   
ON THE AGRICULTURE OF THE STEWARTRY OF
KIRKCUDBRIGHT AND WIGTOWNSHIRE. Part 3.
By THOMAS MACLELLAND, North Balfern, Kirkinner, Wigtownshire.
16. The Moorland, and the Mountain
Sheep.
As formerly noticed, there are 620,040 acres of mountain or moorland in the
two counties. It occupies the northern and inland part of Galloway; the land
along the sea-coast being for the most part all arable. A portion of it is of a
poor, barren description, so much so that, according to a local saying, "it
would not graze a peesweep (Lapwing) to the acre." The greater part of it,
�however, is very suitable for sheep and cattle grazing, especially towards
the north and north-east of Kirkcudbright, where the hills in the parish of
Carsphairn are green to the top. There is also a large tract of fine grazing
land north from Glencaird to the march of Ayrshire, in the parish of Minnigaff.
The geological formation of the greater part of the moorland in
Kirkcudbright is the Lower Silurian, consisting of the greywacke rocks, which in
many places occupy the surface to the exclusion of even the heather; large
boulders also being strewed plentifully over the high ground. Extensive tracts
of the primary rocks also occur, occupying about one-sixth part of the whole
county. The most northerly group, which embraces the Merrick range of hills,
commences at the head of Loch Doon, on the Ayrshire boundary, and reaches in a
southerly direction beyond Loch Dee. The middle group reaches from the river
Ken, in south-westerly direction, to Wigtown Bay. The third and most easterly
group includes the Criffel range, commencing near the river Nith, in the parish
of New Abbey, running in a south-west direction across the parishes of
Kirkgunzeon, Urr, and Colvend, down to the sea shore. These granitic ranges are
for the most part very barren, partly on account of the surface being half
occupied either by the rocks or by boulders; but even where herbage appears,
there is a something in connection with the formation that prevents sheep from
thriving as the appearance of the pasture gives promise.
The moorland part of Wigtownshire lies entirely on the Lower Silurian
formation, no granite rocks being found in any part of it. It is for the most
part comparatively level, but scarcely of a less barren character than the
Kirkcudbright mountains. Extensive mosses of worthless flow occupy the hollows
for miles at a stretch, terminating generally in dreary morasses, often fatal to
the animals that seek sustenance on their treacherous surface. Professor Geikie,
writing on this subject, says�" Between the foot of the Merrick range and
the Bay of Luce the ground is one wild expanse of moor, roughened with thousands
of heaps of glacial detritus, and dotted with scores of lakes enclosed among
these rubbish mounds." (Scenery of Scotland, p. 261,)
There are two systems of sheep farming carried on, the one is where what is
called "a ewe stock" is kept; the other, where a "running
stock" is kept. Under the former system, the top wedder and second ewe
lambs are sold each year in the end of summer. Under the latter, the wether
lambs are all kept and disposed of at three years old, and in a few instances at
two years old, the top ewe lambs being kept to fill up the place of the draft
ewes; the small lambs of both sorts are, however, sold. A "ewe stock"
requires finer and earlier land than "a running stock," and where the
land is suitable, will pay more by 30s. a score than the "running
stock."
The entry to the hill farms is generally at Whitsunday. The outgoing tenant
is bound to sell the whole of the sheep stock to the incoming tenant at
valuation by two men mutually chosen, who, if necessary, appoint an oversman. In
a ewe stock there are, ewes and lambs�eild ewes, ewe hoggs, and the shots of
each lot. In a running stock there are, ewes and lambs�eild ewes,
three-year-old wethers, dinmonts or two-shear sheep, ewe and wether hoggs, with
the shots of each lot. On the day of delivery these are valued separately, and
handed over to the incoming tenant, many of the neighbours and strangers
gathering in to hear the prices of the different lots.
The time for castration and marking in a running stock is from the 25th of
May to the 1st of June; for a ewe stock, about the 20th June, when the eild
sheep are likewise clipped. The reason for this difference in the time of
castration is in order that the lambs may get strong in the horn, which improves
their appearance for selling.
Running stocks are generally all clipped at one time, about the 8th of July;
the milk portion of the ewe stocks about the middle of the month. As it is of
importance to get clipping finished as soon as possible on the individual farms,
the neighbours generally gather in to assist each other in this operation, ten
or twelve sometimes mustering at one time. An active hand can clip five or six
scores a day. In entering a bill farm, the wool is the first thing that can be
disposed of; fairs for the sale of it are held at Newton Stewart in the end of
June, and at Dalry, Gatehouse, and Sanquhar on subsequent weeks in July. The
wool of a running stock brings a higher price than that of a ewe stock, the
difference being probably is. per stone of 24 lbs.
The lambs are taken off the ewes about the 25th of August, when, in a ewe
stock, the wether lambs and the second ewe lambs are all parted with, and in a
few days, when weaned, the top ewe lambs are put to the hill to be harvested.
These are never disposed of, but are reserved to keep up the breeding stock on
the farm. In a running stock the small lambs of both sorts are disposed of, and
the tops treated in a similar manner.
The three-years-old wethers. in the running stocks are ready for selling by
the middle of. September. They are sent by rail and steamer to the Edinburgh,
Glasgow, and Liverpool markets; some lots going in the Belfast direction. The
best class of these wethers, with present prices (1873), realises from 45s. to
52s. each. The eild ewes are sold about the end of September, the draft ewes in
October.
Five and twenty years ago it was the general custom to smear all the sheep
intended to be wintered on the hill. This practice is now quite out of use. It
is found that the sheep are much lighter for climbing their rocky paths without
the weight of butter and tar in their fleeces they had to carry when they were
smeared; and besides, the weight of these hanging in the wool caused the fleece
to open on the back, thereby exposing the animal to the rigours of the mountain
climate. Smearing also reduced the condition of the sheep, and had a tendency to
loosen the wool; it failed also to protect the sheep against scab. Dipping has
now universally taken the place of smearing.
A few rams are bought in on each farm every year. These are generally
purchased in lambs from the breeders, the most suitable selected out of them,
after keeping them eight or ten months) and the remainder disposed of. In winter
they require a few turnips, or a little cake and oats, as it is difficult to
obtain grass good enough to suit them. They are put to the ewes from the 12th to
the 22d of November.
