seed, according to his soil and situation. He further said that when the proper time of year came round, he should be pleased to see any of the gentlemen then present, and others who took an interest in barley-growing, at his house, and to accompany them in a tour of inspection of the crops growing in the neigh bourhood. Many eminent agriculturists present concurred in these remarks, and promised that they would willingly lend a helping hand to try and remedy the evil. A short time ago Mr. Woodward kindly sent me an invitation (which was to include any friends of mine who might wish to accompany me) which I was only too glad to accept; and accordingly, a small party of gentlemen met at Northway House, on Thursday, the 7th instant. The preliminary business of the day was the discussion of a splendid luncheon which Mr. and Mrs. Woodward had placed before us, and about the excellence of which there was no difference of opinion. This we concluded by drinking the usual loyal toasts, together with the "Health of Mr. and Mrs. Woodward and Family," and "Improvement in Barley Growing ;" and then we commenced our journey of inspection of the different barley-fields in the district. Our first halt was in a field at Bredon, where we found a very fair average crop for the season; we examined it carefully and found it composed of two or three different sorts of barley. We then journeyed on to Kemerton, where, in one field we found much the same state of things, with the crop above an average one; and in the same parish, a few fields further on, we examined another piece, with a good crop, in which not less than six or seven varieties were all growing together. From here we travelled ou to a field in the occupation of Mr. Henry Butt, who takes great interest in the growing of barley, and who is most anxious to get a true sort; as in other places, we made a very careful examination, and found his like the others, far from being of one sort. From here we went on to Bredon's Norton, to inspect a field of our host's. It was a piece of very fine "Chevalier" barley, and we found it to be the cleanest we had seen, but it was not free from admixture with another sort. One portion of this field was planted with "Potter's" barley; the difference was quite discernible even to the very drill, and although planted at the same time, it has given a much larger crop than the Chevalier and is about one week earlier. I must not omit to mention here, that Mr. Woodgard has had the Chevalier seed on his farms from seven to eight years, and it is very evident from this circumstance, and the crop being a thickly-sown one (the ears were short) that it is high time he changed it for some from a distant part, as all who are acquainted with barley growing are aware of the benefits resulting from a frequent change of seed. From this we wended our way to a field at Eckington, presumed to have been sold with old-fashioned "Red Rowed" barley, but such a mixture of sorts did the crop present, that it was impossible to tell which was predominant. We next moved on towards Bredon Hill, and, not far from Nafford Mill, inspected a field of Mr. Joseph Crump's of Woollershill. This was by far the best piece of barley we had seen, but late -too late, in fact, to enable us to distinguish the object we had in view. The seed of this barley Mr. Crump had from Hampshire some fourteen or fifteen years back, and has never lost sight of the sort, and very wisely he has acted, for I can speak from experience of this barley, having watched it carefully for several years, as being well adapted to our district. It has always maintained those qualities required by the maltster, ond has likewise proved satisfactory to the grower. We adjourned from the field to Mr. Crump's residence, where we were treated with generous hospitality, and met with a hearty welcome; after partaking of which we retraced our way to Eckington to inspect a field planted from the same kind of seed as Mr. Crump's. Here we were greatly disappointed; the crop was very bad indeed, but being a little earlier than that at Nafford, we had an opportunity of testing the sorts, and found, that in this respect, this piece of barley was better than most others, although more than one sort was present. Our expedition terminated for the day at Eckington; but I have since received three or four samples of barley from E. Holland, Esq., M.P., of Dumbleton, stating his regret at not being able to join the party, as he regards the mixed seed question as a most important one; and enclosing specimens from one of his own fields, the seed sown being professedly the "Golden Drop;" but, this, like all the others we had inspected, contains three or four different kinds. Not satisfied with our journey on Thursday, we started again, on Monday last, through another district, commencing at Stratford Bridge, on the Worcester Road. We there inspected a piece of barley, and found it a fair average crop for the season, but very much mixed. Going on to another field we found the same results; and in a small field close by a bad crop not forward enough for us to pick out the different sorts. The next field was one of Mr. Joseph Hall's of Ripple, showing a fair crop, from seed of "Potter's" barley, obtained by Mr. Hall this year from Hertfordshire, but far from being all of one sort, although much cleaner than anything we had seen that day. Not far from