated in the eaſtern Part of this county; but I believe is now entirely given up.
The firſt cultivation of it in Kent, upon a large ſcale, took place in the vicinity of Faverſham; the yalue of it being at that time 5/, per cwt. There was a to=- lerable proſpe& of its becoming a private and public benefit; but the Dutch, foreſeeing the detriment this ſpeculation might occaſion to their ſale of the plant, contrived to overſtock the London market; which proved deſtruGive to the plan and its ſpirited projector. I am nevertheleſs firmly perſuaded, that good crops of ex- cellent madder may be raiſed in Kent, on ſoils properly adapted for the purpole, and that it would be a proft- able article of culture, if it were never under 21, PEL CW. nor would the buyers be injured by a reſtriQion tô this price; but then the legiſlature muſt interfere to prevent the importation of the root from Holland, where it can be cultivated cheaper than here. Perhaps, if that coun- try fhould continue unfriendly to us, it might be good policy to encourage the growth of madder at home. T have many years been in the habit of cultivating it; but, from the low price at market, have been obliged to aban- don it. There have been ſeveral modes of planting prac-= tiſed; but that which appears to me the belt, is to plant it in ſingle rows, about two feet apart, The land ſhould be perfedly clean from weeds, and have been well ma- nured the preceding year, ſo that the dung may be well incorporated with the ſoil; which ſhould be a fine deep,
H 3 rich,

102 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
rich, ſandy loam, without any redundancy of moiſture. ÍÎn order to prepare the land for planting, it ſhould be ploughed in the autumn, to have the benefit of the win- ter’s froſt, and harrowed in dry weather in the ſpring, and| then kept clean by horſe-hoeing until the plants are;, ready for drawing, which is uſually by the end of May,| or beginning of ſune: the proper time is known by the: plants having got to the height of ten or twelve inches from the ground, and having produced roots branching out from the bottom of the ſuckers; which will be per- ceived by drawing up a few of them. When the ſuck- ers are in this ſtate, all hands neceſſary for this work are to be provided, that the operation may proceed with every poſuble diſpatch. One acre reguires about twenty thouſand plants. The plants ſhould have about a third of their tops cut of, and then their roots ſhould be|/ dipped in earth, or fine mould and water, beaten to- bi gether to the conſiſtence of batter; which prevents the| neceſſity of watering them. It requires one woman to dip the plants, two others to carry and ftrew them in hands along the furrow, and about ſeven to follow the plough. The land ſhould be ploughed, with a ſtrong turn- wreſt plough with ſix horſes, twelve or fourteen inches/
M)
————
(}‘ if e, NI 4 (A
deep; woinen attend to lay the plants about eight or n nine inches apart in every other furrow, leaning of il from the plough; by which, every time the plough i returns, the row of plants laid in by women who fol- î 3; low the plough, are covered with the earth of the far-> M TOW, E 3
The crop muſt be kept perfeAly clean by the hoe and 7 hand-weeding during the. ſummer months, añd: earthed; up with a plough each autumn until the third after Ï planting, when the roots are dug up by trenching the E land two feet deep. Two children, about eleven or twelve bi
years of age, attend each digger, to pick out the roots,? | the
“axo E i oD= amine ER—— I— AE N- E———_— ri roar n E— —S a———————————

Te Am
OF KENT. 103
the workmen breaking every fpit of earth to pieces with their ſpades. The roots are then carried to be cleaned from dirt, and afterwards dried on a hop-kiln till they are brittle enough to ſnap afunder freely; they are then Át to pack in bags for ſale to the áyers, who grind and manufaure them into powder for uſe. The produce is from eight to twenty hundred weight per acre.
Cabbages. The culture of this vegetable for cattle or ſheep, is but very little praiſed; a few trials, how- ever, have been made; but the expence of from 12s. to 20s. per acre for tranſplanting, and the general idea which prevails of their being a very exhauſting crop, are cir- cumſtances which greatly tend to prevent their becom- ing an article of general cultivation. They are highly recommended by ſome, to large flock-maſters, by way of ſecuring food in yery hard winters, when turnips cannot be uſed, from being covered with ſnow, or when they may have become rotten by hard-froft.
The tillage neceflary, 1s to plough the land in the winter, ſix or ſeven inches deep, and to croſs-plough it in the ſpring in a dry ſeaſon; and then, after manuring with a good covering of rotten dung, before planting in June, to plough it again, turning over a fürrow ten inches wide, and then by planting every third furrow, the rows of cabbages will ſtand two feet and a half apart. The ſort for cattle or ſheep is the large drum-head, which in good land will grow to an immenſe fize. The ſeed ſhould be ſown the laſt week in March, on a rich warm border of light ſoil, where the plants may remain till a ſhowery ſeaſon in June, when they ſhould be tranſ- planted with ſmall iron trowels, in the following me- thod:—The plants being ready drawn from the ſeed- bed, a woman attends in the field to dip the roots of the plants in. fine mould and water, beat together to
H 4 the

IO4 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY.
the confiſtence of batter; two others then carry them in handfuls, and ſtrew them in ſmall lumps along the furrows ready for the planters; ſeven men will keep theſe three women fully employed: they thruſt their trowels with their right hand into the land, in a diago=- nal direétion, with the point towards them, and then, by pulling the handle of the trowel a little towards them, the earth is lifted ſo as to leave a ſpace to put in the plant with the left hand; the trowel is immediately drawn out, and the earth preſſed cloſe to the root of the plant with the handle. The land being ploughed ſtraight, and left unharrowed, there is no occaßfon for lines to dired the planter. By rolling the ſurface, after the plants are in, the work is finiſhed. In July and Auguft the crop muſt be kept clean by horſe and hand-hoeing.
Turnip-rooted Cabbage. This kind was firſt introduced in general culture by the late Mr. Reynolds, ofAdiſham, in this county, for which he obtained a medal of the Society for the Eùcouragement of Arts and Sciences, many years ago. cis a moſt valuable plant; and every farmer who keeps ſheep, ſhould have a ſmall piece ta eat off in the month of April, after turnips are gone, and before there is a plenty of other herbage. The ſevereſt winters do not hurt itz; and it produces a great guantity of nutritive and wholeſome food; it is how=- ever an exhaufting crop, and expenſive to get out of the ground; but its great value, as a plentiful ſupply of good food for ſtock, when, in ſome ſeaſons, there is nothing elſe to be had, is more than ſufficient to coun=- terbalance every thing that can be ſaid againſt it. The time for ſowing the ſeed, its culture,&c. are the ſame as before mentioned for cabbages,
CHAPTER

e Tr
= fir
ES
SERRE E TE R i UTE REET TE LÉurrmr SS PNE E SETE
C A BR NILE:
GRASS,
SxEc Tr. I.— Natural Meadows, Paftures, and Marſh Land.
"Te quantity of land in natural meadow, or up-
land mowing ground, is very ſmall in Eaſt Kent, in proportion to the extent of that part of the county, or in proportion to the hay-meadows of many other counties. The greater part of the hay of Eat Kent, even that which is uſed for horſes, 1s produced in the marſhes, from a want of a ſufücient portion of meadow=- land.
The Weald of Kent abounds in this deſcription of graſs-land, which produces a vaſt quantity of excellent hay, of a qualit y iufficient to fatten ſome of the finet oxen in the kingdom.
‘The other parts of the county have here and there ſmall parcels f meadow-land, ſome few of which are of good guality; but in general the hay-meadows of Kent are much inferior to thoſe of many other counties; and this perhaps may be the reaſon why there is ſo ſmall a portion of this kind of graſs-land in this county,
Paſtures for keeping ſmall dairies are found on every farm; but there are no dairy-farms of any great extent in this county, The tarmers in the upland parts, in general, deſire no more pafture-land on their farms than is necefary for the keeping a ſmall dairy for ſapplying
j their

706 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
their families with milk and butter, and alittle freſh but-
ter for ſale. Cheeſe and ſalted butter for ſale, are ſeldom
or never made to any extent. The markets for Corn
being ſo exceedingTy caſs of acceſs, by means of the na-= 3 5>
43a
vVigable rivers and the ſea, tillage is thought more pro-
fitable than grazing on dry lands; which, if they were Faid to graſs, would produce but a ſcanty herbage for cattle. The downland ſheep- walks, which abound on the chalky hills of Eaſt Kent, can hardly be called paſture,
The marſh-lands are ſituated along the borders of the rivers and the ſea-ſhore. This ſort of graſs-land'is of à very confiderable extent,
Romney Marſh contains— 44,000 acres Borders of the Stour, about 27,000 of the Medway, ofthe Thames, fabout 1 I, 500 and the Swale,&c. the whole is uſed either for fattening cattle and ſheep, cr for breeding of ſheep,
The fyſtem of management of Romney Marſh, is that of breeding, rearing, and fattening ſheep; the praice of feeding lean cattle, and even fattening ſome of the fmalleſt forts of Welch ones, is only made ſubſervient to the principal obje, ſheep- grazing; merely to take of fuch graſs as runs away from the ſheep in time; it 1s always conſidered extremely bad policy to ſee much graſs on the land among ſheep, Every gra=- z1er, whoſe buſineſs is complete, has two ſorts of land; namely, breeding land and fattening land. The breed- ing land is ſtocked with ewes in the autumn, for the winter: every field has ſach a number placed in it as bhe occupier ſuppoſes it wil] keep; Which is from two to
a STOWINg

OF KENT. 107
three and a half per acre, in proportion to the ſtrength of the field.
In kindly growing ſummers it is particularly neceſſary to keep a ftri& watch on the graſs, that it may not run away from the ſheep, and to prevent it by adding more ſheep, or any other ſtock that can be had to keep it un- der; for if it is ſuffered to run from the ſheep, they are much injured, and the graſs gets coarſe. Upon ſuch oc- caſions, cattle are generally taken into keep at very low prices.
A very few oxen are fättened, which are bought in from the plough-teams of the wealds of Kent and Suſſex, They are very large, and have a reſerve of the beſt graſs to. themſelves. From their ſize, they require a longer time to get fat than the ſmaller ſorts: they ufually weigh from forty-úve to ſeventy ſcore each.
Some of the other marſh-lands of Kent are uſed nearly in the ſame manner; others are grazed by Welch bul- locks for fattening: and in ſome parts the graziers buy the lean ſheep from the flocks of Eaſt Kent, and fatten them for Smithfeld, or other markets.
The land of this county is ſeldom changed from mea- dow to arable, or from arable to meadow. The dryneſs of the ſoils of the upland parts of the county, occaſions the land to be but badly adapted for meadow: when once a field is become a good old meadow, if is held ſa- credzs and it is a common covenant in leaſes, not to break up old graſs-lands,
SECT. Il,— Artificial Graſſes,
For laying land down to either meadow or paſture, the common pradice is to ſow hay-ſeeds, which atze the {weepings of hay-lofts, procured in London at from 104.
to
GG iF

rencia m fe A EZ A Stm ETA
E E Suar
108 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
to 1s. 3d. per buſhel; theſe are ſown in the quantity of about ten or twelve buſhels per acre, and ten or twelve pounds of white clover-ſeed, under barley, on land that has been made perie&ly clean by a ſummer- fallow.
By this mode it frequently happens that very bad ſorts of graſſes are raiſed, and the farmer's hopes of a good paſture are totally deßroyed, Tt is, therefore, a much better method, and indeed the only good one, until the beſ ſorts of graſles are cultivated for ſale, to ſave for ſeed a piece of fine old meadow that is known to abound in the beſt ſorts of graſs, by letting it ſtand about three or four weeks longer than it ſhould, when intended to be mown for hay. When it is mown and ripe, let it be thraſhed on a fail-cloth in the field, and immediately ſown on the piece of land intended for the new paſture; which ſhould, by a good ſummer-fallow, be brought into ne tilth to receive the ſeed, This, with ten or twelve pounds of white clover, will make an excellent meadow.
The culture, with the turn- wreſt plough, leaves the land ſo perfeâly clean, that no inſtruQions are neceſlary here; only ſimply to harrow the ſeed in and roll the land down ſmooth frequently, until the graſs is well matted, and the land becomes firm enough to bear the tread of cattle,
There are many plants which, by ſome, are called Arti- ficial Graſſes; ſuch as Sainfoin, Clover, Trefoil, Lucern, Burnet,&c,. As theſe âre treated of under Crops cultivated, it 1s needleſs to mention them here.
SECT. III,— Hay-making,
THis operation is very badly conduQed in moſt parts of this county, owing perhaps to a ſcarcity of hands,
On D

tity
OF KENT. IO9
On the early upland meadows, the hay-harveſt commences by the end of June, and continues, on different ſoils, during the whole of July and beginning of Avgußſt, The common mode in the eaftern part of Kent, is to let the graſs lie a day or two 1n the ſwath, and then turn it over; ſome ſpread it all over the land, turning it at ine tervals, until it is ſufficiently dry to ſtack. The very ex- cellent method of putting it up into ſmall cocks every evening, increafing their ſize as the hay becomes dry, 1s not ſo much attended to as it ought to be,
Clover for hay requires to be made more dry than graſs; for if the ſap is not thoroughly dried up, it often heats too much, and 1s ſpoilt. Sainfoin alſo reguires to be well dried, but not quite ſo much as cloverz they neither of them are apt to fire ina ſtacks; but, frequently, 1f carried too green, will buran to a coal, Large ſtacks being apt to heat more than ſmall ones, it is neceſſary to carry the hay, of whatever kind, ſo much the drier; and if proper attention 1s paid, and the weather will admit a large quantity being carried together perfe&ly dry,' there 1s no occaſion for any chimnies being madez but when, from apprehenfons of approaching bad weather, it is
hurried in too ſoon, then chimnies made, by drawing up‘
the fack as it aſcends, a baſket or a ſack ſtuffed with hay, will certainly prevent any danger of fire. When, by means of rainy weather, the hay of any ſort has been much waſhed, and cannot be got in in good order, a layer of dry wheat-fſtraw between every load or two, and a mall ſprinkling of ſalt, arc often uſed with great advan- tage. Bullocks are ſaid to thrive very faſt on ſalted hay.
SECT.
dl

¿10 AGRICUETORAL SURVEY
SECT. IV.— Freding.
THE ſyſtem of grazing in the marſh-lands of the Ife of Thanet and Eaſt Kent, is generally to buy in lean cattle and ſheep, and keep them till they are fit for the butcher. The cattle are principally bought out of the Welch droves, and the ſheep from thé fold-focks in the Vicinity,
The graſs that is mowed for hay 1s uſually ſet UP 1N ftacks, either 1n the marſhes near a foddering-lodge*, or carried home to the farm-yards on the borders of the marſhes, and given to fattening bullocks, or ſold to the inn-keepers at Margate or Ramſgate,
The grazing in Eaft Kent, on the upland farms, if it may be called grazing, is that of feeding flocks of lean ſheep on the downs and ſeeds, folding them every night, Theſe are bought in wether-lambs in Auguſt, and ſold out lean, when about two years and a half old, to the fat- tening graziers, Some farmers of late years, by ſowing many turnips, make their wethers fat, and ſell them to the butchers in the ſpring.
The upland paſture is wholly employed in breeding lambs, or feeding young lean ſheep. Theſe fields are generally ſo poor, as to keep only one or two breeding ewes per acre, or two or three tegs+,
The inferior parts of the marſh-land are úſed in the ſame wáy; but the beft fatten a great nuinber of ſheep, and many head ofcattle,
‘The feeding of the graſs-lands of the weſtern part of the counfíy, is done in various ways, Sotne have dairies of fix or eight cows, which are of mixed breeds, betweeri the Staffordſhire, Welch, and Suffex,
*# Shed,+ Sheep of a year old,
Some

«r
OF KENT. II
Some of the ſmall dairies of three or four cows, have the Welch ſort only; and there are farmers who fatten a few Welch cattle on the beſt of their meadow-lands with kay and graſs in the winter.
A flock of ſheep under a ſhepherd, and folded at might, is a very rare ſight in Weſt Kent; it is only a a very few of the largeſt farmers who follow that prac- TICC%
Many farmers of this diftri& have ſmall parcels of diferent ſorts of ſheep, chiefly either Wiltſhire or South Down, for feeding on ſuch graſs land as is not uſed for the dairies, or fattening cattle,
The grazing of the Weald of Kent, is to rear young cattle, which are put out to keep to the Romney-Marſh. graziers in the ſummer, In the autumn, they are taken home to the layers and inferior graſs-lands; and in the winter to the firaw-yards, or ſtay out on rough lands, and have ftraw carried to them; when they are of age to fatten, which is at four years for fteers, and three for heifers, they have the beſt graſs with hay. That which is made of rye-graſs and clover, is given at the firſt part of the winter; and the beſt hay of the farm is uſed to finiſh them. Old meadows are always mown for hay to fatten the oxen,
The inferior paſtures are ſtocked, fir with milking- cows to take of the head graſs, and afterwards with the lean cattle, or working oxen. A ſuit of Heclds are thus fed in rotation during the ſummer.
A great number of Romney-Marſh lambs are taken into keep in the winter, on the ſtubbles, old layers, and meadows; the price of keep is ſrom 2s. to 2s. bd. per ſcore, per week. Theſe lambs are returned the gth of April, and in bad winters, frequently go home nearly farved; from which they ſometimes die in great numbers when
LL axr LNC Y Pi

[NE vee ibaa IE RE E E RRE TS A E
112 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
they get into good keep. Great loſles are likewiſe often ſuſtained after a wet autumn, by the rot,|
The layers of rye, graſs, and clover, are mown for hay, which is ufed for the plough-teams and lean cattle; and ſome of the beſt is given to fattening bullocks in the beginning of the winter. The old meadows produce great crops of hay, which is of a very fattening quality,| Bullocks fed thereon, frequently weigh from forty to| forty-five ſcore each; and ſome old working oxen attain| the weight of ſixty ſcore, and ſometimes much more. The| fat oxen are commonly ſold between the months of| March and June, The fale of them is the chief depend-| ence of the Weald farmers for payment of their rent,
and other heavy expences,.
Creo: EX,|;
CARDENS AND ORCHARDS.
[ C
N the vicinity of all the great towns, there is a portion Y of land appropriated to the culture of vegetables. In 4 the neighbourhood of Graveſend and Deptford, a very great quantity 1s raiſed for the ſupply of the metropolis Of aſparagus there are many fields, containing ſeveral eb To déſcnbe the numerous tribe of yeges tables, their culture and produce, would far exceed the limits Wye

tion Tn very polis ever vert d the imits
OF KENT, 113
limits of this Work, It may perhaps be ſufficient to re- port, that fine rich land, conveniently ſituated near great towns for this purpoſe, lets from 4/, to 10, Peraecre!
In the neighbourhood of Maidſtone are a great num= ber of ſmall fields, of from one to ten acres, and ſome- what more, planted with fruit of different kinds, for which the rocky ſoil of the neighbourhood ſeems Pparticu=- larly adapted. The eaſy water-carriage to the metropolis from the Medway, up the Thames, renders the growth of fruit a very profitable article of huſbandry, The beſt method known here for raiſing orchards of apples and cherries, and plantations of filberts, is to plant them among hops, by which they very ſoon come to perfec=- tion: the conſtant culture of the land for the hops, with the warmth and ſhelter they afford the young trees, cauſes them to grow with great luxuriance*, Itis a very common pradtice to plant hops, apples, cherries, and filberts, all together. Eight hundred hop-hills, two hundred filberts, and forty apple and cherry-trees per acre. The hops ſand about twelve, and the filberts about thirty years; by which time the apples and cherries require the whole land.
Sometimes apples and cheriies are planted in alternate
í filberts between each of them.
rows, with two rows 0 There are ſome plantations of filberts raiſed among hops, without any other trees. The method of planting apple and cherry-trees, is to dig holes about two feet ſquare, and two ſpits deep, taking out the rocks, and turning down the ſurface-ſoil
X This 1s erroneous. Itis a bad practice z; for cherries do beſt when early laid down to paſture. Apples, and filberts, and hops, together, where the ſoil is kindly for filberts, are planted; or apples and hops if not; or apples, cherries, and hops, if intended to be laid down early to paſture: and in a few inflances, filberte and hops only. But filberts
AT I an v wv Fou{nile PTS RA TZTI TT 5 79 y anſwer well on very few ſoils, Note dy a Middle Kent Farmer. Lj 4 ON % i a. Élidem s“Ec E e Ns da
(À
pF rte RÉ: WU OT AEO ME MEP RERE DS

114 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
on which the youns trees arc placed, and the remainder of the earth is trodden down cloſe about the roots: they are ſupported by fakes until they get ſufficient fſrength not to be hurt by gales of wind. AÀ compoſition of lim and night-ſoil is, with a bruſh, painted on the ems of the young trees; which 1s Tald to promote the growth of them exceedingly.
The favourite ſorts of apples for cyder, are the golden rennet+, ſharp ruſlet, golden mundy, kernel-permain, and the ftire-apple: for domeſtic uſes, the lemon-PIpPp1n,s or quince apple, Farley-pippin, royal ruſlet, r1bſtone pippin, Holland pippin, pigſnout, walling, loans per- main, nonpareil, golden pippin, French pippin, Kentifh Pippin, and golden nob,
The cyder-fruit generally hangs on the trees until the twentieth of Oftober, and 1s then gathered and laid in heaps under cover; the early CORES aS OonDS and the later ones from one to three months, to ripen z it 1s then ground and prefied, and the juice put up into caſks, In plentiful years, cyder-fruit ſells for 14d and in ſcarce years, UP fo 25 Per buſhel.
Mr. Stone, of Maidſtone, 1s a cyder-maker of great repute, and in a very extenſive line of buſineſs; being called upon in this Survey, hes with great liberality, offered to communicate any information for the benefit of ſociety. His warehouſe, mill, preſs, and vaults, were
+ It is a remarkable circumſtance, that notwithſtanding the golden rennet has flouriſhed and borne extremely well in this part of Kent, the young trees planted of late years, do not ſucceed well on any ſoil. The
Y Game is to be remarked of the black-heart cherry, which when ir gets to the fize of a man's thigh in the ſem, gums and dies. Y et old trees of both ſorts continue to bear well.
+ Seldom ſo late, I believe; oftener in the hrt week of October; and is cuſtomary to houſe the market- fruitz but often the cyder-fruit ps In the orchard to mellow.
T Nies by a Middle Kent Farmer.
IS/S

