Agronomists

"Mr. Walcot says of his Water, that it was smooth, soft, cooling, and would not decay or putrify in many Years, no not in seven Years... But by its continuing so long in an unputrified State, I suspect there was Spirit of Salt in it, that came over in Distillation: For tho' distiiled common Water is known to keep longer without putrifying, than undistilled Water by reason of its greater purity; yet I found some of the good distiiled Sea-Water to putrify in some time after Distillation, but that which had in it Spirit of Salt never putrified."

"In William Stukeley... who came in 1704 to live in Corpus Christi College, Hales seems to have found a very congenial companion, though Stukeley was the younger by ten years. ...The two friends also studied anatomy together, dissecting frogs, dogs and other animals; while Hales devised an ingenious method of obtaining a preparation of the lungs in lead. They moreover studied chemistry and "repeated many of Mr. Boyle’s experiments" and prepared various substances, "some of use, some of curiosity.""

"[It] is evident, not only from considering the Effects of the Engine, which exchanges great Quantities of bad, for good Air; but also from the Event it having been found very salutary by the Swedes who have made the Trial."

"During his residence in the college, a period of about twelve years (1696-1708 or 1709), he applied himself with great zeal to the study of natural and experimental philosophy."

"In the Year 1683 Mr. Fitz-gerald, a near Relation of the Famous Robert Boyle Esq; having upon Mr. Boyle's encouragement made a Discovery of a new easy and practicable way of making salt Water fresh... Mr. Walcot asserted before the House of Commons, that Mr. Fitz-gerald's Water was rough, harsh, fiery, corroding and tormenting the Body when constantly drank of. This I suspect was the true Reason why both their Methods of preparing fresh Sea-Water were disused..."

"And if we reflect upon the discoveries that have been made in the animal œconomy, we shall find that the most considerable and rational accounts of it have been chiefly owing to the statical examination of their fluids, viz. by enquiring what quantity of fluids, and solids dissolved into fluids, the animal daily takes in for its support and nourishment: And with what force and different rapidities those fluids are carried about in their proper channels, according to the different secretions that are to be made from them: And in what proportion the recrementitious fluid is conveyed away, to make room for fresh supplies; and what portion of this recrement nature allots to be carried off, by the several kinds of emunctories and excretory ducts."

"Hales and Stukeley... were also witnesses of the chemical operations which Vigani was accustomed to perform in a room in Trinity College... formerly... the laboratory of Sir Isaac Newton."

"Hales was also a student of astronomy and constructed a brass machine for demonstrating the movements of the planets, and of this Stukeley made a sketch."

"Green s serene retreat, For Philosophic studies meet, Where the good Pastor, Stephen Hales Weigh'd moisture in a pair of scales, To ling'ring death put s and dogs, And stripp'd the skin from living frogs (Nature he loved, her works intent To search, and sometimes, to torment!)"

"We have... many proofs of the great force with which plants and their several branches and leaves imbibe moisture, up their capillary sap vessels: The great influence the perspiring leaves have in this work..."

"The work and writings of Hales embrace a very broad field, which includes chemistry, botany, , medicine and public hygiene, not to mention sermons and temperance tracts."

"The "Vegetable Staticks" was so well received that a second edition was published in 1731."

"[T]he first important conception to be grasped by the student is that of the blood pressure, and the first experiment is designed to demonstrate its existence and to estimate its amount. ...It consists in connecting the of a dog to a long glass tube. Into this tube the blood mounts up and up to a height of five or six feet and then oscillates up or down with each contraction or relaxation of the heart. Such a tube... is called... the "Hales manometer" after its inventor... Dr. Hales."

"But whereas in some Cases, it is observed by Physicians to be too inflammatory, it is probable, that heating Quality, may in some Degree be abated, by making Tar-Water with the Strainer... without Stirring; thereby to divest the Water of a good Quantity of its grosser, tarrish Particles, and yet retain whatever Powers it may have to do good."

"In his experiments he must have prepared , oxygen, , and , and though they were all "air" to him, he introduced some important improvements in the way of chemical apparatus and manipulations, and was perhaps the first chemist to employ quantitative methods."

"Under his supervision the water supply of the [] parish was greatly improved..."

"Hence likewise it is, that these spirituous Liquors rarely fail to destroy the Appetite and Digestion of those, who habituate themselves to them; for by drying up, and spoiling the Nerves, they make them insensible; they destroy also many of the very fine Blood Vessels, especially where their Fibres are most tender, as in the Brain; by which means, the Memory and intellectual Faculties are ruined: Nay, by inflaming the Blood, and disordering the Blood-Vessels and Nerves, they vitiate and deprave the Natural Temper."