this we inspected a field belonging to another party; this was a bad crop, and all manner of sorts, as was the case with several large fields in this vicinity -in all instances two or three kinds, at least, mixed. Making our way to Mr. H. Lane's farm, we examined several of his fields, and found the crops very good indeed for the season; his principal growth is "Potter's," but like all the others, not clean. Going on towards Mr. Hail's residence, we examined several fields by the way, and found the same remarks applicable to all of them. The last field examined was one of Mr. Hall's own, near the new railway. Here were two sorts of from that he had obtained in Hertfordshire, the former was a barley in the same field, the one from his own seed, the other complete mixture, the latter (Potter's) the cleanest of any we This Mr. Hall is going to have picked over at once, ricked by itself, and put by for seed for next season. Having thus examined the state of the barley crop in this district (not hastily and inefficiently from the carriage of a railway train or the driving-box of a trap, but patiently and carefully, in company with gentlemen eminent for their experience and information), I think I may fairly claim the right to offer some advice upon a subject which I have made my study for some time past, and with which the nature of my business affords me peculiar opportunities of becoming acquainted. It is highly necessary that the attention of the English farmer should be directed, when growing barley, to produce that which is fit for the maltster, leaving the coarser growths, for grinding purposes, to be supplied by the foreigner. There need be no fear of this not proving remunerative, for, with the improvements which are being made in the art of brewing, the increased demand which is yearly arising for good malt liquors, and the vast consumption of the great breweries at Burton and elsewhere had seen. (demands which there is the greatest difficulty in supplying), it is certain that good malting barleys will always command a price which will amply repay the grower for the care and attention bestowed upon them. The operations need not be very troublesome, nor very expensive. The sorts I should recommend for cultivation are "Chevalier's," "Golden Melon," "Potter's," and "Thanet." All these abound in the district, but, as I have shown, are so intermingled together, or mixed with other sorts, which have various qualities and ripen at different times, that I have found it impossible, without careful picking, to obtain a single sample of any one kind pure and unmixed. I should suggest, therefore, to my agricultural friends, that they should send trustworthy persons into their barley fields to cut-off a sufficient number of ears of one sort, and that the best in the crop, to plant an acre the next season, and, when that season comes, let the crop from the picked seed be carefully gone over, and all the ears of the wrong sorts taken out. If this plan should be fairly carried out by each farmer, we should have the evil remedied; and a boon would be conferred, not only upon the agriculturist himself, but upon the maltster and upon the country at large. This operation, to be successful this season, should be commenced immediately, before the barley is thoroughly ripe, otherwise it will be too late to distinguish the different sorts. Mr. Woodward is having an acre of "Chevalier's and an acre of "Potter's" picked over; and I have myself put on some hands to pick over two or three acres; and I earnestly trust that other cultivators will also come to the rescue, so that we may be able unitedly to accomplish this great public good. I have taken advantage, Mr. Editor, of the great circulation of your paper, to place this matter at some length before the agriculturists of this district. I am conscious of having but feebly set forth a subject, the importance of which ought to command, and, I trust, will obtain general attention; and I shall be most happy to give the fullest advice and assistance in my power on it to any gentleman | much better than was anticipated, and, if it is left to get who may seek it at my hands. With regard to the general state of the crops in this neighbourhood, I may observe that the wheat crop is not an average. Beans are a good crop. Peas almost a failure. The root crop is far from being good; but, where the fly has not taken it, great progress has been made since the last rains, but it is still very backward. The barley crop is thoroughly ripe before cutting, so that the short ears, now GEORGE BLIZARD, THE STEAM PLOUGH TRIALS AT YORK, ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 5, 1862. REPORT TO THE COUNCIL OF THE YORKSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. The field set apart for the exhibition of steam ploughs | apparatus, or they may stand altogether out of the field, as In both cases the tools can be drawn and cultivators, though perfectly well fitted for showing the in Howard's case. machines at work, being large enough for three or four with wonderful effect through sun-baked clay which horses could not touch; and (supposing the land to be fit for horse hours' trial of all the different implements upon the ground, work) in both cases the mischief done by drawing a heavy and providing a furrow upwards of 300 yards in length, is tool across the land that wants loosening and cultivating is