_Folding of Land with Sheep is reckoned abundantly cheaper than Cart-dung; but this is to be questioned, because much Land must lie still for keeping a Flock (unless there be Downs); and for their whole Year’s keeping, with both Grass and Hay, there are but Three Months of the Twelve wherein the Fold is of any considerable Value; this makes the Price of their Manure quadruple to what it would be, if equally good all the Year, like Cart-dung: And folding Sheep yield little Profit, besides their Dung; because the Wool of a Flock, except it be a large one, will scarce pay the Shepherd and the Shearers. But there is another thing yet, which more inhances the Price of Sheep-Dung; and that is, the dunging the Land with their Bodies, when they all die of the Rot, which happens too frequently in many Places; and then the whole Crop of Corn must go to purchase another Flock, which may have the same Fate the ensuing Year, if the Summer prove wet; and so may the Farmer be served for several more successive Years, unless he should break, and another take his Place, or that dry Summers come in time to prevent it. To avoid this Misfortune, he would be glad to purchase Cart-dung at the highest Price, for supplying the Place of his Fold; but ’tis only near Cities, and great Towns, that a sufficient Quantity can be procured._ _But, supposing the Price of Dunging to be only Two Pounds Ten Shillings, and the general Expence of an Acre of Wheat, when sown, at Three Shillings_ per _Bushel, to be Four Pounds Ten Shillings, with the Year’s Rent of the Fallow_; The Expences of planting an Acre of Wheat in the Hoeing-Husbandry, is Three Pecks of[226] Seed, at _Three Shillings_ _per_ Bushel, is _Two Shillings_ and _Three-pence_. The whole Tillage, if done by Horses, would be _Eight Shillings_; because our Two Plowings, and Six Hoeings[227], are equal to Two Plowings; the common Price whereof is _Four Shillings_ each; but this we diminish half, when done by Oxen kept on St. Foin, in this manner; _viz._ Land worth _Thirty Shillings_ Rent, drill’d with St. Foin, will well maintain an Ox a Year[228], and sometimes Hay will be left to pay for the Making: We cannot therefore allow more than _One Shilling_ a Week for his Work, because his Keeping comes but to _Seven-pence_ a Week round the Year. [226] Sometimes half a Bushel is the most just Quantity of Seed, to drill on an Acre. [227] But we sometimes plow our Six-feet Ridges before Drilling, at Five or Six Furrows, which is a Furrow or Two more than I have reckoned: But we do not always hoe Six times afterwards. But it is better for successive Wheat-crops to bestow the Labour of as many Hoeings as amount to three plain Plowings in a Year, it being a greater Damage to omit one necessary Hoeing, than is the Expence of several Hoeings.