"A Translation of which ingenious Treatise, was communicated to me by Dr. Mortimer; in which he says, "In Hospitals and Barracks for the Sick, this Machine is placed in the , from whence two or three Pipes go down, some Inches thro' the Ceiling, into each Room where the Sick lie; and thus draw out all the unwholesome Air and Stench, which does more harm than any Physick can repair. And at the same time, has this accidental Benefit, That those who begin to mend, may give themselves a proper Exercise, in working the Machine: Only they ought to take care to keep all the Garret-Windows open, while the Machine is a going. In Men of War and Hospital-Ships, this Machine is placed on the upper Deck, directly over the great other Hatch: And then the Pipe, which goes down between the Decks, draws out the unwholesome Air; which is instantly supplied by fresh."

"In 1719 he reported before the Royal Society some experiments which he had lately made on the effect of the sun’s warmth in raising the sap in trees. ...[T]he Society... requested him to continue his research. [Peter Collinson ] writes, "...Hales complied with great pleasure, and on the 14th of June, 1725, he exhibited a treatise in which he gave an account of his progress." At the request of the Society this treatise was published an appeared in 1727 under the following title: "Vegetable Staticks...""

"Quality men are not afraid of quality women."

"Men put roadblocks in front of women as a way of hiding their inefficiencies."

"Emphasis is placed on the strengthening of parliamentary institutions through proactive measures to endow the parliament with greater accountability and oversight powers."

"The outcomes of the workshop will be to help strengthen, improve and properly align the objectives of the Alliance with that of the Technical Cooperation Project document, which will be the guiding tool for the implementation"

"The parliamentarians also underscored the importance of parliamentary dialogue in countries, regions and globally, in order to share good practice and experiences in ensuring food security and adequate nutrition."

"I believe the proposed workshop is exactly what they would deem an “effective response” and “proactive measure” in the strive for a food-secure world."

"food insecurity and malnutrition is not only an ongoing African problem, it is a global issue that needs to be dealt with in an efficient, proactive manner."

"Such sectoral coordination will help in addressing food security and nutrition in a holistic manner, which in turn, will help maximize limited resources and gains. Partnership with other institutions has also helped PAP access data, which is critical for inform decision-making, debate, advocacy, and lobbying."

"The Parliaments upcoming workshop will communicate and recognize the importance of the parliamentarians observations and conclusions on the future of food."

"The prophet is always at the mercy of events; nevertheless, I venture to conclude this book with the forecast that at least half the illnesses of mankind will disappear once our food supplies are raised from fertile soil and consumed in a fresh condition."

"The idea has grown up that the scientific approach can alone properly be said to be intellectual, whereas the approach of religion cannot, and that therefore the tendency of religion is to impede intellectuality. This is not to be wondered at in people for whom the word "intellectuality" implies no more than conformity to the scientific approach; but if the goal of intellectuality is not a better understanding of the origin, nature and end of man and of the universe, what is it? It is just such an understanding that religion claims to offer, and in so far as that claim is justified, religion, very far from impeding intellectuality, is an essential part of it."

"Science offers no alternative framework. The best it can offer is wealth in a wide sense of the term, that is to say, the satisfaction of a wide variety of desires. It cannot conceive of any means of achieving that escape from desires we call "contentment" otherwise than through the satisfaction of those desires; it has not yet learnt that there is no limit to the multiplication of desires, nor that, since different people's desires are often mutually incompatible, an indefinite multiplication of desires increases conflict as well as discontent."

"People, even poor people, were in general more contented before the 1914-18 war than they are now, although not nearly so well provided with comforts and luxuries. Incidentally they were also more often people of strong individuality, "characters" or "personalities" as we might say; not of course always either virtuous or agreeable, but qualitatively distinctive, not mere drops in an ocean of mediocrity. And they were more content with their lot than we are. What then is the true criterion of contentment? Can it be anything but the acceptance of one's lot, whatever it may be? Or in other words, knowing one's place and fulfilling faithfully whatever function may be associated with it, with a pride in the quality of the product as the principal incentive rather than any tangible reward; knowing, perhaps, that not to want is better than to have; and above all being intelligent enough not to place one's best hopes in nothing but the satisfactions which a short sojourn in this world can bring. All these things are criteria of contentment, and at the same time they are universal ethical constituents of every religion and tradition."

"If the confusion, fear and discontent of our times seem to be reaching towards an extreme, despite a technological development bringing a wealth and a luxury unparalleled in history, why is an exactly coincident decay of religion scarcely ever suggested as a causal factor?"

"Anyone who clings to religion is clinging, not to an arbitrary framework of man's devising, but to the only framework that can serve as a starting-point for the realization of an inward freedom that is independent of terrestrial contingencies."

"An English agronomist, Arthur Young wrote to George Washington concerning the economics of the American experience. He wanted to know what enticed or motivated the Americans to use so much land so quickly. The letters of George Washington (1801) are a fascinating response to the questions of Mr Young. Not only did Washington respond with accounts of his estate at Mount Vernon but he asked several of his colleagues, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, among others, about the economics of farming... Young was interested to see if slavery, the cost of labor, had a role in the methods used, but Washington was convinced that the abundance of new and very cheap land was at fault."

