The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1880-04-20 00:00:00

ET COUNTY EXPRESS AND AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE, TUESDAY, APRIL 510, 1880

Mr. boot eadiseled that th• &soh niakt oommit co
the ecidanoe icon. and any additional mor be Pro-
duced at or riglars.
Mr. Z. host asanbed in favour of an adjoarnnivat in
order to etaaylivie the ease as tar ash could in.
It was said the postmaster at Leon dellverod the regle
tared letter from Tented to lire Reynolds. and obtained
her roomipt.
Adjourned to Friday..
Mr. Look asked for ball to be allowed to Mrs. TrsT•tt.
who had • swell child to look after.
Yr. Supt. Betty strongly objected. Ohs was a Waleall
woman, and had been in communication with Pardee "
Walsall, so that his enquiries had been very much Mt
-
mild. He had hitters or hers to his troaveleion•
Bail refused.

DORCHESTER FARMERS CLUB
The leet meeting of the session was held on Satur-
day ovoid's/ Present, Mr. H. Hawkins, president,
Mr. Glengs Waterson), Mr. Williams Andrews, Mr.
Lovelace, . Stephen Vine (Longbredy), Mr. Foot
(Bewley), Mr. Still'''. Mr. 'T. Chapman Saunders, Mx.
G. Wood Horner, Mr. P. Pearce, Ike.

Tin ANNUAL mint=
The President (Kr. Hawes) said this would be
the last meedng fer the session, and the only particu-
lar business besides Vie discussion WM to fix the day
for the annual der. They generally had it on
Wednesday, for the convenience of those coming to the
market. They were unable to have it the last week in
April because Mr. Andrews would not be able to
attend.
Mr. PIANO suggested the sth May, which wag
agreed to.
THZ 00111 lINSUJINL
The subject for discussion was—" The imperfect
manner in which the Corn Returns are made, and its

is not above 411 lbs. to the bushel; he had
bbriZt to-day 47 quarters of burley at 20a. 61 per
quarter. The Laity of the present system IA • real
grievance, he was In favour of some fixed standard,
and thought some system should be fixed ou by the
club. The Clerk of the Market, when he comee round
for dues, should present • form sad ask for retinue.
Mt. Gun' mentioned the loam way in which agri-
ealtural statistics generally are collected.
The PIIIIIIDUT ably summed up the arguments,
and remarked that one advantage of the rent-charge
being paid by the landlord—although he would charge
it on rant—would be that landlords, if they had to
pay the tithes, would probably legislate to get the
matter on • better footing, and they would have • far
bettor chance of doing se than the farmera have. B.
pointed out that the returns are supposed by the law
to be oolnionlaor7 the law 1. not enforced.
PZ"°111 said the *Wag were bound to make

subjects to protect her from the effects of. Mr.
Childers' epoch, reported in the Times • short time
ago, afforded to my mind asimilar illustration, though
I cannot now remember the words.
I am inclined to think Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Bright
have afforded similar instances.
In a similar strain Mr. °royale appears to have
answered a complaint made by one of his =erne at •
recent meeting hers. of the conduct of the local pace,
by saying "What can you expect from • Tory Govern-
ment?'
I do not speak in my letter of the "depressed" but of
the " orpmred" condition ascribed to the working man.
" Plebeian assaimvs that probably I know little
practically about the "working dawn" I should like
to bear his definition of that term. Perhva I also
should come within it, unless he excludes all
Conservation.
"Plebeian "has made several quotations from my
letter, but I mast ask that your readers peruse the
whole before applying his remarks to it, an although
I can well understand the bias which discontent Is
ever liable to be swayed by, still I may hope for some,
at least, to endeavour to bring an impartial judgment
to bear on the differenoe of opinion we (Bayley.
Ans.