The hoggs or young sheep are all wintered on the low lands, and should be
sent down about the middle of October. On some high stormy land the whole of the
stock has to be taken away for a time. The cost of wintering, from October to
April, is from 6s. to 8s. a head. This wintering is becoming more difficult to
be had every year; it is obtained chiefly on the lower parts of Kirkcowan and
Ayrshire. The ewe hogs are generally wintered on grass, and the wether hoggs on
turnips, wherever they can be got.
The first bite the sheep get on the uplands in the spring is the �� moss
crops " or �� "draw bent." These, as the name indicates, grow
on the soft and mossy grounds, and they afford an excellent and welcome change
from the dry heather of the hard pasture land on which the old sheep have been
feeding all winter.
By the middle of April the lambing season comes on. This is always an
anxious and busy time for the hill shepherd; and it requires all his energy,
skill, and forethought to be put forth for the preservation of the weak lambs.
Indeed, it is upon these qualities in the shepherd, or the want of them, as well
as the kind of weather at the time of lambing, that a good or bad crop of lambs
depends.
The diseases to which the mountain sheep are subject are numerous, and some
of them very fatal, of which "braxy," or inflammation of the bowels,
is the most deadly. Some localities are more liable to it than others; but
whether this arises from the position of these farms, or the pasture upon them,
has never been very satisfactorily answered. On a farm in Kirkcudbright in one
year there died, out of a stock of 800 hoggs, about 400, or one-half of the
whole. This, of course, is an exceptional case; but the general rate of
mortality among hill stock is high, say from 10 to 15 per cent. Various theories
have been advanced to account for such excessive mortality as the case cited.
Some blame the pasture, some the particular exposure of the land, while others
affirm that sheep do not thrive when cattle are depastured among them; the
supposition is that the droppings from the cattle cause a fresh growth early in
the spring, which, being too succulent for the hungry sheep, causes inflammation
in the bowels. "Sturdy" is another very prevalent disease, but it is
sometimes cured under skilful treatment. "Trembling" is also a fatal
disease, but it is said to he principally confined to warm, dry, east-lying
land. If sheep are brought from cold, north-lying land, they are in danger of
dying out, unless speedily removed. "Vincus," or "vinquish
"�probably a corruption of vanquish�is a wasting away, accompanied with
water in the stomach. This disease is chiefly confined to the granite land, and
is readily cured, when observed in time, by an entire change of pasture. The
"cretuch" is an affection of the joints, whereby the sheep loses the
power of its limbs. Those affected by this disease are found on the tops of the
hills, the poor feeding and constant exposure there being the supposed cause of
it. A change to the lower and better pasture generally effects a cure, but the
sheep affected require to be watched, as they have a singular tendency to return
to the old feeding ground on the top of the hill.
Top
17. Dairies and Dairy Management.
The introduction of dairy or Ayrshire stock into Galloway dates back more
than sixty-five years ago. Writing in 1810, the Rev. Mr Smith of Borgue states
that several dairies on a large scale, besides some smaller ones, had been
established in Wigtownshire by farmers from Ayrshire; and the same writer gives
an instance of a dairy of 60 cows in the Rhinns district in 1808. From that date
the Ayrshire cows have been coming gradually into favour in Galloway, taking the
place of the native breed, which they threaten sooner or later to thrust out
entirely
Owing to the high price of beef, a reaction has set in favour of rearing a
portion of young stock, combining cheese-making with the production of beef. As
the dairy system has hitherto been carried on, it is eminently destructive of
stock, the calves,. with the exception of those kept for breeders, being all
sold for the shambles as soon as dropped; the price obtained is about 7s. 6d. a
head. From this circumstance little attention has been paid to the selection of
the bulls, and generally the choice runs in the direction of using the smallest
sires, with the view of giving greater ease to the cow in gestation and
parturition. Of course, where the calves are reared on the farm for the purpose
of keeping up the stock, great care is bestowed on the selection of the bull, as
well as on the pedigree and appearance of the mother. A few calves are reared
for this purpose in most dairies, though the great bulk of the young stock is
imported from the higher districts of Ayrshire, where the farmers lay themselves
out for the rearing of dairy queys.
The dairy system having commenced so early in the present century in the
Rhinns district of Wigtownshire, that locality seems to have taken and kept the
lead, not only as to the number of its dairies, but also as to their size; for,
with the exception of a few farms, the whole of this peninsula is at present
under the cheese-making system. During the last five and twenty years great
changes have likewise taken place in the Machars or lower district; large
dairies having been introduced on farms where the Galloway stock were formerly
bred and fattened.
In Kirkcudbright the dairy system has increased to a considerable extent
among the farms on the lower grounds; though, from the high price of sheep
stock, it is not likely to extend in the meantime to the higher grassy lands, as
has been the case of late years in Dumfriesshire.
The size of the dairies varies from 40 to 100 cows. There may be a few which
contain a smaller number than the former figure; but it is generally considered
cheese can be produced more economically in a dairy of this size than with a
less number of cows. On the other hand, when the number much exceeds 100, it is
found inconvenient, with the private appliances on the farm, for the manufacture
of cheese. There are as yet no public dairies.
Formerly, it was the almost universal custom to let the cows to a bower, but
latterly this arrangement has been in many cases departed from, preference being
given to the system of employing a responsible dairyman, or dairymaid, to look
after the cheese-making, and everything in connection with the dairy. In
following out this plan the owner can exercise more freedom in the feeding of
the cows, and can vary the quantity as well as the kind of feeding according to
circumstances, more readily than when under a contract with a bower to supply a
certain kind of food of a given quality and quantity. When the cows are let, a
written agreement is drawn out specifying the number of stones of cheese the
bower is� to give for each cow or quey, and also the amount of feeding the
cows are to receive in the winter and spring, stating also the time they are to
be turned out to grass, and the number of acres of pasture allowed to them. To
avoid misunderstanding, it is necessary to be minute and explicit in detailing
all the different items of the contract, so that nothing may occur to mar the
harmony and good feeling so desirable for the successful conducting of the
dairy.
When the cows are not let, but given into the charge of a dairyman, it is
found advisable for his encouragement, besides payment of his usual wages, to
enter into an agreement with him something like the following :� Dairyman to
take charge of the cows, and, if they produce above 20 stones of cheese, of 24
lbs. to each cow, and 16 stones to each quey, he shall receive one half of all
above these quantities up to the value of �60.