[1n the en
Tn
carce
0» enefit
were ) LV
golden ent, thé
Thé
conl-
OF KENT. irg
contrived by himſelf, many years ago, with great inge- nuity, and are exceedingly convenient,
From many years experience, he finds no particular advantage in watching the fermentation of Cde En order to rack it at any exa time: a method confidered of great conſegnence in Herefordſhire, as mentioned by Mr. Marſhall, in his Rural Œconomy of that county.
Mr. Stone mixes all ſorts of apples together, and makes excellent cyder, Golden pippins alone make Very fine cyder, if well managed; but great ſkill and care are required,
The forts of apples for domeſtic uſes are ſold to fruiterers, who ſend them to London by the hoys, and to the north of England by the coal veſſtls.
Fruit-orchards are conſidered as the moſt valuable eſtates. Tithe is very rarely paid in kind; but in licu of it, a compoſition of 2s. in the pound on the price of the SAUDI ES
Cherries,$ The fite preferred for this fruit, is where there is a deep ſurface of loam UPON tbe rock LE planted by themſelves, they are placed from twenty to thirty feet diſtant, and are put ſomewhat CEeeper in the
earth than apples: in other reſpe&s, the management is
the ſame. The ſorts are the black heart, white heart,
$ There 1s no neceſſity for a depth of ſoil; eighteen inches is enough for any. Cherries require to be planted according to their ſorts for diſ- tances apart. A heart requires double the diſtance of a duke or morello, for inſtance: and the ſame holds good with reſpe& to apple-orchards.
Our rocky ſoils are compoſed of two or three ſorts, viz. pinnock, haſſock, and loam, and generally the ſmall ſhatter ftones from the rock mixed in it. Theſe are in frata, according as the rocks lay; ánd the three ſorts, oftener than otherwiſe, lay in veins running cloſe together. It ſtrikes me, that on account of their being blended together in cultiva- tion, we ſhould attribute much of the fruicfulneſs of our land to it. L ſuppoſe there is not one day in the year when the plough is at work on my farm, that it does not grate againſt the rocks which lay ſo near the iurface. But it muſt be remembered, we plough very deep: from eight ïo twelve inches deep, Note dy a Middle Kent Farmer.
l2 Flemiſh,

RT
116 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
Flemiſh, or early Kentiſh, Courone, Hertfordſhire black, wild black, and red cherries; alſo May-dukes and morelios,
They are uſually ſold to the higlers, who retail them on the ſca-coafſt of Kent, by the fieve, or baſket, contain- ing forty-eight pounds each; or they are ſcent to London
by water, and configned to fruit-factors. Tithe is paid by compofition of 25S per pound on the ſale. || Cherry-gardens, while they are in full bearing, © O°
1 1 ALC Ore PrOut=
E LEA E J E ES M ELET i= Z- which 1s ſeldom more than ti LY y Cal ALE
S| ¡EE E CA ES 18 IA DIe tnan OYCNarTCS, Du ALLG CLL L1ImNECs, tn Orcnards ALMA LISLE le A SE) produce the moſt money. Filberts MEE) 0B E MIDES Ferre af 1EVeral NUNCGECOA adCrCs 111 Ene VICI
EE: Duties La EE Lg H EALIZAE A RS E: SIS ITR n1CY OL Maidſtone. TIC 1OLE DCE adapted TOT EINEM 18S LLE
tone-ſhattery ſandy loam, OT d quality ICmewnat 1Nn7€CI
1)
j a aN—: 1273 fal 9A ERES t-» C A. EPN> y a“y x 7 Tt is a diſadvantage for the trees to grow W ¡th great luxu Y i Ú. SÌ D| 2s E PS th s bea- MC(1 E ad Ribs AS maderat 1x 11adiiCt C9 dd ney CAL IMOIC, NULS W Nen DUt INOCGCEdALE dd
Itrong; 1iï tAcy are planted among hops, without appzies O 4=) 2 L E Es ES DOUE FrelV e Leet aDATE en Or Cherries, they Aar€ Þ 1€ about twelve iecet apart; WIEN O PY » HANG IN 1 CTE 1 AE Sa AA E lx; the hops ar up, the filbert-plantation 1s Kept clean DY
5.- | Cherry-gardens do not at any time pay€ I-orchards 5 and they are getting on tat account tninner FLY from the EEC Et ETNEA N TEN rT duration 1n DEaſTi and fl Y 10 WCil< i La Cll 1C1OnNS> NOW SFC riÿy WCTECs ¡ It 1 16{kil nI 1N uUbDon even a favourite loll that they a of a punch-bhowl, and never ſufi NOV Í a rooſeberry.--buſh, and exceeding thin( CAC E ad A 1 NT 21 t within a few miles round Mai E - rj u 1: EA ja Ph A E 5 E g than in ail Angland DECS, 108 LE 7 s 1: Tra M(LE: Y u d, 1f ſuffered to fand till ripe, wil Keep go C- room or cloſet. But when gathered, they fhou!d be laid PA 1 y- E- z 1 thin on the floor of a room where the ſun can get 1n to dry them.
A- y Li 7
E N

OF KENT. 117
: ES: VE E n ER retail them in different parts of the county; but the prin-
4+
cipal part is conveyed by water to London, and there L Pi-
conſigned to fa(tors, who ſell them by the hundred, of an
LE pounds, from 16s to 40s. per hundred,
ain- 0 in proportion to the E and demand, MUYL Tithe is compounded: for by the year. +1 1 NC Hop Grounds i008,
The hop plantations in the vicinity of Canterbury and
Maidſtone, being the principal ones of the county, a
C O
deſcription of them may ſufhice e the whe ole. lec
VICI-
I The plantations near Canterbury, called the City E Grounds, are thoſe ſurrounding e EINS EEO A diſtance 53 of two or three miles, and contain between two and three # thouſand acres.
{CL}
È The hops growing there, and in Eaſt Kent, are of a “E very fine rich quality, and 1f well managed, are of a good
colour. They are highly‘eſteemed. by the London
o i for their great ſtrength, doing more execution in the copper than thoſe of any other diftri&, ES 108 E of theſe plantations are thoſe which have a
good deep rich loamy ſurface, with a deep ſubſoil of l This kind of land forms the principal ai 663: the plantations of Eaſt Kent: there are, however, 8 ſome good grounds, where the ſurface 1s very flinty, and ſome of a gravelly nature; but theſe are very inferior=; AS The plantations of the town of Maidſtone and its v1
F 4h rc. hh 2 LS.. x AA| BC- y A cinity, extend through the ſeveral pariſhes along the lies below t
Mi helf of land which 1e chalk- hills, on the
borders of the Weald of Kent. This plantation, in ſome | years, grows great crops of hops; but the quality of
zd Us them

1x13 AGRICUCRURA IE SORNEY
them is much inferior to thoſe’ of Canterbury and Eaſt ent
When a piece of land is intended to be planted, the firſt thing is to plough the land as deep as poſſible, early in Oâober, and to harrow it level; it 1s then meted each way, with a four rod chain, placing pieces of reed or ſtick at every tenth link, to mark the place of the bulls s which makes 1000 per acre. This 1s the general method; but ſome few grounds are planted eight, and ſome twelve hundred per acre; ſome are planted wider one way than the other, in order to admit ploughing between the hills inſtead of digging z but this praâice, although it has been tried many years, does not ſcem to increaſe, on account of the difficulty of digging along the rows where the plough cannot go z that part being much trodden with the horſes in ploughing, digs ſo much the worſe, that an extra expence is incurred, which in ſome meaſure, de- feats the œconomy of the plan, When the hills are marked out, holes are dug about the ſize of a gallon, which are filled with fine mould, and the nurſfery-plants placed in them.
Some put three plants, others two, and ſome only one good one to each hole. If the land is planted with cut- tings inſtead of nurſery-plants, the holes are dug 1n the ſpring, as ſoon as cutting-time commences; ſome fine mould is provided to fill up the holes, in which are placed four or five cuttings, each about three or four inches in length: they are covered about an inch deep with ne mould, and preſſed down cloſe with the hand. When the land is planted with cuttings, no fticks are required;
butif nurſery-plants are uſed, they require ſticks or ſmall
* Tn the margin of the original printed Report, which was circulated for remarks and obſervations, was along note by a Middle Kent farmer; for which, ſeethe Appendix.
; 1 N Gc OLGS
Ti 2

OF KENT. 119
x, | Lak poles, fix or ſeven feet high the firſt year: in both caſes, | the land 1s kept clean during the ſummer, by horſe and ns hand-hoeing: the next winter dug with a ſpade, and arly early in the ſpring the old binds are cut of ſmooth, each about an 1nch below the ſurface: a little fine mould is dor then drawn over the crown of the hills. As ſoon as the nls young fhoots appear, ſo that the hills may be ſeen, they thodz are ſtuck with ſmall poles, from ſeven to ten feet long, welve in proportion to the length it 1s expeAed the bind will than run; theſe poles. are called ſeconds, and’ are generally hills bought in the woods, at from 5s, to 8s. per hundred, and s been three of them are placed to each hill. As ſoon as the ‘count bind gets about two feet in length, women are employed re the to tye them to the poles, The land is kept clean during 1 Wit the ſummer, by horſe and hand-hoeing, as before men- at an tioned. The proper time for gathering them 1s known „de- Dye EBE hop rubbing reel HOS PIeces andthe ſed S US beginning to turn brown, They are picked in baſkets, lon, containing five buſhels each, and are carried to the oaft „lands in bags, at noon and evening, for drying. Great care | and fill are neceſſary in this branch of the buſineſs; the oie ſmalleſt negle&@ or ignorance in the management of the \ E fires, will ſpoil the hops, and occaſion great loſs to the , N planter, When dried and ſufüciently cool to get a little S E tough, ſo as not to crumble to powder, they are put into E Dao s Or APOckets the former containing two hundred e weight and a half, and the latter, an hundred and a quar-
e| ter: they are then trodden very cloſe, and weighed by ge Gu the exciſeman,
E ENEE Conde ar ater planting, full ſized poles from E fifteen to twenty feet in length, according to the ſtrength E of the land, which coft from 16s. to 36s. per hundred, are E placed to the hills inſtead of the ſeconds, which are re-
eri moved ts younger grounds. Here Creat Care 1s Nécellary
I 4 not

E ls-— H i E E
120 AGRICUEEORA TT SURVEY.
not to overpole; for by that means young grounds are often much weakened; and it is equally ſo, not to over- dung them, as that will make them mouldy,
Fifty cart-loads of well rotted farm-yard dung and
mould, once in three years, are generally cſteemed ſuffi-
cient for an acre of land.
Tmplements and Appendages to the Hep Grounds,| Every hop-plantation of four or five acres, requires|
an oaft about ſixteen feet ſquare, which, built ſubftanti- ally with the requiſite ſtowage room, cofts from 1ço!. to 2006|
This 1s furniſhed with a ſet of picking baſkets, about twelve 1n number, which coſt about 5s. 6d each. Alſo a good ſcale-beam, with weights and ſcales, which toge-| ther cofts about g/.|
A ſhim made with a frame, like a wheel-barrow, is| eſteemed the beſt ſorts it cofts about 2/. 2s. This imple- ment 1s a very uſeful and convenient one likewiſe for| tearing up weeds on ſummer-fallows,
A harrow to be drawn by one horſc, with a ſmall| wheel in front, to go round at the ends of the plantation, and a pair of handles to be holden by the man who fol- lows it, 1n order to keep it from bruiſing the binds.| This 1mplement cofts 1/. 1 5s,
A large iron peeler, to make holes in the land for the|
poles, cofts bs. or 7s À hop-dog, to wrench up the poles,
coſts 5s. Jj | PRODUCTIONS, There can be no certain report made of the produce of the hop-plantations, becauſe, in ſome years, the growth of theſe diſftris 1s leſs than two hundred weight per acre, and in others it is fourteen or fifteen: the average may be y: ſeven or eight, 8: ti CHAPTER 7) PREU ¿iù
e EE—, A e LA HE EL E Lm Lo eS ZZZZ=, C

ds ag ) OVer- CRATER X Y and ſufis WOODS ANDEAN TA TONS: equirei| FT NHE woodlands of the eaſtern part of Kent are diſ- fanti- perſed principally between the great road from Ro- rol to cheſter to Dover, and the chalk-hill that runs from Folk- fone by Charing to Dettling. Theſe woods furniſh the , about country with fire-wood, tillers for huſbandry uſes, and Alſo the dock-yards with timber for ſhip-buildings; but the h toge-| moſît material part of their produce 1s the 1mmenſe quantity of hop-poles cut out for the neighbouring plan- yr, is| tations. mie| 7 R, PAE T7. s«et E ‘fe for The Management of Waodlands in the Diſtrict extending from Chatham-Hill to Charing. i Copy of a Paper, preſented to the Kent Agricultural Society by n R. Tilden Eſq. 1fation,: z y regs ¿ A«The ſoil on which theſe woods grow, 1s, for the moſt Vade, part, flint and clay, with chalk at no great diſtance from the ſurface. Where chalk 1s the chief component part où for the the upper ſurface, the wood is of ſlow growth and little E value. They are generally cut down from ten to four- € POL
| teen and to eighteen years growth; and the price varies from s!. to 1 5!. per acre, depending in a great meaſure on the goodneſs of the wood, the demand, and the price of poles, Hop-poles are the chief article which make
woods valuable in this part of the country; there 1s not
«row IUT an D only a conſtant demand for them at home, but they are per até ¡A fi: f SE ad carried as far as Maidſtone, and to a conſiderable diſ- E tance beyond, the plantation there being ſo very exten- ſive gapTER { EE 115 EE mE En E imi Bulat E. LSE 8 2

RE Sp m une
eE
M
Af
1 E (l
122 AORICUETURAL SURVEY:
ſive as to require more than the woodlands in that fſitua= tion produce, and the planters preferring the poles which grow upon the hills to thoſe of quicker growth and nearer home.
“ Part of the woodland in this diſtriÆis in the hands of the Proprietors, and part 1s let to the tenants who OCCUPY the adjoining farms. When fit to fell, it is commonly old by valuation. After the purchaſe is made,'and the leaf 1s of, the wood 1s parcelled out among the different workmen employed by the purchaſer, The firſt ſep is to clear the ſtocks of the ſmall ſpray, buſhes,&c. Theſe are made up into bavins, bound with two wifcs+, and are called winter kiln bavins. They ſhould be ſx feet
long, and two in circumference over the bands: the
©? price of making them is 3s. per hundred; and they ſell 1n the woods for 6s, per hundred, If buſhes are wanted, the beſt are bound up 1n bundles with one wift, at Is. 6d. per load, confifting of fifty bundles; and they ſell in the woods from 7s. to Ios, per load.
« After the ſocks are cleared, they are cut down and thrown into ranges, wide enough to admit a team to paſs to fetch away the different articles. Theſe are cut out as the ſtocks are felled, and confit of firſt and ſecond beſt poles, firſt and ſecond ordinary poles, uſe-poles, ſakes, and binders, thatching-rods, auftry-rods, hurdle- rods, wheel-timber, piles, and props. The remainder, not fit or wanted for theſe purpoſes, 1s thrown 1nto the Tange, where it remains to employ the woodmen in the ſpring.
‘The beft firſt poles are cheſnut, aſh, willow, and maple: their length ſhould be eighteen feet; their price varies from 30s. to 35s. per hundred; cheſnut-poles arc deareft, varying in price from 15/. to 201, PEFIOCONn the wood,
+ Local term for bands.
«The
by

SLE E ADE y R——
OF RENT. 128
« The beſt ſecond poles conſiſt of the ſame wood as the firſt, and are only a ſmaller pole; varying in length from fifteen to ſixteen feet, They ſell in the wood from 20s. to QAS PET hundred.
« The fúrft ordinary poles conſiſt of oak, gaſcoign, red birch, beech, and hornbeam z; the two laſt very inferior: their length ſhould be from ſeventeen to eighteen feet; they ſell in the wood from 12s, to 20s. per hundred.
< The ſecond ordinary poles, varying 1n length from fifteen to úxteen feet, ſell in the wood from 10s. to 125 per hundred.=
« Uſec-poles conſiſt of aſh, cheſnaut, willow, oak, aſp, and gaſcoign, which are too large for hop-poles, They are cut al one haltpenny each, and ſell in the wood from 47d. to 0d. according to the fize, length, and goodneſs of the wood. The largeſt ſort are ſold by admeaſurement, from 8d. to 9d. and 104. per foot.
CStalesT and DIN dersFare Cu CUE o aze ah oa willow, and maple; they are bound up in bundles, twenty-five in each; the price of cutting 1s Id, each 3 and they ſell in the wood from 414. to bd. per bundle. Thelencthof a ake Mould beve ee or abiader from fifteen to eighteen feet.
“Thatching-rods are cut out of the ſame kinds of wood as the ſtakes and binders which are not of a proper length for binders, or large enough for fakes. They are bound up in bundles, fifty in each; the price of cutting 1s 2d. per bundle: and they ſellin the wood for 6d The length of a bundle ſhould be fix feet.
« Aufſtry-rods are ſmaller than thatching-rods, cut out of hazel. They are uſed to bind billet-wood for the London market, They are bound up 1n bundles, one hundred rods in each; the price of cutting 1s 2. and they ſell at bd, per bundle in the wood; their length is five feet.
€ Hurdle-

A
>. T\T TT STATT A€ TT} E24. AGRICUETUR AZSURYN
L> S binders: indeed they are only a mall bi 1er, from ten to tourteen feet long They are bound up in bundles, fifty In Cachet: BUhCrPrICce!Ob Cuttine 1624: andthe ſll in the 4 C
i SS O [S) Q.
D) = [e
pd mt C
ERE 7 E EE 7 DER EEE pA «“« Wheel-timber is cut out of larce beech of two 01 three 17|S E LE ES LA 16 EE E
falls growth: it 1s uſed for fellies of wheels; it ſhould not
D
J e 7 ES ZUA I SE TRES n EE
be leſs than ſeven inches diameter art the ſmall end. Et
is cut down for one penay Tor every leneoth of three fee
1„ D, O»
- LS ZUST dijes ISI- s 1E, E ſold in the wood from 7d. to 84. pei length; if ſold by admeaſurement, at the ſame PYICe! Per foot ſmaller
it 1s cut out for axle-trees, plough-cheps, and wrefſts.
Axle-trees ſhould be ſeven feet long, and fix and a half inches in diameter at the ſmall end; they are cut for Id.
cach, and ſell fa rhe wood for 10d. Plough-cheps ſhould
be five feet long, and five inches diameter at the ſmall End: they are cut for one halfpenny each, and ſell in the wood
for Úixpence, « Plough-wrefts ſhould be four feet long and five inches diameter at the ſmall end: they are cut for one halfpenny each, and ſell in the wood for 2 PHIeS Fare Cutout becchi ador bea 1 À
to prevent the tide from waſhing away the chalk at the
tooting of the ſea-walls, and are cut of diferent lengths.
LYS d.\/ E A 7 FA fe n°” E]- Oe Ong i2 5Oo o 1s——'1 Sol pe d j
I——— À]
IO— O LLE Bn dE————— O 19 O0{ hundred, 0—— O IO| I— 0 12 oJ E ONO
7 TD TT] ET E H 1]>] A a4 «e N. B. The abo s the price of the piles delivered at th Nace x C1{ 17+| FE IET I 17} OC1s CC LG È ICU WACO L G4 GELO- UIC Lili H C- 15 55 PCr
Ly
tag M» a EE at E n:>L pmi——
AED TETE

Pag _—
OFK EN 1 125
Per hundred for fix feet piles, 4s. for five feet, 3s. tor four feet, and 2s. for three feet piles. If they go by water- carriage», the price 1s the ſame.
« Props which are uſed in the coal-mines at Newcaſtle, aïe cut out of oak and birch;- they ſhould be cut ix feet four or five inches long; and beitwo‘andavhalf
inches diameter at the Imai end: the price of cutting 18 a halfpenny 5 and they ſell in the woods at 2d, each.
Ww « Theſe are the chief, 1f not all the articles which arc cut during the winter. In the ſpring; what remains in
E R ERE o ſummer kiln-bav1ns,
+] PE ES r SFE nC Anges 18s MAad€ UDP, PA 1N C| Zs
S} 1 2 H J} SELA Ll 2 EL eb are made of the nale woc anc one with
TICE, OÏ
two withes, and ſhould be lix feet long.]
4
L y E E a SIR SZ«1 E des ver hundred; and they ſell 1n the wood rom
ede IAU HS made into houſehold ba=-
®) a
OS. LO OS PCr
:::: E vins, being the beſt faggots which are made z; they ſhould
1 ix feet long, and two feet over the band; the price 18
be X alſo 25. Per hundred; and they ſell in the woods from 12s
The remainder 1s.cut out 1n cord=-
Dj { I)
to 14s. per hundre« each fick Mould bethree andas hal feetiones,
the length of the cord fourteen feet, and’ it ſhould be Racked three feet high; the price of cutting and ſtacking
E DeEricords and the cord ſells in the WN OOd rom 2 FL: 5 Lo O «Tt has been found by thoſe that have been very atten- > è tive to the management oï their woodlands, that wood,
like every thing elſe, decays and produces fewer poles
:- E E E every fall, unleſs they are replenilned, Lhis 18 beit done he autamnatter te ods elle e Paes,
: i EE: i whether cheſnut, aſh, or willow, ſhould be taken up irom the nurſery i as MO ChTeartht to their roots as can he
conveniently done*,„nd their ſmall roots ſhould be cut
* Removing earth with the roots of plants f
tioned, 1s 1mpradCticabie and unneceſſary; no deciduous PÞ!

