The Sun.
London, England, 1855-02-16 00:00:00

AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS OF SCOTLAND.—The re-
port of the Highland Agricultural Society of Scotland
to the Board of Trade on the agricultural statistics of
Scotland for the year 1854 has been presented to both
houses of Parliament by command of her Majesty. The
report, dated from Edinburgh on the 234 ult., is most
favourable with regard to the general success of the in-
quiry, the Scotch farmers, as a body, having at once
recognised the importance and utility of the measure;
and afforded every facility in their power. The result of
the inquiry appears in certain tabular statements, from
which the folio wing general information has been extracted.
The gross total extent of land under cultivation in the vari-
ous counties of Scotland amounted to 12,616,3464 acres.
Of these 168,216 acres were under cultivation of wheat,
207.507 of barley, 932,994 of oats, 3,809 of rye, 18,118
of bere or bigg, 37,702 of beans, 6,1694 of peas, 13,4424
of vetches, 433,9151 of turnips, 143,0324 of potatoes,
1,9461 of mangold,-1,218 of carrots, 1,3954 of cabbage,
6,6704 of flax, 1,4294 of turnip seed, and 26,1281 acres
of bare fallow. The extent of land in grass was as fol.
lo ws, viz.:-1,427,7904 acres of grass in the rotation of
the farm, 1,207,1014 acres of permanent pasture, 69,256'
acres of irrigated meadows, and 6,530,8421 acres of
sheep walks. There were also 130,5834 acres of houses,
roads and fences, 830,7304 acres of waste, and 413,391
acres of woods. The live stock of Scotland included
156,595 horses, 292.365 milk cows, 438,334 other cattle,
205,172 calves, 3,360,289 ewes, gimmers, and ewe-hogs;
1,426,946 tuns, wethers, and wether hogs, and 163,683
swine. The grass produce of the 32 counties was as
follows, viz.:—Of wheat, 4,841,499 bushels; barley,
7,639,601 bushels; eats, 33,854,319 -bushels ; bore or
.bigg, 537,250 bushels ; beans, 1,080,921 bushels; tur-
nips, 6,372,189 tons; and potatoes, 523,383 tons. The
average produce, of wheat is from 22 to 36 bushels per
imperial acre.
PUBLIC PETITIONS.—The list issued on Wednesday
by the Select Committee of this House of Commons
on Public Petitions includes two against the Epis-
copal Estates Bill, from general meetings at New-
castle and Gateshead, and from the Dean and Chapter
of Canterbury ; four petitions against throwing open
the trade in licenses, signed by 380 persons ; 35 peti-
tions for a repeal of the duty on newspaper stamps,
signed by 12,486 persons ; 58 petitions for an altera-
tion of the mileage duty on carriages, signed by 58 per-
sons ; 2 petitions for the adoption of the decimal coin-
age, signed by 290 persons ; a petition from Mr. David
Urquhart, for inquiry into our foreign policy and our
diplomatic relations with Russia; 6 petitions for pro-
hibiting the use of grain in the manufacturing of intoxi-
cating drinks, signed by 1,640 persons; 5 petitions from
public meetings at Lewes, Bury, and Oldham, for pro-
hibiting the sale of such drinks; and 62 petitions in
favour of the Public Libraries and Museums Bill,
signed by 4,768 persons. The Licensed Victuallers of
Lincoln, in petitioning against the carrying out of the
resolutions of the select committee of the House of
Commons for throwing open the trade, state their con-
viction that from the late act for closing public-houses
on Sundays from half-past 2 to 6 p.m., and from 10 p.m.
to 4 a.m. .OR Monday morning, "great inconvenience
has arisen, not only to numerous excursionists in the
summer season, but to thousands of the middle and
working classes, who of necessity require refreshment
at a period during which, by the recent act, they
are prohibited from obtaining it." The inhabitants
of Port Glasgow, on the other hand, in - petition-
ing against the distillation of grain, contend that
it is an "enormous waste of the bounties of Provi-
dence," and " a wanton destruction of human food
for the production of materials wholly unnecessary
either as articles of diet or as beverages," in sup-
port of which opinions they cite the testimony of Sir B.
Brodie, Sir J. Clark, Dr. Neil Arnott, Dr. R. Bright,
Dr. Chambers, Dr. Forbes, Sir W. Burnett, Dr. Hol-
land, and 1,700 medical practitioners, to the effect that
" total and universal abstinence from alcoholic liquors
and intoxicating beverages of all sorts would greatly
contribute to the health, the prosperity, the morality,
and the happiness of the human race." The petitioners
also enunciates an opinion that, under the present oil--
cunistancee di` the country, the operations of brewing
and distilling aru " wholly unwarrantable, alike injuri-
ous to the people, and insulting to Providence"