The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-20 00:00:00

LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 20, 1852.

NI It. NIECII I'S REFLECTIONS UPON THE
OBJECTIONS TO HIS FARMING BALANCE
SHEET.

What a storm has burst upon my poor devoted
head! and how various its ingredients! Political rancour,
personal insult, friendly pity, serious censure, malicious
imputation! surely, I may say with Yorick, No crown
of lame ein ever Ht it

I do conk., that I am an agricultural sinner—that I have
deviated from *lw heaters track—that I pulled down rotten
buildings and substituted 9-inch walls and slated roofs—
that I have made teaks and erected steam power—that I
have well drained and subsoiled—that I have removed trees
and fences—that I have made good roads—that I have em-
ployed much labour—made much but wasted litti. manure
—that I have made no long fallows—that I have cropped
half my land every year with wheat—and that I havo
greatly and permanently increased its fertility.
All this is had enough, hut it waa inNnitely %TOM to let
the world know it, and, above all (wretch that I am!) to
express an opinion that such operations might possibly ulti-
mately prove remunerative. lam clearly paying the pe-
nalty of my indiscretion, and can never again hope to reco-
ver from my disgrace, and look practical agriculture full in
the face.

Even Punch mays I am " Dun-up," so I must hide iny-
self carefully in the deepest recesses of agricultural conso-
lation.

Amid the general gloom an occasional ray from philo-
sophical intelligence (thanks to Mr. Hill'. penny postage)
lights my dreary path and supports my faltering steps.
low delightful is this consolation from uncommon mils& 11
It compensates for whole volumes of vulgar abuse.
Well, let us veil the disagreeahles and proceed to husi•
nevi, for after all it is a simple matter of feet and figures,
quite independent of politics, passion, or prejudice. I am
not at all disappointed that even my showing an apparent
loss has not pleases' everybody, although I am quite sum
that had cireuniftancsat permitted (which they will some
day) a very large profit, much greater would hove been thel
discontent and disbelief. There is really a 111.111141 for agri-
cultural ruin just now.
Before I proceed to the question at issue, permit me to
correct a few of the erroneous assumptions and statements
that sometimes beset me. First, then, my land is all per-
fectly drained, and has not been re-drained; secondly, my
huddler have not been pulled down and rebuilt, although
I have added to them; thirdly (and I say it without vanity)
I ant not a bad manager of stock, for it is the opinion of my
immediate practical neighbours and labourer; that Ido
make as much meat out of a given quantity of food as most
people. I readily admit that our Essex stn. kis generally
hardly so well bred as in more favoured districts, excepting
always our pigs, which formed a material feature of my
stels. In my balance-sheet there was an apparent loss
of about 600/. upon 1.6001. of purchased food, whirls I said is
compensated for by the extra manure. " Oh," says one,
" hut you didn't value the manure from food purchased in
18:i0, which of course was as much as in IHdO." I reply, of
course it was not as much, nur half as much. In fact, it was
only during the last four years that I saw' the advantage of
feeding with purchased food, and I remember when first I
commenced farming being considerably abused and laughed
at about my " solitary pig," which was all the lave
stock the critic then happened to sec in the yards.
There is one important fact that some of my
objectors ani even my friends appear to have moat
unaccountably oyerlookeil, and it is that the re-valuation of
the land for a new rental was male on the 30th Oct., ISSO,
snit instead of being fixed at 125., the then value of similar
unimproved lands iii the neighbourhood, it was raised to
3Gs. Fir acre, thus, in fact, tripling the fee simple. Why
was it so raised? Not because it was poorer, but because
by buildings, drainage, and improvements, and by the
greatly increased fertility and improved condition of the
soil itself, it was more prolific, although it had been mopped
alternate years with wheat. The benefits of former manures
were partially the causes of that increased valuation, and
you will see that I have charged this greatly increased rent
in my accounts. "Oh," bat says another critic, ""because
you have expended 1001. in ISZiI in purchased food, of
course you will continua to do so, and thus lose 600!,
annually."
Now, a reasonable person would infer, that having
bought so an unusual a quantity, and thus brought my laud
into such a state of fertility, I should not require to buy
any more artificial fond or manures; and, in tact, it is my
present impression, that my outlay in food and manures will
seldom exceed ISO/. per annum, or 20.. per acre; and still
I shall be able to keep plenty of stock from the produce of
half my farm, it being nuw in a thriving condition, well
filled with manure.

It has been a.suractl, that now. is too great a loss on the
consumption of I,GOO/. purchased food, and that one•third
of the cost is too great a sum for the value of the manure.
Now, as this is the great question of agriculture, with every
deference I beg to state, that no animal will pay for feeding
on purchased food, if you leave out of view the value of the
manure.

Itmatters not whether it bo hay, turnips, corn, straw,
or oil-cake; and further, if you deduct attendsuce,lahour,
do , in connexion with the extra manure made, also allow
for casualties to stuck, one-third loss on the purcha,ed food
will be a fair and wife calculation.