I DTOTTTITSTANTO NN T 77 g KENT AGRICULTURAL: SURVEY
as little as poſſible. Strong plants taken up 1n this| . SE- 5| pi manner, and planted with care, ſeldom fail. T hey ſhould d ſome|- be looked over the next ſpring, to faſten thoſe which the E froſt may have looſened.| fa| “ The tithe of woodlands was, a few years ago, at 2s(& in the pound; but now varics from 2s, LOIS OZ And\ 90 | LS:| to 3s. 4+ Many clergymen are of opinion that the woods 6 1 2 fun a 120 ought not to be cut down, but to be made up 1n the dif- wy| ferent articles for ſale; but this 1s not true: if the clergy-; H Y E, ſome| man and purchaſer ſhould diſagree, all that the latter has| . m 1. y deer| S0 to do, 1s to ſever every tenth perch and leave it: the ex- N pence of doing this is found to bé about 3d. 1n the pound,+ quite| . La...[6 If wood therefore is ſold at a fair valuation, it appears| -| ff unreaſonable for any clergyman to demand more than| PB- S3/ | 2E HE Pound a I E American flowering-ſhrubs, require earth with them, or will they re-| î tain IE: Note èy Mr. Randall of Maidſtone.| +T never heard of zs. being paid for the tithe of wood; 25s. 64. is a va| Shy common price, and ought not to bé called unreaſonable; for ¡f the Ppur-| | chater gives 20s. for the wood and 2s. for the tythe, amounting in the N id whole to 1/. 2s., the tythe of which wil] be found to be nearly EZE and the expence of felling, and in moſt caſes 25s. 64. is a realonable charge. Remar& by the Rev. Mr. Pryce.
This mode of eſtimating tythe is erroneous, becauſe it ſuppoſes eleven- tenths of the whole; and by that means makes the tythe too ſinall, | The fa 1s, that the ſeller can engage only for nine-tenths; and, con« || ſequently, the parſon?s ſnare is a ninth part of the ſum the wood ſells
j Spé for, with an addition of a renth of the price of ſevering; which in moſt caſes will be found to amount to about 2s. 34. in the pound, as Mr. Tilden very juftly obſerves. Editor.
4 The practice of laying down the different ſorts from the ſtock to
ftrike into the ground, 1s a valuable diſcovery; and I believe rather a
| local one. They produce hop-poles more quick by this, than in any ) other way. Note by a Middle Kent Farmer.
The method is, to ſele long healthy young branches from the Rocks adjoining to vacancies in the wood, and then to dig holes, each about two fect ſquare, and fifteen inches deep, returning the ſurface mould ( into the bottom of the hole, and then bending each brauch and faſten-
i ing it down with a peg about ten or twelve inches below the ſurface, treading over it the remainder of the mould, Editer.
General

| |
| Names of Woods, | Stalisfield.
Newenden Bottom. | Bickner Wood. | Cheſnut Wood Long Tunn, Squirrels Wood. Binborough Wood,
Mount Down, Cockftreet Wood.
Chatham Wood,
Fright Wood. | Upper Beli Wood.
Bridge Wood. Chatham Woods. Shawßed Wood.
Rainham Park.
Pennenden Heath Woods.
King's Wood,
Moat W oeds.
Coxheath Woods. Barming Woods. Eaſt Malling Woods,
Peckham Wood.
Ofham Wood. King?s Wood, by Suílex.
Burham Downs.
To whom they belong. Hon. Mr.
Vatſon,
Sir Edward Knatchbull,
Baronet. —— Chambers, Eſq. Earl of A ylesford,
—— Beft, Elg.
Mecſſ. Head and Roper. Zarl of Aylesford.
TE
— EBcß, Eſa,
Foote, Eſq.
—— Befß, Eſq. of Chilſon. Meſſrs. Read, Seager, and others.
Wardens of the Bridge.
—— Foote, Eſq.
ELLE UD ATREA EED
Dean and Chapter of Rocheſter.
Earl of Aylesford.
— Bet, Eſg. of Boxley. Mrs. Bouverie, Sir John
Filmer, and others,
Lord Romney.
Mr. John Miller. Lord Romney, and Meſi,
Amherfis,
C. Mlilner Eſq andi the
Hon. Mr. Puſey.
Mrs. Bouverie, Sir Wm.
Twiſden, and Lord Le
Deſpencer.
Lord Le Deſpencer, and
Wm. Geary, Eſg.
—— Cartier, Eſg. and
others.
Waſte.
O
Parifies they are int. Stalisfield. Newenden,
Bickner and Hucking. Newington and Milton.
Thurnham and Stock=- bury.
Stockbury. Thurnham.
Detling and Thurnham,
Détling. hatham and—
A ylesford and Boxley,
Aylesford and Boxley.
St, Margaret?’s, Chatham. Shawſted and Gillingham.
Rainham and Newington,
ghbouring wood growin
Boxley.
Langley, Leeds, Sutton, GTC
Maidſtone.
Valden and Hunton. Barming and A ylesford. Teſton and Eaß Malling
Peckham and Mereworth.
Peckham and Ofham.
Goudhurfſt, Cranbrook, Ticehurfßt,&c.
Burham and Aylesford.
e young ſprings of the eſtabliſhed trees, ſo th
Acres ſuptoſed to contain,
509
300
600 39099
I 000
Tt is attended with ſome difficulty and hazard of fucceß to cauſe young new planted trees to thrive well in old woods and waſtes, the land cloſe round the new plants being occupied by the roots of the neighbouring trees; graſs and w being much excluded from the free air by the nei|]) ſummer; and ſeveral of thoſe that continue alive till the ſucceeding fall frequently overpowered by the more rapid growth of th Ing| f of all that have been planted in thoſe ſituations, barely a third is to be found ſucceeding to ady
Î | g round and above them, the new plants often fail the firſt or ſecond of the wood, and then cut down with it, are, from their weakly ſtate,
eeds likewiſe growing near them, added to their
at they are ſeen no more, antage, and ſometimes not a tenth,
AGRICUEDTORAL SURE
Surface Soil, generally. Heavy and grayelly Loam.
Sandy Loam.
Flinty ſtrong Loam
Gravelly and ſandy ITOalie
Gravelly and ſandy fünty Loam.
Flinty and dry poor gravelly Loam.
Flinty and gravelly Loam,
Flinty and gravelly Loam.
Same as aboye,
Flinty gravelly Loam.
Chalky flinty gravelly Loam.
Grayvyelly Loam,
Gravelly and chalky
Tonne
Gravelly Loam, Gravelly Loam,
Ditto. Sandy Gravel.
Stone ſhatter, and gravelly Loam.
Stone ſhatter, and gravelly Loam.
Gravelly Loam.
Sandy Loam.
Sandv Loam and Stone ſhatter.
Gravelly Loam and Stonc ſhatter,
The ſame. Gravelly Loam and ſandy ditto,
Gravelly Loam Flinty,
On the average Several
| |
Subſoil.
Heavy Loam and ſome Chalk. Heavy Loam.
Heavy Loam.
Gravelly Loam.
Heavy and
gravelly flinty Loam.
Chalk at 2 feet, ſome gravelly Loam.
Chalk 4 feet, ſome deep gravelly Loam.
Some chalky, not guite ſo good as above.
Few Flints, nearly as
above, Stronger Loam with Flints. Chalk and ſme
gravelly Loam,
Heavy, flinty, and poor Loam.
Gravelly Loam and
Chalk, The ſame as above. Ditto. Gravelly Loam and
Heavy Loam, Gravelly and Sandy Loam.
Strong Loam with ſome Ragſtone
Gravelly Loam and ſome Stone.
Gravelly Loam and ſome Stones. Gravelly Loam. Gravelly Loam and Ragſtone.
Deep Loam, heavy
Clay, and Gravel,
Gravelly Loam.
Some ſtrong Clay and Loam.
Gravel,
Clay, ſome Flint.
extenſive experiments are now purſuing; and, as far as they are carrie
have been preſerved alive through thoſe lare dry ſeaſons, in the coarſeſt graſſy lands. clean, clofz round them, wirh ſome new invented hoes for tl) where planting has been followed, are more than doubl ſkilful and experienced, that this pradtice is fill but litt
QE RENT.
Produce ſcemingly Natural. Birch, Hornbeam, Oak, Aſh, Hazel Beech G&C
As aboye.
As above.
Some Aſh, Beech, Oak, Hazel,&c.
Some good Aſh, Beech, Horabeam,&c. with tole- rable Oak,
Some Beech, ordinary Oak, SC.
Some god Aſh Poles, a few Oaks, Hazels, SC,
Nearly as above.
Some Oak, Hazel, Pecch, and a few Aſh.
Some Oak, Aſh Poles, Beech, GTC
Some Oak, Aſh, Beech,&c.
Very ordinary Oak, ſome Aſh, Hazel, and Beech.
Some Oak, Aſh Poles,&c.
Oa AM C:
Aſh, Oak, and Beech. As above.
Good Hop Poles from the
few old Stocks.
Large Quantities of Oak, ſome Hazel, Birch,&c.
Oak, Birch, Aſpen, Hazel, and ſome Aſh.
Oak of indifferent growth.
A variety of Birch, Oak, Hornbeam,&c,
Oak, Beech, Birch, Hazel, Aſh,
As aboye.
As aboye, As above, to:Oak!
Scrubby Oak, Hazel,&c.
but more inclined
Extra from Improvements,
Some Aſh, Chéſnuts, and Willow planted, ſucceed.
But little done in Planting.
Some good young Plantation of Aſh, Willow, and Cheſnut,
Exceeding good Chefſnut Plantation.
No Improvements made.
No Improvemen:s,
No Improvements,
No Improvements,
Old Woods and Plantations of Chefſ-
nut and Aſh. They“ have re- peatedly been flled up, many years ago, with Cheſnut, Aſh, and Willow; and now again
filling up, under Mr. Randall’s direction.
No Improvements going on.
No Improvements,
A moſt capital Improvement for Poles, by Mr. Seager, with Aſh; one Acre of which Underwood is now of egual value to eight round of the ſame age.
Beginning to improve by Aſh and Cheſnut Plants.
Old Improvements fill continued. No Improvement. No Improvement.
Capital Improvement of Cheſnuts on poor Sand,
No Improvements,|
Improved by planting many Aſh, Cheſnnt, and Willow, faid to be
Articles for Sale.
Some Timber, Poles, Cord Wood, Hurdles| and Bavins for Bakers, and Lime.
Produce as above.
Some Timber and Fencing Poles in addition to the above.
Quantities of Hop Poles, Fencing
Poles, and all the above.
Some Fencing and Hop Poles, Cord W'cod for Charcoal Bavins,&c. nd a few Poles,
Cord Wood, Bavins,
Cord Wood, Hop
otakes, Ethers,&c.
Poles, Bavins,
| As above.
Abundance of Hop Poles, Fencing Poles, Stäkes, Cord W ood,&c.&c,
Poles, Bavins, Cord Wood,&c. As laſt,
Produce a few Poles, Cord Wood, Bavins,&c. the Plantation a great many Poles, and the aboyes
Poles, Cord Wood,&c.
The fame as above. The ſame.
The fame.
Abundance of Poles, Stakes, Ethers, 8c.&c. Many Oaken Tillers
MOLESIGCC:
, ſmall Timber,
the moſt Ancient of all the neigh-| bouring Improvements.| Some Chefínurs in a flouriſhing State,| Much improved by planting Chefſ- nut, 8c. Improved as above. As above, with ſome new Plants of Cheſnut, by Lord Le Deſpencer, on very Grayelly Loam.
But very little improved.
Waſte Lands,
4 Note dy Mr. Raudall,
Some very god Fencing Poles, Hop Poles, Cord Wood,&c. 8c.
Hop Poles, Fence Poſes, 8e.&c. Quantities of good
FIOP: Roles, Sac.
Fence Poles , Product as above.
The ſame.
Ditto. Fewer Poles, Fire Wood,&ec. as above.
Free from November to March.
1, promiſe more ſucceſs than hitherto; as nearly all the new plants Digging large holes for the plants, and keeping them le purpoſe, form a confiderable part of the Plan; and although thoſe wocdlands, e the value of thoſe adjoining which have bcen negledted; yet, it is confeſſed by the moſt le underſtood.
D e
[To follow Pace 126, be E,>

TE e MALEZA Hg Mart ET
M E RT I i n 5 La Pra

u E/
OF KENT. 127
General Obſervations on the preceding Table.
The oaks are all cut in the flaying ſeaſon, for the bark of all ſizes. The fencing-poles are either uſed whole, or cut into gates for ſheep, The hop-poles are ſorted into three, four, or five ſorts, and ſold by the hundred. The faggots, or bavins, are made into lengths of five feet; the beft for bakers and houſe-keepers; and on the hills they make inferior ſorts, called kilnbruſh, which are uſed for burning lime, Stakes and ethers are cut out before the faggots are made. In the neighbourhood of Chatham they cut ſome ſmall bandles of bruſh and cord-wood, for the uſe of ſhipping and the metropolis. The wood-
7- hl TZ EA C lands of the Weald are tithe free
11 CCe
CAr Al.
VSTO.
F i SHE waſte lands, the negle&ed woods, and the im-
poveriſhed commons, are firiking evidences of the neceflity and importance of enguiries like the preſent; and the legiſlature will have abundant meritin ſuggeſting to the proprietors of theſe eſtates a plan of improve-
ment,

\,
128 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
ment, from which individuals and the community will derive the greateſt advantages.
In the county there are the following commons, Viz»
Blean Common, Swingfield Minis, Stelling Min1s, Rodes Minis,
Ewel Min1s, Stouting Common,
GElalloekatees;
Baddleſmere Lees, Ghat econ Hotfeld Heath, Hays Common, Bromley Common,
Boxley Heath,
Charing Heath, Lenham Eleath, Pinnenden Heath, Cos Heath, Langley Heath, Barming Heath, Eaſt Malling Heath, Seal Chart; Ichtham Heath, W rotham Heath, Dartford Heath, Dartford Brimps,
BIRECkSHECEath Cc:
The whole extent of theſe commons, I apprehends he ſort
of a few of them conſiſts of a poor cold loam z of others,
does not comprehend more than 20,0c0 acres
of a wet fifff clay; but the principal part abounds in gravel and ſand. They are in general covered with furze and fern, interſperſed with patches of graſs; and feed ſome lcan cattle and poor half ſtarved ſheep.[i they were in a ftate of ſeveralty, under proper ſyſtems of management, they might undoubtedly be made of great value, Inclofures would do muchz induſtry and due attention to the natural produce, and what has been cultivated on ſimilar ſoils in other places, would do more>. Nature is a wiſe counſellor, and thoſe who follow her ad- vice can, with the aid of art and obſervation, do wonders in agriculture.
I ſhall here take the liberty of ſuggeſting to the Ho- nourable Beard of Agriculture, the propriety of recom- mending to the legiſlature a plan for a general a of in-
cloſure

" il
\ Deen
OF KENT, 129 cloſure, founded on the principle of Mr. Gilbert’'s a for incorporating pariſhes for the ſupport of the poor, ſo far as that a relates to the calling a meeting, and deéter- mining by a majority of two-thirds 1n number and value of the occupiers, whether their common ſhall be divided z; and, if determined in the affirmative, then to proceed by appointing commiſlioners, and expediting the buſineſs, as in caſes where ſeparate as of parliament have been obtained,
CoA ERNE
FM PROVE M EN FS:
SECT. I.— Drainimg.
HIS 1s a ſabje& of infinite importance to the profs perity of this kingdom, Bogs exiſt in moſt of the counties, more or leſs, and in ſometo a wonderful extent; the whole of which is convertible to the very beſt land, by proper management,
In Kent we have a great many ſmall patches of boggy and ſpungy lands, formed by means which will hereafter be mentioned. We have alſo ſeveral extenſive parcels of marſh-lands, which in the winter months are frequently rendered totally uſeleſs, and of much leſs value 1n Tum- mer, The quantity of theſe two kinds of wet lands
Ld amounts

1240 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
amounts to ſome thouſand acres, the whole of which» ât a very ſmall expence, might be improved, in its annual value, at teaſt 1/. per acre.
Beſides theſe, there is much land of confiderable value that might be greatly improved, by a proper attention to the general principles of drainage,
The diferent kinds of drainage may be arranged under the following heads, viz.
1, Upland Drainage, 2. Flood Drainage, and 3. Bog Drainage,
Upland Drainage 1s efeéted in two R; either by ſur- face drains, or by hollow drains, The firſt is done by laying the land in ridges, and leading e water, by means of furrows, into narrow channels made with the ſpade, and thence by a general conduêtor to the fireams. This kind of drainage is praiſed only on ſoils having a clay ſurface, or any other ſubſtance impenet‘able by water;
and the method uſed in Kent is to lay the land 1n flat ridges, either a half or a whole rod in width; if the land is very wet, narrow ridges are made; and 1f et moderately ſo, wider ones. When the land 1s E the furrows between the ridges are opened with a plough, having a mould-board on each fide, by which a drain for the water is made: and at the lower parts of the field a channel 1s dug out about the breadth of the ſpade, to receive the
ab)
water from the furrows, and convey 1t aWay as before
RE Tt a: RS E 4e AE A BICE mentioned. This mode of dr AE árable clay- ſoils © 2A 4 PAE RRS rater but wh H fz)<1 2a E on hills receiving no water DUf W alls from the clouds, A Sa ALL LOAOYTSE 10e de 4 is found to be effffeQ@ual; and the lat ridges made with the - ACIS] E ona TDT EO FG SL N FAA| AE 4= tUrn-WrEeit piOougn arc VCTY TAL LUPpd FTOT CO: tITC hntgh round FIA SESSO. OLE COUNT made Dy the pPIougs WIN TIIXCC l è + 1 1] 1 2 ls a INO 11-) UD 5 TOT CH nat ICC S] AVE the 1 y oreat(4 4,6 vantage OÏ recervIn and retatning the ſmall ſhowers equa LY |= a— E aS is a en—————— EL ES— E_—___—— ELE

f which;
ts annul
le value tion to
ed under
r by ſur- done by y means ſpade, This aday water; 1n fat the land derately furrows avIng 4 (€ WAKE
¡annel 18
OF BENT. T
hi equally over the ſurface of the ridge in ſummer, when every drop of water 1s of the utmoſt conſequence to Vege tation; while the high round ridges cat of little ſudden ſhowers, and the crops growing! thereon in dry ſeaſons, are in a ftarving ftate for the want of a ſufficient degree of moiſture. Great objeCtions are made b ridges, alledging that the ſurface 1s more likely to be in-
"y ſome to fat k
cruſted and baked together, by the water fanding thereon after heavy ſhowers; but even if it ſhould be ſo, the evil 1s eafily remedied by taking the firſt opportunity of a dry ſeaſon in the ſpring to harrow the ſurface of a wheat=- crops or, to prevent the miſchief, by drilling all crops and hoeing the intervals by hand if labourers are to be hads and, if not, by ſcuflling the ſurface with horſe-hoes, At any rate, the evil of an incrufted or bound ſurface, which may be ſo cafily remedied, 1s not to be put in com- petition with the advantages reſulting from having a tevel ſurface to retain the ſmall ſhowers that fall in a dry ſummer,
The ſecond mode of draining upland 1s by hollow drainage; which is praiſed on all land having a porous ſoil on the ſurface, and a retentive clay-ſoil- a little be low it, which keeps the ſurface wet till the water is taken away by ſome artificial means. The method 1s to cut angular channels at fuch places, and at ſuch diſtances from each other, as the nature of the ſoil ſeems to require; which muſt be determined by experienced men from local circumſtances z ſuch as, whether the retentive bed of clay be a greater or leſs depth from the ſurface; and whether the field to be drained has a greater or leſs fall for the ready paſſage of the water. The method of pre- ſerving the channels open and free, 1s various, Some
lay flints or ſtones at the bottom, others green buſh-
Wood; and ſome make the trench with ſhoulders towards K 2 the A

I 22 AGRICUE TORAF SURVEY
the bottom, and lay thereon a tuft of grafs, with the graſs-ſide downwards, thereby leaving an entire cavity for the paſſage of the water, In either caſe, the trench
i with the mould that was dug out
is filled UP and levelled of it. Theſe under-ground drains, when they are well executed and made of a ſufficient depth, out of the reach of moles and preſſure of cal le or carriages, wat from ten to twenty years, and upwards; and land may be drained 1n this mode at an expence of rom I5s, to 30s Per acre; in proportion to the number of channels required, But it ſhould be obſerved here, that many attempts at hollow draining E been made on boggy and ſpungy
ſoils without ſucceſs, owing to a want of the knowledge
of the original cauſe of the miſchief; which will be ex-| plained when the drainage of that ſort of land 1s men- tioned.
Dod Drainace Sn dor drainage is very little attended to in ſome parts of this county; for want of it, many extenſive tracts of marſh-land are very much injured; and a benefit, which otherwiſe woul Id accrue by a great increaſe of property in mutton, wool, and beef, 1s thereby loft to individuals and the public.
The miſchief of floods is obvious; and, fortunately, ſo is the remedy, when their cauſes are known. Theſeare, firſt, rain falling on retentive lands, whoſe furface 1s below the level of the river where embankments are wanting, or are defeAive. The‘nuiſance in ſuch‘caſes can only be removed by evaporation or Nachinery*; but it
may
Mr. Hooper, be of rhe‘greateſt utility, not likely to get it Having a vane
& A machine of this kind has been lately erected by of Cottington, near Deal, which Prc omi1ſes to as its colt is very little, and conſtruction fi mples it 1S out of repair; and requires little or no attendance,
which keeps it always facing the wind.
Dimenſions

OF KENT. 133
68 may be greatly leſſened by embankments. Under theſe e circumſtances, ſuitable embankments along the river LY) anſwer a ceneral good purpoſe: they keep iré downíal- anſwer a g a purpoſe; they e] VD
vater in its proper channel, and the accamalated fream enlarges the bed and improves its outlet,
ire well Secondly, A deſcent of water from the adjoining hills; E the whole GE which may be conveyed to the river by em- banked channels, in ſuch dire&ions as nature points out, ay be TIT. Bog Drainage. All boggy ſo1ls conſt of a maſs (0 306 of vegetable matter, ariſing from the ſurface of the land quired, having been overflowed for ages with water, thereby pro- “MPR at ducing a number of aguatic plants, whoſe roots form a thick matted turf that contain water, in the nature of a owledge ſpunge. As theſe aquatic plants continue their growth lhe ex- E their roots become matted together under the
5 men- urface, and thereby form the ſpungy ſurface of the bog 3
Pn all bogs are 1n a perpetual 1 ftate of increaſing depth, 18 Very ſo long as they are fed with the neceflary ſupply of
Or Want water to keep up the vegetation of the aguatic plants.
[Y MUCIL- ¿ E E-
y Dimenfons of the Mill and Pump.
AprnA NY Iu S S E E=
ALL- Four ſweeps, the drivers of each ſeven feet long, and breadth ſixteen nd beef, inches. The leaders of each are the ſame length, and nine inches in
breadth; theſe are ſo fixed, with ſprings behind them, as to check the velocity in Éſrong gales of wind.
The mill works a ſquare pump fifteen and a half inches by ſeven in the clear. It is calculated, in maderate gales, to 0 ſecond of time, by which it delivers two gallons of water, making a dif charge in twenty-four hours of 1600 butts, of 108 gallons each. Itis planned with a lever, in caſe of neceſfity, to Ww ork an other pump of the ſame ſize; which in ſtrong winds would of courſe diſcharge double the
above guantity. The price, including tixing, 1 LIO
ke a f ſtroke in one
can Only The uſe of this mill is to throw out the water from about 100 acres We jau, graſs-land, that have he rctofore been always under water in a. rainy put if c 1 A H 10 n; occaſioned nat by the do Ds fal of rain, nor by ſprings Tifing out maÿ of the land, but by PrP ii Ing from the foot of the adjoining hills and floods ls the higher grounds A> over the level below, faſter , Hoope than the ſewers could| take them away. The ſewer which did run 0 utility, acroſs this[Sud 3 is Now turned round the outh€ land to be o get drained by this mill is embanked againſt the flo at there will g ¿vane be n9 water to raiſe from it, but what falle from the LE: D 3 IC ICA A ——————— a—————————-—A——

