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MAKERS OF

MODERN AGRICULTURE

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MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited

LONDON · BOMBAY · CALCUTTA · MELBOURNE

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

NEW YORK · BOSTON · CHICAGO · DALLAS · SAN FRANCISCO

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd.

TORONTO

Jethro Tull
Founder of the Principles of Dry-Farming. 1674-1740.

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MAKERS OF MODERN AGRICULTURE

BY

WILLIAM MACDONALD, D.Sc.

Editor, "Agricultural Journal," Union Department of Agriculture,
South Africa; and Corresponding Secretary for the
International Dry-Farming Congress





MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON

1913

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COPYRIGHT





Richard Clay and Sons, Limited,

BRUNSWICK ST., STAMFORD ST., S.E., AND

BUNGAY, SUFFOLK.

PREFACE

When it is remembered what a prominent part Agriculture plays in the history of all Nations, it does seem strange that so little is known of the lives of those pioneers who have been foremost in the discovery of fundamental principles, improved methods, and labour-saving machines. Perhaps it is that farmers as a whole are not specially fond of reading. This, however, is not to be wondered at, because after a long day's work in the open air it is hard to rivet one's mind on anything more serious than the headlines of a daily newspaper, or the rose-tinted pictures of a rural magazine. Still, it is safe to prophesy that the successful farmer of the future will not only be a hard worker, but also a hard reader. And biography brings before us, in a vivid manner, the onward march of modern Agriculture.

It is also of interest to note how much Agriculture owes to men who could scarcely be called practical farmers. Indeed, the author has been impressed, contrary to common opinion, with the success of the Townsman who takes to farming. But this is really no more surprising than that the simple-hearted farm lad should forsake the Old Homestead for the fascinations of the City, and by reason of his character, courage, and industry, become in a few years the Captain of some great commercial enterprise. There will always be the ceaseless ebb and flow of the human tide between country lane and crowded street. But it is surely our plain duty to do something to make the life of the worker in the field less dull and lonely, and more attractive by the erection of pleasant cottages and the establishment of rural industries: while, at the same time, we try to brighten the life of the toiler in the town by freehold garden lots and sunlit, open spaces.

I desire to thank the Editors of the several papers in which these Sketches have appeared for kind permission to republish them in book form: The Graphic (Chapter I), The Star, Johannesburg (Chapter II), the Rand Daily Mail (Chapters III and IV), and the Sunday Post (Chapter V). To the Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, I am indebted for the frontispiece (Jethro Tull), as well as for much valuable information.

Royal Agricultural Society of England,
16, Bedford Square, London,
September 1st, 1913.

CONTENTS

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"One comfort is, that Great Men, taken up in any way, are profitable company."—Carlyle.

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MAKERS OF MODERN AGRICULTURE

CHAPTER I

JETHRO TULL : FOUNDER OF THE PRINCIPLES OF DRY-FARMING

"For the finer land is made by tillage the richer will it become and the more plants will it maintain."—Jethro Tull.

Eight miles to the north-west of Reading, on a lovely reach of the River Thames, lies the parish town of Basildon, in the County of Berkshire. Here, in the year 1674, was born the man who revolutionized British agriculture and laid the foundations for the "Conquest of the Desert." Yet, strange as it may seem, until the other day Tull's grave was unknown, and even now no monument marks the resting-place of this illustrious husbandman. His family was of ancient and honourable lineage, and he was heir to a competent estate. At seventeen he entered his name on the register of St. John's College, Oxford; but he did not proceed to a degree. Two years later he was admitted as a student of Gray's Inn, and was, in due course, called to the Bar. It is probable that Tull studied law not so much with the thought of taking it up seriously as a profession, but simply in order to better fit himself for a political career. Ill-health, however, made him turn his attention to farming. At the age