Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1858-06-18
PROGRESS OF ENGLISH AGRICUL-
TURE.
Robert Bakew ,Us INN,

Concluded.
Robert Bakewcll, of Dishley, was man of
genius in his way, for he laid down the prin-
cilples OF new art. lie founded the admira-
oie breed OF Leicester sheep, which still main
tains high reputation throughout EuroTe
and the United States of America; and al
though he failed in establishing his breed of
"long-horn cattle - and of "black cart-hors-
es," he taught others how to succeed. The
yeoman farmer had not yet removed to
'parlor," and Bakewell sat in his huge
chimney-corner of long kitchen hung round
with the dried joints of his finest oxen pre-
served as specimens Of proportion, 81 tall,
stout, broad-shouldered man, of brown-red
complexion, clad in brown loose coat and
scarlet waistcoat, leather breeches and top
DoOls. TliciO lIo cntuI taiIcu nuSSlan princes,
French and German Royal Dukes, British
Peers and Farmers, and sight-seers of every
degree. W hoover were his guests, thcy
were all obliged to conform to his rules.
" Breakfast at eight clock, dinner at one,
supper at nine. bed at eleven 0 clock at half
past ten, let who would be there, he knocked
out his last pipe There he talked on his
favorite subject, breeding, with earnest vet
playful enthusiasm - there, 4" utterly indif-
icrent to vulgar traditional prejudices," he
enumerated those axioms which must ever be
the cardinal rules of the improvers of live
stock. '' lie chose the animals of the form
and temperament which showed signs of pro-
ducing most fat and MUSCLE declaring that,
III an OK all was useless that was not beef
that he sought "by pairing the best spcci-
mems, to make the shoulders comparativelv
little, the headquarters large; to produce
body "truly circular, with as short legs as
possible, upon the plain principle that the
value lies in the barrel and not in the legs
and to secure a :" small head, small neck and
small bones" As few things escaped his
acute eye, he remarked that quick fattening
depended much upon amiability of dispose
ton, and he brought his bulls, by gentlcness,
to be as docle as dogs. In sheep his - object
was mutton, not wool, disregarding mere
size, vulgar test of merit. Dr. Parkinson
told Paley that Bakewcll had the power of
fattcning his sheep in whatever part of the
body he chose, directing it to shoulder, leg
or neck, as he thought proper, and this, con-
tnued Parkinson, - is the great problem of
his art. " lisa lie, sir" replied Paley,
"and that's the solution of it," The account
OF Parkinson was, indeed, II mistake, as to
the mode by which Bakcwcll produced his
fat stock, but it was no exaggeraton as to
the result.
The great Psychologist, John Hunter, con-
firmcd, in one essential particular, the observ-
ations of Bakewell, for he asserted that, in
the human subjocto no had examined he.found
small bones usual concomitant of corpu-
lencc. MIR. Give, the celebrated surgeon.
who paid much attention to the breeding Of
cattle, also came to the conclusion that
extremely large bones indicated defect in
the organs of nutrition. But " fne-boned -
animals were in fashion when Bakewell com
menced his career, and to the majority of
people, 1t seemed step backwards to prefer
well-made dwarfs to uncouth giants. One or
two enlightened persons having suggested, at
Ipswich Fair, that piece of plate should be
presented to Arthur Young for the public
service he had rendered in introducing the
Southdown sheep into Suffolk, a farmer de-
termned to put forth the counter proposition
4" that he was an enemy to the county, for
endeavoring to change the best breed in Eng
land tor race Of rats" The tenantry of that
period were strong in the self-confdence of
Ignorance. - To attempt to reason with such
fellows" said Young Of some of those he met
with in his tours, =" is absurdity," and he
longed to seize hedge-stake in order to
break it about their backs. Even if they
were persuaded to try some improvement to
which they were not previously inclined, they
reported that their experience" was unfa
vorable to it-their experience being, in real
ity, the foregone conclusion which was ante
cedent to experience, and which blinded them
to the results of experience itself The gra-
ziers who adhered to the old huge-skeletoned
race OF stock, were accustomed to give as the
reason for their preference, that beast could
not get fat unless there "was room to lay the
fat on" 1t would have been Just as rational
to argue that none but farmers of large stat
ure could have felt Youngs proposed appli-
cation OF the hedge-stake, because, in smaller
men, there would not be room to lay it on
Numbers of Short round, tub-like agricul-
turists, who uttered the current excuse for
breeding bones in preference to flesh, were
living representatives of the iallacy of their
assertion.
The spirit of the old agriculture and the
new are diametrically opposte-that of the
! old agriculture was to be stationary, that of
the new is to progress When Young made
his tour through the east of England, in III
! he Iemarks as popularity that the turnip
cabbage OF Mr.. Reynolds, which had spe-
cial superiority, was gradually adopted by
MS neighbors-" a circumstance" he adds,
that would not happen in many counties.
8 His works are, in fact, narrative of individ-
ual enterprise and general stupidity A Mr.
, Cooper who went into Dorsetshire from Nor
1 folk, could only get his turnips hoed by
o working himself year after year, with hi,
o laborers, and refusing TO be tired out by theii
s deliberate awkwardness for the purpose o
0 defeating his design. After he had continued
the practice for twenty years, and all tn,
Q surrounding farmers had witnessed the vas
! benefits to be derived from it, not single on,
h OF them had begun to initiate him.
!, Mr.. Cooper, with two horses abreast and N
% driver, ploughed an acre Of land where hi
nelgh hbOrs. with tllI L.Is.s aud q .L.A-l