The term of entry is always at Martinmas, and, when the dairy is let, it is
for one year, a fresh engagement being necessary every season. The first care at
the commencement of the dairy year is to have the cows properly wintered; as
upon the careful feeding of them while in the house depends in a great measure
their milking powers during the ensuing summer.
The amount of feeding given during winter varies on different farms; but the
following may be taken as general examples of the winter treatment cows receive,
and the allowance of extra food given to each. Two tons of yellow turnips given
before Martinmas, to keep up the winter milk; or, where cabbages are grown, they
are sometimes substituted; and 5 tons of Swedes or yellows afterwards, with 2 or
3 bushels of beans ground, after calving. In winter the cows get straw at
hall-past five in the morning, turnips at eight, and straw again after they have
eaten the turnips. They are put out for two hours during the day, and when they
come in they get turnips, then straw, and finally straw at eight at night. (On
many farms the cows are not allowed to go out during winter after Martinmas, but
have water supplied to them in the house.) The straw is supplied to them
in small quantities at a time, and never allowed to accumulate in the racks
before then]. On some farms a certain number of acres of turnips are allowed,
say � 1 Scots acre to six cows�the dairyman lifting them and taking his
chance of the crop.
On Baldoon Mains and Crook, where few turnips are grown on the clay soils,
draff, obtained from the neighbouring distillery at Bladnoch, is used as a
substitute, and is found to answer the purpose well, about half a bushel a day
being allowed to each cow. A good meadow is a valuable addition to a dairy farm.
It supplies excellent winter feeding for cows. With good meadow hay cows winter
well with few turnips; and in spring it is unsurpassed for milk-producing
properties. Dairymen prefer to have the cows to calve early, say in February.
This involves long feeding with artificial food; but, no doubt, the bower is
anxious to get as much as he can from the cows before the following Martinmas.
The cows are generally allowed to go dry about November, or three months before
calving, late milking being supposed to induce abortion. The dairy stock is not
turned out until the grass is well up, which is from the 1st of May to the 16th
of the month, according to the season; an acre and a quarter being allowed to
each cow. As soon as the early sown fitches or clover are ready for cutting,
which is in June, the cows get a feed night and morning during the time of
milking; two acres of the former and two of the latter being sufficient for this
purpose, when irrigated with liquid manure, for a dairy of 90 cows during the
season.
Having thus brought the dairy stock to the grass when the cows are in full
milk, and the work of the dairy is in operation, we shall now look into the
mysteries of cheese making. There are two kinds of cheeses made�the Cheddar
and the Dunlop. (As the Dunlop system is little practised, except in some
small dairies, we have confined our remarks to the manufacture of the Cheddar
cheese.) The Cheddar is so called after a village in Somersetshire,
where the celebrated cheeses of that name were originally produced. The soil of
the Cheddar district rests on the limestone, upon which always grows rich and
sweet herbage; and it is to this circumstance, perhaps, as much as to the care
bestowed on their making, that the native cheeses owe so much of their
excellence. Considerable diversity of opinion prevails among Galloway dairymen
as to the effect of different qualities of soil on the production of cheese.
Some affirm that cheese produced on good soil should not be of a better quality
than that produced on soils of an inferior description. Others again argue that
it is the soil that gives character to the cheese, the management in both cases
being equal. In Wigtownshire a good deal of emulation prevails between the
Rhinns and Machars dairymen. A large share of the prizes at the chief cheese
shows having fallen to the lower district, the Rhinns dairymen are naturally
looking to their laurels; but, notwithstanding much care and inquiry among them,
Mr Gardner at Baldoon, when he competes, generally stands first. The fine
pastures on this farm, it is averred, contribute in no small degree to Mr
Gardner�s success, while he, on the other hand, does not attach so much
importance to the richness of the pasture in seeking for first quality of
cheese, as to the careful manipulation and management during the process of
making. Without asserting a strong opinion on this subject, we shall only
remark, that wheat, grown on the same farm, is ascertained to produce more
loaves to the quarter than wheat of the same weight per bushel, and to
appearance as good, grown on inferior soils in the same county. Reasoning from
this, we would be disposed to attribute the superiority of the Baldoon cheese,
in part at least, to the soil, but, without careful management and observation,
this excellence could not be obtained.
The success of the dairy depends in no small measure on the completeness of
the buildings and utensils required for carrying on the operation of cheese
making, and great improvements have been made within the last few years, chiefly
by the introduction of steam in the process of manufacture, and for heating the
different rooms in the dairy. The buildings of a well-arranged dairy recently
erected in the upper district of Wigtownshire are as follows :�First, the
apartment for keeping the milk at night, and for steeping, 20 feet by 17 feet;
second, the press house, 20 feet by 12 feet; third, the cheese room (on the
ground floor), 28 feet by 21 feet; height of ceilings, 10 feet. (The
position of the cheese room on the ground floor may be objected to, but Mr
M�Master, Culhorn Mains, whose dairy we are describing, considers it rather an
advantage than otherwise, inasmuch as it insures a lower temperature in summer,
and the winter temperature can be easily regulated by the heating apparatus. The
saving of labour in the carrying of the cheeses up stairs is also considerable.)
All the apartments are well ventilated from the roof and sides to keep down the
temperature in hot weather. Fourth, the heating apparatus; this consists of a
boiler, 8 feet long by 2 1/2 feet in diameter, connected by pipes with the
steeping tub, to supply steam for raising the temperature in process of cheese
making. The several apartments are fitted up with 3-inch metal pipes, into which
steam is introduced from the boiler to keep up the temperature in cold weather.
The steam from this boiler also heats the water used in washing the dairy
utensils, cooking food for the pigs, horses, and cows in spring.
The dairy utensils comprise steeping-tub of tin with false bottom for
heating the milk; fire-clay milk coolers; cheesits, of which nine are required,
14 1/2 inches wide by 14 deep, holding 80 lbs. of green curd; two double
presses, and one single one; two curd coolers, with grating of wood in the
bottom covered with canvass, so as to allow the whey to escape from the curd;
breaking-shovels; curd breaker; pails, &c.