——
134 AGRICUETOURAE SURVEY
Let the ſupply of water be cut off and the aquatic plants ſoon die; by which thé bog is no longer a maſs of vege- table R but e a body of firm rich mould, in the nature of a rotten dunghill, This ſort of land, there- fore, when once it is properly drained, becomes the rich- eſt and moft valuable: hence it is obvious, that all boggy lands may be increaſed in their annual value, at leaſt 20s. per acre, and probably to twice that amount,
The fprings that occafon the| bogs, 1ílue“0 the foot of the adjacent hills; and the method of draining, or more properly deſtroying, the bogs, as diſcovered by the ingenious Mr. Elkington, is ſo ſimple, eaſy, and certain in 1ts efes, that it needs only to be made public, to be generally adopted, and it will then produce e moſt beneficial effffleds to the CE For, beſides the great increaſe of national wealth, by the deftru@ion of all the bogs 1n the kingdom, amounting in value to many hundred thouſand pounds a year, the improvement of the health of the neighbouring inhabitants is of the utmoſt impor- tance; not to mention the increaſe of population, by thè improvement and culture of theſe now barren and almoft waſte diſtris,
Tt may be preſumptuous in me to enter at large into this ſubjeA, after the excellent epos which has been made on Mr. Elkington’s mode of draining, by the worthy
preſident of the Board of Agriculture z; but as this Survey when publiſhed by the Honourable Board, may fall into*
the hands of many who may not have an opportunity of
ſeeing the other, I ſfall juſt mention ſuch ideas‘as have occurred to me on this ſubje&t, together with the outlines of Mr. Elkington's plan.
Wiater falling from the clouds, in rain or in dews, on the ſurface of the earth, deſcends in perpendicular direc-
tions through all porous ſoils, ſuch as chalk, fonc,
E E

OF KENT. T3238:| C Plant 1:--- 10 R gravel, ſand,&c. until it meets with a bed of cloſe tena- : IN c1ous earth; of which clay is the principal and moſt re= j: LRS 4| tentive: the water being there fſopped in its deſcent,| i: CA burſts out over the edges of the bed of clay, in the nature Y- E rich. of a ſpring; from thence 1t flows down the fides of the° 1] y all hill, and produces a bog, The hills containing ſand, rock,#4 OIR and gravel, in this county, and I ſuppoſe 1n mof: others,; ns have beds of clay at their baſe, lying conſiderably above the foot the level of the bottom of the vales which interſe& the ng, or i hills,“The method praiſed ſo ſucceſsfully by Mr. El- j by the kington, is to cut of theſe ſprings from their ſource by I certain deep channels, in lines nearly in the dire&ion of the val- ic, to be lies, thence conveying the water down to the rivers or he moſt ſewers below. he great When the direion for a drain is marked out, it is neceſ- Fall the ary to begin at the bottom next the river, carrying the undred trench gradually up to the ſpring-head, under the guidance i health of a ſpirit level: a fall of an inch in four or five rods, \myor-; 1s ſufficient to carry of the water. As the workmen pro- E ceed in making the trenches for the drains, holes are made 1; et in them with a boring auger, 1n order to tap the ſprings, and let out as muüch water as poſſible. If, from the fitua= US tion of the land and ſoil, it 1s neceſſary to make very deep L E channels, then drains of fone or brick are laid, and the AO drain 1s covered in with the earth that is dug outz but ; Surre] otherwiſe, open frenches will anſwer every purpoſe, ct The mouth of the drain ſhould be laid on a little green ps ¿‘bruſh-wood, to prevent its finking into the earth. If any {8 4 Gi trees are found near the direCion of the drain, they ſhould zZ E be dug up, as otherwiſe their roots are liable to get into JR the drain; where they grow with ſuch rapidity as to burſt: | or choke it in a few years, If a ſmall guantity of water A y only 1s expected to come down the drain, a breadth of 0 i four ¿or dive incles. as\uficients but 1f Aguantity is MY K 4 found ravi, z | Â] s>: 4 o————————— R—— ECD E Li E a— DD——————-

136 AGRICUETORA SURNEY
found iſſuing from ſeveral ſprings, or comes from a con- ſiderable diſtance, by which an accumulation of water follows, then the drain ſhould be about fx or ſeven inches wide. If made with bricks, and the ſoil on which they are laid 1s a ſoft quickſand, they ſhould be laid flat; but Ifclay or firm earth, laying them on their edges will do;
the depth of the drain ſhould be greater at the lower end than at the upper; namely, three bricks at the lower end, two 1n the middle, and one at the upper part,
H. Darrel, Eſq. of Cale-Hill(very much to his honour) is the firſt who has undertaken bog-drainage in this county, under the dire&ion of Mr. Elkington. He commenced his operations in the ſpring of 1795, and 4 has, in the courſe of about eight months, very efe@ually drained about ſeventy acres, which were worth about 7s. or 8s. per acre, and now will very ſhortly be to him in- valuable, on account of their fituation, cloſe to his man- j fion z; but, independent of that circumſtance, this land will be increaſed in its annual value full 20s. per acre: by which, he has the acquiſition of an eſtate of 70/. per annum for an expence not yet aſcertained; but which will hardly exceed 200/. or 300! Cattle have ſometimes 4 been laid up on theſe bogs, ſo that they haye been obliged to be drawn out by ropes from places which, in one year or leſs, from the time of the drains being cut, are become firm enough to bear the tread of horſes,
DECT. Il.— Paring and Burning,
Or all the improvements in the cultivation of land that have been hitherto made in Kent, this ſtands fore-
molt; ſome of the very worft land having been made to produce excellent crops; and poor chalky downs, of
ſcarcely any value in their original ſtate, are by paring
and burning made to produce good turnips and clover, and

OF KENT. 137
„OU and crops of corn, often equal in value to double the fee- # ier fimple of the land. Inſtead of the land being injured by Inches the operation, as ſome theoriſts imagine, provided it be h they under a proper ſyſtem of management and fairly dealt by, t; but it 1s put into a progreſſive ſtate of improvement, from the illdo; time of its ſurface being burnt. It has frequently hap- ver end pened, that land, after burning, has been ſown with corn Ver end, four or five years in ſucceſſion, without being folded with ſheep, or any part of its produce ever returned in 10nour) manure; even charlock and other weeds have been ſuf= In this fered to remain, by which it has been annually burthened HE with a double crop: hence it has been left in an impo- 15, and veriſhed fate, and the burning is unjuſtly condemned Qually for the miſchief done by the negligence and rapacity of out 1s, the cultivator. m i0- Let the land, when burnt, be perfelly cleaned from int charlock and other weeds, by growing turnips until the endl i weeds are totally eradicated by hoeing,&c,; let the tur- R nips be fed of the land, by ſheep lying on the land day ol, per and night; then ſow it with barley and cloverz the lat- 0 ter to be fed of with ſheep, folding them on the land for Vi« wheat. Laſtly, return the firaw produced upon the land liged in manure mixed with clay or loam, or any other freſh : year earth that 1s near at hand, for a ſecond Norfolk rotation, come which may be repeated; or the land may be ſown with ſainfoin, to remain till a turf is formed fit for paring : and burning again. This plan being purſued, the prac- F tice of burning the ſoil will not give any cauſe of com- € land plaint, either to landlord or tenant. Theoórifs exclaim, Sl that by paring and burning, the ftaple of the land is re- i u duced, and the ſoil is waſted; which may be ſomewhat 0 f true: but all this is very immaterial, if fine crops of corn GRE can be produced where none ever grew before, and the E land at the ſame time be improved, cI er, The and

138 AGRICULFBRAF SURVEY
Ze
The method of paring moft in uſe, is with downſhare or breaft-ploughs, taking of a turf as thick as the nature of the ſoil will admit, from half an inch to two inches; the thicker the better, provided there be a ſufficient Por- tion of vegetable matter contained within it, to make it
ps— z— Ee a araes ê y Z E
burn well; the expence for paring it a moderate thick-
neſs, where the land is not very flinty, is 20s. per acre z
I— a,
-
M, Lr
for laying it up in‘heaps and burning, 10s.; and for
ſpreading the aſhes, 23s. A coat of manure is thus pro-
l
duced on the land, of from eighty to one hundred-and- fixty cart- loads per acre, for the trifling expence of 33% A hundred cart-loads of dung, purchaſed from neighbouring towns and villages, at the diſtance of three miles from the land, would cof, carriage home included, ten times the price of downíharing, and yet would not 1mprove the land more,
Where the land is well covered with turf, it may be ploughed for burning, about two inches deep, with a common plough, drawn by a pair of horſes, early in the ſpring; and as ſoon as a drying wind ſets in, the turf may be laid in heaps, and burnt by labourers for 1. Is. per acre; which will produce near two hundred cart- loads,
AII waſte banks inacceſſible to the plough, and ſlips along road-fides, are dug with a ſpade, and burnt to aſhes for 6d. a cart-load, of about thirty buſhels,
Theſe aſhes, carried out on fallows in June, at the rate of twenty cart-loads per acre, afford a moſt excellent dreſſing for a crop of turnips,
E R EN"1 EEES ES D i M ON RB TI, e Manuring.
THx ſorts of manure commonly in uſe 1n this county,
7 N et 1°) Vod 3 1- Fal- 1 =, OS 1> faldinoa en TI AAE naſh oc ſr Anal 27€ CQUNS, INCep-Iold1Rc, Chalk, turi-alnecs, 100l, COal-
7 PAE| AC [Mi A EE E rT ZAS> ahii Lec S ganzes= as EA R

—= D”,
OF KENT. 139
aſhes, ſca-weed, woollen-rags, and lime; with a variety of other manures, too numerous and trifling to be par- ticularized in a general report.
Dung of horſes, cattle, and hogs, is mixed together in large heaps, and laid in the helds intended to be ma-=- nured, uſually on a layer of freſh earth, a foot or two in depth, dug out of hedge-rows, waſte banks, or uſeleſs ſpots ofland. When HE heap of dung 1s made up, ſome perſons give ita covering of mould; and it is an excel- lent pradice to keep it moiſt, and prevent evaporation. After it has lain a month or two to ferment, it 1s trenched over at the expence of 3s. Od. per hundred cart- loads; and then, after lying a few weeks longer, it is fit for uſe. This manure is laid on the land at the rate of from forty to ſixty cart-loads of twenty buſhels each per acre, The expence of carrying out the heap, when conveniently ſituated, 1s about I5Ss. Per hundred cart- loads, and for ſpreading, 3s. 6d.
The principal part of this ſort of manure is carried out
EN 9)
or wheat or beans. Some farmers dung for barley, and
others for turnips.
Manuring with the ſheep-fold is praGiſed on fallow- lands in the ſpring months, after barley ſowing, for tur- nips; then on fallows or clover-lays, for wheat; and when that ſeaſon is over, the fold is removed to either wheat ſtubbles or turnips, in order to fold the land for the ſucceeding crop of barley or oats
Two hundred bids vill fold about an acre 1n a week; the value of: which is from 20s, to 30s. in proportion to the time of the yearz the laſt folding in the autumn, next to the ploughing for wheat, being the molt v valuable.
Chalk 1s uſed to great advantage as a manure on ſome wet, fiff ſoils, having no calcareous earth; in quantity,
from fifty to cighty cart-loads per acre, Its beneficial
IIS cfedcts —————— EE- RE ate 2ON pans- E rg m AO e E as > 2—-—————————————s

ATA rc 7. I© rT xy I 40 NGE EURL SAA E BAS RV LN
cffffedts are ſaid to laſt twenty years, and the value of it is often eſtimated between outgoing and incoming tenants, when lately laid on, as high as gf. per acre,
There are many ſoils, however(indeed throughout the greateſt part of this County, where chalk 1s in plenty) which derive no benefit from it, Some farmers, from obſerving the beneficial efffeds of chalk as a manure at other places, have been tempted to uſe it on their lands z where it has proved to be of no kind of uſe; and much time and expence have been entirely thrown away.
The beſt method of ußing it, is to ſpread it early in the Autumn Tn Sorder tha 1E may be thoroughly drenched with rain, that the froſt may have its full operation upon
by which means it is well pulverized when the thaw comes on, and will mix the more readily with the ſoil.
Old graſs-lands on wet ſandy or clay ſoil, over-run with furze or ruíhes, are greatly improv del by chalk
Turf-aſhes, 1f ſpread on poor chalky iA lands for turnips, at the rate of about twenty cart-loads of thirty buſhels each per acre, will ſeldom fail to produce a good crop: and it is well known, that if once a good crop of
urnips can be obtained on ſuch poor lands, a good foundation 1s laid for future improvements,
Turf-aſhes are often uſed for wheat, and ſometimes for other crops; but there 1s no application ot them ſo advantageous as that of ufing them for turnips,
Doot 1s a valuable manure for a top-drefling on fain- Soin, clover, lucern, and meadows: it is uſually pur- chaſed at the neighbouring towns for 6d, per bufhel, and ſown on the land at the rate of forty or fifty buſhels per acre, early 1n the ſpring.
Coal-aſhes are a good manure for the ſame Purpoſe; but not ſo much uſed, on account of their conſumption
in the manufaure of bricks: the price at the towns 18
HANSE auUOiie

OLSEN I41
out 2d. per buſhel: they are ſown on the land in the ſpring, at the rate of OE or five chaldrons per acres, Cold, wet, clay meadows are much improved by them.
Sea Weed. This is a moſt excellent manure, being a maſs of vegetable matter, ſtrongly impregnated With ſalt. Immenfſe quantities are ſometimes thrown by the winds and tides on the ſhores of Thanet; from whence it is carted through ſloping paſſages in the cliff to the land.
When a quantity comes aſhore, after a gale of wind,
get as much as
poſible while the tide ſerves, leſt the next ſhould
the farmers ſet all hands to work, to
carry it away z; and if it happens in the night, they work
at it then till ſtopped by the waters coming on. Some
farmers will get up 1n one tide two or taree hundred
cart-loads. Thoſe who live at a diftance, hire: ſmall ſp arTt-10A4adSs 1 nOre WILD LIV dt d UIILdiUUs DIC 1Mmali Lj)O iS of land, of a few perches, to lay the frelh weed upon as
CNey Set Its and, Garry Ea a y CON En farm at a4 more ETS-
COonyenlent Opportunity IE LOmnetinies: COMECs aſhore 111
+<4 E« nN N+7 m RE 4 o
E that amount to ſeveral thouſand cart-loads; 1 E En E LA E"TE
and perhaps all ſwept away by the next LL Ihe prin-
A E of ufing it, 1s by mixing 1t 1n layers among
the farm-yard dung 1n the mix-hills. Ît 1s of great uſe in
ES E CELS carried EO Ue
helping to rot the dry part of dun, [WD d
y Fe)
farm-yard in ſummer.
omm
Woollen Rags. The chie to lay them round the hills of hops,&c.: the method 1s to open the hill, and place the rags, ready cut into ſmall pieces, two or three inches ſquare, Jas round the roots, 2 little below the ſurface of the land, and immediately cover them up with mould. A ton of rags per acre 1s the uſual quantity, which is about two pounds and a
quarter to every hill of hops: they cof from 4/.to 6! per
E Es ES R 7 EE a ton. For dry gravelly ſoils, this 1s a good manure, ag Ne / =———————— E OR cas=

142 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
the rags operate in the nature of a ſpunge, to retain the moiſture in a dry ſeaſon, and thereby ſupport vegeta=- tion; but, on the contrary, in a rainy ſummer it is ſup= poſed they do great injury, by producing the mould.
Lime. The tenants of the Weald of Kent are bound by the covenants of their leaſes, to lay on their fallows a hundred buſhels of lime per acrez and they generally lay on double that LA T h1s lime is made: of chalk, from the hill which runs thro! ugh the EA from Folkſtone to Maidſtone,&c.; and is br vught from the diſtance of twenty miles to e of the i though there 1s excellent limeſtone in the centre of the Weald E and even in the pariſh of Betherſden, famous for a fine limeſtone, called Betherſden E chalk-lime is pre- ferred; and the chalk to make it is procured at a con- fiderable diſtance.
The lime 1s diſperſed in Heaps, ofa load'or twoat 4 place, during the ſummer, and ſpread with a ſhovel out of a cart before the laſt p loughing for wheatzs which is generally ſown in the month of O&ober. Lime is ve ry little ufed in any other part of rhis county: it has been tried on various ſoils in Eaſt Kent, ſuch as chalk, clay, loam, and hazel-mould; without any apparent good CHCCE
Sand has been ſpread, at the rate of a cart-load a perch, upon ftiff cledge ſoils, without being of any uſe; and tanners bark, at the rate of fifty cart-loads DEr aCres has been ſpread on chalk ſoils, and ploughed in for tur- n1ps, ſucceeded by barley: both crops very inferior where the bark was laid on, to that of ſome adjoining land manured with turf-aſhes,
Kelp, ground to powder, has been ſown at the rate of twenty cwt. per acre on paſture, ſainfoin, and clover, without any ſenſible effÆ&, There can be no doubt,
but

OF KENT. 143
but-that many valuable diſcoveries may be made, as to the uſe and effed of other ſubſtances as manures, through the aid of chymuifſtry: but theoriſts in that ſcience are too apt to recommend compoßhitions which, when put to the trial, prove uſeleſs, Writers, therefore, on this ſub- je&t, ſhould be cautious how they recommend expenfve manures, without proof of their utility,
S EEC Ts IN TEE Weeding,
T1s county has long been noted for its clean crops of corn: and a fovenly farmer 1s an obje of reproach to all his neighbours. The huſbandry of Eaft Kent and the middle of the county, about Maidſtone, 1s ex- tremely neat, here are three diferent modes of weed- ing the corn uſed here(viz.) horſe-hoeing, hand-hoeing, and hand-weeding. The bean and pea-crop is invariably horſe-hoed two or three timesz the firſt, as ſoon as the rows appears they are then hoed by the hand along the ſides of the furrows, with a plate about five inches wide z as ſoon as that is done, they are horſe-hoed a ſecond tune; and if a ſecond hand-hoeing is thought neceflary, it 1s repeated; and then the beans are horſe- hoed a third time with an earthing plate, to raiſe the mould againſt their ſtems,
Peaſe are ſeldom horfe-hoed more than twice; both crops are uſually looked over by women and children, who pick out by hand ſuch weeds as the hoes have left,
Many other HOPS OL COn 1 rows or drills
Ww E (Ebi © ee _ Lab)
A
canary, barley, wheat, and- oats, are both horſe and hand-hoed; and all crops in moft kinds of land in the eaſtern part of- the county, but more particularly in-the beſt lands, are weeded in this manner: A gang of from
ten to twenty, chiefly boys and girls, walk throug

T44 AGRICULTURALZSURVEY
4 corn in June, and the beginning of July, attended by à caretul man to look after them; and with angular weed=+ books cut up thiſtles and other weeds; at the ſame time, pulling up by the roots fuch weeds as wlll eafily draw,
It is contrary to reaſon and nature, to expe that the earth can produce a full crop of corn, and a crop of weeds at the ſame timez and therefore, 1f the weeds arc eradicated, moft certainly a better crop of corn may be EXPECted.
The pooreſt land which fands moſt in need of every aſſiſtance that art and induſtry can give it, 1s generally mofſt negleded; crops of charlock in full bloom are ſeen on ſome chalky downs 1n the month of June, over- topping the puny half ſtarved corn, dazzling the eyes of the beholder with its luſtre, but blaſting the hopes of the penurious cultivator. However, it 1s much to the credit of Kentiſh farmers, that there are not half the weeds to be ſeen now on the poor lands that there were twenty years ago. The good lands have alwavs been kept very clean.
Thiftles are often cut out of the corn with ſmall ſpuds*, in the ſame manner, from graſs-lands; but the beſt and moft certain method of deſtroying thiſtles on graſs-lands, is to let them alone ll they are Hull bloom, and then to mow them with a ſcythe; for 1f they are cut while young, they produce freſh ſhoots from the ſides of each plant; but when mowed in full bloom, the fem is hollow; by which the rain-water and dews de=-
ſcend into the heart of the plant, and it ſoon dies,
SECcT. VV.— Watering.
Tue pradice of irrigating meadows, 1s an 1mprove-
ment of infinite importance; by which, many poor
*# Chizel-ſhaped.
ora fas SZ! aig

OF KENT. 145
graſs-lands are made to produce abundant crops, and good lands are made much more valuable; butl am ſorry tO Tay, the PraCtice as Jet Very Tew friends IN IS county,
There aâare many rivers, rivulets, and rills flowing through various parts of Kent, offering their fireams for the melioration of many thouſand acres of graſs-lands; ſome of which are at preſent poor, and unprodudtive, and at too great a diſtance from manures, to receive any aid of that kind,
The wáters being properly thrown over theſe lands, would render them capable of producing a much greater quantity of hay, and of maintaining an increaſed num- ber of valuable animals; thereby greatly adding to the ſtock of manure for the improvement of other lands, and ultimately increaſing the employment of labourers, and conſequently adding to population,
Before any attempt is made to irrigate the land, it ſhould be well drained; then, having the command of the water, good crops may be produced at pleaſure,
Bogs, when«drained, and the ſoil is become a firm compa& body, will become by irrigation, the richeſt meadow, and be increaſed in their annual value from I to 21, per acrez and, as water is always at command on an old bog, the expence of laying it out for irrigation muſt of courſe be very trifling, in compariſon with the magnitude of Improvement,
There are two material obje@&s obtained by this prac- tice at one time; namely, manuring the land, and water- ing it,
It is a well known fa, although ſcemingly a paradox, that irrigating 1s moft beneficial in the greateſt floods of rain; becauſe then the waters are moſt impregnated with rich particles of manure, waſhed down from the arable up-
E lands

