28 SEPTEMBER 1839, Page 5

THE HARVEST.

We continue the selections from Country papers, in order to keep our readers informed as to the progress and prospects of the harvest—at the present time by far the most important subject, and one which appears to engross public attention to the exclusion of almost every other.

NORTH r MBERLAND.—The close of the last week was signalized by a change in the weather, which, had it continued without improvement, would have severely injured the crops. The rain on Saturday descended all day with scarcely any interruption, and in the evening it increased to a violent storm, the wind blowing strongly from the East. The Tyne 011 Sunday rose to an un- usual height, and large quantities of corn and other produce were swept down with the current. The various rivers in the district, and especially the streams issuing from the lofty range of the Cheviots, were similarly swollen, and the floods committed great destruction on all low grounds. To enumerate all the cases of datnage sustained, would. extend over several columns, so numerous have been the casualties. Upon the whole, the flood was not so great as that which occurred early in the year 1831, though its consequences, from the season, have been more generally destructive. Norhatn Bridge, in course of erection over the Tweed, was swept away with the flood on Sunday. Showers of rain fell at intervals on Monday. On Tuesday, the weather took up, and has continued exceedingly favourable for the harvest ever since. The wheat crops, which are now in course of being cut in all directions in the North, we are assured, have sustained no material injury, whatever may have been putt forth to the con- trary—Newcastle Journal. Dui:asst.—We have had two or three comparatively fine days since our last, hut there has been a decided preponderance of wet. The coups are, in many places, fast becoming fit for cutting ; but the operations of the reaper have beeu subjected to great interruption by the changes in the weather. The demand for shearers has been very great, and wages are consequently. high.— Durham Chronicle.

WEsTsionewam--It is impossible for as to advert to the state of the wea- titer in Kendal of late without deep concern. The rain for six weeks has fallen almost incessantly, and during the present week there has not passed a day without the most drenching showers. Every brook and rivulet is overflowed, and our river is swollen much beyond. its usual height. As to the crops, it is feared they will be much less than an average, and poor in quality.— Westmore- land Gazette.

YORKSHIRE.—Since Tuesday, we have had. generally fine weather, and reaping has been carried on in this neighbourhood with much vigour. We have seen alarge district of Holderness, and observed that, although some wheat is injured by the floods of rain, the greater proportion is got dry, and we have seen some very good samples. We are not aware how the yield will he in the interior of the Riding., but we should fancy it near an average on those lands we have seen. No crops have been so much injured by the rains as beans ; we have a sample now before us, from near Patrmgton, which is completely spoiled. The continual wet weather has caused the corn in the pod to swell until the pod has burst open, when the grain, not being ripe, has perished.— Mil Observer.

Although time weather during the pest week has neither been hot nor dry, it has, on the whole, been rather lessunfavourable fur harvest operations than it was during the seven days preceding; so that while a good deal of the corn that was ripe has been cut, some fields have also been partially cleared, anti perhaps a little more activity in some quarters might have left still less of the corn ex- posed in fields where it has been long in stack.—Shellield 31ereury. On the whole, the harvest is making tolerable progress, and a good deal of grain is secured, if not in high, yet in fair condition. In most of the wheat fields there are sprit cars, and in some of them, where the hedges are high and the ventilation imperfect, the mischief already done is considerable; but, from our own observatioa, we bhould not say that mis Yorkshire and Lancashire this is by any means general, and a fortnight of tine weather would yet save the harvest. It cannot, however, be clended that we are in the midst of a crisis of great public importance, and that time fate of millions of property, consisting of the necessaries of life and the comforts of' the poor and the rich for a whole year, depend upon fair or foul weather from this time to the end of the present month.—Leells Mercury. LaNCASIIM 1:—Very great anxiety prevails in our district as to the fate of the harvest. I figh-prwed provisions, stinted empl;myment, and in many cases no work at all, inceasing local taxes as a natural consequence of additional pauperism, make us look- towards the (smiling whiter with fearful apprehension. Since our last the rain has Hien almost inecisantly. Not a single day has passed without heavy and most distressing showers. The works on the Bolton and Preston Railway have been much rel•ardd. by the water, and out-door labourers are on the verge of starvation. Portions of grain cut three weeks ago remain unhoused, and probably will be umit for food either Mr man or h`east. —Boltoa Free Press.

