The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-02-04 00:00:00

c.lgrimiturt.

FAIN RIDIIIII3II OLD VAST A0:0IDI/10 TO PRIM.
Th. y may, with justice, v.ry according to the price
of produce, presuming that produce. rules blither or
lower for • aeries of years; other 0n0:134.10e5, too,
may alter the value, bet what shall be done when a
farm of poor or inferior land has been improved for a
term of years by a.skilful and liberal tenant, and a in.
adustment of rent is demanded The landlord's self.
interest leads him to the conclusion that the
.present
value of the farmebo Id be its rent ;he is easily able
to ascertain that value, and people there are to be
found who would give more than its value. And. •
vulture picks off the fat and fie-h off his prey, leasing
only the bone, so this man strips the farm of the last
12 'sera' fat, and leaves it again 'WOrle than it was
before. Little pity could be felt for such • landlord,
but what an amount of evil has been done in • neigh-
bsurhood. On the other band, • tenant thinks that
as his sill and management have 4:sused the preeent
value of the land, anything that he pays In rent owe-
that which he has already pail, is paying upon hts own
industry—is paying to the landlord what in justices
beloigs to him•elf—and be is, if hardly dealt with,
ready to warn his brother farmer against the weakness
of investing his money in another's property. In such
• ease as this how useful is an upright, oonscientionn,
and intelligent steward. He steps in to represent to
the landlord that such a tenant is • valuable one for
him and for the neighbourhood. He knows how much
of the heavy crops raised are due to good farming, and
belong to the farmer who has spent so much to get
them. He know., also, how much the land is
intrinsically improved, and I think he would entered
that in coniequeace of the improvement which bad
b-en eft& ted, of the labour employed, of the skill
bestowed, of the money sunk to obtain those improve-
ment, and of the advantages still in the soil consequent
upon them and not moped by the tenant, be, the I.nd-
lord, should be willing and eatisfisd to d.vide with Inch
a man the v•lne of those froprimements ; and be wool I.
on the oilier hand, insertne upon the tenant the fact
that be lied, by his improved crops, already had 110E08 of
his netley returned to him, that although the improve-
ern at hat been effetted by his skill and management,
yet the f srm had been held on somewhat lower teens.,
and that therefore some increase of rent might be fair
and reganable. I think that such a solution meets this
often difficult ease, and the kindle relation. of the lead•
lord and tenant would not be disturbed. Another
resson that landlords should encourage the increase of
labour is this—it increase, ea-dependence in working
men. which has • tool moral effect, lemming pauperism
nod a necessity for that partictilisr form of oharity—
kindly meant—which maitre up is food and {Anthill;
that which the labourer ought to be able to curs. Far
be it from me to condemn relief when really required,
but the best chartty to the working man in to find him
employment, remunerative to him.lf and to his
emplover.—Mr. W. ./. Edmonds, before Cirencester
Chamber of Agriculture.

BATH AND WEST OF ENGLAND SOCIETY.
The usual meeting of the Commit of this Society was
held on Tuesday, the 28th inst.. at Taunton, under the
presidency of Sir aT. T. B. Duckworth. and was more
numerously attended thee on any former occasion.
Fa'atoms MISTING, 1868.—1 t was resolved to °ale--
brit° the opening of the exhibition on Monday, Juo• let,
by a public luncheon in the Show-yard, in socordance
with the practise inaugurate? lut year at Salisbury with
so ranch satialiiction to members and the public. A
committee, etunpriaing Mr. Acland. M.P.. Mr. R. G.
Bailiwick, Mr. Cottereil, Mr. Hicks, Mr. Knollya, Mr.
Moysey. Rev. T Phillpotte, Mr. Poole, Mr. P. P. Smith,
Dr. Scott and Mr. H. B. Willyains was also appointed
to confer (if thought desirable) with the Falmouth Local
Committee, with • view to the promotion of the objects
of the society during tin time of the annual meeting by
the reeding of papers, the giving of lectures, and the
holding of couverobsioni, do., do. It was also ordered
that invitations for tenders for the privilege of supply-
ing refreshments in the Show-yard, should be at once
Limed. For the information of exhibitor*, it may be
well to state that the Falmouth Local Committee have
very handsomely undertaken, at their own coet, to
convey all machines., iniplementa. live stook, poultry.
and other articles to and from the Yalmonth Railway
terminus to the Show yard free of cost to exhibitor*.
This conosasion will go very far t owards removing any
objection that may esiet is the minds of distant
exhibitors on the ground of •spense.
On the motion of Mr. Gordon • committee was ap-
pointed to consider the special conditions and general
regulations under which stock and implement. are exhi-
bited, and to report whether any alterations are thought
&minable for the year 1869.
A letter was read from the Hon. and Rev. S. Best, on
behalf of the Soothein Counties Association, establiabed
several years ago, very much on the model of the Bath
and West of England Society, but proposing to direct
its efforts more t articolarly to ttie six southern otoutiti-s,
vi., Hampshire, Susses, Berkshire. Oafordabire,
Surrey, and Kent. In this letter overtures of amalga-
mation between the Bath and West of England society
and the Southern Countiee Association were made by
Mr. Best on behalf of the :atter society, and • seheme
or beide, on which it was thought by them that an
amalgamation of the two might be amid out, was
weed in detail by the hon, and rev. gentleman.
With reference to the overture contained in this lento
a long and animated discuosion arose; by some it was
contended that the society's area was already sufficiently
extensive and ought not to be in any way enlarged, but
it was abown by reference to the early records of the
s ociety, that at the annual meeting in 1779, it was re-
solved that the counties of Berke, Hants. Devon. and
Cornwall ehould be included within the district of the
societj's operations, and in December, 1790, &farther re-
aolution we passed that on amount of the establiohed
character of the society and the widely extended resi-
dence of its subwribers the title of the society should
become altered from" the Bath Society for the entiourage-
meet of eat-Walter*, dm," to "the Bath and West
of England Society." Stress was also laid on the
Fact that the society in 1886 affirmed the desirability of
holding meetings not only in Somerset, Devon, Dorset,
Hampshire, and Cornwall, but also in Wiltshire.
Glouceatershire, Herefordshire, and South Wales.
Eventually • committee was appointed to confer with
a committee appointed by the Southern Counties
Association, and the Si-cretary was diieeted to acknow-
ledge with thanks the communication of the Hon. and
Bee. 8. Best, in regard to the proposed amalgamation,
and to inform him that the Council thought it would
be impracticable to effect such ainalpmAtioci on the
basis proposed by him, but they bad appointed a Isom-
mittee to winter with the committee appointed by the
Southern Counties Association.
FINANCIAL PoBITION OF Tilt SOCItTY. —The Finance
Committee brought out their annual statement, ending
Dec, 31st. 1867, and incidental to • short diecuasion,
Mr. Koollys took occasion to congratulate the society
on the fact that notwithstanding the &deem ineoccees
with which for the last two years all Agricultural
'ocieties had bail to contend, the Bath and West of
England Society had not only been able to continue
i's work without the interval of a single year,
but it had kept up the interest and number of its
members, and at the present time it was more than
1-2,000 better off than it was after the meeting at
Exeter.