There are, however, many of the chief dairies, without appliances for
raising the temperature by steam, in which the curd and milk are heated in the
usual old fashioned way. It is understood that greater care is requisite in
heating the milk or curd by steam being introduced underneath, than in the usual
method by warmed milk or whey. Mr Gardner still adheres to the old way as being
safer. He considers it better to have his cheese room up stairs, as being more
airy, and calculated to mature the cheese sooner than when on the ground floor.
He objects also to the cheese room being heated with steam-pipes, as they cause
a moisture in the apartment unfavourable to the ripening of the cheese. An open
fireplace at one end of the� room, and a close stove at the other, is all that
is necessary for heating purposes.
In making Cheddar cheese slight diversity exists among the different dairies
as to the carrying out of the practical details, but as we cannot enter into
many of these minutiae, the details of one or two of the methods most generally
practised are here given.
At the Baldoon dairy, Mr Gardner puts the warm morning�s milk into the
steeping-tub first, then adds the previous evening�s milk, which has been all
night in the coolers. By doing so he considers that the temperature of the milk
can be brought to a more uniform degree than when the warm milk is added to the
cold. The milk thus mixed is then heated up to 80o, by means of hot
whey which has been previously soured. When the temperature of the milk is 70o
little sour whey is required; at 60o, 12 choppins or English quarts
are needed to sour 90 gallons. It is this souring process that gives character
to the Cheddar cheese, and to the careful management of which a good deal of the
perfection of the cheese belongs. If too much acid is present in the curd it
imparts to it a bitter taste, and if too little the curd is tasteless, and does
not possess that delicate flavour so indispensable to good Cheddar cheese. By
being properly soured the cheese also becomes earlier ripe and sooner
marketable. The proper degree of sourness is ascertained, when draining off the
whey, by the last few canfuls only showing the presence of acid, and, if there
is reason to suspect that acid is present in excess;. the curd is washed with
fresh whey, until the superfluous acid disappears. So much for the souring
process.
When the milk in the steeping-tub has been heated by the sour whey to 80o
the steep and colouring are added, and carefully stirred until the whole is
properly mixed. As much steep is used as will produce curd in forty-five
minutes. If the milk, stands unsteeped longer than that, the cream begins to
rise, and goes off in the whey, whereby the quality of the cheese is
deteriorated Breaking then commences, and is continued for half an hour; when a
little whey is taken off the top, and heated in the warmer to 140o.
This is used to raise the temperature of the curd in the tub to 83o
This occupies a quarter of an hour, during which breaking is continued, and for
a quarter of an. hour afterwards,, so that the whole time occupied by breaking
is one hour. The contents of the tub are then allowed to remain at rest for half
an hour covered up, when the whey is taken off to within three inches of the top
of the curds. Part of the whey is put into the warmer, and heated to 160o.
This is used to raise the temperature of the curd to 100o. It takes
half an hour to heat, and during that time the curd in the tub is constantly
stirred. The warmer is again filled with cold: whey, which is heated to 160o,
with which the temperature of the curd in the tub is raised to 102o.
It is then stirred for half an hour, and afterwards. covered up for half an
hour. The whey is then run off, and the last few canfulls kept for souring the
milk in the steeping-tub in the morning. The curd is then put into the centre of
the bottom of the tub to drain, and covered with hot cloths, in which state it
remains for half an hour. The cloths are then. taken off, and the curd cut in
four pieces; these are placed one above the other, and in this way it remains
for half an hour covered up with hot cloths. It is afterwards lifted to the
cooler, where it lies for half an hour, turned, and left to cool another half
hour. It is then milled and salted at the usual rate of 1 lb. of salt to 56 lbs.
of curd. It is then put into the vats, which are placed in the press. It is by
this time about three P.M., and a gentle pressure is put on until seven, when
the hot cloths are supplied, and the cheese returned to the press. The pressure
is increased until next morning, when the cloths are changed, and full pressure
put on; the cloths are again changed at night. The cheese, after remaining in
the press for twenty-four hours, are taken out, capped, and put back to the
press for twenty-four hours. They are then taken out, bandaged, and sent to the
cheese room. The caps remain four weeks on. The cheeses are ripe in three or
four months.
At the dairy of West Mains of Baldoon, where cheese of an excellent
character is made, the following are the chief points in the management
:�Twenty gallons of milk are put into the steeping-tub at night, to which is
added next day, first, the morning�s milk, and then the remainder of the milk
of the previous evening. The thermometer stands at 80o when the steep
and colouring are put in, and curd is formed fit for breaking in an hour. The
temperature of the milk in the steeping-tub is raised by warmed milk, there
being no appliances for heating with steam. The breaking occupies about forty
minutes; but, before this is completed, warm whey is added to keep up the
temperature to 80o. The curd is then allowed to settle for half an
hour, when some whey is put into the beater for the second beating, and the
remainder let off until the curd is visible. The curd is next broken and stirred
up, and the temperature raised to 90o, when it is allowed to settle
again for half an hour, after which the whey that remains is drawn off and the
curd heated to 100o. It is now left to settle for a quarter of an
hour, when the curd is gathered into the centre of the bottom of the tub, where
it remains for half an hour to allow the whey to drain off. It is then put into
the vats, and. under pressure for a few minutes, according to the acidity, and
when taken out of the presses, is weighed and spread on the coolers for half an
hour before
milling. After being milled, the curd is salted, and put into the cheesits
and press; full pressure is put on at once. The dairy-maid here considers that,
if the curd is rightly made, no butter will show by the full pressure being put
on at first. On the second day hot whey is put over the cheeses, the cloths
changed, and the pressure continued. Next day they are taken out of the vats,
and bandaged and put on the shelf of the cheese room. They are ripe in three
months.
The Canadian system has been introduced into Wigtownshire, and is practised
in a modified way with more or less success in several dairies. As the working
of it is somewhat different from either of the methods described, the details
are here given in full, as carried out by Mr M�Master, Culhorn Mains. -
The evening�s milk on being taken from the cows is put into coolers until
the morning, when it is drawn off into the steeping-tub The temperature of the
evening�s milk is kept about 66o, so that little heated sour whey
is required to raise it to 83o, when the morning�s milk is added,
at which point the milk should stand when it receives the rennet and colouring.
