The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1865-05-23 00:00:00

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Agriculture.

Tait appearance of the crops generallfiKrepresereed
as greatly improved, but not so promising an in the kid
two years. The weather during the next three or foot
weeks will be very important.
Tax following query and quaint reply appears in the
American Country Gentleman :—" Can you recommend
a good egg-hatching machine ?—J.N.G. [The only one
we can thoroughly ' reoommend'—and that we do most
cheerfully, and from long experience—is a faithful
hen r'
Ws are informed, Rays the Bristol Mirror, that bat,
ley may he seen in ear at Shirehampton--• sight of very
rare occurrence indeed so early in the season. With d/
weather at the latter end of this month and in the bei
ginning of June, the barley crop will be Wonderfully
good, especially the early sown. Under such favourz
able circu instances the late sow n would also grow qtriekly,
THC RoTAL AGRICULTURAL MEETING AT Praillotrai
—We hive received from Mr. Hall Dare the programme
of this great West Country Meeting at Plymouth. Our
friends who are most familiar with the Bath and
West of England Shows, will find it three times
the size of one of these. There is consequently
little time to spore from business at these Royal
assemblages, there is enough to see and examine
without the "mule the rose odours, and the
wine" of the other show yard—not that the animal
dinner is not • greet affair—bet the whole gathering is
more of a great stook and implement mart, •
great and testing trial of national merit and skill
in agriculture than • public festival. The trials
in the field, 31 miles by road or roil from
Plymouth, commence some days In advance of
the actual show week. Members possess considerable
admission privileges, and we observe that in one instance
the 101, ticket has been reduced to 55.; but, as indeed
will this year be the case also at Hereford, the abuse of
these privileges by lending away tickets, or otherwise,
may lead to the forfeiture of rights of membership. We
shall return farther on to the detailed arrangements,
The last day for entry of stock is the first of June.
REAPERS AND MOWERS.—Despite the bare-faced
attempts of a contemporary to intercept literary contri-
butions intended for us, Messrs. Samuelson and Co
have succeeded, though not in the find instance, in
forwarding to us their catalogues of agricultural
machinery and of patent reapers and mowers. We aro
glad to see that our Banbury friends have achieved •
singular success with their whole series of "Patent
Self-Raker," "One-horse 'Eclipse' Reaper," Mowing
Machine, and Combined Mower and Reaper. Weds not
say the latter, which is the most difficult problem, is
completely solved. But the descriptions of these imple-
ments, supported by first class teetbnottials (including
those from the Royal farms at Windirir .nd Pelmorall,
warrant us in believing with Messrs. Samuelson end
Co. that their harvesters have taken the first place as
standard implements, having indeed been earryind
away 28 prime and medal from 29 shows within the
last two seasons, taking in two asses both Ist and 2nd
prizes, and having only been defeated thrice out of the
twenty-nine times. The result is that farmers, having
now a thoroughly trustworthy machine offered to them,
do not hesitate in availing themselves of the proved
advantages which machine-reaping and mowimg
affords, these implements being no longer •
speculative investment, but as reliable as
a turnip-cutter or a plongh. It appears that these
advantages amount to an average actual saving in
wages effected by machine reaping of 4a, an acre, and
in mowing of le. 9d. an acre; whilst the average actual
saving in time effected by machinery is 40 per cent.
There is also unanimously held to be a saving in grain,
though very variously stated and difficult to estimate ;
and a very general opinion prevails that an extra yield
of from three to five cwt. of hay per acre is gained by
the use of the machine. In short, the calculations
entered into show that the gross saving in reaping and
, mowing 130 acres (100 grain and 30 artificial gross)
would be £2O 19a, or 35 per cent., and the machine
would pay for itself in cutting 105 acres. The two-
horse self raker for farms exceeding 100 acres costs £36,
puts off the corn in sheaves clear of the horses' track
in the next round, and where the crop is upstanding
will cut an acre In half-an-hour. The 'Eclipse" napes
has its entire gearing reamed to one wheel and pinion
only, and is a one-horse machine for 16 guineas, five
feet wide in the out. The mower possesses a more
flexible cutter-bar than any other, Whibit the eam.
bined reaper and mower, which outs 41 feet wide, and
coats £26, is fitted with a newly patented arrangement
for altering the speed of the knife from the great speed
required for mowing to that necessary for reaping; but
where there is much mowing and reaping Messrs.
Samuelson recommend separate machines from the
superiority of the "Eclipse" for reaping purposes.