Our report of the present week is soon:thi1!! better titan the last, but not much. There has been more of sunshine, mai consequently more work done in the corn-fields. thi the whole, howev.r, the weather has beets very unfh- vourable. Time wheat lms suffered greatly ; Init we are informed that the barley and oats, the latter especially, have hitherto escaped injury. On look- ing around us here, we Mid that rcaphig i., very genera!, though many fields

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reain untouched. Over sands they aro cutting -the wheat, wet or dry, and carrying it to the kilm—Lancaster (.;azci Owing to an unparalleled season, the present harvest has been much re. tarded ; yet in this neighbourhood (Preston), we are happy to state, that a considerable portion of the white corn is cut, particularly wheat, nearly the %%hole of which is housed, and proves be in a much better condition than was expected, after having bens subjected to so much heavy and continued rain. The &now lands, which should have been in a condition for sowing the autumn wheats, are in a shocking, plight, the farmers not having the slightest chance of cleaning them as daring time greatest part of the summer many hare been literally covered with water. Should the wst \MAU much longer pre- vail, it is to be feared that the putato-crop %yin be materially damaged.— Preston Pilot.

DimnitStunti.—We regret to stato, that the harvest in this neighbourhood has beensgreatly retarded, owing to the very heavy fall of rain which comp menced on Friday sennight, and emit:milk!, with little intermission, until Sun- day morning, when it cleared up and mite sun began to shine. About noon, however, the rain again descended hi torrents; aui did not cease during the whole of t he night. The low grounds in the neighbourhood of Chesterfield were almost all inundated; the rivers were largely swollen, and the roads from Chesterfield leading to Derhy and Mansfield were nearly as deep in water as they were during time floods a few weeks siso, when so many of the hay crops were destroyed and swept away. The weather has since been generally fine, although showers have occasionally fallen ; and the sickle is now in full opera- tion. Considerable injury has been caused to the crops in the neighbourhood by the rain ; and we hear but indifferent accounts frem thc surreunding dis- tricts.—Derhyshire Cburier.

LINCOLNSLIME.—Ilarvest operatises are proceeding rapidly in the north of Lincolnshire, where, however, large quantitie, of wheat are still in the fields. In some situations the crop has sustained much damage by the long continu- ance of wet weather, whilst ht other places the condition is decidedly good; on the whole, there is ample reason to believe that the yield of good corn in the county will be quite as great as usual, the extra quantity grown this year fully compensating for any deficiency in time quality in seine tracts.—BuStoa Herald. LEICESTERSIILRE.—Tlkough we have had what the thrillers call a " catch- ing." harvest time, the cold which I. accompanied the rain has prevented the gram from " growing" so much as it would have dime had the weather been warmer. The very hermAT rain which fell on Pridae night and the following day, caused the Abbey 'Afeadow to he completely do-oded. We have seldom witnessed such a fall of raiu as that of Saturday, which, we are afraid, must have done some injury to the growing crops.—Lcio ;der Paper. lirmsrsuntu.—The most gloomy apprehensions ace entertained for the fate of the harvest. On many farms in the Northern parts of this county, the greater part of the wheat crop is still unhoused ; and in some places not a single acre of barley has beets secured. The weather continues unpropitious, and the grain becomes daily more deteriorated in colour and in quality. The harvest in the more forward districts, we fear, will he car from realizing the ex- pectations entertained a few weeks ago.—Deeizes SOMEWSETSIILRE.—The weather of the past week luss been detrimental to the barley to a very serious extent; what was cut in the latter part of the pre- ceding week will be unfit fur malting, and the coo:limed unsettled state of the weather gives us every reason to expect a further advance in the markets. We have had 110 harvest-day during the last week until Saturday, which was a pro- pities's day.—Bath journal. CORNWALL.-111 Cornwall a good deal of wheat has been saved, but there is a good deal still in jeopardy. The lsarley-harvest is almost put a stop to by the constant rains. in the meantime the grain suffers severely, and in soma places it is growing on the ground. The oats too will be badly saved, though less subject to injury from wet than other corm—Dtronport Telegraph. HEREFOR DSUIRE.—Never was there a time more distressing to the farmer than the present week has been ; the unhoused wheats, and indeed the uncut wheats, have grown the length of one's finger within the last few days ; barley, oats, peas, and vetches, are sharing the same fate, and cannot be turned to any account except for manure; a very great portion of the hops are ruined by the wet, cold, ungenial weather, and in many places will not pay for picking, as they will neither possess colour, quality, nor condition this year, and. they con- tinue to get worse and worse every day.—llerefbrd Times.

