This great man likewise smells the apples that are shut up in his neighbour's houfe, He detefts cheese to fuch a degree, as to have told me one day, at Gottingen, that he had not yet dared to open fome books that were fent to him twelve years before this, in a box which had a green cheese in it.'-'The Baron's curiofity muft have been very fmall, or the books very little interefting, or he must have been totally void of refources; otherwife another perfon might furely have ventilated this Pandora's box fo effectually, in lefs than twelve years, as to elude all the penetration of the Baron's nofe.-The Author elsewhere, if the Tranflator has not mistaken his meaning, fays, that a certain ftate of the air is announced in fome people by a very agreeable fenfation of coldness at the nose.' Though there are few who have not heard of the peculiar idiofyncrafies, as they are called, of certain individuals, yet the following authentic relation of a fingular antipathy, to the effects of which the Author was an eye-witnefs, deferves to be tranfcribed, before we conclude this article. Happening to be in company with fome English gentlemen, all of them men of diftinction, the conversation fell upon antipathies. Many of the company denied their reality, and confidered them as idle ftories; but I affured them that they were truly a disease. Mr. William Matthews, fon to the Governor of Barbadoes, was of my opinion, because he himself had an antipathy to spiders. The rest of the company laughed at him. I undertook to prove to them, that this antipathy was really an impreffion on his foul, refulting from the determination of a mechanical effect. Lord John Murray undertook to shape fome black wax into the appearance of a spider, with a view to observe, whether the antipathy would take place at the fimple figure of the infect? He then withdrew for a moment, and came in again with the wax in his hand, which he kept shut. Mr. Matthews, who, in other refpects, was a very amiable and moderate man, immediately conceiving that his friend really had a fpider in his hand, clapped his hand to his fword, with extreme fury, and ruuning back towards the partition, cried out most horribly. All the mufcles of his face were fwelled, his eyes were rolling in their fockets, and his body was immoveable. We were all exceedingly alarmed, and immediately ran to his affiftance, took his fword from him, and affured him that what he had conceived to be a spider, was nothing more than a bit of wax, which he might fee upon the table.' 'He remained some time in this fpafmodic ftate; but at length he began gradually to recover, and to deplore the horrible paffion from which he still fuffered. His pulfe was very ftrong and quick, and his whole body was covered with a cold P 2 fweat ; fweat: after taking an anodyne draught, he refumed his ufua tranquillity.' We are not to wonder at this antipathy. The spiders at Barbadoes are very large, and of an hideous figure. Mr. Matthews was born there, and his antipathy was therefore to be accounted for. Some of the company undertook to make a little waxen spider in his prefence. He faw this done with great tranquillity; but he could not be perfuaded to touch it, though he was by no means a timorous man in other respects. Nor would he follow my advice, to endeavour to conquer this antipathy; by firft drawing parts of fpiders of different forts, and, after a time, whole fpiders, till at length he might be able to look at portions of real fpiders, and thus gradually accuftom himself to whole ones, at first dead ones, and then living ones. If it had been any way poffible to overcome, this antipathy, I think such a method would have been the most likely to have fucceeded.' ART. V. Memoirs of Agriculture, and other Oeconomical Arts. By Robert Doffie, Elq. Vol. III. 8vo. 6 s. boards. Nourfe, 1782. THE this work isd", that it is almost needlefs for HE plan of this work is fo well known, from the two vo us to observe, that it confifts of fuch effays as have been com- . municated to the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, and which have obtained the approbation of that refpectable body. Its contents are comprised in fixteen articles. Of these the first relates to the culture of Siberian barley; a grain, from the flattering account that is here given of it, that seems to have a great claim to the farmer's attention; we do not, however, find it comes into general ufe. It has been tried in different parts of the kingdom; but its fuccefs has not, in any inftances that we recollect, encouraged the farmer to retain it. The next article is appropriated to a much more valuable grain, fpring wheat; which, though inferior in quality to the autumn fown corn, is found to be attended, in its cultivation, with many advantages. It is now generally introduced into all parts of the kingdom. In the fourth article is a decifive experiment against the Tullian rage of drilling wheat; a rage that was a few years ago near being univerfal. As there are ftill feveral not yet perfectly cured of it, and who may poffibly infect others, we fhall produce Mr. Tadman's letter on this subject. To the honourable and laudable Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce. • Gentlemen, Having been honoured with your premium for the culture of turneps amongst beans, for which I return you thanks, I find you are deûrous of being informed of the best method to cultivate wheat, either by drills, or broad-caft, both of which I am well acquainted with; having experienced them many times upon all forts of land. But the greatest experiment was in 1752 and 1753. In the year 1752, I had twenty-two acres of bean-gratten dunged for the beans about forty loads per acre, which I managed as follows: I first plowed it; after which I fowed my wheat in this manner. Every other rod in breadth was in the broad cat way; the other was in drills. In the fpring I horfe- hoed the drills, and harrowed it; as I did also that which was fown in the broad-caft way. Both of them feemed to make a good appearance. When harvelt came, I directed the reapers to cut each rod feparate; and to make the heaves as nearly of the fame fize as poffible. By this I found a great deficiency in the drilled wheat; not having near fo many fhocks. This was tried on a fandy loam foil. • The next year I had a field of twenty-three acres, adjoining to the other, managed in the fame manner; I found the fame deficiency; and I think it very easy to be accounted for. In the spring of the year, when the wheat begins to rife from the ground, the land being very clean by the hoeing, and the ground very fine by fo doing, the showers, that are very frequent in March, caufe the fine mould to rife on the tender