returns.
Bouterme seked—Would it be for the Farmers' Club
to tan tint matt.r nP and prosecute the dealers who
do not make nthrus
capstel
The discussion then
MU MOM met= OP HIGIWAT WAIL
Mr. STIIIT had been invited to mention a few facts
with regard to this queetioe, which the Corns Highway
Beard had had under consideration for some time, and
wondered it most unfair and unjust; unfair as between
' widen and Individuals, and unjust because it entails
twelsmous eXPeclot which is never expended on the
reads. To go back Mout 20 year@ ego, when tt e Acta
were lint paused, no doubt there were then roads not
It for the couvenienin of the public; and the Act was
Pawed but not compulsory until it was made so by the
:=lThe opinion generally of thine who are
4-..piptition which the Cenci Board had thought
prow to present is that if they grunt the Petition
them roads will get into the same position as they
woes in 18 yearn Mo. About that time retinae!,
branches from the main lines, were being generally
opeued, and directly • station was opened, it brought
Into use roads which were only term occupation roads
before; the whole of the country round woe opened,
gentlemen's carriages would ra over the roads, corn
and coal would be carried, and the result was the roads
became unfit for the convenience of the public. lie
maintained that them parishes were never given time
to feel their position, and it was unjust to tell the way.
wardens of those perishes that they were neither
willing nor competent to make their roads efficient as
the old system had made them previously. Mr. Selby
then went on to point out that the total expense of the
Highway Board for the year 1878-79 had been
£2lB 18s. Id., including salaries, which amounted to
£195 odd, the parish roads were 128 miles, with 17
miles. Now if they took the expenditure at
£l2OOO, and the galaxies and incidentals at £2OO,
that would make in round numbers just MO per
cent, of the whole amount expended on the roads.
His own individual parish roads, consisting of four
miles and four furlongs, included two miler of by-road
only used for accommodation; and he could say that
theme had not averaged in cost £2 • year,--therefore
that reduced the repairable roads to about two miles.
The total expenditure was £47 135., while the common
chargee upon the parish would coon to £l4, leaving •
balanoe of £33 L3e. to be expended on the road.; he
would take away the two miles of by-road, and thus
about £lO was left for about two miles, or £l5 a mile.
If a railway comes to Alton, no doebt the road would
have to be widened and very considerable expense in,
curred. It was against the system the Cetus Highway
Board had such an objection ; they maintained that it
was imposible for • surveyor to expend the money
judiciously and to the best advantage. Be had seen
day men coming on at eight in the morning, leaving at
four in the afternoon, and taking an unreasonable
time to their meals; and piece work had been so slighted
that it was covered up. fie maintained that no sur-
veyor vrith 140 or 160 miles of road can possibly see that
the money is properly expended. How can • surveyor
me that all the outlets are properly made? He had si en
parts washed away, where • few shillings would have
saved an expense of potted'. There are very few but
have men the report of the petition presented to the
Court of Quarter Sessions by Colonel Digby on behalf
of the Corns Highway Board, and he had been vexed
to see the way in which that petition we. received by
some of the magistrates. When a petition is received
with insulting gesture, that is a sign of a dickering
hope, that they have very little to depend upon.
After referring to 'Retinae which showed very great
Increase in the cost of the roadi under the present
system, Mr. Stiby thanked the club for allowing him
to introduce the subject, and added that If they
backed him by their signatures, that would be such
strong support that utigistrates could not go
against the petition.
Mr. Homes thought it a very small matter whether
the magistrates accept the petition or not, for there
will soon be an authority superior to them.
Mr. Genes said Mr. Btiby had shown that £2O per
cent. was expended in salaries in carrying out a very
small amount of business. We have a very efficient
Highway Ward, for the Dorchester Highway Board
is mooed to none, they started with an excellent
chairman, Mr. Herbert Williams, an excellent clerk,
Mr. Coombs, and an excellent surveyor, Mr. Jesty,
and the work was done very well; but they had to
pay; and when they considered they had to
pay El per mile for simple supervision, t
ought to have good roads. He always agreed
the old Act was sufficient for all practical
purposes; there was the power to indict • road; but
very few took upon themselves to do so. He did not
see why they should not return to the old system if
the work could be efficiently done, and he balloted
there are parties quite* able to menage the roads in
their parishes without the assistance Of • professional
surveyor. They had been told that when the roads
were once made there would be little or no expense in
keeping them up ; but that was quite fallacious. In
his own parish they used to be sameseed at about £lO
a year; the first year of the new system the roads °oat
Sag, or a fivepenny rate, the next £23, the next
an 81. rate, and the next year the cost got back
to £l3. In 1872 they had • sid. rate, then
followed 7d., Bid , 6d., Bd., and in 1879
amounting to Ell 55. 4d., where they used to pay
£lO • year, and for which in the first year under the
new they had paid £23. Out of that £4l.lfrt
ass.ticlnme out of his own pocket, so they might
excuse him for speaking feelingly. (Ham.) If they
could prove • case he did not think the magistrates
would stand in the way, and if the experiment be tried,
and the roads are not kept up, let them be indicted,
for good reeds are economical to everybody, tuld he
did not think then is any daeger of their gobg beck
to the condition they were in before the Act. He
hoped the club would support Mr. Sill/.
Mr. T. Cnantae SAUNDIMI thought persons will
be found with sufficient knowledge to carry out the
duties in their parishes, and that they would have as
good roads as before. He would second a proposition
that the club coincide in the view taken by the Cern*
Highway Board.
The PAIWIDIWT ales maw no reason why they should
Cot go back to the old system, and tam up the roads
without the expense of a great staff. Re Imow actually
instances where paupers pay highway rates, although
some of them are bedridden, and cannot come out of
door to walk on the roads.
Mr. Brno, in ecknowledging the assistance of the
club, added that One Mile In his parish Positively
ought to be indicted for the state it Is in, and if they
had the old system It no doubt would be indicted.
The twoondings then ended.
"THE DORSET COUNTY CHRONICLE."
TO tist Editor.