yet very ill adapted for the illustration of steam cultivation. reduced to a minimum; while for speed of work, in order It is for the most part an extremely light soil, and thus to the full use of the short times when clays are fit for cultivation, the advantages of steam power are in both cases presents none of that difficulty as to either the labour or beyond a question. the quality of horse cultivation which proves on stiffer land the advantage of applying steam power to the cultivator or the plough. And besides that, there extends across the field a narrow bed or band of stiff clay, which requires a double or triple power to cross it, so that the engines employed had to be worked throughout the furrow at much higher pressure than was needed, except at particular moments. A spectator had thus no sufficient opportunity given to him of estimating aright either the advantage or the cheapness of the cultivation of the land by steam. He had, however, ample opportunity of seeing how the machines of Fowler and of Howard were worked; and his own experience in cultivation elsewhere might enable him to judge of the greater advantage they must possess on the stiff soils of the country. It is indeed impossible to over-estimate the advantage of steam cultivation on stiff clay lands. They are dependent on proper cultivation even more than on the application of manures for their fertility, for they are already full of the food which plants require if only we could get at it. To this end they need to be broken up and exposed throughout their depth to the free access of air and weather. But there are comparatively few days during the year in our climate when this can be done by horse-power, for they are generally either baked by the sun, so that horses cannot pull the plough or cultivator through them, or they are so softened by the rain that the trampling and the sliding of the team and tool will do more to close the land than open it. We want a power which shall make the full use of the short intervals when such land is in proper condition for tillage operations, and which shall at the same time avoid the evil of poaching the land above and hardening it below, which in the horse cultivation of clays is too often seen. A four-horse team and plough weigh more than 40 cwt., and all this goes trampling and sliding from end to end of the field that is being ploughed, over every 10 or 12 inches of its width; and thus of course a floor is formed beneath the soil, hindering drainage, which is the greatest improvement of which clay lands are capable. We want a tool weighing not more than 4 or 5 cwt. for every foot in the width worked by it-carried on wheels so as not to close the surface over which it travels, and driven by a power which shall not press upon the land that is being worked. All this we have in the steam-drawn ploughs and culti vators that were seen at work yesterday. The ploughs employed weigh not more than 5 to 7 cwt. per farrow, the cultivators from 4 to 5 cwt. per foot of width, and both are carried on large wheels at wide intervals, thus traversing the field but once to every 4 or 6 feet width, The engines driving them either travel on the headland, as in Fowler's We saw the speed of steam cultivation well illustrated yesterday, and the superior quality of steam cultivation was also sufficiently well shown, for the patches of clay land in the field were ploughed and cultivated, and the lighter soil was thrown about, so as no horse power could have done it. The cost of the work cannot be illustrated by a few hours' trial; but there is now experience, both of Fowler's and Howard's apparatus, over years enough and acreage enough to prove that their better cultivation is generally attained at much less cost than is incurred in horse labour. I have walked over many thousands of acres cultivated by both, and having been allowed to inquire particularly into the history of steam cultivation over many scores of farms in fidence on this point. It will be found that taking every all parts of the country, I am able to speak with some conparticular of the expense into the account-wages, fuel, breakages, and tear and wear, and interest of capital-good ploughing may be done by steam for from 8s. to 10s. per acre, and one-way grubbing for from 5s. to 8s. per acre, which under horse labour would have cost 12s, to 188., and 6s. to 10s. respectively for much inferior work, There is, I believe, no one, unless he be interested in the success of one or other of the rival firms engaged in the manufacture of steam ploughs and cultivators, who will not greatly prefer thus confidently to report the unquestionable success of steam cultivation generally, rather than venture to compare the rival methods of it after a few the duty of drawing up such a comparison, I have now to hours' trial and inspection. Having, however, undertaken relate the performances of the machinery that was exhi bited at work. worth's single cylinder 8-horse power moveable threshing enOn one side of the field an ordinary Clayton and Shuttlegine drove by strap a moveable anchor furnished with clip drum, by which the draught rope extending from it around another moveable anchor on the farther headland was drawn to and fro, and with it Fowler's ordinary 4-furrow balance plough. The engine has a single 9-inch cylinder, with 12-inch stroke, and it was working at a pressure probably upwards