146 AGRICUI FORA SURVEY:
lands; and when thrown over meadows, forma thick ſc- diment, that operates as a rich and fertilizing manure. It 1s to be obſerved, that although theſe lands are re- markably kindly for ſheep, particularly ewes and lambs 1n the ſpring, they are certainly produdive of the rot, 1f ſheep are put upon them in the autumn. A gentleman in Eaft Kent, a few years a
[a
oo, turned a little rill over a meadow, and made h1s graſs grow very luxuriantly; and, not being acquainted with the bufßi- neſs, frequently, in the autumn, turned a large flock of ſheep into it; the whole of which he loſt the follow- ing ſpring by the rot; and the land has never been irri- gated fince.
It muft be obvious to every one, that to have the com- mand of water, by which a dry ſoil can be ſaturated with moiſture in a burning time, muſt be the means of promoting vegetation, when otherwiſe the graſs would be dying away.
When farm-yards are fituated on a declivity, the waſhings and overflowings of them are invariably turned into conduétors, to lead them away to diſtant rivers. This 1s entirely throwing away a great treaſure, which might be conveyed at pleaſure to any adjoining field below the
level of the farm-yard 4+,
+ For further information on this ſubje&, ſce Boſwell’s Irrigation 5 and Mr. Dav1s’s excellent Account of Wiltſhire.
CHAPTER

—————————————————--= n
thick,—
NUre, are res lambs CHEAP. TRR NHI he Tot, i a, FE SO CR: W very € buſi EN lock of e DECT. I,— Cattle. CN UN.::: HIS not being a dairy or grazing county for cattle, 3 we have no particular breed that may be allowed aA the appellation of Kentiſh Cattle. The ſort bought in ls by graziers to be fattened for ſale in the marſhes of Mg. Eafßt KenG are from North and South Wales, which are yould brought by the Welch drovers to Canterbury and other markets; and the chief part of the dairy-cows are ſelec- ſ, tue ted from thoſe droves: others are a mixture of thoſe and wumned home-bred cattle, of various ſorts and ſhapes. The prin- , Ps cipal object as‘to a cow here, 18 the giving‘a Taree might quantity of milk, If a-cow, though ever ſo ugly, is a w the good milker, and produces a cow calf, it is often reared for the dairy. There are no ox-teams uſed here; which ti 1s partly the occaſion of there being but little attention Y paid to. the fize and ſhape of the cows.
4 ſt is ſomewhat extraordinary, and much to be regret- ted, that, in a county where agriculture is arrived at ſuch great perfedion, there ſhould be ſo little attention paid to the breèd Of cattle: i
In Weft Kent, the dairies are ſmall, ſeldom exceeding fix or cight cows, and thoſe are home-bred, between thoſe of Staffordſhire, Wales, and Suſſex. Some of the
PIER ſmall dairics of three or four cows, have the Walch ſort
only, T2
In
E——=—— E——————>- =—

————— TE e
0 10
148 AGRICUETOR A SUR EE:
In the Weald of Kent, the cattle are of the Suſſex breed, both for the pail and plough.
Some farmers are more careful in the choice of bulls and breeding-cows than others; but there is not that at- tention paid to this department of farming buſineſs as in the midland counties, The fineft bull of this diftri&t would hardly ſell for twenty gu1neas, although he may be very handſome 1n every reſpe&, and weigh, if killed, fifty or ſixty ſcore. Theſe cattle are almoſt invariably of a deep red colour, and remarkable for a kindly ſoft ſkin. Their bone, in proportion to their great ſize, 1s mall he beſo! them Maye a oreat breadth Olen, and length of firloin and rump, with a ſmall head and neck; their horns are ſhort, and ftand upwards. They have a ready diſpoſition to fatten; and ſeem to deſerve the attention of the curious in cattle, as much as any ſort in the kingdom. If the ſame care was taken here in breeding them, as 1s done in other counties, the breed might be greatly improved; and probably ſome of the beſt might be found equal in value to a Shakeſpear 4, or a Biindle Beauty e
Within theſe few years, ſome cows have been brought from the iſlands of Alderney and Guernſey, for the uſe of the dairies of gentlemens families. Theſe are a very ſmall ill-made kind of cattle; but they are remarkable for giving milk of a very rich quality, yielding a greater portion of cream, and making more butter from a given quantity of milk, than any other kind of cattle; the butter too is of a beautiful yellow colour, and 1s highly
+ A bull-calf, ſo called, ſold at public auion, at the ſale of the late Mr. Fowler?’s live ſtock of Rollwright, near Chipping Norton, ior 29/. os.
Since ſold for four hundred guineas.
+ A cow, thus named, ſold at the ſame ſale for 2736.
eſteemed

OF KENT. 149
eſteemed for its fine flavour. Whether theſe kinds of
he Suſe cows will preſerve their ſuperiority in this reſpe& many years, 1f bred and kept in this county, time only can diſ»
of bulls coverz but it 18 moſt probable, that ſoil and climate will that at- operate 1n the courſe of time, ſo that there will be no per- nels ag ceptible difference in the quality of the cream and but- s difi&t ter between theſe and common Engliſh cows. “he may An experiment was tried here laſt ſammer between à if killed, large home- bred cow, of eight years old, and. a ſmall variably Alderney, two years old: ndly ſoft gal, Ib. oz. a Y The home-bred cow, J 25, whichmadero 3 : in 7 days, gave of loin, The Ald AES Butter. E re Alderney CO 68 They the ſame time, gave J delerve The cattle which are fed 1n Romney Marſh, are taken 8 any into keep chiefly from thoſe farmers who keep lambs en here during the winter. Thus, by a temporary exchange of he breed ſock between the farmer and the grazier, each party 18 e UE accommodated; for 1f the grazier could not put out his r 4 07a lambs in the winter, he muft alter his preſent ſyſtem of grazingz and the upland farmer would be very much diſ- brought erefled with his bullocks in the ſummer, when his paſtures e are reſerved for hay, or fed with his dairy. The farmer ca ye keeps the lambs about thirty weeks from the beginning O of September z and the grazier keeps the bullocks about AO twenty weeks from the middle of May. is> Some graziers buy Welch calves in the autumn, put UA them out to keep in farm-yards for the winter, and in Sz y the ſpring place them among their ſheep, where they get s hig far in a few months, and weigh from eighteen to twenty- ‘ofthe lte two ſcore each. (orton, for A very few oxen are fattened, which are bought in from the plough-teams of the wealds of Kent and Suſſex: 1 2: they teemed| ] : G E——=>m*: + E is E m LA

159 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
they are very large, and have a reſerve of the beſt graſs to themſelves. From their Îze, they require a longer time to get fat than‘the ſmaller ſorts: they uſually weigh from forty-five to ſeventy ſcore each
Before concluding this ſcion, it may be proper to ob- ſerve, that nee at different parts of this county have been, and fill are, in the habit of fattening oxen, and other cattle, in ſtalls, on potatoes and hay, or ßraw; others on turnips and cabbages, and hay or Kfraw; nd
likewiſe on oll-cake and] hay, By theſe means the cat=-
tle are frequently made very fat: but it is generally ob- ſerved by the moſt experienced men, that this ſyſtem is not profitable, the chief advantage bei 109 that of raiſing a ſupply of good manure for the arable lands: a confl- deration, which by ſome 1s not thought to be of ſufficient
importance to pay for the riſk and trouble of attending fall-fed oxen.
DECT Us Sheep,
RENT has long been famous for a fine breed of ſheep, called in the county, Romney Marſh Sheep; but in Smithfield, where great numbers are ſold ey Ey week, Kent Sheep, They are remarkable for arriving at an cx- traordinary degree of fatneſs at an early age, and for pro=- ducing a large fleece of Very Ione hne wool Theſe ce ES combined, render this perhaps the moft yalu- able of any breed inthe kingdom, not excepting the famous Diſhley ſort, whoſe.wool, confeſſed! ly, 1s very coarſe.
Their carcaſes and legos are rather long, and bones large, in compariſon with ſome other Ee they have No horns; and their faces and legs are white.
The f wethers at two years old, weigh from twenty- two to twenty-eight pounds per quarter.
Their

veſt OFP RENT: i TGX
è longer j Their wool is the combing ſort of the firſt quality, being Ufually very long and fines; the flecces of the young ſheep are about five pounds weight, thoſe of the ewes ſix, and the to ob fattening wethers eight or nine pounds each. This Marſh ounty 1s ſuppoſed to produce twenty pounds of wool per acre, ; oxen, which, for 44000 acres within the county, 1s 880,000 Ära pounds of wool, or 3666 packs per annum. But as the Y; and greater part of the land has above four ſheep per acre at Bate ſhearing-time, and as the average weight of the fleeces is y ob- certainly above five pounds, the annual growth of this neh Marſh, in the county of Kent, is probably full four thou- aifing ſand packs, o This is the principal ſort of ſheep kept in this county, i There are, however, many of the upland farmers who ding keep thoſe of Wiltſhire, Dorſetſhire, and the Soutk Downs. As theſe will, no doubt, be properly deſcribed in their reſpe&ive County Reports, I ſhall forbear to men-" tion them here. The management of ſheep in the different parts of hep, Kent, 1s as follows: A In the cafſtern part, the flock-farmers buy in lambs eck, at Romney Fair, the twenticth of Auguſt, at from 12s BE to 14s. each, and when they have kept them two years, pro- they cither ſell them lean to the fatting-grazier, or make 4 them fat themſelves on turnips, and pea or bean-ftraw. LE Sainfoin and clover hay are generally too valuable at the 9 watering places to be uſed for that purpoſe, Oats, A D and cullings of garden-beans, are ſometimes given to a finiſh them in the ſpring. When theſe two yearling
, ſheep are ſold in the autumn to the graziers, the price 18 aye
from 24s. to 28s. cach; and when made fat, produce from 345 to 42s. according to their ſize and fatneſs-f
nty-| |+ Since returning the original report’ to the Boar, prices have Yer/ /| conſiderably advanced, eir|: L 4 The 1 / |-

152 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
The few ſheep bred in theſe marſhes are of the ſame ſort, except ſome ſmall parcels of Dorſetſhire and South Down ewes, which are bought to make early fat lambs; and the ewes are made fat in the autumn.
Almoſt the whole of the ſheep kept on the upland ſarms of Eaſt Kent, are the true Romney Marſh breed; whoſe carcaſes and bones being large, and wool long and heavy, they require rich land and good keep to make them fat. It ſeems quite contrary to reaſon and nature that they ſhould be egually adapted to rich marſh-land, and poor chalky downs; and conſequently they are not ſo fit for this diftrid, at leaſt the chalky part of it, as the South Down ſort, whoſe natural ſoil is a fine turf on chalk-hills. Impreſſed with this ſentiment, the ſur- veyor himſelf has, for theſe ſeven years paſt, kept no other than South Down ſheep, and has every reaſon to BefatiSted With them: Nis flock ts about 1C00:;= 400 of which are breeding ewes,
The ſheep in the Iſle of Shepey are of the Romney Marſh ſort, true Kents. The ſoil being much inferior to Romney Marſh, the ſheep are fomewhat ſmaller; and, from the ſame‘cauſe, their wool is lighter and finer. Dome graziers get rams from Romney Marſh; others prefer their own ſort, and but very few, 1f any, pay that attention which it is their intereſt to do, to the wool of the ams they uſe. The wethers are fattened at three years old, then weighing from twenty.to twenty-four pounds per quarter,
In Weſt Kent, a flock of ſheep under a ſhepherd, and folded at night, 1s a very rare fight; it is only a very few of the largeſt farmers who follow that pradice,*
Se
Tt is only a few years ſince the practice of folding at all in Middle
E entfias prevailed(except on very large farms); perhaps the fmaltneſs of
them 1n. general may harvc been, 1n ſome reſpects, the cauſe of it. The
praétice

OF KENT. 153
€ ſama Sd NE ſheep moßly kept in this diftriQ are the South cils Down ſort, bought in wether-lambs, at the autumnal : fairs on the Downs, chiefly at Lewes, the ſecond of Oc- | tober. They are kept the firſt winter on ſtubble-land, ud with graſs and a few turnips, and on graſs and ſeeds in E ſummer; and frequently are fatted on turnips the next ong winter, before they are quite two years old: this 1s be- Mae come the favourite ſort within theſe few years, and 1n- A creaſes annually in this diſtri. “land The other ſorts of ſheep kept here, are the Weit Ant Country, from Wiltſhire and Dorſetſhirez the wethers are 1h 48 brought 1n at all ages, to be fattened on turnips. è tut There are hardly any ſheep bred in the Weald of è lur- Kent, excepting a few for early fat lambs, of the Wilt- Xt 100| ſhire and South-Down ſorts. n(0| Some ot the Wiltſhire wethers are bought in to fatten ¡— h on turnips; and a few South Down wether-lambs are | bought 1n the autumn, and kept on the drieſt parts until Mney 2 they are two years old, and then made fat for ſale on 10r to þ turnips or meadow-lands. and, It has been mentioned that the grand ſyſtem of manage- Éner,| ment in Romney Marſh, 1s that of breeding, rearing» thers| and fattening ſheep; and it remains only to deſcribe the “hat| mode, ol of| The rams are uſually put to the ewes, allowing one to three\ forty or fifty, and ſometimes fixty, from the twelfth ta four bl the ſixteenth of November, and ftay with them about / five weeks, The ewes live entirely on the graſs, without and any hay, during the winter: in deep ſnow they ſcrape H with their feet, and obtain a ſubſiſtence, although they E then loſe fleſh, and ſometimes become very poor by their The prádticec of it is now gaining cround, even on the ſmaller farms, as the E advantages attending it are too obvious to eſcape common obſervation. Midde E Z À note by a Middle Kent Farmer.
The y Caning
aCtIcé
— eS— R: D rd"@\ 4

154 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
yeaning time. This Marſh produces many twins; but 2 great number are loft, ſo that moſt graziers conſider their crop not a bad one, if they wean as many lambs as they put ewes to ram.
The lambs are weaned the firſt or ſecond week 1n Auguſt, and Very ſoon after put out to keep to the upland farmers of the county, where they remain till the fifth of April, at from 2s. to 3s. per ſcore, per week. When they return to the Marſh, they are put on the pooreſt land, or ſuch fields as the grazier thinks want improve- ment by hard ſRockingz which is here called tegging a field, and 1s held to be of great ſervice. Theſe young ſheep are placed in the fields in proportion to what it is judged each will maintain, from the fifth of April until Auguſt, which is at the rate oF fam fourts eight per ACTE
The wether-tegs in the autumn are removedto the fat- ting, and. the ewe-tegs to the breeding grounds, among the two and three yearling ewes. The wethers remain till July or Auguſt following, when, as they become fat, they are drawn out and ſold to the butchers at the Marſh markets, or are ſent to Smithfield, The two yearling wethers, when fat, at this ſeaſon weigh from twenty to twenty=- eight pounds per quarter; and ſome of the largeſt and beſt fed, a few pounds more, The old ewes, heré called Barrens, are put to fattening as ſoon as their milk is dried after the third lamb, which is at the age of four y Cars, on ſome of the beſt land; where they are placed from two to three per acre for the winter. Thefſe, in favourable winters, are ſometimes made fat and ſold in the ſpring, ſoon enough for the ſame field to take in 2 freſh ſet of wethers, and make them fat by the autumn; but this can only be done by light ſtocking,
Pi
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[1 1
OF RENT. 1g8
The pradtice of fattening ſheep on turnips, affiſted by oil-cake, corn, hay, ſainfoin,&c. is greatly in uſe among the upland farmers of this county; not ſo much for the profit by feeding with thoſe articles, as for the great 1m- provement of the-ſoil where theturnips are fed off. The manure from ſheep fed on oil- cake and turnips, 1s reckoned very enriching to the land.
A great number of fold-flocks of lean ſheep are kept by the farmers of the cafſtern part of this county, of from cight to twenty ſcore in number. Theſe are each atten- ded by a ſhepherd, who removes the fold every morning to freſh ground, at fix o’clock in ſummer, and'at break of day in winterz the flock 1s then driven away to the moſt inferior keep at the firſt part of the morning, and-is
“returned into the fold for two or three hours in the mid-
dle of the day, while the ſhepherd goes to dinner; in the afternoon it 1s gradually led to-the beſt keep on the farm, that the ſheep may return full fed to the fold in the evening.
Great caution 1s neceſſary in feeding ſheep on clover in ſammer, and on turnips in the firſt‘part of the winter, as otherwiſe they will die in great numbers, by being, what 1s provincially termed ¿/own; which is occafioned by taking the clover and the young turnip-tops into the ory,-1othat
there 1s not ſufiicient time for digeſtion; by which the
ſtomach too haſtily when the ſhecp are hun
air 18 generated to ſuch a degree in the ſtomach, that great ſwelling enſues, and the animal ſoon dies.
Attentive ſhepherds will, in the firſt inſtance, take care to feed their flocks ſo as'to prevent this diſeaſe, by keeping them: from ſuch ftrong food while they are hungry. As yet, we ſeem not to have any effed@ual remedy for this diſeaſe; but the South Down farmers ſay that half a pint of linſeed oil, given to a ſheep when firſt 6/own, is a certain cure,
SECT,

1 56 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
SBC T. III,— Horſes, and their Uſe in Huſbandry,
compared with Live Oxen,
THERE are many very fine teams, each conſiſting of four horſes, 1n the hands of the farmers of the Iſle of Thanet and’ Eat Kent, ſome of which were bred here from a ſort that has been long eſtabliſhed; and others are a2 croſs, between the old Kentiſh cart- mares and fallions from the midland counties, or half-bred Flemiſh; and within theſe few years, there have been ſeveral very good mares brought from Flanders, which have cof from 261. 5s. to 424. each. Black is the favourite colour; and there are but few of any other; they are from fifteen to ſixteen hands and an half high, with much bone, and good action. They plough with four in winter, and work an acre and an half in a day; and in barley-ſeaſon with two, and then plough two acres a day, with à mate to lead the, horſes,
Many farmers have great pride in their fine teams; which are often too fat to do the quantity of work in a day they ought,
In the Iſle of Shepey, the horſes for the plough are bred principally from a ſort that has been in the ifle time out of mind. The mares are covered by fallions that come over from other parts of the county in the ſeaſon; they are ſomewhat of a fize ſmaller than thoſe of other parts of Kent, where the land ploughs much lighter. Whe- ther ſmaller horſes are found to anſwer beft here, it 1s not eaſy to determine; but it is natural to ſuppoſe, that ſuch very ſtiff heavy land muſt require frong horſes z; it cems, therefore, that the breed of them here 1s become ſmall from negled@; and it would perhaps be better if more attention was paid to the breeding and rearing the colts 1n theſe parts.
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158 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
wul earn by their labour, perhaps double the value of 2 lean ox at nine years of age; and therefore the value of an ox, after working five or ſix years, 1s not a ſufficient ATS Ment tO recommend them for oeneraluk.
“When horſes have laboured a great many years, as a great many do, they owe their maſters and the public
wothing; and therefore they ought not to be. condemned as beaſts‘of draught, in favour of oxen, when their labour is done, and becauſe they are only fit for the hounds.
In ſhort, neither of theſe animals is to be generally recommended in preference to the other, Nature has provided fituations beſt adapted for each of them.
The breeding of horſes is not pracufed in this county as a ſeparate branch of buſineſs, as in many parts of the north: but there are ſome farmers who breed a colt or two annually; though not ſo many of late years as herce- totore.
The great ſupply of draught-horſes is from the mid=- land counties, brought hither while colts and fillies, by dealers who attend the fairs and markets,
BE O IEC E logs,
Tue hogs of the eaſtern part are of various‘ſorts, ſome farmers preferring large, and others ſmall ones; but there are none very large and coarſe. The ſmaller ſorts are thoſe mixed with the Chineſe breed. They are fattened at the age of eighteen or twenty months, for the uſcof the family of ſervants in farn-houſess; and made to weigh from ten to twenty-hbve ſcore each, The Chineſe fatten readily, but are generally thick hided, and do not bear the‘cold well- and from their tenderne(s, are very apt to hide in ſtable-dung, and get the mange,
A great

Y 4
OF KENT. 159
A great numbor of pigs are reared in this diſtri&, and fed on the corn-ftubbles for the butchers, which are Killed in the autumn for roaſting-pork, at the age of three or four months, then weighing as many ſcore pounds each,
Some are fattened and killed at from fx to twelve months old, and ſold to ſmall families in the neighbour- ing towns and villages, or to pork-butchers, who retail them in fides and quarters to thoſe fanilies. The bufi- neſs of rearing and fattening hogs for ſale, 1s generally confidered as a bad one.
In the weſtern part of the county, there are a few far=- mers who have the larger kind, or Berkſhire breed, of hogs; but in general, they are mixtures of many differ- ent ſorts.
Little attention 1s paid to this animal, though the breed might, doubtleſs, be very much improved with proper care,
Many hogs are kept in the woods of the Weald of Kent in the autumn, on acorns, and fattened on corn in the winter,
Pork is the chief food of farm-houſe ſervants and la- bourers in huſbandry in this county; and there are very few of the induſtrious workmen that do not fat a hog or two every winter, When hog-corn, fuch as beans and peaſe, is very dear, the farmers often let their work- men have a reaſonable quantity at.an under-price.‘This tends to keep up a mutual good underſtanding between the farmers and their labourers.
SECT— A 2DDItS,
THERE 1s but a very ſmall portion of this county em- ployed as rabbzt-warren, Brabourn Lees, near Aſhford, and

EF
| VT ADT TE CEE TTDXTIN N| 1ÓO AGRIGCUETORA FT SURVEY |
\ and fome ſmall warrens near Folkfſtone, are the only ones I f that I know of. The rabbits on Brabourn Lees have || ſome years, like ſheep, been infe&ed with the rot. EN However valuable they may be’ to the proprietor of a | barren ſoil, yet they are often a nuiſance, by the miſchief
| js they do in the neighbouring corn-fields, “1| Their ſkins, when in ſeaſon, are nearly as valuable as 1 M their fleſh; and they are very prolific, N Y| | M
DECT: VI.— Poultry,
7/ 1 ff( GEESE and turkies, fowls and ducks, are bred in this ff county ſufficiently to ſupply the inhabitants, and a few 00|. to ſpare for the ſupply of the ſhipping that ſail from h/ Graveſend and the Downs, M/ The price of poultry 1s very much increaſed within N| theſe few years. Turkies now ſell as high as 6s. or 7s,; M geeſe, 4s or 5s. each; and ducks and fowls, 3s. 6d. to 4s, R,| per couple. _ 28 SECT. VII.— Pêgeons. hh; 100: Ts kind of poultry, if i may be ſo called, 1s not in 8 4 ſuch plenty as ſome years back; a number of pigeon- JY E houſes have been deſtroyed, on account of the miſchief R they do to the thatch, as well as the corn-fields.‘The IF| dung of them 1s valuable to ſow on clover z but it is an UN article procurable in ſo trifling a quantity, as hardly to (9| merit notice The value of pigeons 1s about gs. or 65, Í| per dozen, M | SE C E ¿ 1 A Tue few bees there are in this county, are chiefly in || the hands of the ſmall farmers and cottagers. There are H R ſome