effects."
The CHAIRMAN (Mr. Hawkins) first read the follow-
ing oommunioations from George Churchill, Esq.
"Alderholt, April 15, 1890.
"Sir,—As I see a metal= of the Dortheater Formers'
Club is about to take plaos to discuss the imperfect
manner in which the own returns are made and its elleat,
I venture to wind you a eopv d a letter I wrote in the
Meld. and which elicited several letters fdenglei Use
accuracy of the corn returns. It certainly proves one of
tie, things—that the price of corn daring tile last seven
years has nothing to do with agricultural distrear, or that
the return of British grown corn for the porpoise of the
tithe averages are grossly incorrect. That the latter is
the etIC I em fogy convinced. It iny years ago the late
Yr. Jetty, the late Yr. Devenish, end myself west to the
corn inspector, and, after a great deal of trouble, got •
sight of our return*, scarcely one of which was correct.
as to quantity or price. We wrote on the subject to the
then Secretary of State, resolved • civil reply. and the
matter dropped. The other in a part copy of • letter I
sent to the candidates for Smith Hate and South Wills
in answer to their addresses, and have had a satisfactory
answer from sack We have • right to demand this, not
as any conoeselon. boles a simple act c 4 jostles. I may
say to all parties, to obtain • oared return of Britishgrewn corn. It applies not only to the tithe eve
but to any farms that may be let on corn averages. I
am not sure that in these times it might not be desirable
that • Prevention of the rent of forum let on leases should
be dependent on the prioe of British grown corn, provided
that the reel price obteined could be scottr•thil add-
tared.
"Yours tray,
"Grass Onvacnna.
"To the Chairman of the Dorchester Farmers' Club."
AGILICULIVUAL Ingram
about agricultural distress. hi 01‘Usee and proposed
remedies. That it does exist no one can doubt; but
before • remedy can be found it is desirable to find out
the cause. Lord Derby DOOM to think it is in greet pad
nannins by foreign competition, and that the &With
tumor cannot sucoessfully compete with the foreigner in
growing corn, and consequently • large proportion of land
must go out of arable cultivation, and we tenet rely on
the foreigner to aupport us al met entirely with the del
of life, a fearful thing to contemplate in the case of war
with • foreign power pose-awed of • large navy, or two or
more navies oonthined. /t is not fair to take one or two
isolated years as the criterion of the price of corn, but let
us go back from the present year, taking an avenge of
/even years of the price of corn per bushel given in the
unite& Kingdom, and for this purpose we cannot do better
than snits the tithe averages. This year, 1879, we shall
end wheat for the seven preceding years per bushel 6s.
641. • barley de. 11d. ; oats, 34. V., and the tithe average
All'lle. i ”t .., via, ill 15s. li I. above the commutation
prima For the seven years ending 1878—wheat, 6.. 64i ;
f..u•ley 4s. 1041. • oats, 31. 311. ; tithe &ramp, £llll Ti.
01. this is Om highest average since 1837. Taking the
seven years ending 1172, the tithe average was .ClOl3 4s,
Ot 1. ; 1865. £9B 15s. 100; l. SW 131. HO. ; 1850. L9B
16.. 101 1 so that the lest seven years the highest price
since ism has been obtained for British-irrown corn. So
much for foreign competition in cora. That fat stock,
ave, sheep. an 4 horse' are very much higher than
formerly, no one can doubt, so that. whatever it may do
in future, fore;an competition has not yet lovrered the price
of British-grown produce. I hope some of your readers
may be able to mutat • cause for the distress that at pre-
sent egista—AGILICOLA."
we are perfectly aware that the owner of tithe, both
lay and cherical. has just as much right to his tithe rent
charga. as the loviorser has to his land. At the same
time we are eonvine,d that the tithes sveragas eo not., as
at present taken, give the fair pore of British•grown
corn. and will not be correct till the oilier tieing the
grower makes a return as well at the buyer, both being
under a penalty to make a true return, and the Con
ynnssensor he required to enter no corn in which the buyer
and seller do not agree either in price or quantity. but to
or
ics
for
of
he
uary
lect
—imiew"scuii"li"ef.:l4ls,:oint,irtgiriperms
noitt,BllltoeF brought
die-use
liral
mustrilic,
t l.ilin'ien,tl
oe
returned
0n...
utahuo 0
oihr..P;t,T btfoi,::
euep
.rerontGl° el
rw
• ,
ors
compulsory,ici, 'ahrpnittrirep returned s
st
hipor
041;:: 11:
iti:::12:
teh;
iook liaf:f •
rrrit
iti esall4f.s ovw.me
et° r,er 0
e,,:vi:b " nul:tath
.ulnilwln, three a g °"lsttc..l'olntg;‘:o.F.oUlne Iti.iniledier
e:seetawfws,;..drililer ern.' eell:1 firt
inFsiiymns
, written
th e:I':
il it' lam
again
'el:. a
inni atd:1:::::;.
8:ed400 core 8
or:pa nretihiall bill,
itt.td2 9
on ...i spokes
gift:l;h' :18
a: a
,illo
nt,anniit:oo
I:
for
the of the election it was put off till to-night, Now I don't
ent
an
'B5
re
an
In the
me
.000
an
arm
be
think any subject can be more interesting to us, as
farmers, than one which brings before us the prime of
oar own produce and the manner in which those prices
are recorded and sent to the Board of Trade for the
