• The affaffination of Cæfar, says him his life-nay, 'tis said, even his Mrs. Griffith, is a fact famous in first life *; and had the lives of fehiftory; but, notwithstanding the he- veral of his friends saved alfo at his roic opinion which the world has been intercession. He had ever lived with taught to conceive of it, I confess that I have reputed its fame as a matter of notoriety rather than of ap. plause. One him in the greatest intimacy, and on After observing, that Brutus was the only one of the conspirators that had engaged in the plot folely from motives of principle, our fair commentator thus proceeds: Though the principle might be ever so right in itself, the action was certainly wrong in him. There are duties involved in duties, which may, sometimes, counteract each other, and thereby render - what may be the virtue of one person the vice of another. Many situations and cafes of this kind may be proposed; but I shall not launch beyond my fubject. Brutus had many and great obligations to Cæfar. He owed tion or esteem.' • Stoical virtues are not always moral ones. These metaphyfical braveries (for I was wrong in calling them virtues) which exceed the feelings of humanity, have never been able to inspire my mind with either admira * Cæfar had an amour with Servilia, the mother of Brutus, before his birth. MINUTES of AGRICULTURE, from the REPORTS of the Agricultural Board: Continued from Page 22. SUFFOLK. By Mr. ARTHUR YOUNG, Of the principal Improvements yet wanting. As well cultivated as Suffolk undoubtedly is, yet there are feveral points in which the management of her farmers might receive great and essential improvement. These principally confift in, 1. Irrigation. 2. Burning. 3. In the general management of grass land. 4. In fheep walks. r. In rejecting fallows. 6. In live flock. 1. Irrigation. Of all the improvements wanting in this county, there is not one so obvious, and of fuch importance, as watering meadows. The rivers, streams and brooks, in every part, are numerous; few coun tries are better watered with small streams; yet there is not a well-watered meadow in the county: at least, not one to my knowledge. Some in dividuals have been so struck with the benefit of partial flooding by accident, that they have thrown water over meadows; but never have done it in a manner to be highly beneficial, and usually without any attention to take it off again. But of all improvements, this is perhaps the most unquestionable and important. To view large tracts of poor and unproductive arable land, below those levels in which water might be made to flow, is a spectacle that wounds every feeling of a man that looks about him with the eye of an irrigator; and yet this horrid fight is to be found almost in every parish of the county, at least in the vicinity of every stream, and in lands kept in the hands of gentlemen who call themselves farmers, and are really fond of husbandry. It would be idle to enter at large into the means of ef. fecting this improvement. It is understood and practised, in great pers fection, in many of our counties, and men to perform the operation, are easy to be hai. 2. Burning. The application of fire is as useful and effective to land as that of water. There are in Suffolk, many thousands of acres of poor, wet, cold, hungry pastures, and neglected meadows, over-run and filled with all forts of rubbish, and abounding with too few good plants to render their improvement. easy without breaking up: all fuch should be pared and burnt; not to keep under the plough to be exhaufted and ruined, which is infallible, and the land left in a worse state, beyond all comparison than it was before; but to be laid immediately to grass, that is, as foon as the course of husbandry neceffary will admit. This ought to be without variation, under any pretence whatever, in this course of crops. 1. Pare and burn for turnips, which fed on the land by sheep. 2. Oats; and with-these oats the grass feeds fown. The oats and the turnips, would more than pay all the expence of a previous hollow draining, should that be necessary, of the paring and burning, and every other charge; and the change, from a very bad pasture to a very fine one, would all be neat profit. The tenant would be greatly benefited, and the landlord would find his eftate im proved, if let, as farms ought to be let, with an abfolute exclusion of felling a lock of hay under any pretence whatever.. The dry rough sheep walks covered with ling, furze, broom, &c. should alfo be boken up in the fame manner; but universally to be laid down again with the graffes fuitable to the foil, and to theep. On weak thin ftapled land, two crops of corn, after paring and burning, would be pernicious. Perbaps they might be well laid down without a fingle one, which would be fo much the better.... 3. Grafs land. The arable lands of the county are so much better maaged than the grafs, that an improvement in the latter, would be attended with great private and national advan tage. Our fifter county of Norfolk, is, if possible, yet worse in this respect. Clearing away of bushes, and other rubbish, is not commonly done; mole and ant hills rarely cut; drains made only in arable fields; and as to manuring, I have very feldom seen any laid upon grass land rented. The reason of this general neglect refults not from inattention, but an erroneous calculation. In the farmer's estimate, and he is right, there will be a con fiderable benefit remaining to the landlord at the end of a leafe, from all improvements of grass land; whereas upon arable there may not be one penny left from the expenditure of a pound. This is true, but the conclusion, that what the landlord gains is at the expence of the tenant, is a very great error; both may gain greatly, but not at the expence of each other. One reason why improvements of grass are so rarely seen, and also why most tenants would, if their landlords allowed it, plough up every acre of grass on their farms, refults, in fome measure, from thein making no fair experiments of the value, which is not to be done in ordinary rough land, except by theep only. If they would lock into such a field a