\ OF: KENT, TGA
\,
ſome inſtances of the latter claſs ſometimes paying their rent by the ſale of their honey and wax, There is, no doubt, a certain extent to which the quantity of bees might be increaſed; but what the increaſe might be, it is Impoſible to ſay; 1t ſeems, however, that a great many more might be kept, and, to appearance, without any expence or 1njury to any kind of crops; and, if ſo, it certainly 1s a thing well worth the attention of the Honourable Board, to-propoſe ſome method of encou- raging an increaſe of them 4.
CATER NI.
RUR A ECON O NEN:
SECT. I.— Labour= Servants— Labourers=
Hours of Labour.
HE price of labour varies in different parts of the county. The regulating medium for all taſk- work, 1s the value ofthe day’s labour.
+ See Wildman on Bees,
M Price
——RN

\ | 162 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY Price of Labour. SA 6 Seid Labourers per day, of ten hours, from D:0/1t0:2:0 Thraſhing wheat, per guarter— 2 Oto! 21:0 Barley—— T‘4-to:I1 8 Beans—— D 2-tou S8 Oats—= Vi O7 to! O dn Peaſe_—— Ti 61t0r 20 Canary ſeed—— Ó!-Olitoi 7:0 Clover ſeed, per buſhel— gO Spreading dung, per hundred cart-loads, Ea E= 1j 3 LS Turning dung—— 20 0 470 | Making hedges, per rod— O2 LOL OEA Tf plaſhed and bound—— ob Hoeing beans per acre, firt time- ZTOto 20 Ditto, ſecónd time— 20 to 450 Peaſe——_— Oto 4.0 Dutch-hoeing canary and barley, per acre 1 8 to 20 Common hoeing—— 270to0 4 O Hoeing turnips, per acre— GLOHtLoLOLO Reaping of wheat per acre— SO LOOEO Mowing barley and oats— TO CO 2 O Binding and ſhocking— I 8 to 2:6 Cutting beans and binding—— 5/0, tOTOFO ——— peaſe: without binding_— 40,10 5 Q ——— canary or radiſh ſeed— 0,0607 O Mowing ſainfoin_— 2 Otos 2 O ———- clover hay e— AO LOT2E0 —- clover ſeed—- 2002 6 —-— grafs in the marſhes and meadows 2 6 to 3 0
1 This year, 1795, by the badnefſs of the crop, ſome farmers pay 0s.„per quarter,
E A Waggoner's
| | | | | | | |

E e
OF KENT.: 163 E OEA
Gd.: Waggoner’s wages per annum, IO O O tog O! O 20 and board/— 0 Ta married man, andSPoards Je: E Þ+o 100 to 0106 Y himſelf, per week— Í 19 Second ploughman, at per annum 9 O0O0to II 00 6 Third ditto_— 3 Or OMILO IO! O: O ESS DE q Waggoner’s mate=—— 6010 to! 0.0 70 Second plough-boy— ABAOLO 0 1207 OO Third ditto— 2 010! 1t0 5500 Bailift—— 12/00!{to 000 40 Dairy-maid_—— 400 vito! 5010 40 Cook-maid_— 40 O oO B Shepherd, per week—— Og O to OQO 04:|!> i 9 Womens wages for weeding, per day 8 to 0010 ; Children, fromten to thirteen years old= o 0-6 9 5 ç Value of ploughing an acre oflando 70 to 0100 6 i A harveſt- man for five weeks,] 40 a 100 tor 40G j with board— 20 ÉS Without board— 5 4 0 A Hop-Garden Labour. ( 90 LS Se d. Ls So 74 M) : Per day_— OEI O tO O 210 2 6 Dl: 4 Digging, per acre— O ÉSiO to rT 00 Cutting, per acre— OO 5 Poling—[OLA Toe e Sharping old poles— O250 9 Tying 28 O 100 R: 4 E«, a ſhovelful of mould 10 to every hill, when cleänſed'of O I 6 z0 ſuperfluous bine===
Half hilling— O20 + With wheat and pork at reduced prices
ner's M 2 Whole

164 AGRICUBTORAU SURVEY dl E RUE
Wühole-hilling, or ſecond operation o 2 6
Summer-hoecing, per acre=O“5 O Picking by the baſket, of five
buſhels—] A BE EL Drying, per week, with a quart 7 LERS
of ſtrong beer per day= J Compolition for tithe, per acre O IO LOO Firſt year of poling 5 toto 12 Bagging, per bag— OO —— pér pocket— OOO Sharp1ing new poles, per hundred o 06 Shaving— O10 Drawing new poles into the 7 a
ground, per hundred= zl 4 Stripping poles of the bind, peracreo 2 6 Opening the hills, per acre OE BUG tod 08D Stacking poles, per acre= S/O 96 Annual expence/ of AnS acre of|
‘ VO OLO LO 2005
hop-ground, from/ 9 Cleanine marſh=ditches, Perrod O ro to 02,9 Cutting ant-hills, per acre O Oto O IL.O Carting, them together OS LOOT TLO.
A/E
Ve GE plough1ng an ACCO] So ES :: C C 2:50 land in ŒÆf marſh-lands= E -- DEI= ed‘: 5 LG Thatching, per hundred ſquare feeto 3 o to 0 36
Carpenters per day, and 4d. al- 7 Z| 240 O20
| C (5 1(2s lowance for beer/ Bricklayer, wathlike allowance© 26 to O 28 Since the commencement. of this ſurvey, the ſcarcity of labourers, and high price of all kinds of provifons, l
have together made the price of labour much higher than
STE- fi cc NEA A= L ne MOLL CZEeneral prI€CE

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above ſtated; but ſome pariſhes allow corn at a low rate to their workmen, inſtead of raifing the prices others raiſe money tor them by aſleſTments; and ſome pay an additional price for the labour.
Upon the whole, the price of huſbandry-labour is nearly double what it was thirty years ago.
In moſt parts of this county the labour 1s done by the piece; which is by far the beſt method for the employer, the employed, and the public; becauſe the labourer has the opportunity, by gréater exertions, of earning more money z; and the maſter has more buſineſs executed by the ſame hands. The maſter's eye 1s only neceflary to ſce that the work 1s properly done; and the community 1s benefited in proportion to the additional quantity of labour thereby performed by the ſame number of in= habitants of the country.
When a number of labourers work together by the day, much time is loft by idle converſation. Servants wages are not ſo much increaſed in the laſt thirty years as the prices of labour; about twenty per cent. being the full of the advance,
The ſcarcity of yearly ſervants 1s much greater along the coaft than in the interior of the county; and their general condu& and behaviour are múch better in the inland parts,
Labourers, ſince the commencement of the war, by emigrations to the army and navy, are become exceed- ingly ſcarce; and the price of labour is of’ courſe ad- vancing. The hours of labour, in ſammer, are from ſix o’clock in the morning tul eleven; and from one in the afternoon, till ſix in the evening, allowing half an hour for breakfaſt, in caſe that meal 1s not eaten before ſix o'clock; and then working till half paſt eleven; ſo that the ſtandard day’s labour is ten hours; but there are
M 3; few

166 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
few inſtances in which it is ftri@ly adhered to. In win- ter, tlie‘time of working for a day is as long as day- light will permit, making the dinner-time as ſhort as poſible.
Upon the whole, a day’s labour is generally much ſhorter than formerly, owing partly to the ſcarcity of workmen, who well know that 1f one maſter will not give them their hire for a ſhort day, another will; and partly to the 1nattention of maſters and their bailitts to the hours of working.
S E C 4 A TI, EEE, Provi ¿OMS ¿
THe eaſy communication between all parts of this county and the metropolis, renders the markets of omithfield and Mark-lane the regulating medium, by which the prices of all kinds of proviſions that are ſold in the county are governed. If wheat riſes 2s, per quarter atLondon, 1t 1mmediately does the ſame at all the markets in the county; and 1f butchers meat 1s plentiful, and falls in price in Smithüeld, it ſoon lowers in the country markets,
The ſupplies neceſlary for the army and navy, in time of war, muíft contribute to increaſe the demand for pro- viſions; at the ſame time, two extreme dry ſummers, with one of the ſevereſt winters ever remembered, have contributed to decreaſe the ppl. The latter cauſes, however, have principally occafoned the preſent ſcarcity, and. conſequent high prices of proviſions. A decreaſed ſupply will always operate in raiſing the price of any commodity; but if to that is added an increaſed demand which muft be ſupplied, the efe is doubled, and Prices riſe in proportion, A medium price can only be found
in a juſt balance bêtween ſupply and demand, Since the

e—————] kt- E E EE—
OIE RENT. 167
the beginning of this ſurvey, the price of bread 1s ad- vanced about cent. per cent, z; and butchers meat about twenty per cent.
The preſent Prices of Proviſions, December, 1795. Mutton 6d. beef gId. veal 8d. pork 7d. bacon 8d. butter 12d. and good Cheſhire cheeſe 7d. per pound, of ſixteen ounces avoirdupois; potatoes 8s to 10s. per ſack of nearly 200Ilb. neat;«coals 36s. per chaldron of thirty- fix buſhels; a half peck loaf of beſt wheaten bread, 2s.
SECA
CoAaxs are brought from Newcaßtle and Sunderland to all the maritime ports of Kent, and from thence are diſtributed to the interior parts, ſœldom exceeding 305 per chaldron 1n time of peace,
Faggots of wood are found in plenty in the weſtern and middle parts of Kent. The bakers, who-formerly heated their ovens with wood, now 1n many places uſe coals, and, by experience, find it more advantageous: the decreaſed demand for fire-wood, by the new method of heating ovens, 1s amply compenſated to the growers of wood, by the„great conſumption of faggots for burning bricks and lime. Turf and peat are very litüe uſed. Tanners bark, after infuſion, is dried and formed of a convenient ſize, and becomes an article of fuel in the vicinity of tan-yards, In the eaftern part of Kent, úre-wood for heating ovens 1s ſometimes ſo ſcarce,
as to ſell from 16s, to 20s, per hundred of bruſh-faggots;
M 4 GCGHAPTEN

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DECT Rood
HE principal road in this county, is that leading from London to Canterbury, which of late Years
has been much improved and kept in excellent order by the commiſſioners, who have immenſe ſums at their diſf- pofats and materials are everywhere near at hand: but it 1s ſomewhat extraordinary, that their power is not ex- tended eaſtward to Deal, where there 1s ſuch a reſort of ſhipping. T am told, that this ſhort ſpace of ſixteen miles between Canterbury and Deal, is the only part of the rodd from the Landſend to Deal that is not ſupported by turnpikes, The turnpike roads in other parts, arc alſo, in general, very good, except ſome croſs turnpike roads 1n the Weald, which are as bad as can be imagl- ned; being even impaſible for coaches or chaiſes very frequently in winter. The money colle&ed at the gates on theſe roads, 1s barely ſufficient to pay the intereſt of the ſum borrowedz; which 1s an evil that calls aloud for a2 remedy, The cauſe of the badneſs of theſe roads is a
want of materials; the ſoil being a deep ſoft clay. with- 5[e]|! eE s
out any mixture of gravel, flints, ſtone, or chalk, or any other good materials within a moderate diſtance. The cauſe ofthe evil being thus ſcen, a remedy ſhould
be
n.

= AGRICCEFURAE SUR&e. 169
be ſought; and what Nature has denied, Art and Induſ- try ſhould endeavour to ſupply. Bricks; burnt very hard, would make an excellent road, if laid on green furze, and covered over thinly with gravel. Fields, along the roads where there are no woods, might be ſown with furze, for the purpoſe of burning bricks; and kilns might be ereâ&ed at proper intervals, Thus the bricks would be made on the ſpot, and brought into uſe at an eaſy ex- pence. Roads thus formed in thoſe parts, would open communications that would probably lead to a variety of 1mProvements.
ding Three hundred and forty thouſand bricks are ſufficient EA to pave a mile of road nine feet wide; the expence, i by therefore, is not very great. Paved roads have been I made in Lancaſhire, which coft froin fifteen to twenty E hundred pounds per mile,
| Where ſurveyors of the highways are attentive to A their duty, the common roads are, in general, tolerably 2A good z; but I am ſorry to obſerve, that there are a great teen::
y many pariſhes whoſe roads are much negledted, the full 0 compoſition for the ſtatute duty not being colleêted, or ted i the duty not performed.
M ſf the full ſtatute duty were performed, or the money 2 ariſing from a full compoſition, were laid out with judg- D ment and œconomy, there are few pariſhes that would Y ſtand in need of turnpikes, except in the Weald, or other E places where there are no materials, But 1f three days | of 7 duty only is compounded for, at four ſhillings and fixpence or a| per day, and that money 1s injudiciouſly expended, as 1s is à| too often the caſe, good roads cannot be expe&ed. Upon [ith-| the whole, the highway a is fully adeguate to the pur- , 0| poſe of making good roads; but the fault is in thoſe'who :{ſhould carry it into execution.
uld i
E One
f e—— e m

One very great cvil in the expenditure of the hugh( money 1s, the 1 laviſhing it in the en ployment of
L
Carts to fetch materials from a great diſtance; when, perh: aPS, A labourer, with a pick-ax, would find A on the
ſpot for one-fifth of the CeXPence,
DECT CA
ExcErTING the navigation from Maidſone.to Tun-
A -— _— p
idgé, by ſmall barges, and that T believe is not an artiÎicial one, we have no navigable canals, This county being almoſt ſurrounded by the ſca and the Thames, and interſected by the Medway, canals are the leſs NeCce ary.
MS are, however, ma ny fituations where navigable
T
h E probably prove a ſource of great convenience and wealth to the neighbouring inha of eftates,
E, 8 AS SILLS SA;/ E Canais IM1SNt eaflily DEC made, and ſome whic
»itants and Proprietors
Of théſe the river Stour ſeems to be the ff objet, as it certainly might be made nav 1gable to Lenham. By ſuch a navigation the Kentiſh ragſtone would be con- veyed to Aſhford, Canterbuz‘Vo and E for paving or building, or for exportation 3; likewiſe oak- timber might be brought, at an eaſy expence, from the Weald of Kent to the port of Sandwich, for ſhip- building and other púrpoſcs; ſo m1ght re HEE Darke
C E Lo 7 HEE JY ff 7 ſa NS° corn,&c. from the interior oí the coun ty to thote towns;
F SS UE)> frag 28 RR 7 ZIEH+ Trom whence would be returned coals E ſuch o
dis, 1UCN other goods as are now e IAE A Orea E Xpence to thoſe
EN
E

OF KENT. 171
S ECTS III.— Fairs»
THe old eſtabliſhed fairs in this county are ſo nume=- rous, that there is hardly any place to be found without one; but they are of trifling import when O to the great ſtock-fairs of other counties. If, 1nſtead of ſeveral autumnal ſheep-fairs, now annually held in Lale Kent, there were only one, there probably would be more buſineſs done at that than all the reft; and the eſtabliſh- ment of a good ſheep-fair, in the ſpring of the year, would be a great convenience to both buyers and ſellers,
In 1792, a wool-fair was propoſed by the worthy Baronet who repreſents the county, to be held a Aſk- ford; which met with general approbation, and has hitherto been very numerouſly and reſpeétably attended; and although not much bufineſs has as yet been done at it, on account of the prejudices of the buyers, who fancy that 1t is meant as a combination of the ſellers, yet it 18 preſumed, when thoſe prejudices are done away, this meeting will be found a meaſure of great public utility to all parties concerned. There are confiderable fairs, for
the ſale of fat and lean cattle, at Maidſtone,. Aſhford, and other places in the Weald of Kent.
The Kentiſh Almanack mentions the time of holding ] T7
all the fairs 1n the county; and Owen's Book is airs,
thoſe of the whole kingdom,
SECT, IV.— Weekly Markets.
ALMOosT every town 1n the county has a weekly mar- ket, where every kind of proviſion and vegetables are ſold, The two cities of Canterbury and Rochefter are
well
pI EIE EA ITE
IZ
L BLS E ag
Ra:

172
AGRICUT FORAL GSURVEY
well ſupplied by markets, under regulations of the re- ſpeâive corporations,
The Market-houſe at Canterbury has lately been re- built in an elegant ſile: to defray the expence of it an additional tax was laid upon butter: which ſo offended the farmers in the neighbourhood, that they entered into an agreement to bring no more to market, but to expoſe it for ſale at a place without the liberties of the City and Inſtead‘of ſpending the money at the city=- fhops adjoining the market, it was carried away to pur chaſe goods at other places, The citizens, finding that their intereſt lay in a free ſale for proviſions of every kind within the city, took of the additional toll.|
SECT N Commerce.
THE chief part of the agricultural commerce of this county, 1s that of exporting corn to the London markets; very little is ſent to forcign ports dire&ly from Kent, though much of the Kentiſh corn goes abroad, when corn iS- CXDOrted, Krom. the ¡grand receptacle, Mark-lane market,
At the towns of Maidſtone and Chatham, and all others on the coaft, there are ſeveral hoys, carrying from three to five hundred quarters of corn each, which are continually going to London with the produce of the land, and returning with grocery,&c. for the ſupply of the country.
The ſoil and climate of this county being better adapt- cd to the growth of corn than of Srals) NO Cheeſe Or butter 1s made for exportation, nor a ſufficient quantity for the conſumption of the inhabitants; the deficiency, therefore, commerce ſupplies from other parts of the kingdom.
SECT.

OF: KENT; i73
SEcT. VI.— Manufadures
Tux manufaQures of this county are very trifling; pro- bably owing to the ſucceſsful attention generally paid to agriculture and grazing, It has been obſerved by ſenfible writers on agriculture, that where manufaë@ures moſt flouriſh, the land is moſt negle@ted; and this county 1s an inſtance of the truth of the obſervation. There 1s hard- Iy any county to be named where agriculture 1s arrived at ſuch perfe&ion, or where there are ſo few manufac- tures as in this, There are ſome, however. At Canter- bury, filk has been manufa@ured to a conſiderable ex- tent; but il is now giving way to cotton, Much credit is due to Mr. Callaway, for his ſpirited exertions 1n this Pract:
At Dover and Maidſtone are manufa@ories of paper, of all ſorts. At Stoner, near Sandwich, and the THle of Grain, are ſalt-works, At Whitftable and Deptford are large copperas works; and in the Weald of Kent, bor-
dering on QUIETE ES for caſting iron.
Gunpowder is made at Deptford and Fav erſham; and at Crayford there are large works for printing of calli- coes, and the whitening of linens. Sandwich was for- merly famous for a particuiar kind of flannel, and ſome other woollen goods; and the inhabitants were increaſed and enriched by the eſtabliſhment; but the hufineſs has long been driven from thence to BE northern counties, by the increaſed price©f labour in Kent. Ana ttempt has lately been made, by a Gite young man 1n that town, to carry on an extenſive manufaëtory in coarſe woollen and linen goods; which promiſes well, Sacking and hop-bagging have always been manufa@ured in ſufficient guantity for the conſumption of the county.