of 70lbs., the gauge standing occasionally as high as 80lbs.; though I was assured it was indicating beyond the truthbeing out of order. The engine was making about 130 revolutions per minute during the trial. The ploughing, as I measured it, was barely five inches deep. The furrow was 880 *It is proper to remark that the disc indicator of steam pressure attached to this engine was out of order-the index pointing at about 52lbs. all day long! so that many spectators must have gone away with the impression that all the work done here was accomplished by about two-thirds of the force that was actually employed, yards long. The plough made close on 18 journeys along this furrow within the hour. losing 6 minutes on the headlands, and 13 minute during one stoppage. Exactly 1 acre (not half a perch more) was accomplished within the hour. The men employed were; engineman, two anchormen, one ploughman, and two porter lads, The rope was well carried on 12 rope porters, which stood rather less than 50 yards apart. The central plot, allotted to Messrs. Howard, was partly ploughed and partly cultivated. In their new three-furrow balance plough, the two frames carrying the ploughs balance one another, not, as in Fowler's machine, by being both part of one rigid framework, thus balancing over the axle of the pair of wheels which carries it, but by each hinging separately on to a central framework, which runs on three wheels; and each, as in its turn it drops into its work, lifts the other off the ground, the chain which connects the two passing over cams or eccentrics, thus giving to each, as its turn comes to work, an advantage in weight over the other. The plough is drawn to and fro by a Clayton and Shuttleworth's ordinary 10-horse power engine, with 7-inch double cylinders and 12-inch stroke. It was working up to 70lbs. pressure, and making from 125 to 130 revolutions per minute. It drives a double windlass, each barrel being geared into work alternately, while the other, which is then paying out the slack rope, drags upon a wooden stud, on which it drops when out of gear. The patent snatchblock arrangement, by which the slack drum is hindered from paying out rope any faster than its neighbour pulls it in, was also in operation, the advantage of it being that the slack rope bebind the plough is thus kept at sufficient tightness to hinder its dragging on the ground. This rope runs all round the part of the plot which remains unworked, and was carried on eight high rope porters on wheels and nine lower ones, and on eight wheeled lower porters along the furrow on which the implement is at work. These latter porters are furnished with an ingenious leverage, enabling the porter lads very easily to shift them and replace them. The men employed here were; engineman and windlassman, two anchormen to shift the pulleys at either end of the furrow as it encroached on the unworked part of the land, one ploughman and two rope porters. The work accomplished with the plough was as nearly as possible (not half a perch less) three roods within the hour; and I estimated it at fully 5 inches deep. The ground was here, upon the whole, more difficult than where Fowler's plough was working; the clay patch being wider here than there. The work was accomplished in fourteen journeys of the 3-furrow plough, along a furrow 314 yards long; seven minutes were lost upon the headlands, and one minute was lost during a stoppage. Howard's three-tined cultivator, furnished with teeth projecting both ways, so as to come into operation on both the forward and backward journey without turning at the land's end, was also tried here. At first it was set too deep for the power of the engine when on the clay; and as it is not provided with any means by which the man can at once release it in any degree from its work, when once it stops, there it must remain till the engine acquires power to pull it through. Thus, during the first half hour it made only four journeys, cultivating very deeply and thoroughly rather less than a quarter of an acre in that time. During the next half hour of its trial, when it was working at a less depth, it made seven journeys, accomplishing close on half an acre in the time, or at the rate of one acre per hour. The outer plot was set apart for Fowler's fourteen-horse power engine with double cylinder of 7 inches, with 12-inch stroke, working at about 75lbs. per inch, and making 150, often 180 revolutions per minute. The speed of its work was indeed such, that when on the lighter part of the field the furrow slices were thrown from the mouldboards or digging breasts fully thirty inches on one side, making quite a wave of earth, which was tossed off them in a thoroughly smashed condition-tossed, however, into heaps which would require rather a laborious levelling during the next tillage operation. There are here 1 engineman, 1 ploughman, 1 anchorman, and 2 porter-lads employed. The four-furrow balance plough, with the digging breasts, made about 9 journeys along a furrow 318 yards long-losing only 2 minutes on the headlands-during half an hour, ploughing nearly 6 inches deep at the rate of 1 acre 1 rood 5 perches per hour. The 7-tined grubber was then tried, only 6 tines, however, being in operation; thus accomplishing a width of about 5 feet at a time. It made 8 journeys in the half hour, doing very thorough work at the rate of about 1 acre 3 