Having done more than justice to pasturage, I come now in like manner to lay before you the expenses and profits of the same thirty-six acres of strong and rich ground under tillage for five years. Your lands would very well bear to be ploughed at the rate of once in two years. In the county of Down, where the soil is generally but shallow and poor, the farmer usually ploughs two thirds of his land. Surely then such land as yours may very well bear to be ploughed at the rate of one half. But supposing one third only to be kept always under tillage, and the course of tillage to run for five years, the cultivated third will produce as follows. Expenses for five years in the tillage of twelve acres Irish measure of good and rich ground in the North. First year for a crop of wheat. For three ploughings and two harrowings, at 15s. per acre 91. Or if a fourth ploughing is necessary 31. more to be added. For seed wheat twelve barrels at 15s. per barrel 91. For reaping 31. In all Third year for a crop of oats. For ploughing and harrowing 41. 16s. For seed oats twenty-seven barrels at 4s. 8d. per barrel 61. 6s. For reaping 21. 8s. In all Fourth year for ditto Fifth year for a crop of flax. £. s. d. 24 00 For two ploughings and harrowing 71. 4s. Total of expenses 24 4 0 75 4 0 Profits arising from the above twelve acres in five years under tillage. Second year a crop of wheat. For ninety-six barrels of wheat at 15s. per barrel 72 0 0 Third year a crop of oats. For two hundred and fifty-two barrels at 4s. 8d. per barrel Fourth year ditto Fifth year a crop of flax. For flax sold on the foot at 77. 10s. per acre 279 12 0 75 4 0 204 8 0 18 19 2 The remaining profits of tillage will be. Farther if the tithe of the grain be deducted, viz. Thus it appears, sir, that the twelve acres in tillage will yield within 31. 19s. 1d. as much as the whole thirty-six acres under pasturage, so that all the profits arising out of the twenty-four acres under pasturage is clear gains to the husbandman over and above what the drover could possibly make out of the whole thirty-six acres. You are to note here, sir, that I suppose all the labour of men and horses, required in the above scheme of tillage, to be hired in, and have charged it against the husbandman's profits accordingly. It is usually objected to those who argue for tillage, by the gentle menwhose estates are grazed, that though a much greater produce may be raised out of the ground by tillage than by grazing, yet as the tillage of even a small farm cannot be carried on without a family, the maintenance of such family will run away with the overplus profit, and so the landlord will be never the richer. In answer to this I will now shew, sir, that the maintenance of the family is not taken out of the produce in tillage, but is obtained another way. The maintenance of a farmer's family consisting of six persons, four of whom are able to work during one year. And first for their food. To forty bushels of shelling, each bushel of which will yield forty-five pounds in clean meal, and equal to five pounds in seeds for flummery. which altogether would bake into sixty pounds of bread. This at 3s. per bushel amounts to To fifty-two bushels of potatoes at 1s. per bushel 600 2 12 0 To six quarts a-day of buttermilk or skim milk at a penny each day To one hundred of skim-milk cheese To one hundred of butter and do. of salt To an ordinary carcass of beef To firing and hearth-money To two roods of ground, digging, sowing, planting, weeding, and seeds, for a garden 0 12 0 14 17 5 Note here, that good part of the above is yearly saved by pottage made of whey, by lenten pottage, by slink, or unthriving calves, by sheep likely to rot, by fowl and pigs fed with whey and scattered corn. Their clothing is as follows. To seventeen half yards of country cloth or frize at 1s. per yard, which will make suits for two men, to trimming and making To eight pair of brogues, and four pair of stock- Total for food and clothing People in high life may think the above diet too poor or scanty; yet to such people as I have been speaking of it is a sort of luxury. That it is however sufficient appears by this, that every where in the north the journeymen weavers are dieted at 18, 20, or 21 pence per week, as. is well known; and those who diet them would not do it unless they gained by it. To make it farther appear how sufficient the above al lowance in diet is, let it be considered that a farmer, who has eight cows gains at the calving of every cow eight milkings of beestings, which boiled will make near a month's food in the year for the family. This with eggs, the produce of the garden, &c. will make up a plenty which such people seldom allow themselves. And as to the allowance for clothes, it will likewise appear sufficient from this, that servants are clothed decently on seven or eight shillings wages per quarter, and often save so much as to keep themselves some months out of service. On the other side, let us now see how the farmer can enjoy such a plenty without living on the crop or at the landlord's expense. It is known that flax of our own produce sells at about a groat a pound, and foreign flax at about sixpence. A woman will spin about a dozen of three dozen yarn in the day. The two women then will spin two dozens in the day, which will sell for 11 pence, out of which if we take 3 pence for the flax, the remaining 8 pence make 4 shillings per week which in the year is We may allow the two men, who are able to work, that sum which we allowed for ploughing and harrowing for the first year of tillage This labour will be finished in about four months. As these men have their victuals from home, let them be allowed to labour abroad during the other eight months at 64d. per day, which is 14d. per day less than is allowed for labour in the former account; or if they can't find labour, let them turn their hands to some manufacture, that will bring them in so much, which will amount to Total profit arising from the work of the £. s. d. 10 8 0 900 11 5 4 family 30 13 4 Out of which sum if we deduct the expenses of maintaining such a family. 20 7 5 The family will then, besides maintaining themselves, have carned the clear sum of 10 5 11 Which will be sufficient for buying a plough, and plough-tackle, little household furniture, and paying for the feeding of the horses during the four months they are employed in the labour of the farm. As to their feeding during the rest of the year, if they are hired out they will earn more than will feed them the whole year round. It may be here objected, that both the men and women, will of necessity, be sometimes called off to other work, such as child-bearing, nursing, milking, churning, pulling and handling flax, and that the men's work, as mentioned above, does not continue through the whole year. As to child-bearing and nursing, it is allowed some loss of time must be suffered on those accounts; yet this will not be considerable. Such women are so inured to cold and labour, that in lying in they won't lose near a fortnight, especially as their work is mostly within doors. A new born child sleeps most of the first three months, and it is the practice of their mothers to hold the child on the right knee, while they spin with their left hand. This such women would not do for a mistress; but the industrious always do it for themselves. But if the women go to other kinds of work, their labour must be as gainful as spinning, otherwise they would not quit the wheel for it. For instance, if they go to foot or win turf, their firing then, instead of standing them in 17. 10s. costs them no more than bog-rent. If they pull and handle flax, and the men plough and harrow the ground for it, then the flax stands them only in the ground-rent and seed. So that what yarn soever is by these works left unspun, more than an equal value is gained in the turf, flax, and other work. As to the men's wanting work in winter, and as to their hiring in work in harvesttime, though they are not ploughing nor reaping, yet they have their corn to thresh out, they may have marl to raise, sand and dung to draw, drains to cut, and ditches to make. Now these things will keep them pretty busy, and will increase the produce of the ground greatly above the value of their labour. For instance, if by laying on of marl, sand, or dung, that field is made to produce a crop of barley, which otherwise would have produced only oats, will not the difference of the crop more than double pay for their labour? Or should ditches be made, will they not save herding, |