74 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
It ſeems to have been an error in the politics of this country, to lave beſtowed ſo much attention to the en- couragement of manufaQures, in preference to agr1icul- ture. Had the ſame encouragement been given by par- liament, for the laſt fifty years, to agriculture as we have ſeen given to manufadQures, we, probably, by this time might bave had many thouſand acres of land, that are now deſolate waſtes, in a high fate of cultivation, and covered with a healthy race of inhabitants. The lower claſſes ot the people employed in a
griculture, are always the moſt healthy, and get the moſt comfortable living 5
and by their refidence in the country, at a diſtance from
great towns and populous villages, are more out of the- Fe) FILL O
way of temptations to vice and idleneſs. Let the cottages of the farmers labourers be examined, and compared with thoſe of the manufa@urers in great towns; the former will be found comfortably clad and well fed, while the latter are often ſtarving in rags and filth.
There can be no doubt but-that agriculture and manu- faQures are mutually dependent on each others but it muft be bad policy to encourage any one at the expence
of the other.
SEC VI Poor:
THE poor of this county are generally well taken care of by the pariſh-oflicers, and their opulent neighbours, The greater the ſcarcity of proviſions, and the more the appearance of diſtreſs among the poor, the greater is the extent of charitable contributions, over and above what the law provides for maintaining them. The poor laws are fuch, that no perſon need be in diſtreſs for pro- viſions, if it be not his own fault. Thoſe who are capa- ble of labour, are ſure to find employment among the
farmers;
A«

OF KENT. LAS
® of tis farmers; forin an agricultural county like this, workmen the en are always wanted. It is only in manufaCuring coun- 1grteul- ties where there can be any real diftreſs among the poor, Y par. Thoſe who are incapable of labour, the law has amply € have provided for. The ſober and induſtrious labourer in 8 time Kent, unleſs he has a large family, cannot with pro- ut are priety be called a poor man; becauſe, by his induſtry, he n, and can always procure a comfortable maintenance, equal, lower 1f not ſuperior, to the little farmers(uſually called pea- lways ſants) of ſome foreign countries; or perhaps to ſome ſmall Ving; tenants of this,
from
of the SECT. VITI,— Population.
tages
Th T AM ſorry it is not in my power, from the number of VU-
my avocations and the length of time this ſurvey has
1 already taken me up, to give to the Honourable Board full ſatisfaQion on this ſeGion.‘
a Mr. Haſted informs us, that by modern calculations,
A Kent 1s ſuppoſed to contain: 40,000 houſes, inhabited by
(E) 200,000 perſons, of whom 60,000 are able-bodied men,
“0« When the militia was altered tothe preſent mode, “ the return made from this county of able-bodied men <c fit to ſervein it, was 16,757 in Weſt Kent, and 9,104 1n « Faſt Kent; in all 25,921: according to which, the proportion of militia-men allotted for this county by
A€ parliament, was, for Weſt Kent, 621; for Eaſt Kent,
fi\« including the city of Canterbury, 339; in all-9g6o,
x 18
OYE:
100
pr-
1pâe
the:
s; GIA TER

CHATTER
AVI.
OBSTACLES TO IMPROVEMENT.
DE principal obſtacles to the general improvement
of this county, are the payment of tithes in Lind,
the corn-laws, and the prohibition to export wdol in its raw fate,
That the payment of tithe in kind does operate againſt improvements is evident, from the immenſe quantity of poor uncultivated land in mofßt parts of this county where the tithe is paid, remaining in its barren fate: while ſome of the ſame ſort of lands, where farmers hap- pen to have the tithe themſelves, are improved and cul- tivated to a high fate of perfeQion, and made as Ppro- dudlive as ſome of the beſt lands,
he corn and wool-laws were profeſſedly ena&ed to keep down the price of thoſe articles; if, therefore, they do operate according to their original intention, it needs No argument to prove that they are obſtacles to 1mMPprove- INmENLE,
The rights of commonage on the barren heaths of this county, 1s certainly an obſtacle to their 1mprovement. Short leaſcs are likewiſe great obftacles; common prud
no man of ence will ſpend much money on his farm it, unleſs he has a ſecuritv of reaping the bencfit of it himſelf; beſides, if he docs ſo, he mußt be aware that he is throwing out
tO Improve
a great temptation to an
liberal
ili

SURVEY OF KENT. 177
iliberal neighbour to bid for his farm, or to a rapacious landlord, to take advantage of his liberality and induftry.
Reſpedting the legiſlation and police of corn, I am not competent to give information on theſe heads to the Honourable Board; but 1t is my humble opinion, that were there no corn laws, there would be a much greater quantity of corn grown z and, 1f ſo, the markets would be filled, the prices lowered, and, by the increaſe of quan- tity, the farmers, and ultimately the land-owners, would be enriched. The dread of a low price muſt evidently tend to deter a farmer from cultivating and improving his land with a view to grow more cornz hence the in- tention of keeping corn low has the effet of raiſing it, by diſcouraging its cultivation. On the other hand, were laws ena@ed with the intention of making corn dear, in all probability, by the very idea of ſuch a proſ- peâ, cultivation would be ſo much extended, as to make
corn plentiful and cheap.
CHAPTER
Di

Crx TER XVIIE
MISCELLANEOUS OBSERV ATIONS.,
SECT. I.— Mricultuyal Societies,
N January 1793, a Society for the encouragement of Agriculture and Induftry, was eftablifhed at Canter- bury, under the patronage of Sir Edward Knatchbull, Bart. and Filmer Honey wood, Eſq. the members for the county. Officers for this Society are annually ele&ed; and thoſe for the preſent year 1795, are,
PRESIDENTS STR FOHN HONEY¡VOOD, Bart. M. P. DEPUTN PRESTDENT. Henry Godfrey Fauſſet, Ejg.
STEWARDS, Fames Tillard, E/g. Mr. Fohn Boys.
A coms
E
lit

le
>——— E, FSE ES EE SE IE I EEE ee
SURVEY OF KENT. 159
A committee, confiſting of twenty- four members s twelve of which are annually nominated in the following MANnners
The Preſident firſt appoints a new memberz then the perſon ſo appointed nominates one of the old committee, who mentions a new one: which Çoes ON alternately tull twenty-four are appointed.
l Sketch of the Kent Agricultural Society,
as publiſhed by the Society.
€ The advantages that the puplic are likely to receive from the inſtitution of Societies for encouraging Agri- culture and Induſtry, and the benefits that have accrued to thoſe parts of the kingdom in particular where they have been already formed, firſt gave riſe to the idea of
the eſtabliſhment of one in this county. To ſhew the
utility of ſuch an inſtitution, it will be necelſlary only to tate what are the CEIEF OBJECTS OF ITS ATTENA TION.
cc To excite by premiums, and otherwiſe, a ſpirit of emulation among the ploughmen:
«“ Lo cuceunage: a ſpirit af induſtry among the Ila= bourers::
““‘To reward the labour and induftry of thoſe poor la=- bourers and cottagers who ſhall breed UP, or have bred up, the greateſt number of legitimate children, either without any or with the ſmalleſt relief from their reſpec= rive pariſhes:
“ To encourage diligence and induftry in ſervants, of both ſexes, employed in huſbandry::
‘““ To promote the knowledge of agriculture, by encou- raging experiments on thoſe lubje&s which are of the moîû importance to itz by diſtributing rewards to ſuch
[) —
perſons as ſhall raiſe the largeſt and beft crops‘of na
î PS
R
tural

4/24 Pl 1 IN
———
S REDA aan 2 fR TST O
180 AGRICUET ORAL SURVEL
tural and artificial graſſes, and the ſeveral ſorts of grain, n any given quantity of ground z; the nature of the ſo1l taken into conſideration:
To encourage the improvement of waſte lands, by incloſing, draining, m anuring, raifing plantations; and LE introduêion of vegetable food for Cater:
To encourage the improvement of the breed of all ſorts of live ſtock, and to provide for their health better than has been hitherto done:
To promote. all improvements in the rarious 1mple- ments belonging to the farmer, and to introduce ſuch new ones as the experience of other counties has proved more valuable than thoſe now generally uſed 1n this.
« And as there 1s hardly any object of rational 1mprove-
nents which may not be brought within the influence of ſuch inſtitutions, by a proper diſtribution of premiums, the attention of the Society will always be direed, in proportio n to the 1 ſupport it ſhall receive, to€[CTY thing that may hereafter appear moft likely to conduce to the proſperity of this county 1n par rticular, and to the good of the community at large.
«e As it is the wiſh of this Society, that its utility ſhould become as extenfve as voffible, it 1s earneſtly requeſted that all perſons who approve of the inſtitution will give it their fupport, Subſcriptions may be paid into the bands of the Treaſurer, or into cither ol he three Can- terbury banks; or into the banks of Meſſrs. LTT AA and Co. Maidſtone, and Meſſrs. Day and Co Rocheiter.
The rules and regulations for the government of this Society are well l drawn up z; and its Hnances are at preſent in a flouriſhing fate. À great many ſervants and la- bourers have received the Society?s premiums for long and faithful ſervices, and for bringing up large families.
Among other premiums, O GEOL IO(Ore CLOUDIE
turn-wreft plo ough, y Books

SE SS EE E m S m E D E EE TERE—
OF KENT; ISL
Books of the tranſa@ions of this Society are to be had e at the printing-oflice, Canterbury, price bd.
Some years ſince, a ſociety was eſtabliſhed at Maid-
ſtone, called the Kentiſh Society, for promoting every
f E branch of uſeful knowledge through the county of Kent, H This was begun under the patronage and ſupport of the of ol late Lord Romney, the Earl of Stanhope, and the pre- E ſent Lord Romney, then the Honeurable Charles Mar- ſham. Whether it was by aiming at too much, or from | a want of ſupport in ſubſcriptions, that it fell to the E ground, I am not competent to ſay. ud About a year ago, an attempt was made to eſtabliſh E another ſociety at Maidſtone, upon leſs general prin- h ciples; but joining ſome other ſciences with Agriculture. E There was a great number of the names of the firſt of ce 0! the nobility, gentry, and ycomanry, who, by public 1m, advertiſement, called meetings at Maidſtone, in order 0, n to ſettle the buſineſs; but cither from want of a full thing attendance, or of ſubſcriptions, their efforts were not to the attended with the defired ſucces, : g00d I SEcT.I— TVeights and Meaſures. neſted Tue difference of the weights and meaſures, is an IL give evil in trade and agriculture that moſt certainly requires 1to the a remedy, though the evil is much lefs in Kent than 1n e Cal many other counties. The pound weight is the avoir- nchley dupois, of ſixteen ounces; and the ſtone of meat, eight efter,” pounds at ſome places; and at others, fourteen pounds. of this Moft heavy goods are ſold by the ton, confiſting of prelent twenty hundred weight, each of 112 pounds, nd lè Since the late determination in the Court of King's r long Bench reſpedGing the meaſure of corn, all local mea- iles N23 ſures guble gos | | u————————— LS Mu e E SÁ 2

133 AGRICULTURAE SURVEY.
ſures have been aboliſhed, excepting the ſtandard Win- cheſter buſhel, which contains 2150,4 cubic inches, Pefore that determination, we had three different ized buſhels in the town of Sandwich(viz.) eight gallons and a quarter the country meaſure; eight and an eighth the town meaſure z and eight gallons the London, or Win- cheſter meaſure. In ſome parts of the county, the buſhel contained eight gallons and a half; in others, eight and three-fourths; in ſome places nine gallons: and in moſt of the caſtern parts of the county, twenty-one quarters were allowed to the ſcore, meaſured with a large buſhel.
The rod 1s five yards and a half, or ſixteen feet and a half; and the acre, the true ſtatute meaſure of 160 rods or perches. i
Corn 1s now invariably ſold by the quarter, conſiſting of eight Wincheſter buſhels. Hay, ftraw, and hops, by the ton. Apples and potatoes by the ſack, of about three buſhels and a half, and ſometimes by the ſeve, a baſket containing about a buſhel.
Butchers meat 1s uſually ſold in Eaft Kent by the ſcore
A 5 E TTE PIZ AS i O RTS E pounds, and in Weſt Kent by the ſtone. |; 5
CONCLUSION.

] Win: Inches, t zed 1s and h the Wine buſhel ht and
moût of
GONCEUS1QN.
Means of Improvement, and the Meaſures calculated
far that Purpoſe.
A FAIR commutation for tithe is the meaſure beſt calculated for the improvement of this county.
This would be a ſpur to invention and indußtry, and lay a foundation for a variety of 1mprovements, eſpeci- ally in poor barren diſtricts,
There is a great deal of poor land that requires as much money to be ſpent in bringing it to its utmoßt fate of improvement, as will purchaſe the fee-fimple of it.
But there are very few farmers who will do that, with the proſpe& before them of another perſon's enjoying, the tenth of the produce.
Waſte Lands. There 1s ſcarcely an acre of land to be found in this county, but what might be converted to ſome valuable purpoſe,
The gravelly and ſandy heaths, when once put Into ſeveralty and properly cultivated, would produce good turnips, ſeeds, and corn,
The cold clays and wet commons, no doubt, would likewiſe produce good corn, or make incloſed meadows or paſtures,
Draining. The bogs of this county are but few 1n rumber, and ſmall in extent: but, whatever the guan-
N 4 tity,

134 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY
tity, they might certainly, at a very ſmall expence, be made at leaſt of ſix times their preſent value. In the middle and weßern part of Kent, there is a great number of ſmall vales of marſh-land liable to be flooded in the winter; which might be effe@ually drained at little ex- pence, were they under a commiſlion of ſewers, with Proper powers.
In other parts of the county, there are very extenſive tras of marſh- land often entirely under Water for many weeks together, to the great loſs of individuals and the public. This is an evil which certainly can, and ought to be remedied.
Every mechanical contrivance that tends to leſſen the labour of the huſbandman and his eXpence, may be juſtly reckoned an Improvement. Under this head, the new invented thraſhing-mills are of the firſt 1mportance.
There are many ftuations in this county where a ſmall. rill of water runs by a farm-yard, with a ſuffici- ent fall to turn a water wheel, Wherever farms are thus fortunately circumfſtanced, the expence of thraſhing out corn may be reduced full one half; and the labourers, who otherwiſe would be conſtantly in the barn, by this means, may be ſpared for carrying on improvements in manuring, draining, and various operations in huſban- dry: ſo that, although the labourer may be deprived in one inſtance of his employment, he is amply recom- penfed 1n the other: for employment accumulates with Improvement,
Theſe appear to me to be the principal means of im- Provement, and are ſuch as will probably introduce many others. Thus a commutation for tithe, and the cultivation of the waſte lands, would produce turnips, clover, mutton, and wool, where thoſe articles have
NnEVEer

, be | the nber the eX- wih
nfive
1 the
uſban- ved 1n
€coMr-
of 1m-
SE (TOCULL
Är i Letizi“er 1
Ÿ
ie
OF KENT,
never before been raiſed. In theſe produétions, a foun- dation would be laid for the cultivation of corn, to feed
the human and animal ípecies, and for the em ploy nent of
manufacturers, Hence would fpring a reciprocation of intereſts to the farmer 2nd manufa@urer, and an accumulation of bene-
fits to mankind in general,
APPENDIX.

A Note on Hops, by a Gentleman Hiling bimſelf a Middle Kent Farmer; inſerted in the Margin of the Original Printed
BLA Manu cript, circulated for Remarks and Obſervations b by the LN Board of Agriculture,
HE author of theſe pages, an Eaſt Kent* corn-far- mer, appears to write in a moſt ſenſible judicious j manner on ſubjeâ&s falling within his immediate obſerya- 4 tion, | On the plantations of the middle of Kent, and refider as he has been forty miles from them, he has had Very little opportunity of in forming himſelf; for can it be
ſuppoſed A ſtranger who comes into a town fOr av
44
ery few days, which I learn from the parties he quotes for his 1nformation, was the caſe, ſhould procure ſufficient M(at beſt at ſecond hand) information to write ſo f ully or | ſo correQly, as the large and very populous diſtri&t Ï quote, well known under the appellation of Middle
Kent, ought in juſtice to have; and in which the lar-
of
geſt capital, in proportion to îts extent, is employed in agriculture, perhaps of any part of England of a ſimilar ſize, and confiderir g1t 1s almoſt without manufaQures as
populous in proportion,“ I was informed by one of the
# The Fditor has been a hop-planter ur pwards of twenty years, the greater part of the time on a large ſcale, and he has often had opportu- nities of ſeeing the Middle Kent pla ntat1ons. His enquiries at Maidſtone canfirmed him 11 the ſentiments he has expreſled in this report.
parties

It
APPENDIX. 197
parties he went to aſk 1nforma tion from, preYious to this Work making its appearance, that he came very much prejudiced in favour of the part of the county he came from; and I was, in ſome meaſure, prepared for rather a partiality, which 1t is natural for us all to carry about us for our native‘ſpot; nevertheleſs, I did not expe, by much the largeſt plantation of England 4, and the origi- nal ſpot from whence the hops were diiperſed to other parts of it, ſhould have paſſed of with only five and a half ſhort lines, in which the whole growths are condemned in a lump in the words of Mr. Boys.“ This plantation ſome years grows great crops of hops; but the quality of them 1s much inferior to thoſe of Canterbury and Eaſt Kent.”—1In reply to this, I doubt not but he will find, from the kindlineſs of the land generally to the growth of hops, that on an average of all years, and particularly of the difficult ones, Middle Kent exceeds in quantity thoſe of Canterbury and Eaft Kent: and as to quality,
on the generality of good grounds, they cannot be ex-
) ceeded by any growing in England. Real judges of hops allow it. And the largeſt growths round Maidſtone, from the following places, Linton, Looſe, Otham, Eaſt and Weft Farley, W ateringbury, e Eaft and Weſt Peckham, Maidſtone, Eaſt and Weſt Sutton, Yalding, Hunton, Boughton, Malling, and many other places, where the ſoils are rocky, are principally conſumed by the London brewers; not but that there muft be fitua- tions where, in ſo VEIN large an CKtent, hops are planted of a very coarle ſort, becauſe no others will grow; but they are eafily diſtinguiſhed by the moſt common ob-
ſerver, by the largeneſs, coarſeneſs, and harſhneſs of the
leaf and feel; and they want condition, the moſt valu
+ Phe Car nterbury collection of duty takes in a very large proportion of the grounds cloſe to Maidſtone. able

199 APPENDIX.
able quality, But becauſe in the outſkirts ſuch grow, and in ſituations where no hops ought to be planted, are all the hops growing 1n the heart of the county to be con- demned for it, and included in a general cenſure, and only the ſpot where Mr. Boys 1s a very ſmall grower}, hops are to be found that are good? Is there not a fimi-| lar difference in the guality of Eaſt Kent hops? TI am well aware that Farnham, in Surrey, may be urged as an inſtance againft the Kent hops being equal to any, on account of the very ſuperior prices they ſell at. But until the conſumers generally become judges of IM the quality of hops, I do not admit the price at market | y of particular growth to determine the quality, Perhaps the quality of no article is ſo little known by the conſu- |
mer as that of hops. The colour being a clear bright
k green, or the nearer it approaches to it, and their being 14 clear of the large green leaves and ftrigs, which are apt id to drop in while picking the hops, together with a
handſomely ornamented thin covering of cloth, are the criterions for a good price at a country market,‘and par- ticularly for the conſumption of the weſtern counties,
A Farnham hops principally are ſold for very high
N 0: PRICES! RDA Now, my opinion of the quality that hops ought to UA poſſeß, are theſe: 1. They ought to be ripe before they
are gathered; and in getting ſo, they paſs from a green to a rich yellow colour.- 2dly. They ought to grow on a ſoil that, inſtead of enlarging the fize of the hop and ârig, grows them full of farina(provincially, con- dition). gdly. They ought to be very thoroughly, but ſlowly dried, and then be packed for market in the
thickeſt covering that can be found, as that preſerves
Editor.
has about twenty acres,

APPENDIX. 139
their firength. The colour of thoſe hops that hang till they are ripe, can never be ſo beautiful as 1f they were gathered green; for they are generally bruiſed by the wind at the equinox, the time of their ripening, But the quali ity of cheir bitter 1s ſuperior in flavour, goes farther, and will never deceive in brewing, like the early- gathered ones, keeping good 1f home dried provincially, or full dried for years. In all theſe qua lities, the Middle Kent hops are not exceeded by any$. Yet it 1s the prac- tice of Middle Kent, the inhabitants not being ſufficient by three-fourths to gather in the crop O6 OPs, CONES ploy people com ning from London(on account of the great extent of their pl lantation) who do not pick them quite ſo free of the very fine green ſmall leaves growing on the bine with the hops as they do at Farnham, or in- deed, as ſome are in Eaft Kent. Yet thoſe ſmall leaves do not prejudice the qua lity of the bitter; and if they do no other good, they ſhew the manner in which the hops have been dried to the buyer, from their conſequent
nuddy colour; and are a guide in that very im-
clear or
portant property OF thE OPS and are ſo far of ſervice.
Put where this 1s carried to an extreme, as I have ſeen it
done in both Eaßt and Middle Kent, 1t becomes a fault. Another Note, E the ſame Gentleman.
A corn- farmer coming from ſuch a fertile ſpot as the low tich lands of Eaſt C with inexhaufſtible ſupplices of rich manure furniſhed by the ea 1 and without any 1e caſe ES all
part of the farm robbing the reſt, as 1s hop-farms, ſhould be reminded, that the principal farms
$ Eaſt Kent hops generally ſell for moſt money. Editor. | He lives on high chalky hills, at too great a diſtance from the ſea,
to get any of the ſupplies of manure alluded to Editor, of

190 APPENDIX.
of Middle Kent are hop-farmsz; and corn makes only 2 ſecondary conſideration with them 4
In favour of our farmers and ſoil, it may with juſtice be urged, that, when our corn-land is robbed of its pro- Per return of manure by our hop- grounds; and theirs, on the contrary, has the whole of what 1s made from Its and one-third on the average added to it from the ſea,
1 I truft that what Mr. Boys, who 1s unacquainted with | our ftile of farming, may on a ſuperficial view think| 1 negligence or want of ſkill, will be more rightly placed M to the want of manure to ſupply the waße our hop- (M grounds make, by returni ing no manure back again, An | acre of hop-ground requires twenty Sod fized- cart- Y loads of well mixed and rotted dung and mould annually, | Allowance may Sa with propriety, be claimed ft for the corn and meadow-lands bearing leſs luxuriant | crops than the ſoil and ſame management under d1fferent
circumfſtances would do. When it 1s confidered that one-tenth, and with many one-fifth, of a farm is under hops, as well as the on of dung with it, will not the high fate of cultrvation of Middle Kent appear
extraordinary? For certain it is, that the greateft exer-
fe tions(without a regard to expence) are made to replace| ; the waſte of manure, as well as to render all the Crops produdive, In conſequence, the very confiderabie eXPen- diture of our farms in labour,&c,. has occaßoned this
diflriét to be the moft populous of any other part of the l
f
county, or perhaps of England, where there are no máa- nufadtures carried on, j A farm that has twenty-one acres of hops, requires ſeven hop-ground men, at leaf, to look after it; but two and a + This is more a condemnation of the huſbandry than a proof of its
füperiority; E confeſſedly, the corn-land is ſacrificed to the hop- ground Se tor.
half

APPENDECG Ï9T
ny 5 A— acres of hops to one labourer on a fárm, is as much 3 E he will well manage; and for the moſt part, they are x IE ed the year round, Dro airs, ,/ Nit, ° 7274 4.4% 77/7409 77"+ E R E A LEA,/ Vith/‘ ink È| ed A Deſcription of the Soil in the Iſle of Shepey, with - Improvements that may be made upon the drable » t$, 9A An Lands there, ſubmitted dy W. FAIRMAN-, E: 1 THE ſoil of the uplands in general 1s, as Mr. Boys N obſerves, a Very ſtiff and wet clay; and that of the low Ud- : marſh-land only difers from it in having a mixture of f ſhells and ſea-ſand, which makes 1it ſufüciently E 5 and of courſe, ſound and dry. k L The ſyſtem of managing the arable part of the uplands i is in general vague and 1ndefenfible; yet there are ſome | farmers whoſe practice 1s worthy both of notice and imi- rl Ï tation. The misfortune 1s here, as in all ſoils of a wet and| D, cloſe texture, that the farmer has to expe but a hor ft time in the ſpring and autumn for the cultivation of his z land; and he muft be ſubje& to much inconvenience i from the want of a variety of ſoil, as it 1s hardly poſſible €| Es E CS 2 M e horſe 152 Taf e to find employment for his men and horſes one hâlt of : their time*; and a great ſtrength muſt neceſſarily be kept to avail himſelf of a favourable opportunity when 1t 1 offers. 9o1ls ſimilar to theſe uplands will abſorb a pro- i\
digious quantity of water; which they will retain till the ſun and winds evaporate it, and from that ſtate they Haſtily|
PS
E e 4 LEER 1 i Zs 1| A b me E RLS LAA| DIE Jp * They might get ſea-fand and ſhells for manure. Editor,