roods 24 perches per hour. The advantage of great speed was shown in the complete wreck and smash of the earth that was moved. It was, however, here also, though in a less degree, occasionally left too irregularly for easy treatment afterwards with the harrows; and a less speed would, on this account, have been better. Howard's culti vator, driven not nearly so fast, was found, on examination, to have moved as much earth per superficial yard; need, therefore, a crossing with the cultivator before the but it was merely moved, not tossed about, and it would ordinary harrows would take hold of it. Whereas Fowler's work would no doubt have been laid hold of by the harrow at once; though, as already said, sometimes too much laid in heaps. In order still farther to compare the work done by the several cultivators and ploughs upon the ground, it was resolved to attempt an estimate of the earth moved per by 4 feet 6 inches-enclosing, therefore, acre in the several cases. To this end a frame, 4 feet square yards of surface was provided; and all the earth within this frame, which was dropped here and there on the several plots, was carefully collected and weighed. The following tables represent the work accomplished by the several machines as thus ascertained: 1. Fowler's (so-called) 8-horse power engine with moveable anchor, carrying clip drum and 4-furrow balance plough. Labourers Employed.-Four men and two lads. Weight of Earth moved per square yard, ascertained in four instancesNo. Stones. lbs. 3. Fowler's (so-called) 14-horse power engine with 4furrow balance plough and digging breast→→ Labourers Employed.-Three men and two lads. Weight of earth moved per acre.. Weight of earth moved per hour by the so-called 14-horse power engine-3 men and 2 lads Stones. lbs. 31 3 34 0 35 3 33 2 1002 tons. 1280 tons. 4. Howard's 10-horse power engine, double windlass, and 3-tined cultivator. Labourers Employed.-Five men and 2 boys. Weight of Earth moved per yard, ascertained first when going deeply and doing an acre per hour, 33 stones, equal to 998 tons per acre, or about 500 tons per hour. In this case, however, as already stated, the stoppages were frequent, the power being insufficient. In the second case the weight of earth moved when the cultivator was going shallower and doing 1 acre per hour, was ascertained in three instances Labourers Employed.-Three men and two lads. The weight was here taken in so many instances because it was supposed that some mistake had been committed; the quantity of earth moved per acre by Fowler's cultivator certainly appearing to be very much greater than that moved by Howard, whereas repeated weighings proved it to be actually somewhat less. The fact was that it was thrown about so much more roughly in the former case, that it lay looser, and appeared to be deeper than it was. And one result of these weighings is to prove the fallacy of esti mates of work of this kind by mere measurement, however honestly performed. The quantity of earth moved per hour (per day) is of course very much greater in Fowler's case than in Howard's. The power employed was much greater-how much greater is probably inadequately represented by the nominal horse-power of the several engines. The reader has, however, before him, in the speed of the engines and the size of the cylinders and the pressure of the steam, the means of comparing pretty accurately the power employed; and, contrasting this with the work accomplished in the several instances, he will draw his own conclusions of the merit of the several machines at work. It is proper to add, that the results of a racing trial do not necessarily represent the ordinary experience of the farmer, and that the above is to be taken as absolutely true only of the case here described, where ploughs and cultivators were employed on a foul clover stubble in a light sandy field for an hour or two last Tuesday. It is also fair to add that the clayey part of the field extended more and more towards the latter side of the field here described, so that Fowler's 8-horse power engine worked on lighter land, upon the whole, than Howard's 10-horse power, and this latter on rather lighter land than Fowler's 14-horse power engine. We add the prices of the apparatus employed :1. Fowler's 3-furrow plough, 800 yards of rope, £ 5-tined grubber, and rope porters, two anchors 8-horse power engine 8. d. .. 295 0 0 235 00 Weight of earth moved per square yard ascertained in five 2. Fowler's 14-horse power engine, 4-furrow instances: SIR,-In my earnest desire to promote the well-doing and, well-being of our British landlords, knowing how much the national prosperity is connected therewith, I have repeatedly attempted, in your columns, to draw their attention to the evils and dangers that result from want of protection to the property farmers create, or rather are capable of creating, by improvement of the soil. This creatable property is the most important property of all, as, were it protected as other property is, the food-product of the British Isles would soon double the present amount, rendering us independent of foreign supply, and the rural population, in proportion to our city population, greatly augmented. We have before us the deplorable effects, in our manufacturing towns, of the stoppage of the cotton-wool supply. A like stoppage of our foreign-food supply is not improbable. A consequent famishing condition of the masses would follow a recurrence of the dreadful famine and loss of life which in 1846 and 1847 devastated Ireland, and extended to both islands. (I may state that about eight years before the Irish famine I pointed out it was impending, with a means of pre vention-unheeded.