purpose of fixing the rent charge from the market
returns, and the effect those returns have upon us.
That there is a grievance, and that this is a subject
worthy of our *mei leration, esems to be pretty gener-
ally admitted. There are a certain number of markets
in the Kingdom from which returns are made. Now
do von consider that those markets are a fair average
of the country? Corn bought in some of those market&
where returns are not made, is. lunderstand, taken and
sold in other markets, dealers' commission and freight
being added to the cost once, end then the increased
price returned. Since the lid of markets was made trade
mod likely has become more orlon in many of these end
consequently they may not be fairly representative.
Yet, as to the seleation of markets which are to make
returns, there has been very little °hangs duos 1191.
when these returns were made "for the informadon and
benefit of His Majesty's subjects." When the Tithe
Commutation Act was pared, the list of towns made
In 1828 was in force, and the average tele= from those
returns used for the purposes of rent oharge. In 1842
the 150 market& from which returns were made had
140 other markets added to them, and this
period with. The original 150 are, I believe, still the
returning market Before the addition of 140 towns,
a three-years' average of wheat returned as *old was
about 4.000,000 qrs. • from '5B to '55 the average sales
'77 to 79, 150 towns, 1,8461000. Oats sales—'4o to '42,
150 towns, 2.141.000 qrs. ; 53 to '88,290 towns, 820,000
qrs. ; '65 to '67. 150 towns. 252,000 qrs.; 77 to '79, 150
towns, 174,900 qrs. Now, gentlemen, we have to
account for this felling-off in the return of sales. In
the first place the country grows a less breadth of corn
than formerly, in the next places we consume a much
greater proportion of corn at home, and thirdly the
sales effected an not in a greet number of in/tenor
returned. In one large market (Wakefield) no return
was made for six weeks. There can be no doubt that
the averages are taken moat unfairly, because the
returns made are only of the best corn, the middling
and inferior being fed at home. Take the average of
the corn used at home and that sent to market on any
farm, you will find nothing in excess of the £lOO.
Then again corn sold by weight is returned as by mea-
sure, and this year this makes a condderable difference.
Ought not sellers to return instead of buyers? When
the tithe was paid in kind the parson took his tenth
sheaf of wheat as it was, best, tailing, chicken oorn,
fr,o,, altogether; but now his tithe is paid oil f on
average of the best sample, the system so
decidedly in his favour that I fancy he will object to
any alteration. With these few fuer, gentlemen, /
will leave the matter in your hands for
Mr. T. CHAPMAN SAMIDIRS add the question was
so important to all oonnectei with the land that he
hoped it would have brought a large attendance.
When the tithe commutation took place the date of
things was very different from the present, now they
had the foreigner to compete with. As to the seller
returning as well as the buyer, that would make it
very complicated. and he did not know how lt could
be worked out; but some change ought to be made.
When the tithe was tak
anend In t Unwind
seemed
dt
unkadfakto.
ninowcluthd:
chicken corn, and alit
quantity is leas, and here must be a deficiency, that
only the best corn goes into the average. He did not
think the plan of the seller returning would meet the
case, and was in favour of a fixed value, which might
be readjusted every six or seven years. Thor who
had taken notice of the corn returns here know that
titeT:,nrushpoiu:efeylneiiryted:arepeeweiwregth.:elireandvteonoluePriumuontairthtottpoostld sotl,eieoierresitueraraprili;wialoe_returuieoluseoneis,(heßiatearw:nalkiotte,
permissive
IT:loll:01z
Act. They objected to make
cultwillll°Ausidelnrt did seem rather hard if land-
lord and tenant could not make arrangoßieamhekugye
fthotelornt
oot a:
too
thelob
eda among
:Ell
.d.lthomzemtwhlealvirmeorru;
obybuf
ct,het:hlio.
onlylenthirmissitivecole,inaroth.
had been made of the fact that all the corn wee not
bt midbroughtl
t u
sehdwol
.or worst log corn
At:°; butr market,
i:h el I i le
years'
ebs:Tio,vvalued—netherlued—neither
1 eat
averageindM lt
I h ew. elit
to a
it htialerhteolt
ohdown besth Winchestertnorihilt
astbhreoemmul.dasheiatabizougorsifievheleyieliirseyn, boistcamhaiienthiotetwaollrdpuinbetaeharddoe.
on a young man who came in and had to pay on the
ere
h.
thinostssaidif etwranothdlnfbeat isispae.histithesywanwash to p:dnyo4charwesaidu, landfibedzwedipaititbewoulabhiy chargetihxlethton or?:
lead, and if a tenant went out without paying, the
or
Mr. G. W. 1101113 said the presumption of the fikr
Investigation
vthateutiga. the
ti von of
landlord
returns, In answer _
to
li a th
liable.
Mr. e. •
necessity
for a
strioterthe
' PINIBIDINT, he said no person was down on him If he
rfaoseturnstgkedot, • n.t° dlm at
a tinshoweda
Bristolretuehr he
laxity ;Wt I I dnofotilbrts heonm7tOaultev i
ne re
the present depression people are to be alive
to t subject. He had taken Ls not above 10
score 6 pounds, rowing toll gorge on the average, and

