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wholly uninclosed, consisting of marshy grounds," (1) "intermixed with rocks and mountains, and in the west, with extensive tracts of waste land, almost plains. This third and last part is almost wholly dutchy land."

P. 58. "I am persuaded that there is, at the very lowest calculation, 100,000 acres of waste lands in this county, which may be valued at seven shillings and six-pence per acre, which would produce an annual rent of 37,500. per annum, and leave a sufficiency of turbary for fuel, if properly regulated."

FARMS.-P. 31. "Farms are in general very small. la the eastern and more fertile parts, rents, in general, do not exceed thirty or forty pounds per annum; the greater part not above ten or fifteen pounds per annum; some few are as high as 1007. and from that to 2002. per annum. All the farms are generally on leases of lives. In the western and mining districts they are very small indeed, chiefly cottage holdings.'

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OCCUPIERS.-P. 13. "Cornwall possesses the happy advantage of a numerous and public spirited body of gentlemen, who are alive to the improvement of their native county. The people of Cornwall also possess a great degree of perspicacity and acumen; they attend to new improvements: if they find them successful, they are not slow in imitation."

PLAN OF MANAGEMENT.-P. 33. "The management of the land is uniform; here and there an exception will be found. The whole is convertible, sometimes into arable, and sometimes pasture. Arable is sown with wheat, barley, or oats, as long as it will bear any ; and then grass for eight or ten years, until the land is recovered, and capable again of bearing corn."

"The best farmers take only one crop of barley after wheat, and lay down with grass seeds, which they dress with dung and earth, and after four years break up again; but in general, with all those lands that are at a distance from their farm-yards, they pursue the same negligent mode above described. They sow them with oats, or barley, as often as they think it will pay the expence of the tillage; and very often, when they have little more than the seed returned, which so impoverishes the land that it cannot be broke up again to any advantage, but remains in furze and brambles for twenty-five or thirty years, reducing it to a dry gritty substance, little more than a caput mortuum.

"While truth demands that I must state this process as the general routine of managing the land in the county of Cornwall, it is also but justice to state, that there are many who pursue a liberal and enlightened course of husbandry,

and

and instead of running out the land in the mode I have described, perceive the advantages arising from supplying it with proper manure, and introducing green crops between the crops of grain."

WORKING ANIMALS.-P. 34. "Horses and oxen are generally both used for the plough, throughout this county as well as Devon. The country very hilly, not admitting the use of carts, the horses are wanted for some carriage or another, and are almost always under the pack-saddle. The plough team is sometimes four oxen, and sometimes only two, with always one or two horses as leaders before the oxen, with a man or boy to drive them."

P. 46. "We have already mentioned that carts are not made use of in this county. Every thing is carried on the pack-saddle," (no) "for which both horses and mules are used. Mules have lately come greatly into use, particularly for carrying and recarrying the produce and supplies of the mines; for which great numbers are wanted, and they sell at a very high price. Sixteen, eighteen, and twenty guineas are given for a mule. The common horses are small, but very hardy, and well adapted to a hilly county."

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MANURE.-P. 36. "In the eastern part of Cornwall, near the sea, and the rivers, they bring lime-stone from Plymouth, which they burn with culm from Wales, and use each as a preparation for wheat. Afterwards the best farmers use a compost of sea sand, pilchard salt, dung, and the rotten slaty earth, as a preparation for turnips; afterwards lay down with barley, for grass seeds. They use from eighty to one hundred bushels of lime, and from one hundred and fifty to two hundred horse seams of compost.

"The manure produced from the bruised and decayed pilchards, and the Bay salt already used in curing the pilchards, and declared by the salt-officers unfit for farther use, is purchased by the farmers, and consisting of oil, salt, and putrified fish, is a most excellent dressing for land. It is purchased from eight-pence to one shilling the bushel, consisting of two Winchesters, or sixteen gallons.

"This is the best of all manures, and the cheapest, as it goes farther than any other; is lighter in carriage, and lasts very long. It is mixed like lime, with earth sand, in various proportions, as it is easy or difficult to be procured, from forty to sixty Winchesters, to one hundred and fifty or two hundred seams of sand and earth; it is left to ferment and incorporate with the sand and earth, and the whole frequently turned over and mixed, before it is laid on the land.