*) What then would be the position of our land aristocracy, who, by their unwise and mischievous system of land-occupancy, carried out to retain the farmer in degrading dependency little superior to a Russian serf, thus preventing home food-production, had brought on the terrible disaster? The chance is, the social structure would go to pieces, at least as far as regards landlord property, as it did in France. But, even though this did not take place-though the unhallowed structure held together-with what feeling of regret and remorse, if capable of such feeling, would the producers of the mischief regard their horrible child! Instead of attending to their high and onerous duties, at a period of unusual exigency-at a time when the other half of the British race, also from their "greatest national evil," are convulsed in intestine war, in mutual destruction-our reckless landlord-legislators continue this land tenure, than which nothing is more calculated to lead to anarchy and destruction. See my work, Emigration Fields. A. and C. Black, Edinburgh; Longman and Co., London. Every great evil, persisted in, sooner or later leads to this. The Austrian aristocracy, in seeing the sad pass to which, by their obstinate opposition to wholesome reform, they had brought themselves and their country, in their guilty dread exclaimed, like Richlieu, "apres nous le deluge!" so desperate in apprehension had things become. So irretrievably had their Serene Highnesses grounded, by persistence in a system of conservative rottenness and corruption, opposed to the progress of the organism-by not yielding to the recent change of circumstances in the position of civilized man. Equally unmindful of this, not profiting by the sad blunders of their American brethren or of the Austrians, our aristocracy seem quite unmoved, quite unconscious of the change in progress of knowledge and power in the masses, to which they must conform, or fall-even unconcerned in the sad destitution of our cotton-manufacturers, to whose industry, which has brought in such immense wealth to the country, they are indebted for the very high rents they have been obtaining for their land. The present condition of these generators of British wealth is passed over, in Parliament, with only a few unsatisfactory remarks; no one adverting to the prevention of the improvement of the British soil, and danger of famine by want of protection. Instead of attending to the signs and the wants of the times, instead of putting their shoulder to the wheel of necessary reform-especially to reform their own deplorable system of farmer-occupancy, preferring a despot-power over the farmer to a vast improvement, a vastly-extended foodproduction of the British soil, our landlord legislators seem, most of them, only intent upon the protection of the vermin upon their estates-upon converting our constabulary, the police of the country, into being their gamekeepers! What next? and what next? proprietors unwilling. So the increasing masses had to content themselves with such hovels as they could find materials to construct, of rough stones, clay, grass, sods, straw, and pieces of old timber, broken rails, &c., such as they could collect. The wretched hut, commenced in the morning with the assistance of the kind neighbours (kindness and charity are characteristic of the Irish Celt), was completed in the afternoon, and tenanted by the new couple in the evening. In this hovel a family soon arose, and with the pigs occupied the sole apartment. Here the pigs, to some extent, became humanized; but the humans did not improve. Under this system of nurture, we cannot be surprised that the present social order is a little out of sorts. In Ireland (the northern province excepted), existing evil is referrible to such debasing influences and still existing poverty-the natural consequence of long-continued alien-government, or, in other words, malgovernment, the impoverishment of an absentee proprietary, improvidence of race, ill-accommodated systems of religion, combined with insecurity to person and property. Owing to the absence of a great proportion of her landowners, there is a continued exhaustive drain of wealth from Ireland into England, and, unlike Scotland, Ireland, with the above exception of its northern province, does not possess a manufacturing industry to draw wealth back, so must export its agricultural produce to England though its own people starve. Is the disaffection of the Irish then at all wonderful? Are their breaches of the law and ribbon combination surprising? Loyalty and patience under their poverty and evictions would be a miracle. It will not do to untenant naturally rich and beautiful Ireland, making of her, with such capacities for a dense and happy population, merely a cattle grazing park, with a few cattle attendants. To become loyal, the Irish must be loyally treated -must have a provident, resident proprietary, doing a land tenant-made improvement, partially obtained in the northern portion, extended to all Ireland. With these, and only with these, can we expect a loyal Sister and Friend in the