certain lot of sheep, suppose two, two and a half, or three to an acre, and keep them there the whole year, registering the hay given in deep snows, and on no account folding those sheep on other lands, (as in that case no improvement results from theep-feeding) they would find the return of such lands not contemptible; and if they continued the trial for a few years, they would fee such lands constantly improving: so that the more sheep were kept, the more might be kept in future. These are experiments very easily made with a quiet breed, and there are not many more important ones. 4. Sheep walks. I have already mentioned the pront of paring and burning these : at present I would only observe, that many farmers think those 1 desart wastes necessary for their flocks, which is a most egregious error. They are undoubtedly very useful; and, if they were converted to corn, the number of sheep kept upon a farm would decline; but good grass adapted to the foil would be abundantly more productive for the flock. Whoever has viewed the immenfe wastes that fill almost the whole country from Newmarket to Thetford, and to Gastropgate, and which are found between Woodbridge and Orford, and thence, one way, to Saxmundham, not to mention the numerous heaths that are scattered every where, must be convinced, that their improvement for grass, would enable the county to carry many thousands of sheep more than it does at present. 5. Fallows. There is no question at all of the merit of fallowing, when compared with bad courses of crops. If the husbandry is not correct in this refpect, the fallowrist will certainly be a much better farmer than his neighbours: but there are courses, which will clean the foulest land as well as any fummer-fallow, by means of plants, which admit all the tillage of a fummer-fallow. Cabbages are not planted before June or July: winter tares admit three months tillage, if tillage is wanted. Beans well cultivated will preserve land clean, which has been cleaned by cabbages. And, in any cafe, two fucceffive hoeing-crops are effective in giving positive cleanness. These observations are not theory; they are practice; and it is high time that mankind should be well perfuaded, that the right quantity of cattle and sheep cannot be kept on a farm, if the fallows of the old system are not made to contribute to their support. 6. Live stock. The cows and horses of the county, are already so good, that the only attention they want, is that of felection for the purpose of breeding in and in. A skilful attentive occupier of a large farm, who carries these breeds to the perfection they admit of, would find his account. greatly in it, and raise the prices of these stocks high enough to excite the competition, without which nothing can be perfected. But, in case of sheep, the point is very different. With them, a foreign cross is necessary; as much so for the profit of the farmer as for the interest of the nation. The Norfolk breed certainly have merit; but merit, purchased at the expence of keeping only half a fair stock, becomes something very different from merit. The South Down and Bakewell's breed are introduced, and will without doubt make their way. Waste Lands. If there is one object more important than another in the examination of the agriculture of a province, with a view to the improvements that are practicable in it, it certainly is this of wastes. No perfon, who has seriously reflected on the state of the foil of England, but must be well convinced that there want few instigations to cultivate wastes, but the power to do it, without those very expensive applications to parliament, which are'at, present neceffary even for the smallest objects. If the board of agriculture be able to accomplish this defideratum, it will merit greatly; and the national interests find themselves advanced in a degree which no other event whatever could secure. The magnitude and importance of this design cannot be understood, without discovering the extent of those wastes, which will, without doubt, be effected by means of the surveys going on in every part of the kingdom. I have calculated from much information, of different kinds; and from comparing and combining various data, conclude that there are in Suffolk, wastes to the amount of nearly, perhaps quite one hundred thousand acres, or one eighth part of the whole; comprehended under the terms sheep-walk, common, warren, &c. It is, however, to be noted, that none of these are, strictly speaking, absolutely waste, if by that term is understood land yielding nothing: I include all lands uncultivated, which would admit of a very great improve- whole length, and one at each end, ment, not always profitably to the tenant, who may, on a small capital, make a great interest per cent. by a Awarren, for instance, but in every cafe to the public. Commons fed bare, may feem to yield a confiderable produce, but there is often a great deception in it; the cattle and theep should be fallowed through the winter, and whenever it is found there is no adequate winter provifion, so often the cafe with poor men's stock, there are large deductions to be made from the apparent produce of the summer. of the same width, where the cattle go in and out: latterly they have introduced an open wooden trellis, or grating, madestrong, which is placed on blocks five or fix inches thick, raising the grating above the pavement. The intention of this trellis is to keep the animals from the paves ment, that they may not only lie dry, but also that they may with greater facility be kept clean; which, as often as they want to do, the foil is drawn out from under the grating, by means of a broad hoe, and likewife that their fees, naturally tender, may be kept from being bruised by the hardness of the pavement, for whenBy Messrs. JAMES and MALCOLM. ever that happens, they do not thrive. Oxen. This article of stock would For every hundred of oxen, two men not have made any figure in this re- are kept, whose business it is to feed port, but for the spirited efforts of a and to clean them. The allowance few gentlemen. We shall therefore is one bushel of grains put into a tribeg