years ago, and which for five succeeding years produced upwards of 40 bushels of wheat per acre. This high power of production gradually decreased: the field was then sown with turnips, which were fed off with sheep, but the wheat afterwards raised did not average 18 bushels. The irrigation, which was next brought upon it, to use the expression of Mr. Jamieson, worked wonders, as the produce of wheat the next year reached 25 bushels per acre. Specific gravity 2.00; colour a blackish grey; substance fine, with numerous angular fragments of middling size. It agglutinates easily, drains off the surface-water quickly, and retains it beneath. It is easier worked than the preceding soil.

From an estate of Mr. Whittle, the farthest station on the North Esk. The soil of this farm is formed

from the detritus of greenstone and coarse sandstone, which contain a considerable quantity of protoxide of iron. That which the above sample represents is situated on the slope of a hill, containing both kinds of rock. Its specific gravity is 2.2; its colour reddish; substance rather coarse grained, one half consisting of fine siliceous and clayey particles. It has little cohesion; and from its position, on the side of the hill, is exposed to denudation, through those heavy rains which frequently fall in the vicinity of Ben Lomond and Ben Nevis. It is consequently subject to a continual process of conversion of the protoxide into peroxide, which renders the soil ill adapted to cereales. Thus, notwithstanding its promising external character, all the crops have failed on it. A similar soil, in a paddock lower down, not exposed to denudation, yields to Mr. Whittle most beautiful crops of turnips, barley, and wheat.

SOIL NO. 34.

This soil belongs to the basin south of Launceston, which is occupied by Franklin village. It is situated amid ridges of greenstone, which yielded their ingredients for its formation. Its specific gravity is 1.9; its colour, a dark brown. Its consistency unites the qualities of permeability and retentiveness; its appearance denotes fertility. The tenant has, however, abandoned it, on account of its sterility. It is true, he says, that it yielded, some years back, good crops of wheat; but since the last drought it has produced nothing.

This soil belongs to a farm called Point Effingham, situated on the left bank of the river Tamar. It is formed from the disintegration of coarse greenstone and arenaceous rocks. Its position exposes it to

denudation, and it thus contains but coarser elements of the pre-existing rocks. The specific gravity of this soil is 3.2; its colour brown, substance coarse, and cohesion moderate. It is permeable, and but slightly retentive of water. Its external appearance indicates fertility. It was cultivated for several years without manure, but was abandoned, as the crops of wheat, oats, and potatoes generally failed. Mr. Lawrence, the proprietor of the farm, ascribed this failure partly to the frost, partly to the low productive power.

Is a sample of a soil composing a large tract of the northern littoral of Van Diemen's Land, east of Tamar river. It was taken from a farm of Mr. Nowland's, on the river Piper. Greenstone, greywacke, and granitic rocks, each contributed their share towards the formation of this soil. Its specific gravity

is 2.5; colour, reddish; and substance uneven. It contains pebbles of different sizes, embedded in a finely comminuted earth. It is thus both permeable and retentive of water. It was formerly under cultivation without manure. The farmer tried, first wheat, then barley, oats, and potatoes; every crop failed, more or less; upon which the land, though apparently promising, was abandoned.

Belonging to a Cape Portland farm, which is in the hands of an intelligent and industrious tenant, of the name of Bowen. The soils of the farm are formed from the disintegration of gneiss and eurite, and generally produce good crops of wheat and potatoes. The soil, however, which is under consideration, though identical with the rest, produces nothing. Its specific gravity is 2.5; its colour is dark grey; it is gritty, contains very little fine-grained earthy matter,