Sister Island. Led away by indignation at the treatment of Ireland, I have perhaps been a little too prolix in describing the mallegislation of the past; yet I will transgress a little farther in this fertile field. The exclusively British tax upon light and air, the window tax (a hole to admit air was charged as a window), only recently abolished, is another instance of landlord legislation utterly detestable, the contriver and proposer of which ought to have been doomed to confinement for life, in a dark dungeon. This tax, along with that upon glass, while it greatly interfered with the architectural elegance of our dwellings, was highly calculated to lower the vis vitæ, and interfere with the development physically as well as mentally. The advance or development in organic life, the onward progress of being, from primal time, appears to be connected with or the result of an increase of light upon the earth's surface, the stimulus of the direct rays of the Sun, owing to a gradual diminution or clearing away of cloud. This last again is naturally accounted for by less evaporation in consequence of diminished bottom heat, from a gradual refrigeration and thickening of the earth's crust, which a visible change in volcanic action since the period immediately succeeding the carboniferous era (ancient volcanic emissions being by longitudinal cracks, modern by raised up craters More than thirty years ago I pointed out in my work-lord's duties, and, above all, must have the tenant-right to "Naval Timber and Arboriculture"-the very mischievous results of landlord class legislation in imposing restrictive duties upon necessary articles of home as well as of foreign product, with the purpose of throwing the taxation upon the middle and working-classes, without regard to the vast national injury they were producing. Instance the tax upon tile and bricks, as well as the cent. per cent. duty upon foreign timber, imposed to make their own forest produce bring a monopoly price. This timber tax, in the greatest naval nation, deriving her ocean supremacy and her highest rank among the nations from her shipping, constructed of timber, her own home produce quite incapable of affording one-half the necessary supply, seemed almost an act of felo de se, and served greatly to extend the shipping of foreign countries and repress our own. Yet what cared our landlord legislators, so that it caused their own timber to sell at double and treble the natural price, and with other monopolies raised the landlord class revenue more than double all the taxes they themselves paid, while much of these taxes went to support their younger sons?* This, however, was not the sole extent of the evil. While much diminishing the house accommodation of the British people, and thus reducing the standard of health and physical power, its effects in Ireland in the same direction were incalculably greater. Ireland was very deficient in home timber; great portions of the country totally bare of it; and during the first portion of the present century, from the great increase of the poorer class, house accommodation became quite disproportioned to the population, with very little home timber for the construction of more, while foreign timber, raised by the excessive duty to from 3s. to 3s. 6d. per solid foot, was almost unattainable. The consequence was, that the few resident proprietors, middlemen and farmers, all naturally improvident, were unable to construct dwellings for the increased population-the absentee The providence of race 19 here exemplified in a remarkable manner. The Teuton, a variety of man, the most provident of all, and of which most of our landlord legislators consist, has been cultivated by natural selection in the inclement north to look out well for himself and family, whether by foul or fair means, as a necessary of existence. This has become instinctive in the race, and continued in our present aristocracy even under change of circumstances. We notice similar instances of retained instinct in many other varieties of organic life Of course this natural instinct in our landiord legislators renders it necessary for the other classes, if they have the remotest right to the name of British freemen, to meet this disposition in a similar spiritunless indeed they are to rank as white slaves. chimney-top escape valves), and the vast vegetable deposits of the carboniferous era itself not repeated to any great amount, go to prove. In this light tax we have landlord legislation combating with progressive nature. It has been actually found that uterine foetal development in dark apartments is often defective, producing deformities and monstrosities, as if the type of organic lite was changing, going back to a lower grade. At any rate this tax bas during the last two ages rendered our dwelling-houses dead unsightly walls outside, and dark, unsightly, and uncomfortable within, not only interfering with cleanliness and wholesomeness, but also throwing a shade of gloom and sullenness over the buman countenance, spirits, and temper of the inmates, the opposite of the amiable cheerfulness and sunny looks that should reign in our British homes. I have thus attempted to give a correct view of landlord legislation of the period about the commencement of the present century (within my own remembrance), from which I myself naturally concluded that our legislators of that time |