part of the wheat; which, when it hap pens, prevents it from growing any farther. It is a very good way to fow clover in wheat in February. I never could find, that drilling any thing but beans, pease, and tares, would produce near fo good a crop; neither will they do any way fo well as in drills; by which means the land is kept clean, and makes a good season for wheat. Now, in regard to lucerne, fain foin, &c. being put in drills, it is in a manner the fame as in the cafe of wheat. I have a deal of lucerne, part of it in drills; which I have endeavoured to keep clean by hand-hoeing. But, after a hard rain, seeing my horfes would not eat it, I found, upon infpection, the earth was fo much washed into it, that it was a good reafon for fowing the other part broad-caft way. I immediately cut off that they eat upon; and I then fowed the land over in broad-caft, and raked it with a hand rake. I have not found any thing of the fame kind happen ever fince. If this information may be of any utility, I fhall be happy in having given it, as I may be fuppofed to know fomething of the farming bufinefs, having been in it near forty years. I began at first harrow. boy; from that I went through every other part of plowing, fowing, &c.; and, before I was twenty-four years of age, I paid 1800 1. per year rent. *This inconvenience attending drilled lucerne is peculiar to Mr. Tadman's, and fuch other very fandy land. For many inftances can be produced of drilled lucerne, now growing, which is entirely free from it. I have another thing to offer to this Society, which I can explain. It is, that three crops may grow in the fame year, with the fame culture and expence as one crop; and that they will not interfere with one another; but quite otherwife, where-ever one is good, the other two will be fo likewife. I hold at this time about two thou, fand two hundred acres of arable, meadow, and pasture land. I am, with the utmost deference and respect, Higham, 19th Dec. 1772. Your honour's most obedient, and humble fervant, WM. TADMAN.' It were to be wifhed Mr. Tadman had explained his ænigma of growing three crops in the fame year, and, if we do not mifapprehend him, at the fame time. It is well known, that gardeners could never make the rent of their land if they did not contrive to have a crop conftantly upon the ground; that is, as one crop goes off, to have another to fucceed. But this never can be done more than twice within the year, provided the crops ftand, as the farmer's muft, to maturity. We have often lamented, that the agriculturift has not availed himself, as he might often do, in this inftance of the gardener's example. Indeed there feems nothing wanting to the perfection of agriculture, but the adoption of thofe proceffes in gardening, in which the additional expence would not over balance the increase of profit. One noble advantage that would be reaped from fuch an improved mode of hufbandry would be, the conftant employment of the poor, which, exclufive of the national faving, would diffufe health and happiness through the hearts of thousands that are now ftarving upon a parish allowance and fcanty as this allowance is, it is to be feared, it may be frequently greater than the farmer is well able to bear. Now we are upon this fubject, we cannot forbear remarking the blindnefs, or at least the fhort-fighted felfifhnefs, fo obfervable in the farmer's conduct refpecting these unfortunate objects. The farmer never employs, if he can avoid it, those who are too young and feeble, or old and infirm, to do a full day's work. The confequence of this narrow policy is, that numbers of this defcription, having no means of fubfiftence, must be maintained by the parish. Thus, inftead of giving them a fhilling to earn ninepence, the farmer reduces himself to the neceffity of giving them fixpence to do nothing. But to return. Mr. Tadman has, in a fubfequent letter, given his method of raising two crops in a year, which, as it is a practice that ought to be generally known and adopted, and as it alfo lies open to fome difcuffion, we shall infert it. The quantity of ground cultivated was fifty-four acres; the cultivation was as follows: The land was plowed between the 1st of December 1770, and the last of January 1771; the nature and foil were as follows: Four acres, a flat ftiff clay, fed with fheep in February, and fown with wheat. Fourteen acres ftrong ditto, upon a defcent, aspect to the west, fed in February, fown with oats. Eighteen acres ftrong ditto, on a hill, afpect to the fouth, fed in March, fown with oats. Eighteen acres flat, wet loam, faved for feed; produced twentythree quarters, four bufhels, one pottle, Winchefter measure. On all which, being fifty-four acres, was a good crop. Our manner of feeding is with hurdle gates. In the February following, I drilled in my beans. As foon as they appeared in round leaf, I rolled them; after which, I harrowed them twice in a place, across the drills; which not only gave fresh earth to the beans, but destroyed the fmall weeds.-After lying fome few days from the time of harrowing, I had the beans hand-hoed: and in about three or four days after, I horfe-hoed them, and threw fome earth to the beans; which was done in order to strengthen them; and deftroyed the weeds. In about a week after, I horsehoed them again; and threw up fome more earth to them; which I think neceffary to keep the beans upright. By this time, I thought the beans well ordered; and, about the 25th of May, I proceeded to fow my turneps in the broad-caft way. -The next best method is, by a machine.-The reason I think this not fo good is, that if the drills are not equal, part of the land must be unfowed; which will not happen from a good feed fman in the broad-caft way -After fowing the turneps, I horfe-hoed them with a harrow behind the hoe; which reverfes the earth, covers the feed, and destroys the small weeds that have sprung up fince the laft hoeing. In this ftate they remained till after harveft. If any fmall weeds appeared, I put lambs in them; which are exceeding good weeders, without any expence. I often turn them into my turneps I make fummer-fallow; as knowing they will not eat them till they come to perfection. This fame year I had thirty-fix acres of much fuperior land dunged all over; fome of which was fown three times; and, in the whole, not more than ten acres fit to ftand; and they were very backward. Now the rent of thirty-fix acres of land ftands me in Harrowing twelve times, at four pence per time, Rolling fix times, at one fhilling per time, Hoeing ten acres, at fix fhillings per time, Sowing the different times, and feed Deducing ten guineas for ten acres of turneps P4 Against the farmer 223 16 o 10 10 O |