A MONOMER? 10 Napoleon L and his brothers haw
just been erected in the island of Corsica, and Prince
Napoleon delivermithe Meagural address.
Tag Observer thinks the dissolution of Parliament
will take place between Irayrnallang and haziest, and
more likely before than after the 20th July.
TRIL NEWSPAPER PRESS itaNn. —The second anniver-
sary dinner of this institution was held ma Saturday
evening at the Freemasons' Tavern • Mr. Chaska
Dickens in the chair. Nearly 300 gentlemen ant down
to the entertainment. A number of ladles filled the
spacious gallery at oneaxtremity of the room, and 'IL.
parted by their presence an Mr of unusual grace and
refinsment to the festive assemblage. The subscriptions
announoed in the course of the evening amounted to
about £'l2oo.

ACCIDENT FROM ARMSTRONG GUN PRAOTICL—There
were some interesting experiments in gunnery made at
Shoeburyness on Thursday, when the 300-pounder Arm-
strong muzzle gun was fired against a granite wall re-
presenting the strength of the casernates within which
our troops are to be covered in the fortifications nbw
erecting at Portemouth, Plymouth, bre. Three shots
tore tip the casemate, and • fourth would have burst
Into it altogether. A fragment from the granite strmk
an artillery cadet from Woolwich, inflicting upon him a
severe wound.

ACCIDENT AT A VOLUNTEER Irroweemon.—There
was an inspection of the Westminster (Queen's)
Volunteers in Regent's Park, on Satnrday, which was
unfortunately attended by an accident of rather a acetone
nature to Colonel Erskine, the inspector general. In
the oonrse of their evolutions the regiment fired 6
volley which no startled the high-spirited horse which
the colonel was riding that he reared up, and being un-
able to recover his balance fell heavily, rolling over his
rider, who was taken up stunned arid severely bruised.
He was conveyed to a carriage which WM near, but
recovering himself refused to leave the ground, ordered
the menceuvres to proceed, and at the close addremed
to the regiment a few words of advice and encourage-
ment from the carriage.
EXHIBITION OP THE QUBBB'S LAOS AT TOR HILEXPORD.
Merlins OP THI BATH AND WIMP OF Eninatrp
Soarer .—We have the malefaction to announce that
the Queen's gracious approbation of the efforts of the
Bath end West of England Society to improve the
quality and design of the admired fabric, known are
Honiton Lace, has, during the last few days, received
an additional and most gratifying illustration. The
lace robe, executed by her Majesty's °command from ao
design which excited great admiration at the Bristol
meeting last year, hes in due course been transmittes!
to the Queen at Osborne House, and the Hon. Mrs.
Bruce, in a letter to Lord Taunton, President of the
Society, not only conveys the gratifying assurance that
her Majesty thinks "the work has been admirably-
done, and is a beautiful /penmen of the lace,
manufacture of England," but adds that "The Queen
most gladly gives permission to exhibit the lam" at the
' Society's meeting at Hereford, commencing en Whit-
Monday.
HAILSTORMS' —[Extract from the Mark Lane Itzpress,
May 15th, 18664—Verrill° storms of Thunder, Lightning,
and HaiL —During the pest week various parts of the
country have been visited with severs storms, some of
them of a very destructive character. The Notts
Guardian says that the storm passed over several parts
of the norther' division of the /aunty of Nottingham,
and in its °auras doing some damage. It was
particularly heavy st Eanakill and at Clayworth, and
on the Wheatley Hills. At Clayworth the rein de-
scended in torrents, and mos aeoompanied with hairy
rolls of thunder. In Wlltehire it was particularly
heavy. The Wilts Independent says that near Melksharn
the storm was accompanied by • tremendous hail-
shower, many of the stones being three Inches and
upwards in circumference. At nme o'clock next day
they could be swept up in heaps in the streets and
shout the town. Lincolnshire, too, was visited ; the
a
Stamford Mercury says one of the heaviest falls rain
and hail with which the neighbourhood has been visited
for several years, fell on Friday afternoon last at Louth.
For a hour or two together the rain descended in
torrents. The hail also came at intervals with great
.itillitee ' - , acoompanied with gashes of lightning and
1 of *bander. The kinfolk Ckroniele also mentions
that the storm visited that county, "taking a wide
nO." The Leicester aid Yorkshire papen likewise
Ohre amonote of ' 'severity which accompanied the
'istatni in their 1, en Farmers should take prompt
--na of o--- their mops from damage by hail
~ to our advertising columns they
nee per Acre is now thereto
• Officer for Wheat, Barley,

Tuesday, hilly 23, 1865..

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olthe.
means wt securing their e
storms. By referring to our
will find thud Fourpence
charged by the Irumrsnoe
Oste, &a, tor covering the risk.
Meted by Mesa Power sad Pabilad for hioseil and
the other Proprietors "TIC Coulson AND COUNTRY
Newsreese CoIt:PANT Worm," at their li
Offios Chareh-siseet, Dorchester, by g=
WALLA = rTNII of fislisleu7 VIZIR in Ike connty r'
Dorset.

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