As much rennet is put into the milk as will produce curd in about sixty minutes
fit for breaking. Care is taken to break the curd gently at first, and the
process is continued for thirty or forty minutes, until the curd is firm, and in
a proper state for the separation of the whey. The mass is then allowed to
settle for about thirty minutes, when it is stirred up, and the steam applied
gently at first, and then gradually raised during thirty or forty minutes to 97o
in summer, and 20 more in spring and winter. The stirring is continued for
forty-five minutes, or until the curd comes to the proper firmness, which is
ascertained by the curd feeling elastic, opening up, and dividing freely on
being squeezed in the hand. The curd is then allowed to settle down for about
thirty minutes, stirring occasionally to keep it from getting into a solid
state. The whey is then drawn off in the usual way, until the curd appears, so
that when acidity is approaching, the whey can be more quickly taken away; this
is done as soon as the acidity makes its appearance. This is a very important
stage in the operation of cheese making, and great care is needful to secure the
right degree of acidity; if too sour the cheese becomes dry, and if too sweet
softness and holes are produced. In the souring process the degree can be
ascertained at an early stage of the operation, and when not sufficiently
advanced the making process can be lengthened, and, on the contrary, hastened
when the acidity is too forward. After the whey has been drawn off the curd is
lifted out of the tub, and put into the cooler, and constantly stirred up for
twenty minutes to keep it in a divided state; after which it is stirred
occasionally until the proper acidity is acquired, and to allow the remaining
whey to escape. The curd is then weighed, and salted at the usual rate. It is
then allowed to cool down to 68o or 70o, when it is put
into the vats or cheesits, which are immediately placed in the press. By this
time it is between four and five o�clock in the afternoon. A gentle pressure
is put on at first, which is gradually increased, until ten P.M., when full
pressure is continued during the night. Next morning the cheeses are taken out
of the vats, and immersed in scalding water for about three minutes for the
purpose of giving them a good skin, and preventing them from cracking. Dry
clothes being supplied, they are replaced in the press until the following
morning, when the cloths are taken off, and the cheeses put into dry vats
previously heated, without any cloths, and again placed in the press, where they
remain until next morning. They are then bandaged and carried to the
cheese-room, where they are turned regularly once a day. With a well-aired and
well-ventilated cheese-room, and the temperature kept steady at 60o
to 65o, they will be ripe for market in three months.
In making cheese by this method in Canada, it is calculated that it takes
from 9 1/2 lbs. to 10 3/4 lbs. of milk to make 1 lb. of cheese, which is
somewhat near the quantity required in this country. The expense of making is 1
dol. 10 c. ( One Dollar 10 Cents) per 100 lbs., boxes included, or about 5s. of
our money. This is considerably under the cost of production in this country,
for if we take the working expenses of the dairy at 30s. per cow, and her
produce at 480 lbs. of cheese, this gives 6s. 3d. as the cost of making 100 lbs.
A great drawback to the success of the dairy is the number of cows that
every year lose their calves from abortion, or that require to be replaced
through defective vessels, age, or other causes. On a moderate calculation, this
number is about 14 per cent., of which 8 per cent, is from abortion alone. This
disease is frequently the cause of a great deal of disappointment and loss in
some dairies, while in others it seldom appears except in isolated cases. The
cause of it has not been very satisfactorily explained; and, for prevention, it
is curious to note, that the course adopted by some dairymen is exactly that
which others think is the producing cause. For example, it is a common opinion
in some places that allowing the cows to go out for an hour or two about midday
in winter is apt to induce this disease; whilst other practical men, who do not
in general allow the cows to leave their byres in winter, recommend them to be
put out for two hours every day as a preventive if abortion shows itself in any
of the cows. It is hardly within the province of this report to enter into an
elaborate discussion as to the causes of this disease. At the same time it is
worthy of remark, that Galloway cows are seldom known to lose their calves; and
they5 as a rule, are a great part of the winter�s day in the open
air.
Regular feeding, with clean and wholesome diet, when confined to the byre,
goes a great way to prevent abortion, care being taken at all times to have the
turnips well cleaned and free from frost when given to the cows.
Pig feeding is an important branch of dairy management. When the whey leaves
the steeping-tub, it is conveyed by an underground pipe to a tank or reservoir
situated as near as possible to the pig-houses. These houses are generally built
expressly for the purpose, and are constructed on different principles in
different dairies; in one place the pigs are not allowed to see daylight from
the time they are put in until ready for the market; while at another, each
house is furnished with a small open court, in which the feeding troughs are
placed. This latter plan seemingly recommends itself to reason as the more
advantageous of the two. By feeding outside the bed is kept dry, and the animals
thrive and grow the better of having a little room to move about, while under
close confinement their legs are apt to became bent and deformed. Whey alone is
seldom used to feed pigs ; it may keep the young stock in a thriving state for a
certain time, but some more solid substances are used to complete the growth of
the hogs and bring them to maturity. Indian corn, ground and boiled, or steeped
in hot water overnight, is a common adjunct, and of this 1 to 3 lbs. to each pig
is allowed daily. With careful selection of the breed to be fed, and minute
attention to cleanliness and proper diet, pigs at six months old can be fed to
weigh 15 imperial stones.
It is understood by dairymen that the pigs, after deducting the cost of all
extra food, leave as much clear profit as will pay for the working expenses of
the dairy, which amounts to about 30s. per cow.
There were 9659 pigs in Kirkcudbright in 1871, being an increase since 1857
of 2456. In Wigtownshire the numbers in 1871 were 11,352, being an increase of
1079 since 1866.
The exportations from Galloway by rail and sea, during the year ending 30th
June 1873, amounted to 13,048.
Top
18. Permanent Pasture and Meadow Land.
The permanent pasture, exclusive of meadow land, from which a crop of hay is
taken, occupies an important place in the agriculture of the two counties. The
Board of Trade returns for 1871 show that there were in Kirkcudbright 58,260
acres, and in Wigtown 27,913 acres, not broken up in rotation, but devoted
solely to pasturage; being for the former more than three times the number of
acres there are under green crops, and for the latter fully double the number of
acres there are under the same crops.
The stock on this description of land is for the most part of a
miscellaneous kind, consisting of cattle, dairy cows, and sheep; the best parts
of it, however, are generally reserved for feeding cattle for the fat market.