You cannot buy turnips or mangold, for removal, under
I'2s. to t.,. per ton, and certainly the stock will not pay
more than 6.. or 7s. far thou. If you pay 30s. a ton fur
straw, or 3/. for hay, the animal., will not return above half
the cost. I am not %greed with the able and intelligent
editor of an excellent agricultural publication, that I have
overvalued my mangold at 61., and my Swedes at ua. 6,1.
per ton, consuming price.
If it takes 160 pounds of turnips to make ono
pound, net weight, of meat, a tun would make
11 pounds nt 5d 6s. 10d.
560 pounds of tine straw-chaff, consumed with the
ton of turnips, 90 poun Is of straw to make one
pound of meat, is six pound.: at sd.

Bi. 4d.
This 1 consider the value of the ton of root. with the
straw (minus attendance, &e.). Of course, if you used as
an auxiliary purchased food, the loss on the purchases" food
would absorb ouch of the value of your turnips. It is
well to have a proper understanding on this important
question, both as to the loss on the purchase of food, and of
the benefit derived in the manure, which are about equiva-
lent. The principle is the Mlle whether it be 11. or ',SOW.
I, therefore, insist on this truth, that all purchased food
(rape-cake, perhaps, excepted), must leave a lu.. or charge
fur the manure resulting from it. Still it is clearly shown
to be a cheaper way of restoring fertility than purchased
manure. A wise farmer, therefore, having his
land in a state of fertility, will endeavour to
maintain it by deep and ample cultivation, and by
the consumption of one-half its produce with the straw of
the other half. I predict the time to be coming when tho
bearded-floor system will be generally adopted for animals,
and straw will be deemed far too precious to be trampled
under foot—it will be used us food.

Before I conclude these remarks, let me entreat those
who have capital to consider the poor unemployed labourer
at this dull season of the year. I have forty extra men now
employed digging the land ten inches deep, and throwing
it up on ridges at 2d. per rod of 51 yards square, or If.
per acre. It is a labour test, combining, in my opinion,
charity with profit. It is true they can earn but about Is.
per day, but I offer it to all the old men and strong youths
who can get nothing else to do, and who must otherwise
starve, go into the detested union, or involve themselves in
debt. This operation is cheaper and infinitely better than
ploughing, and the eagerness with which it is availed of
impresses me with a very high sentiment of respect for the
industry ofour rural population, and their distaste for idle-
ness. Of course I supply them with steel spades and forks,
made in Birmingham, which are far superior Meese, effect,
and price, to the ordinary bungling utensils of most flori-
cultural localities. A great reform is required in this mat-
ter of tools.

In conclusion, I repeat, that my transaction has been,
on the whole, profitable ; and we may easily imagine what
would be the effect of tripling (by the application of skill
and capitol) the rentals and tee-simples of the poor lands of
this kingdom. It has been done in my case, and may in
others under the same circumstances. No doubt many
will be horrified at the idea of an overwhelming supply of
bread and beef, hut if their principle is worth anything,
the less we produce the happier we shall be. Ido not envy
such people their logic or their feelings. I shall go on
unflinchingly so long as it pleases (led to spare me, in what
I believe to be the path of agricultural profit and truth.
I. J. MECIII.
Tiptree Ilall, Kelvedon, Essex, Jan. 6, 1652.

Ftan AT BRIXTON. —This morning, shortly before
2 o'clock, information was received at the London engine-
stations of a serious fire having broken out in the New
Park-road, Brixton. Engines were immediately despatched I
to the scene, upon reaching which the firemen found the
premises of Messrs. Clarke and CO., choesemongers, situate
at No. 2 in the ahovo.named thoroughfare, in a blaze. The
, discovery was made by a gentleman's servant, who, in !
I passing the building, perceived smoke issuing through the
shutters of the shop. Ito 'fowled the inmates, all of whom,
with the exception of Mr. Clarke, managed to effect a re-
' treat, but not until they were nearly stifled with smoke.
Mr. Clarke, being confined to his bed by illness, and usable
to get up, some of his friends removed him in safety. The
fire continued to progress so fiercely that the police were
compelled to abandon all attempts to extinguish it, and
they, therefore, had the doors closed until the arrival of the ,
London firemen, by whom, at length, the flames were ex-
tinguished, but not until the whole of the valuable stuck in
trade was severely burnt.
TRANSATLANTIC TELEGRAPIL—Tho stretch of tele-
graph in the United States is now upwards of 12,000 miles.
THE ELECTRIC TELEGICAPIL—it is in contempla-
tion to extend the telegraphic communication from Holy-
head to Dublin by means of the submarine telegraph, and,
it is stated, that the same company which has executed the
communication between England and France has offered to
complete the electric intercourse with the sister island
within a very remonsWe period of time.

MI
BO
I.
M.
Is I

RAILWAYS.
TlllB DAY.

Two °Times.
The share market is very dull to-day, and under
the influence of the absence of business prices have
in many instances shown a drooping tendency.
'rho dt•cline y most apparent in Midlands,
Great Westerns, and South Easterns, but
Caledonians, London and North Western stock and
other descriptions, are also a shade lower than yes-
terday.
In French shares not much is doing, and the
tendency is towards lower prices.
imams AND *rocks UNGUANANTIND.

Itu'mats.

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