Dorchester, April 16th, DM.
P.S.—lt is unfortunate that you have separated oar
letters in the Telegrams, giving prominence to that of
" Plebeian," whilst mine is so placed as to incur con-
siderable risk of passing unnotioed.
(" Anon's " letter was reedy for the first side of the
Telegram, and was, therefore, printed with the earlier
matter ; the prese?t letter shall have the benefit of
another place. "Thoroughly disgraceful," "wale.
than a crime—a blunder," mistaken, unoondituticaal,
and 11-Liberal." seem more crrreot epithets than
"riotous," and we would include the conduct of those
on the other side who irritated the mob. But. 1411
pendent'. is It fitting to incite the magistrates to
severity against the men who are already in the grip of
the law I—ED.]

Sir,—Your richly deserved castigation of this ,
extraordinary specimen of Journalism will I imagine
be appreciated in many unexpected quarters, To
criticise the drivel which week alter week your con-
temporary pours out upon political matters would be
to analyse a mass of trash which I have nowhere
hes,rd more strongly repudiated than amongst the
member. of the very party whose claims it profanes
to advocate. If inoessant abuse without the alighted
preteire to argument, arrogance without warranty,
and shallowness without peroeption, be characteristic
of editorial ability, and calcuLated to win public
appreciation, the D.C. C. may justly used an undeni-
able pre-emlnenos. If, however, the antithesis be
claimed, I can only wonder that the shareholders
have so long permitted so great a waste of good paper
and printer's Ink. Should anyone doubt my conten-
tion I shall be glad to establish it frook any political
leader in the D. 0.0. to which I may be referred. In
your last issue of the Zarin you alluded to the
knowingly untruthful remarks of the D. 0.0. upon the
" @quite issued during the election. Kay I supple-
ment that allusion by stating that the first tab
published, a curiosity in the way of
scurrility, was actually printed at the office of the
D.O.C. ii I may also add that it was in active cir-
culation some days before any on the other side were
lamed. A.. you say, the Tory organ has got muddled.
This week for instance there is not the slightest in-
formation upon the result of the all-engrossing topic
the General Election, which, being so decidedly un-
favourable to Toryism, is quietly ignored by the
Influential and widely circulated fourpsnny. I hear
that the young man who has lately acted the part of
political instruct r in its columns has lately abandoned
hia "Dictionary of Classical quotations" for a
"history of England." If you are sufficiently
magnanimous, congratulate him upon the change,
VIILITAII.