The cattle for this purpose are purchased in October, and are selected from the
best stocks that can be had: aged bullocks are preferred. They are wintered on
the old grass, with or without fodder according to the season but, in general,
they are allowed what they can eat, the fodder being placed either in cribs or
laid on the open fields. For some weeks in spring they are supplied with about
half a cwt. of turnips each daily, so that when grass appears they are in good
condition. A full stock for "summering" not being kept on the fields
during winter, the numbers are increased as the grass becomes more plentiful,
the same quality of cattle being selected. If the cattle have wintered well, and
have been supplied with oil-cake, they are ready for the market by July or
August, though on some pastures they may be matured earlier. Cake is not
uniformly given in summer; by some it is questioned whether the profit repays
the expense, but as a rule, except where the pasture is very luxuriant, it is
allowed for some weeks previous to the sale of the cattle.
In illustration of the system of fattening cattle on the old grass, a short
sketch of the management pursued at the parks of Howell, in the parish of
Kirkcudbright may be interesting. These pastures consist of about 386 acres, and
comprise the "Milton parks," which are considered the best grazing
land in the south of Scotland, and were formerly old Church property in
connection with the adjoining Abbey of Dundrennan. Mr Lusk says� "A part
of the old grass is allowed for dairy cows, sheep, and horses; but about 250
acres of the best of it are kept for fattening cattle, mostly 3 1/2 years' old
Galloways, which from the middle of November have sole possession of the fields
until about the middle of May, when we add to their numbers, as grass comes, the
best old cattle I can get, till we have usually over 200 on them by the middle
of June. The store cattle are all outlying.� Besides what hay they can eat,
carted out to them daily, and laid on the open fields, they are allowed, for
about ten weeks in spring, 56 lbs. of turnips each, so that when grass comes
they are in good condition. I begin to sell them off fat about the middle of
June, getting through them in September. For a number of years I gave an
allowance of oil-cake in some of the fields; but, as a rule, I found this did
not pay, and have now quite given it up. I prefer Galloways to any other breed
of cattle; they seem most at home on our pastures, and, though costing more to
begin with, where they are known, fleshers are so partial to the �Scots�
that with me at least they give the best returns.
On the same farm there are about 60 acres of meadow, from which heavy crops
of hay are cut, on which the dairy cows and black cattle are wintered. About
one-fourth part of these meadows are irrigated with mill water, into which all
the washings from byres, cattle-sheds, and dung-heaps are led. The unirrigated
part is top-dressed every third year�about one third annually� with compost,
or well-prepared farm-yard manure, at the rate of forty loads the acre. As the
grass is apt to get lodged, it is cut early with mowing machines, and carted
into the hay-barn without being put into "stamp coles."
Considerable changes have taken place lately in different localities
regarding the meadows from which a crop of hay is taken. In sonic places they
have been turned into sheep-walks, while in other places they have been
extended, and have always proved a valuable addition to the winter food of dairy
cows, enabling the farmer to dispense with breaking up so much of the pastoral
land for fodder during winter.
A good portion of the hay is cut on the banks of the rivers, which are apt
to get flooded while the ricks are standing on the meadow. No time requires to
be lost in the hay season in getting the crop out of the reach of these
inundations, and the cart has to be employed frequently to place the "coles
" on an eminence beyond the reach of the water-mark.
On the whole, the acreage under natural hay has increased in Wigtown from
3152 acres in 1870 to 3335 acres in 1872, while in Kirkcudbright it has
increased from 8741 acres to 9463 acres in the same years.
The usual mode of improving the old grass and meadow lands is by lime, or
bone manure. When the former is used, it is applied at the rate of five tons an
acre, care being taken to have it well in powder at the time of application.
When too wet, it cannot be got properly spread, and it loses a great part of its
virtue. Half-inch bone manure is a valuable fertiliser for grass land, and when
applied at the rate of from half a ton to a ton an acre the effects are not only
speedily visible but lasting.
Top
19. The Farm Labourers and their Cottages.
The married ploughmen are, for the most part, accommodated with cottages on
the farm; any young lads that may be required are kept in the farmer�s
kitchen. There are no bothies in Galloway. The engagements of the cottagers are
for one year, gene rally from 26th of May; six months notice of removal is
given. The hours of the men in summer are from six in the morning till twelve,
when two hours are taken for dinner and rest; they resume at two afternoon, and
stop at six. In winter, when the horses are in the stable, the men come to feed
and clean them at half-past five in the morning, yoke at half-past seven, and
plough eight hours, unyoking for feeding at twelve. The men again attend the
horses at eight in the evening to supper them and rub them down.
Five and twenty years ago it was the custom on most farms to thrash the crop
with the men by candlelight in the morning, who were also engaged in winnowing
grain in the barn two nights in the week. (The winnowing of grain in the winter
evenings by the farm servants was first introduced into Galloway more than a
century William Craik Arbigland.) This is almost entirely abandoned
now, except in isolated cases, a regular staff of barn workers being appointed
on all well-regulated farms.
On dairy farms each of the men is bound to furnish a milker, who also by
agreement is to be kept employed in farm work when it is to be had. This part of
the bargain is not in general acceptance among the ploughman, and the masters
affirm they can get only men of a secondary class to agree to it.
The wages have hitherto been paid partly in kind and partly in money, but
there is a growing desire both among employer and employed for money payments
entirely, which, on many farms, have been adopted. Payments in kind are called
"benefits," the items of which vary in the several districts of the
two counties. It is a curious fact that they are highest in value on the best
farmed land, or on the land in the vicinity of the sea-shore, which, no doubt,
has the effect of attracting a better class of men to those districts.
"Benefits" and money wages have been advanced considerably during the
last three years; the following may be taken as the higher rate, while on many
farms it is from 10 to 12 per cent, lower. The farm produce is here calculated
at the average price of the last three years, the coals at present (1873) rates
7 1/2 boils, or 150 stones of oatmeal, at 2s.
|
�15.0.0.
|
6 bushels of barley, at 4s. 6d
|
� 1.7.0.
|
3 bushels potatoes, planted
|
� 1.10.0.
|
3 tons (24 cwt. each) of coals, carted free
|
� 5.2.0.
|
House and garden, with manure
|
� 3.0.0.
|
Money
|
� 15.0.0.
|
Allowance in harvest
|
� 1.0.0.
|
Leave to keep a pig, hens, &c.
|
|
|
� 41.19.0.
|
When money wages are given they amount to nearly the same sum.