"A vast change had taken place in English social life within two generations... View the navigation, the roads, the harbours and all other public works. Take notice of the spirit with which manufactures are carried on. Move your eye which side you will, you behold nothing but great riches and yet greater resources."

"The Englishman, in eleven years, gets three bushels more of wheat than the Frenchman. He gets three crops of barley, tares, or beans, which produce nearly twice as many bushels per acre, as what the three French crops of spring corn produce. And he farther gets, at the same time, three crops of turnips and two of clover, the turnips worth 40s. the acre, and the clover 60s. that is 12l. for both. What an enormous superiority! More wheat; almost double of the spring corn; and above 20s. per acre per annum in turnips and clover. But farther; the Englishman's land, by means of the manure arising from the consumption of the turnips and clover is in a constant state of improvement, while the Frenchman's farm is stationary."

"No person can have been in Norfolk without quickly perceiving, that in this branch of rural economy the county has very little to boast. No where are meadows and pastures worse managed: in all parts of the county we see them over-run with all sorts of spontaneous rubbish, bushes, briars, rushes: the water stagnant: ant-hills numerous: in a word, left in a state of nature, by men who willingly make all sorts of exertions to render their arable land clean, rich and productive."

"A country is signally blessed above others, which can grow ."

"I have before proved the nation to be in the possession of a vast income, highly sufficient for all demands, to possess a vigorous agriculture, flourishing manufactures, and an extended commerce, in a word, to be a great industrious country. Now I conceive that it is impossible to prove such points, without proportionably proving the kingdom to be a populous one."

"every one but an ideot knows that the lower classes must be kept poor, or they will never be industrious:: I do not mean that the poor in England are to be kept like the poor of France; but the state of the country considered, they must be (like all mankind) in poverty, or they will not work."

"Small properties, much divided, prove the greatest source of misery that can possibly be conceived, and has operated to such a degree and extent in France, that a law ought certainly to be made to render all division below a certain number of arpens illegal."

"He was fitter for that (meaning Husbandry) than for heroick history: he did well when he turned his sword into a ploughshare."

"Harte was excessively vain. He put copies of his book (the History of Gustavus Adolphus) in manuscript into the hands of lord Chesterfield and lord Granville, that they might revise it. Now how absurd was it to suppose that two such noblemen would revise so big a manuscript. Poor man! He left London the day of the publication of his book, that he might be out of the way of the great praise he was to receive; and he was ashamed to return, when he found how ill his book had succeeded. It was unlucky in coming out on the same day with Robertson's History of Scotland. His husbandry, however, is good."

"Industry is the vis motrix of husbandry, and therefore an ancient English writer observes, "that a single uncultivated acre is a real physical evil in any state.""

"From the multitude of books published on the subject of cultivating the earth, one would have imagined the art to have been more studied, than it really has been; since upon the whole it continued in. a sort of declining condition from the days of Virgil and Columella, till the time of . and then lay in a kind of dormant state till about the middle of Henry VIIIth's reign, when it was rather revived,, than improved. Indeed, about that time, Judge Fitzherbert, in England (better known among us, as author of another/ excellent work, called Natura Brevium) Tatti, Stefano, ', Sansovino, Lauro, Tarello, &c. in Italy, published several considerable books in Agriculture; but our countryman was the first, if we except Crescenzio dell' Agricoltura, (whose fine performance was printed at Florence in 1478) and Pier Marino the translator of Palladius de Re Rustica, who made his work public in the year 1528."

"There is at Paris likewife another sort of fodder which they call la lucern which is not inferior, but rather preferred before sainfoin. Every day produces some new things concerning it, not only in other countries but in our own."

"If the national husbandry of this commonwealth be improved, we may hope, through god's blessing, to see better days, and be able to bear necessary and public burdens to more ease to ourselves, and benefit to human society, than hitherto we could attain to."

"Samuel Hartlib, a celebrated writer on husbandry in the last century, a gentleman much beloved and esteemed by Milton, in his preface to the work, commonly called his Legacy, laments greatly that no public director of husbandry was established in England By Authority; and that we had not adopted the Flemish custom of letting farms upon improvement... Cromwell, in consequence of this admirable performance, allowed Hartlib a pension of 100l. a year ; and Hartlib afterwards, the better to fulfil the intentions of his benefactor, procured Dr. Beati's excellent annotations on the Legacy, with other valuable pieces from bis numerous correspondents."

"According to Sir Anthony Fitzherbert it was the custom in England to shear wheat and rye and to leave the straw standing after the third method described by Varro, the purpose being to preserve the straw to be cut later for thatching, as threshing It would necessarily destroy its value for thatching. It was the custom in England, however, to mow barley and oats."