"After

"After a dressing of this kind for barley, on some lands near the Lizard I have been assured that ninety bushels of barley, Winchester measure, have been produced on an acre, statute measure; and that it is not uncommon to have from seventy to eighty bushels; seventy-five bushels they consider as a middling crop. Such a surprising fertility may, perhaps, hardly be credited, but it is supported by undoubted authority."

ARABLE PROCESS.-P. 33. "The process they pursue is, in general, by paring and burning the surface of the ground. The land is then dressed with the ashes, and a compost of sea sand, earth, and the scrapings of lanes, in which they throw straw to collect the soil and moisture: to this they add the dung which they save in the farm yard, or which they purchase from the adjacent towns. Their chief de pendence is on the sea sand."-Rather say the broken shells of the sea beach.

CATTLE.-P. 45. "Their cattle are chiefly of the North of Devon kind. Although the breed is not kept up in its greatest perfection, yet they are very much in request, and are sold off in great numbers for fattening. Their milch cows are therefore kept chiefly for the sake of rearing young stock, the dairy being very little attended to."

P. 46. "They have a small sort of cattle on the commons, and in many other parts, which they call the Cornish breed, which, when fat, do not exceed five or six hundred weight."

SHEEP.-P. 46. "The common sheep in Cornwall are the same as the neat breed of Devonshire." (!) "They have a small species of this kind of sheep in Gwithian, which have very small tails, and a very well formed animal, and small boned."

"A GENERAL

"GENERAL VIEW

OF THE

AGRICULTURE

OF THE

COUNTY OF CORNWALL.

DRAWN UP FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF

THE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

AND INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT.

By G. B. WORGAN.

1815."*

THIS REFORT has been brought out to public view,

under peculiar circumstances. Mr. Worgan's manuscript having been deemed unsatisfactory, the Board appointed three men of" long experience in practical agriculturenatives and inhabitants of Cornwall",to revise it. The subjoined extract forms the close of an address to the Board, by the revisers; giving a plain and appropriate Report of the trust reposed in them.

P. viii. "We beg to add, that we believe Mr. Worgan to have been very diligent in collecting materials for his Work. It happened however unfortunately, that he was obliged to perform the greater part of his Survey during winter, by which he not only endured much hardship, but was also forced to take many things upon trust, of which at a more favourable season, he might have been an eye witness. We have taken great liberties with his manuscript, and generally suppressed what was deemed redundant; but after

The Survey was taken in 1807-8: a prefix to the Report, by Mr. Worgan, is dated, "Bodmin, November, 1808"; and a revision of it, in May 1810. In what year the book was printed and published is doubtlessly known to its printer and publisher. The title page of the copy which I received, in March 1816, is evidently younger than the rest of the book.

† Amateurs of a superior class, probably, rather than professional

men.

after considerable erasements, alterations, and additions, a large portion of the original is preserved; and to obviate the inconvenience of notes and references, we have in some measure identified ourselves with Mr. Worgan in the body of the Work; taking care that wherever we have made observations, or stated facts, for which we alone are answerable, the initials of our respective names are subjoined. We are, Gentlemen, with much respect,

Your obedient humble Servants,

Cornwall, May 1, 1810."

ROBERT WALKER.

JEREMIAH TRIST.

CHARLES VINICOMBE PENROSE.

Mr. WORGAN'S QUALIFICATIONS are not so fully set forth, as are those of his judges. By incidental expressions, it appears that Mr. W. was, or recently had been at the time of his Survey, an occupier in the County. He rarely, however, brings his own practice, or his own opinions, forward; -appearing to be most desirous to give a faithful account of the best practice of the County; which is, I conceive, the true principle and business of Report.

His MODE of COLLECTING INFORMATION appears to have been, principally, by a pedestrian tour through the County; -the fatigues and privations attending which are not passed unnoticed. To his own observations he has fortunately been able to add much valuable intelligence,liberally furnished by professional men of the higher class, and well informed amateurs.

Fraser's original Report is not once named!

The number of pages, of the body of the book, one hundred and eightyeight, with an index.

The number of engravings fifteen, together with some wooden-cut diagram. The plates are neatly done; and are doubtlessly intended, in those picture-fancying times, "to sell the book",-by raising its price from five (its letterpress value) to twelve shillings.

A map of soils; properly distinguished by the graver; not by colors.

NATURAL ECONOMY.

EXTENT.

XTENT.-See the original Report.

SURFACE.-P. 5. "The whole county of Cornwall, with a very few exceptions, is remarkable for inequality of surface; ascents and descents follow in rapid succession. Some

of

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