The wages of lads, or young ploughmen living in their masters� houses, are
from �12 to �13 in the half year. As these young men are to form the ploughmen
of the future, we may very shortly allude to their position and prospects.
Living apart from the evil influence of the bothy, they are in general sober,
steady, and free from vice. Having a good deal of time at their disposal in the
long winter evenings, ample opportunity is afforded them for self-improvement,
which, we are afraid, is oily in rare cases taken advantage of. A very few
manage to save out of their earnings, so that when they marry, which is
�generally early, there is little to commence housekeeping on. Feeling deeply,
as all who reflect on this subject must feel, we will be excused a word of
regret that the ways of applying their spare time to useful purposes, and
forming habits of thrift and saving, have not been adopted by our young working
men. This is the more to be regretted, when we see how much personal comfort is
secured to the working man by the possession of a few pounds at the outset of
his married life; and we feel compelled strongly to urge upon all these young
men the necessity of acquiring early habits of saving, which, with determined
effort have before now enabled, and are still enabling, men of this class to
rise to situations of trust.
The rise in the wages of the married men within the last five years, taking
the foregoing as the basis of calculation, may be estimated at one-fourth, or 25
per cent.; and no one acquainted with the general steady character of the men,
will for a moment grudge them the advance. As a class they have hitherto been
underpaid, and it is to be feared that their position at present would compare
unfavourably with that occupied by the same class five and twenty or thirty
years ago. At that time the cotters on most of the farms were each in possession
of a cow, for the keeping of which �4, l0s. was deducted from his wages; the
calf also was allowed to run on the farm until the following spring, when it was
purchased by the master for �4 or � 5. For the small amount of the purchase
money at that time, the cottagers had the means within themselves of furnishing
their families with milk and butter; but at present very few of them could
afford to purchase a cow for this purpose.
The cottage accommodation has hitherto, in many places, been defective, both
as to extent and in interior arrangements for comfort. A movement was made�
some years ago to pull down unsightly cottages without providing any better
accommodation. The effect of this was to drive the working population to the
villages and towns, from which the labourer had to walk long distances to and
from his work. Now, however, a reaction has set in favour of extending the
cottage accommodation, especially in the Rhinns district of Wigtownshire, where
it had always been most defective. The Earl of Stair is showing a good example
in this respect, having, since the beginning of 1872, erected no fewer than
twenty-eight cottages on his estate in the Rhinns, and about fourteen more are
in process of erection. These cottages have been erected either by agreement
with the tenant at the beginning of a lease, or by the tenant agreeing to pay 5
per cent. on the outlay; and T. Greig, Esq., the factor on the property, affirms
that the tenants are glad to get the cottages built on paying the interest, so
much is the want of houses felt in that district. On the estate of Carrick
Moore, Esq., of Corsewell, five double cottages have been erected during the
last two or three years, without any interest being charged to the tenants. Some
of the old cottages which were pulled down were built of dry stone, covered
outside and inside with clay, and all with one apartment, the floor of which was
formed with till. They were generally in a tumble-down state, being propped up
with wooden posts, which, in some cases, protruded into the interior of the
building.
We give the cost and dimensions of the apartments of some of these new
cottages. One, erected in 1873 on Lord Stair�s property, consisted of two
rooms, 12 feet 6 inches by 13 feet 6 inches, and 10 feet 10 inches by 13 feet 6
inches respectively; height of ceiling 9 feet 6 inches. It was built of bricks,
and cost I� 70, 5s, A double cottage for two families, with three apartments in
each, cost �158. The cottages on the Corsewell estate were built after a design
of D. Guthrie, Esq., the factor there. They are double houses for two families,
consisting of three apartment, of the following dimensions :�Kitchen, 15 feet
6 inches by 15 feet 2 inches; bedroom, 10 feet by 6 feet 4 inches; bed-closet, 7
feet by 6 feet 4 inches�height of ceiling, 8 feet 6 inches. Built with
projecting windows, each of the double cottages cost �120, and when less
ornamental, �96.
The furniture of the old houses do not fit the new buildings; and the men
complain that they have to purchase an entirely new suit at a considerable
expense, which they can ill afford. This might be remedied by the landlord or
tenant putting in iron bedsteads, and making a moderate charge for use of them.
The old-fashioned worker�s house consists of one apartment only; any
division required is made with what is called a "boxbed." In these
circumstances separation of the sexes is impossible; nor is it possible to
obtain that privacy for the individual members of the family so essential for
their proper upbringing.
Randolph, late Earl of Galloway, bestowed a good deal of attention on the
cottages on his estate in Wigtownshire, and accomplished a great reformation in
that respect. Many new ones, some of them of elegant design, were erected, all
containing three apartments, without any additional charge to the tenant on
whose farm they were placed. A number of the old ones were likewise remodelled,
improved, and subdivided. Still a good deal remains to be done in the same line;
and now that the call is for better houses, it is hoped it will be heartily
responded to on all sides.
Top
20. The Farm Buildings.
A modern well-appointed farm-steading is very different from the buildings
required on the farm fifty years ago. At that time the only houses in use for
the cattle were long empty sheds, opening into court-yards, in which the hardy
Galloways were wintered. These have given place to, or have been supplemented
by, substantially fitted up feeding-byres or cow-houses, and other buildings in
connection with the dairy. Then the flail and horse-mill were the chief
thrashing instruments which beat out the corn without separating it from the
chaff. These also have been displaced by the powerful water-wheel, or the
stationary steam-engine in connection with machinery, which at one operation
thrashes the corn, and prepares the grain for the market. In all these advances,
the tenants have borne their full share of the outlay. Did a change in the
system of management necessitate the erection of a feeding-byre ? In many cases
it had to be done at the tenant�s own expense, or on payment of heavy
interest. Or, if steam had to be introduced to drive the thrashing-mill instead
of horses, the whole cost of the erections in connection therewith, including
the building of the costly chimney, fell upon the tenant, and without any hope
of being recouped at the end of the lease. Neither does it improve matters when,
at the beginning of a lease, the tenant is asked to pay 6 3/4 per cent. on
capital expended by the landlord in necessary farm buildings. This is the rate
of interest fixed by the Lands Improvement Companies on loans advanced for the
erection of farm buildings, the payment of which ceases at the expiry of
twenty-five years. It seems hard for a tenant to be asked to pay this interest,
when at the end of that period the buildings become the property of the landlord
free of charge. These companies insist also on the best and most expensive
materials being used in the construction of the buildings. Hewn stones for the
corners, the best pine for the roof, and everything in a style calculated to
endure for a hundred years. This extravagance has no doubt deterred many of the
tenants from encountering such a high rate of interest; but if a more equitable
arrangement could he made, such as dividing the interest between landlord and
tenant, we might indulge in the hope of seeing ere long, fewer ruined homesteads
over the country.