192
become crufted; and here it is, in my opinion, that the ſkill of the moſt aſMſiduous farmer 1s bafffled; the contrac- tion of the ſurface, moft certainly 1s injurious to vege- tation; and to prevent it, great efforts ſhould be uſed.
Why do they find the natural graſs come beft in their wheat ſtubble? Why ſo ſeldom fail of a good crop of wheat and beans, where an early ſeaſon is obtained? And why do they ſucceed ſo well after a ſeverc froſty winter, where a good plant is preſerved? The reaſon to me is obvious, that an afly or duſty ſurface is obtained, which repels and prevents the penetration of the ſun and winds; and inſtead of every limb of vegetation being torn off by the contraction of the ſoil, the plants are nouriſhed and be- come vigorous, by the progreſs they make in the horizon- tal poſition; and the úbrous roots, from running through a ſoil in that ſtate, become elaſtic, and expand with greater powers, To get land into this ftate ſhould be the grand obje; and to attain it, I ſhall beg leave to ſubmit my obſervations to that efe, under three heads, viz.
1ſt. Early ſowing.
2dly. Land draining,
zdly, and laſtly. Proper materials for altering the tex- ture of the ſoil.
I. Early ploughing for the wheat-ſeaſon, whilſt the land is in a dry fate, muſt be of infinite uſe; and the land that is intended for the ſpring=-corn, for the fame reaſon, ought to be ploughed as early as poſſible, that it may lie rough through the winter for the froſt to have the greater power over itz the farmer will then get a good ſeaſon, if he will waits and he need not fear a ſevere drought, as the land in that ſtate will always retain the moiſture. I do not pretend to advance, that late ploughing will never ſucceed; I have ſeen the reverſe, though the chance is ten to one againft fuch pradice; but when

APPENDIX,
when it has proved fortunate, a very dry time has ſet i N followed by a deluge of rain ſufficient to wet a clod through R of an hundred weight: for ſeveral years back, a clod of
half that ſize might have remained the whole ſummer
perfe&ly dry within fide, and of courſe too ſtubborn to::
be broken by common workmanſhip: a ſeaſon in this caſe muſt be loſt. Summer-fallowing muſt be of infinite uſe to clean and pulverize the land,‘and’to TeCeive ſuch compoſt, and manure, as may be thought beſt to dreſs it vith.
IT. TLand-draining, which 1s of great 1mportance on ſoils ſo very wet and tenacious as that of the uplands in this 1ſland; and every field lying with ſome declivity, 1S well ſituated for ſuch improvement. Surface-draining has been much praiſed; but I have ſeen it hurtful, from the method ſome farmers have purſued, by drawing the farrows dire&ly down the declivities; the water, by that
method, gains too much force, and waſhes away the
° C earth from the roots of the plants, which occaſions the corn and graſs to turn yeltow. It 1s certainly found to be the beſt method to plough fields of this deſcription the contrary way, and to lay the land in ſmall ridges to catch the water, that 1t may be condu&ed down the field by frequent large drains, acroſs the furrows, at leaſt fifteen inches in depth. I muſt confeſs, I am a greater advocate for under-draining, notwithſtanding it 1s done at a con- fſiderable expence, as it 1s the moſt effeCtual, and will be in the end the cheapeſt; for it will laſt, if done with wood 1in a proper manner, twenty vears; and if done with ſone, I may ſay for ever. Tt is but right that I ſhould explain myſelf for being ſo very partial to under-draining. Where draining 1s neceſſary, the PORES of the earth are evidently Obra dted and Tam perſuaded the obſtrution is principally in the ſecond fratum of the earth, or what O Mr:

R——
Se A EIZES
APPENDIX.
very properly terms the ſubſoil; and, from
very‘common A ſee the water ſtand on ploughed land
where the furrows are quite open to the bottom; and by
digging a hole about the ſize of a half hosſhead barrel, I have ſeen it taken of to a good effed; and inſtances too are perpetually occurring of depthening ponds that will not hold water afterwards.
TIL. Proper materials for dreſling and altering the tex- ÉITerof the ſoil.
In the article of manure, Mr. Boys very properly takes
notice; that the ſea ie Es an inexhauftible ſupply of
ſand and ſhells, called Sea-ſhingle, that greatly improves'
arable land, To prove their uſe, I Will attempt it by compariſon. Strange as it may appear, it is very evident that all the low flat marſh-land in this iſland, ſuppoſed originally to be the ſediment of the ſea, is never too wet, notwithſtanding the ſoil is ſtiff; and the inſtant you af- cend the uplands they are found ſoft and wet in the win- ter ſeaſon; and a horſe would ſink over his paſterns, when not fifty yards below, the print of his ſhoe would ſcarcely berſéen eneland R 1s thus affe@ed loſes full half 1ts value: This wonderful circumſtance of the loweſt land being the moſt dry, I attribute to a portion of ſhingle or ſea-ſand, as I firſt mentioned in my deſcription of the ſoil, depoſited by the ſea, and occaſioning the ne- ceſlary filtration of the water through the ſoil.
I have only to add to the foregoing obſervations, that under-draining, and‘manuring with ſea-Mingle, appear to be the moft rational and adviſeable methods to improve the uplands of this ifland: and I recommend, as an ex- periment, under-draining with ſhells only.
Having
d!
of

APPENDIX,
Having mentioned to Sir John Sinclair, an idea I ad long entertained, that vegetables dried on a kiln mighe be rendered uſeful to ſailors in long voyagés, He di reed me to procure ſome potatoes, and dry themon his‘account: I accordingly purchaſed four ſacks, which I dried on a common hop-oaſt, and ſent them
m
to him in March laſt, with the account in a letters as under,
SIR,
IN two matted parcels, by the Endeavour Sandwich Hoy, I have ſent you the produce of four ſacks of pota=- toes, after being kiln dried.
The expence and weight of them, before and after drying, are incloſed,
I got the potatoes pared, and haye dried the whole, that you IAy See te eflecE and try what experiments with them you may think proper; and I have had twenty=- eight pounds of the white ſort ground; the meal of which 1s ſent in the parcel to which it belongs,
I think the expence of drying would have been leſs, if the quantity had been greater, becauſe the oaſt-cloth was not ſufficiently covered to prevent the heat eſcaping too faſt. I found it very difficult to get the thermometer up to 104. On account of the ſmall quantity to dry, I uſed my leaſt kiln, which is an oven-oaft; by which the colour of the potatoes is more ycllow than it would have been if dried on a cockle,
I beg leave to recommend to you to ſend a ſmall caſk of them a long ſea voyage, to be returned to you, that you may ſee how they keep, and what uſe may be made
of them on their return. I have long been of the opinion O 2- that
| Y

Ï have
the honour to be,
STR,
; Your moft humble Servant, Setffkaunger,
March, 20, 119
: BONS: - PA PENE Ex
a o Sacks OE Nte Potatoes; at ros Ode O 2 Sacks of Early Brown ditto- IO Two men, three hours each, waſhing them OI TO A man attending oaf, and drying, two nights}“E 40
and one day
Tivo buſhels of cinders- Oo Two buſhels and a half of Welch coals DAS
Seven women, a day and a quarter O G8 5 ES E paring and ſlicing them, at gd. per day
Linen bags, mats,&c.'as package, no part of the€ X-
Pences : E E Weight before and—— drying. AT Cale o) Ors. Ib. F : GV Be 20 2 Sacks, white potatoes At, Wt, 3 LS Sa 9 LE D Lad À 24 parings° TOL ſr:[BEL Camo 91 dry beſt 2 T2 2 Sacks, Early Brown 2 TOOS E I 2 JA EPARIN SSO 21:
The four ſacks of potatoes were well ſcow ered with a broom in tubs of water, and then, by women, pared and cut in flices, about onc-fifth of an inch in thicknefs;
whick

ſquare: when thoroughly dried, they became extre brittle, and were eafily ground to meal between aP corn-itones,“EEE As potatoes may be thus dried in ſlices, if well waſhed with the rind on, thé expence of paring might be ſaved; and the ſlicing might be done by an inſtrument; ſo that the whole expence, when potatoes are at TORHOA Per E ſack, would be only about‘36s, per hundred VCE when dried, MEE: The expence of waſhing, ſlicing, and drying, if the ſlicing were done by an 1afſtrument, it ſeems by this ac- count, would be about 9s. per cwt. on the dried ſub- ſtance; and 1t would be conſiderably leſs if a large quan- tity were done at one time. It may be thought, that even that expence is too greatz but if it ſhould be found that potatoes, or other vegetables, can be dried ſo as to preſerve their nutritive qualities 1n long voyages, the
expence in ſuch caſe will be no obje.
The following is a Copy of Correſpondence on this Sub- je&t, between the Honourable Board of Agriculture and Viäualling Office,&c.
To T. M. Ruſſel, Eſa. Captain of his Majefiy's Ship St. Albans.
T7 ff PTS) Fp N>43 DLR; Viélualling Office, 0th Fuly, 1795.
Tre Board of Agriculture having,
through their Prefi- dent, Sir John Sinclair, ſent to this Board a ſmall guan- tity of potatoes fliced and dried, and of ſome meal ground from them, prepared by a'Mr. Boys of Betſhanger, in Kent; and conceiving this method of curing that root| may prove to be a valuable diſcovery on board ſhips, re-| queſted that a part thereof might be furniſhed to ſome
O ſhip
2 D

E APPENDIX.
10 on a long Voyage, 1n order to aſcertain whe- atoes i in the before-mentioned ſtate will keep on Sand particularly in hot climates, without ‘be ng N with weevils or other inſets,—we beg We to inform you, that, being at all times deſirous of promoting any diſcovery that may have a tendency to e benefit his Majeſty's ſervice, we have ordered two kegs,
the one containing a proportion of the dried ſlices, and the other of the meal, to be ſent to our Agent at Portſ-
permiſlion, on board his Majeſty’s ſhip St. Albans, under your commands and we have therefore to requeſt you | will be pleaſed, in due ſeaſon, to cauſe the kegs to be | i opened, and to report to us the fate of preſervation in which you ſhall find the potatoes ſo cured to have kept, | that we may communicate the ſame to the Baard of
Agriculture. Me are SI Your moß humble Servants, G. Cherry, F. F. Hartwell, F. Stephens, | ß KR.$. Moady, F. Hunt, IW. Boſcawen, |: ;(Copy) FW. Goſling. / ;
St, Albans, St. Helens, 18/5 December, 1795.
| GENTLEMEN, | Iv obedience to your direQion, I Lage ac arerent \ periods, and in the diferent climates to St. Helena, ad VE back again, inſpe@ed into the ſtate of the prepared pota- | toes; and beg leave to give it as my very humble | opinion, that both the ſliced and the meal retain all , the eſſential qualities of the potatoe, unimpaired, al- though
mouth, with dire&ions for his putting them, with your‘

| Ww}
Wt CCD On thout € bes us of ey Wg ) kens, s, and Port 1 your under ſt you to be 100 kept, rd of
nts,
tebbtti,
Wl,
5
APPEND
though ſomewhat altered in colour. lodged in your office at Portſmouth, with my adv your Agent to forward them to vour Board,
De LELE
I am, with great reſped, Gentlemen, your obedient and very humble Servant,: e H E: T. MRE A s-\ N Examined, W, W,(Copy) M. Goflins. E E
Commiſſionèrs Viélualling.
Zo Sir John Sinclair, Baronet, SER, Piétualling Office, oth Fanuary, 1790.
AGREEABLY to the letter we had the honour of ad- dreſſing to youon the If of July la, in return to yours to our Chairman, dated the 27th of the preceding month, we beg leave to acquaint you, that we cauſed a part of the potatoes, ſliced and dried, and of the potatoe- meal, which had been prepared by Mr. Boys of Bet- hanger in Kent, and which we received from you through our Chairman, to be forwarded to his Excellency Governor Hunter, at New South Wales; and the re- mainder, contained in two ſmall kegs, to be put on board his Majefty’s ſhip St. Albans, bound to St. Helena, under the command of Captain J. M. Ruffell; each of whom we requeßed would, in due ſeaſon, inſpe into the fate of preſervation in which ſuch potatoes and potatoe-meal ſhould be found tohave kept, and to report the ſame to Us,
Captain Ruffell has in conſequence informed us by his letter, dated the 18th of December laſt, that he had at
7
O 4 diferent

: pinion,‘that both Ehe ſliced and E e e all he eſſential qualities of the potatoe unimpaired, al- tl hough ſomewhat altered in colour; and he having alſo
returned Ed Kkcos to US We E tranſmit’ to
you copies Tof the letter we wrote’ to him, and’ of the re- port he has made thereupon; together with the kegs, DE EA E‘containing the remainder of the potatoes and meal for + HE x o
| your 1nſpeQ1ion,
[| I We bes to add, that as ſoon as we receive Governor MI Hunter's Report upon the- ſabje&t, the ſame ſhall'l VEN/ tranſmitted to you.
We have the honour to be, O11, your moſt obedient humble Servants,
G. Cry: F. Stephens, G.. P. Towry, M R.$. Moody, Ff. Hunt, IV, Boſcawen.
j Examined.(Copy)
The Editor is favoured with ihe following, by a Gentleman of the Facuîty in Eaf! Kent.
THE diſorder, called ¿/owing in cattle, is a ſpecies of çgolic, ariſing from an over-diftention of the firſt ſtomach with air. In this ſRomach the food is only ſlightly ma- cerated; during which proccfs, a gentle fermentation takes place, and at the ſame time a quantity of fixed air 1s generated,
=

partly digeſted, to be maſticated E s Us If an aniinal of this kind eats too greedily of very ſuc to N culent food, fermentation takes place ſo rapidly, and he lê- ſtomach becomes ſo much diſtended, that it loſes the
power of contraQingz conſequently, the cud cannot De for forced into the mouth; the ſtomach becomes morcTand E LET | INore Aen led; by. which means the‘orifices become|| 10ë entirely ſhut up, and, unleſs ſoon remedied, the animal he dies. k,
, To cure this complaint, two things are required; to | ſimulate the fRRomach, andto check the fermentation, The following T think likely to anſwer both purpoſes:
Lime-water, a’ gallon; ginger, in powder, án ounce 3 opium, half a dram;z gin or brandy, a pint. Digeſt all | together, and keep in a bottle well corked,—AÀ ſheep may take a quarter of a pint every hour; a bullock 2 vl)| quart, in the ſame manner, I prefer lime-water for the Vitt Ih! menftruum, becauſe it will abſorb much more than its : own bulk of air; conſequently, it will not increaſe the diſtention of the ſtomach.
If any Kind of drink is required, or is in the leaſt ad- miſlible, lime-water 1s proper.
| es 0f|
mach

-: Abjiraët from tbe Orchardif?.
yawn ud at the Defrre of the Board of Agriculture, 1796,
e
À
THE ORCHARDS T
THe orchards of the kingdom are a material branch Of its agriculture;- and it is expeâÊed the fandard fruit- trees will ſoon be much improved, from the excrtions of Tomas SKIP DyorT BuUcKNALL, Eſq. who has been very afliduous in eſtabliſhing the ſcience of Orcharding, as patronized by the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufa@ures, and Commerce, and publiſhed in the ith, 12h, and 13th volúmes: of theirs valuable TranſaRions, conformable to the praâice introduced at
Sittingbourne, in the county of Kent, in the year 17909.
In thoſe books, not only what ought to be done, is fully pointed out, but many uſefal hints âre given to guard the planters and fruit-growers againſt the uſual effes of negle(t and miſtakes, both in the trees and their culture,:
There are alſo obſervations on the ſuitable manures 3 and great freſs is laid upon proper ſoil, poſition judicious
i SHELTER,
And The Author's expreſs wiſh, in cach publication, zcnds to make mog trees in an orchard
SS EIE 1 ASTUZIE Large, Handſome, and Produäzive.
Ô 9 4. dL

ſuch great havock on fruit-trees, by conſtantly O fretting the tender bark, which prevent the On from healing. s
Be maintains, that the baneful effes of canker may_ part be prevented 1n the more delicate fruit-trees; as‘ the firſt cauſe of canker ariſes from an animalcule ſome- thing like the cochineal fly, and which 1s efeQ@ually deſtroyed by the medication: and the medication will, in great meaſure, ſtop the oozing of gum in the ſeveral ſpecies of cherries, and other ſtone-fruits. Further he obſerves, 1nſe&ts are great depredators on the delicate fruit-trees, by eating of the bloſſoms and, leaves in the ſpring.
The Orchardift, by a little attention, for there 1s no myſtery, may nearly guard againſt the reſpeQive evils affe@ting the trees; and the whole ſyſtem 1s grounded upon the regular operations of nature 1n the produêtions of vegetation; the working, or laborious part, is expreſ- ſed in ſo clear and conciſe a manner, that it can hardly be miſunderſtood; many of the thoughts are new, and the whole E well worthy the attention of the re- ſpeAive fruit-growers. Do not look for perfeCtion z it 1s ſufficient to come near it.
The Society has fully ſan@ioned the name of Orchard- 1, in page 211 of the 12th volume;'and the author has advanced as an Incentive, tO Induce Ce ONE LODE
careful in the culture óf their trees, that he entertains no doubt, but by eaſy means after ten years, the im- proved

-
APPENDIX.
e ree E thouſand pounds E annum; which moſt SS muſt be ranked as a national objet, The reader, in looking over the before-mentioned T'ranſ- - i E ſhould examine a ſhort ſentence in cach of the — prefaces; the index will point him out the other parts. The planter 1s referred to the 2th volunie and con-
M tinuations, with the propoſed premiums, claſs 74, 7510 Fi= S S | from page 22 to the bottom of page 25, in the 132th vo-
lume; but leſt the books ſhould not be at hand, a COPY 1s annexed, ſhewing how the trees ought to be prepared j for planting. According to the author's opinion, great f- Part of the trouble and EXPENCERON ES would be ſaved, 1f the heads of the trees were but looked to in time; and he E ICAL US:
E CE 212 The prevention of a diſeaſe is prefer- ¿
> to a cure, therefore, 1f poſſible, chu
"gl Mid
e the trees E year before they are to be planted, and ſee that they are properly pruned in the nurſery, by taking off, Y y“ perfedly cloſe, all rambling and unfightly EE he
“ leaving the heads to three or four good leading N From this forecaſt, the trees will not require pruning << for ſome time; and having no wounds to he: al, the year
‘““ they are tranſplanted, Sill greatly accelerate their
“€ growth. Be ſure the trees are young; and do not| i plant any galled, fretted, or cankered plants.,
« Alſo guard againſt M deepz and when the
ENCES Are Aen Up, Keep the roots as long as is con-
é venient, which willgive them a diſpoſition to run
horizontal; from which, the roots being more under
SSTNE

anda hint is given to“ defire the nurſeryman to be at-
APPENDIX.
cs the E of the ſan, the ſap 1 is richer,: cc duces the ſweeteſt faireſt fruit.
« Chuſe the ground carefully, NC Here landlord, < tenant, and workman, ſhould look to planting «“ expreſſed in the Tranſadions, and obſerve pohtionz «« determining to eſtabliſh ſhelter on the three cold ſides: < of the freeſt growing trees which the country pro= duces; which will much contribute to keep off the « blights, and proted the fruit from the ſeverity of the
« winds in autumn, when often half the crop of fruit is
C) aS
La) “A
thrown from the trees before it 1s ripe,
« All over redundant wood ſhould be taken off that «« the tree may have an uniform head; and the more the «“ range of branches ſhoot circularly, a little inclining «<< upwards, the more equal ly will the ſap be diſtributed, cc and the better will the tree bear. Alſo keep the bran=-
C
QS
ches clear; for ſunſhine and ſhade are unalterably the
La) N
cauſe of ſweet and ſour BRE ï «e Tt is perfeAly within the nurſeryman’s art to pro- duce all his ſtandard fruit-bearing trees, with fems « large and ſmooth, buds full and round, leaves broad
La) aS
and open, without the tree being much diſpoſed to
“ -
“a ”_
canker or gum;z and this is given as the chara@er of ,”
« GS
a valuable tree.’ For this, and Mofs, ſce page 167, in the 1 3th volume;
ce tentive in his grafts; ſor more depends upon it than is
OTE «imagined; as from the g raft being full, well wooded,
« clear, and properly ole. BE u will be both « larger and higher flavoured, though the ſoil and cul-
Ce Ure MAY be the ſame, Alſo, the LS of the wa9od of
« the tree is'moft materially afÆœ@ted during the whole
66

LA)
Ca)
« the ſcion Was 1n at the time it was rſt ente— into the| e OC:/
“Part, that it may be ſeen at one point of view: and Ict it be remembered, if the tree îs well pruned, 1t continues of the ſame ſize after the pruning is finiſhed, as it was: before z;‘“ for the rule is, to keep the branches out of the reach of cattle, then let them follow their-natural “ growth; for each ſpecies has a growth peculiar to SEI For Medication, look to volume 12th. f
ſmooth, and even; pare down the gum cloſe to the A
«“ ker which was not large enough to be cut; ſcore the| tree, and rub ofall the moſs, but do not ſhorten a
€ quick, and no mores; a& with obſervation, and cach
« free ſhoots, run large; which requiring a great flow of €
n
APPENDIX.
maturity A
In page 270, is an abftraQ of the working, or laborious
5
é Abîra& of Praâice. Let every ſtump, the decayed or blighted branches, with all thoſe RIEN croſs the
tree, or where the leaves curl, be taken of cloſe,
€ bark, and rather a little within, but do not de firoy © the rough coat; open the fifures, out of which the
“ gum oozes to the bottom; cut away the blotches, and C Pare dOwn the Canker: en anoint all the wounds * with the medication, ſmearing a little over the can-
«“ ſingle branch: follow the ſurgeon?s rule, go to the 7
€ practitioner will improve the ſcience,\
“< A tree, under ſuch care, muft, with its remaining|
ſap, will keep the roots in conſtant employ; and|
© from that very ſource, neceſſarily eſtabliſh permanent| € health? WW
ED,
THE END,

ERA A:
Page è, line 4, fhould be read as undér:
y ed By an exád account taken of Minſter, in Thanet, January 1, 1794, there were found to be in that pariſh 149 houſes, 696 inhabitants, viz. / 359 males and 337 females: of theſe in 16 farm-houſes, were 110 ole, males and 57 females; and in 133 houſes, inhabited by tradeſmen, labourers, and widows, there were 249 males and 280 females. The
the average number of inhabitants, male and female, to each farm-houſe,
0 8c,&c.:/ Ï
i; ß Page 6. line laft, for waſhing, read waſting
{ne- 8.1. 2, for cookers, fr. lookers
e 2.1. 21, for compotent, 7. component 2 ON Called eE call
nds TBA on ehac 7 than
y 35. L 15, for improprietor, 7. impropriator
as/ 37: 1. laſt but two, for Lymage, 7. Lyminge
the-$3. L 13, for is an obje, 7. would be an object s 5. L laſt but two, for or ridges, 7. nor ridges
n à i 63. 1. 10, for earthen, 7. earthing
the 126, 1, 5, Note, for and the expence, 1. add the expence

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