After this time, agriculture advanced slowly but gra dually, being in some instances benefited, and in other instances rather obstructed, by the works of some fan ciful writers. We allude particularly to the writings of Tull, which have been of essential service in contri buting to introduce the row culture, at least for green crops, but which had a tendency to do mischief, by in sisting on the uselessness of manures.
Hitherto, whatever improvements had taken place in arable husbandry, little attention had been directed to the improvement of the stock of the island. At last Mr Bakewell turned his thoughts to this subject, and his example being followed by several spirited and judicious farmers in various parts of England, more particularly in the north, this branch of husbandry, as we have already remarked, has, in by far the greatest portion of the kingdom, advanced considerably before its arable husbandry ; and indeed the principal and most important improvement in this latter branch may very fairly be traced to the great improvement in stock ; for the zeal and anxiety of farmers with respect to their stock, led them to cultivate green crops on a larger scale, and with more attention and judgment, than they had pre viously done ; and by means of these crops, not only was their ground kept clean, but it was also enriched, by the additional quantity of manure, which the con . sumption of them supplied.
The last epoch in the history of English husbandry was the establishment of the Board of Agriculture ; from which perhaps not all the benefit has been derived which was expected, and which might have been ob tained, had their proceedings been more cautious and judicious ; but which nevertheless has contributed great ly to spread agricultural information, to make each part of the country acquainted with the implements and prac tices of the other parts, and to soften and break down agricultural prejudice, of all prejudices the most stub born and long-lived.
Still, whoever has formed his opinion of the excel lence of English agriculture, from the high character which this nation bears for enterprize and success in other branches of industry, and particularly in manufac turing and commercial industry, will be much disap pointed. Over the whole kingdom, and even in the im mediate vicinity of the largest towns, where the demand for agricultural produce must be great and regular, and where the means of improvement are ample and easily acquired, wastes and commons are found, many of them consisting of a soil by no means naturally unfertile, and all of them capable, at little expellee, of being rendered in some degree productive and beneficial to the inhabi tants. Besides these wastes and commons, what are
called common fields (where the ground, though cul tivated, is so much subdivided, and the property so much intermixed, that it is absolutely impossible to practise good husbandry, or to derive from it the pro duce it might yield) are numerous. While these things are so, the agricultural industry and enterprize cannot be rated very high. At the same time it is fair to state, that within these last 50 years, numerous acts of par liament have been passed to inclose and improve these commons and common fields ; while before his present Majesty came to the throne, these acts were very few. The first inclosure by act of parliament took place in the reign of Charles II.; the next in Queen Anne's reign. From 1719 to 1759, 249 acts were passed ; from 1764 to 1779, the number was 941, averaging 58 an nually ; from 1780 to 1794, there were 445, averaging 30 annually ; in 1795 and 1796, there were 146 ; and from 1797 to 1805, there were 704 ; making in all 2591 inclosure acts. In the ten years from 1785 to 1796, the average number per annum sunk considerably ; but in the nine years, from 1796 to 1805, it rose again higher than ever. In the first 40 years of his present Majesty's reign, there were 1213 inclostu es, containing 1,960,189 acres, which gives an average for each inclosure of 1616 acres. If we estimate the total number of inclosures at this average, the quantity of land inclosed since the reign of Queen Anne, (far the inclosure in Charles II.'s time related to Malvern Chace,) will amount to 4,187,056 acres, up to the end of 1805. Since that period, the acts for inclosing commons and common fields have not been less numerous. We have entered on this state ment, in order to shew, that, though these commons and common fields are a disgrace to the agricultural charac ter and enterprise of the English nation, yet that dis grace is in the course of being wiped away.