leave to introduce to the notice of angular trough filled with wash, to SURRY, the board, a mode of fattening them, which has lately been adopted by messrs. Hodgson, and co. malt distil lers, at Battersea, and by William Adam, esq. of Mount Nod farm, near Streatham, under the direction of meifrs. Nunns. each, and one truss of hay per diem to every fifteen: to which is added, sometimes, fome of the meal dust that flies from the malt in grinding. Their time of buying them in is about September, at which period they are generally brought to Kingston, and other west country fairs. The number which they there buy is from four to five hundred, and for these they pay an average price of about eight pounds per head. The fort they prefer most, are the largest of the Welth and Herefordshire breed, which arrive when fattened to a middle fize. The Scotch they think too small, and the Yorkshire too large. After keeping them from fourteen to fixteen months, they A few years ago, the former of these gentlemen purchased the horizontal mill, which fome years fince was erected near Battersea-bridge, for the purpose of grinding colours, but which they have converted into a corn mill, by altering the machinery, and have thereby rendered it the most complete thing in the kingdom. Nearly adjoining to this mill they have erected a very large and extensive distillery, and, almost circumfcribing their pre- are in general sufficiently fattened for mises, a range of houses have been fale, and are fold to the carcafebuilt, of about 600 feet in length, butchers, at an average of fixteen by thirty-two in width, for the oxen: these houses are divided longitudinally into separate stalls for each beast, by a rail or bar placed between them, three feet fix inches asunder.-The oxen are placed in two rows, standing, with their heads opposite each other, and in the middle between the two rows is a passage fix feet wide, the pounds per head. Mr. Hodgson's communications, as well in this as in other points, were at once liberal, friendly, and gentlemanly. The buildings which Mr. Adam has erected for the fame purpose, are upon a very different construction, and exhibit a great undertaking well designed. There is an engine fixed up, M which, from the multitude of its operations, and the simplicity of its mechanical powers, is beyond comprehenfion. We shall therefore only relate what it effects. It raises water from out of a well one hundred and seventy feet deep, into a large reservoir, which water is afterward conveyed along pipes through the whole of the buildings, by the side of the troughs; and by means of brass cocks, the water is let into any or all of them in a few minutes. The same machine cuts chaff, splits pease and beans, threshes wheat and other grain, which it cleans also; it likewise grinds linfeed, by means of two millstones of very large dimensions, which, by a very curious contrivance, are fixed on a frame, and by their revolutions grind the feed which is used for feeding the cattle instead of oil cake. This engine is worked by four horses. Adjoining to this machine is a range of present height. The profit which the buildings, conveniently constructed, diftillers thought themselves in fairness and sufficiently capacious to feed fix and equity to be entitled to, being hundred bullocks, and which at this thus reduced, an expedient was hit time is nearly full; they are of differ- upon for converting that refuse or ent fizes, and from different parts of wash into a food for fastening hogs. merit, it is to be hoped he will be amply repaid. Hogs. In addition to the stock of the county before described, we must not lose fight of a fource of wealth of which the board, perhaps, has litt'e or no conception: it is in the article of hogs, which, considered as a point of national economy, is of very great importance to this country. Formerly, that refuse, which now affords fome part of the food for thousands, and they in their turn giving food to thoufands more, was let off into the Thames, or into other places proper to receive it. But as the exigencies of the state required, from time to time, supplies of money, the then government found it expedient to draw a revenue from that spirit, which the diftiller with much ingenuity extract from malt, &c. and this duty has at various times been advanced to its The number which in this county alone are annually fattened, shews to what an extent it is carried, and, as a branch of commerce, is of confiderable value: it is, besides, of material benefit to those counties from whence they draw their supplies: and inasmuch as it makes a part of agricultural economy, deserves every encouragement that the kingdom; are regularly fed with one pound of linseed, one bushel of grain, one bushel of chaff, and a quantity of wash from the distilleries, all mixed together, and one truss of hay between eight or ten. This is their daily food all the year round. The price when bought in, or fold out, we could not learn; but certain it is, that according to the species of can be given to it. There are alfo the beafts, there are some of the finest great numbers fed in the starch yards, and fattest we ever saw. They also which we shall diftinguith from those feed hogs; but not having yet made of the distilleries; but the comparative any great preparation for them, their number is but few. difference in quality we cannot afcertain wit sufficient accuracy to ground our report upon. We shall therefore only say, that both have no small degree of merit for conducing so much to the supply of the country, as well 1 On this farm, this gentleman has introduced, upon a pretty large scale, the drill husbandry, having at present drilled about one hundred acres of wheat. This, together with draining as to the welfare of individuals. a strong and wet clayey ground, will At messrs. Johnson's distillery, at open a confiderable field for improve- Vauxhall, no fewer than three thou ment: the whole is conducted with sand hogs are annually fattened; they great judgment, without confidering are bought in at fifteen months old, expence. Poffeffing therefore so much or thereabouts, at an average price of |