A satisfactory arrangement has been recently introduced, and is being
carried out under the energetic direction of J. Drew, Esq., on the Earl of
Galloway�s estates, which seems to work well. When the leases expire, the
buildings are remodelled, or the accommodation increased where found deficient.
The rents are then fixed, on the assumption that the buildings are complete.
Top
21. Conclusion.
Taking a general survey of Galloway, it may be said that the progress made
by agriculture in the province during the last twenty-five years has been
considerable. Iii the soil itself great changes for the better have been
wrought. Stones and rocks have been removed from the surface, or quarried from
the soil; and in some localities this has been done to such an extent as to
change the face of the country. Mosses and swamps have been drained, and
converted into arable land, which is now bearing corn or grass in rotation with
the dry portions of the fields. These improvements have been executed in
numerous cases by the tenants at their own expense. Occasionally some
proprietors take up a farm to improve it before leasing it; but the greater part
of these changes have been wrought by the occupiers of the farms.
The increase in the valuation of the counties has been noticed previously.
This increase cannot in fairness be all claimed as the result of the
improvements effected by the tenants. But, in justice to them, it must be said
that a large share of it has been produced by the progressive value of the land,
consequent on their own expenditure in lime, manure, and wages. On most of the
land in Galloway it is scarcely possible for an enterprising tenant to carry on
farming without, to a certain extent, increasing the value of his farm at the
end of a nineteen years lease. There are also men of easy disposition who do not
go in for much of this, and leave things pretty much as they found them. When
the valuator conies round at the end of the lease, the enterprising man has no
chance with his less pushing neighbour. For every stone or rock he has removed
from the soil, for every drain he has made, for every open ditch he has covered,
as well as for the extra manure he has applied during the currency of the lease,
he has to pay now, in the advance of rent that is asked, owing to the improved
appearance of the farm:
In justice to many landlords it must be said, there are gentlemen amongst
them who consider the position of an improving tenant at the end of his lease,
and are far from exacting "the pound of flesh."
A desire is beginning to manifest itself among landowners, to shorten the
usual duration of leases, which has hitherto been nineteen years. It is to be
feared that this is a step in the wrong direction. The present improved
appearance of Wigtownshire is mainly owing to the existence of leases of
nineteen or twenty-one years. On land incapable of further improvement there
might be some show of reason in this movement, which is evidently for the
purpose of obtaining the advance of rent at the end of twelve instead of
nineteen years. But on land such as the Galloway soils, where so much capital is
still required to bring it into a high state of cultivation, it is simply a
mistake. Farmers will not expend their capital freely on a farm under a twelve
or a fifteen years� lease. But this restriction may act beneficially on
themselves; it will make them pause in their expenditure on their farms, which
have hitherto been carried on, in many instances, more as if they were the
landlords than the tenants.
New and more stringent clauses are being introduced into some of the leases
of the present day; the purport of which is to give directions as to the general
management and manuring of the farm, and other points. With regard to the
manuring clause, this part of the obligation may be deemed necessary, owing to
the increased number of strangers, unacquainted with the business of farming,
who now occupy farms. The old class of Galloway farmers have always been liberal
in applying manure, and generally leave the land in better condition at the end
of the lease than when they got it, to which the rich manure, made from
highly-fed cattle, in no small degree contributes. Dairy farming, on the
contrary, tends to reduce the condition of the land, and more artificial manures
are needed to sustain its fertility than where cattle are fed.
During the last five and twenty years, the rent of land has advanced 58 per
cent. in Wigtown, and 66 per cent. in Kirkcudbright
The gradual rise that has taken place in agricultural produce since 1848
will, owing to the increased cost of labour, and the extra quantity of manure
required to produce crops equal to those of former years, scarcely account for
this. The advance in the price of grain, beef, mutton, and dairy produce, since
the above date, may be stated at 33 per cent. On the other hand, the rise in
men�s wages since that time amounts to 50 per cent; and in women�s or field
workers� wages, the advance has been 70 per cent. Putting these figures
together, we have�rents advanced 62 per cent., labour advanced 60 per cent.,
while the advance on the produce of the farm has been only 33 per cent.; wool
alone excepted, the value of which has risen more than 100 per cent.
It will be inferred from these figures, that the profits of farming at
present are not equal to those of former years; and still the demand for land
continues, and the advance, notwithstanding the increased cost of labour, still
goes on. There is, however, a limit to every thing; and the feeling generally
entertained by experienced men is, that land has got beyond its value. With the
lesson of 1806 before them, and its consequent train of ruin and overturn,
farmers are acting cautiously in offering for land.
It is now the custom on some estates to call in the services of valuators
from a distance at the end of the leases to put a rental on the farms. Without
saying a word in disparagement of these gentlemen, whose judgement at home we
have no doubt is in repute concerning laud with which they are acquainted, we
must be allowed the remark, that no strangers, coming from the neighbourhood of
cities, where ready markets are available, into a distant province such as
Galloway, can have an adequate idea of the expense attending the marketing of
the farm produce. These expenses amount to 12 per cent, on grain, and 6 per
cent. on cattle and sheep sent to the Liverpool market, and in a valuation by a
stranger are generally lost sight of.
It is the prevailing opinion of practical men in the district, that the
local factors are much more likely to arrive at a proper estimate of the value
of land, than an utter stranger unacquainted with its position or capabilities.
Though brought up as lawyers, they are well acquainted with the agriculture of
the district, and farmers would receive a valuation from them with greater
confidence than from a stranger.
Top
|