GLAMOROANSIME.—The state of the crops is everywhere most deplorable; cut and uncut are both beginning to sprout. The barley that is cut lies in pools of water' whilst what is standing is beginning to shed. The farmers are quite puzzledhow to act. It is to be hoped that the weather will soon change for the better.—Merthyr Guardian. CAUNARVONSHIRE.—We regret to state, that in many parts of this and the adjacent counties the grain has begun to sprout, and m some cases the nil. housed crops are nearly worthless. The continuauce of the wet weather has damped the hopes of the farmer; and we fear that generally s waking the crops in this county, and Anglesey, are in a worse state than they tare limo during many years. Very little indeed is safely housed; and we hear similar accounts from the entire of North "O'filee, and also from Cheehire, Lancashire, and Shropshire.—Ceenareon Herald.

SCOTLANP.—The damage done by the rain to the crop generally is very great. The grain has been seriously danmeed, and the hones or the eountr as to the result of the harvest have been &linnet dashed to the ground. rhe weather hag been since better, but is still rather vet, and the welfare. of the country with regard to cheap-and abundant food is still at stake. The crops nre good ; but if the weather continue in the Fame state as it has done fir a month past, scarcity or a famine is sure to overtake ne.—Edineuegh Chronide. The loss by sprouting has gone on to an alarming (-Aleut, I i of cut and uncut corn, and no part of the crop here has yet been secured. Feefe Saturday afternoon till mid-day on Sued:tee the rain fell in tom. las, whilst there was a tremendous gale from the East. The consequence of this vas that all the rivers were swollen to a greater extent than they have been since 1829; and great quantities of corn mei green crops in the adj dning low grounds have been swept away; and even some cattle and sheep were carried off by the Tay, in the upper part of its iouree. 'rim gale has injur; d the crop very much, by breaking it down, shift:bee In Iging, and loosening it at the roots ; the last of which brings on premature ripening. 'We have seen lamentalde accounts of the injury done by the storm ell along the cast coast. We exatnihe,t the district in the neighbourhood of Friockheim, which sustained the danta;e by the hail storm mentioned by us two weeks ago ; and colainly tlw lose is eieeter than we could ha i e had an v idea f.—.him/rose Stara/qr.,.

In the Cars° of (lowrie;in the Mils beyond the reach ef the river, the grain has been laid by the rain as flat as if ii roller had passed over it. From all parts of the country, indeed, the reconnt of the damage cans:ii to the crops by the late rains are alarming. 31,7-y u' ml he heavy sal erers—ainng, in a sin gin' day,

the fruits of their capital and Iasi hard labour.—Thadoa

In cci N o.—The weatlirr c ,:tinued slice our last most favourable to the outs:ending crops. and p:sq•H.,..i to the labours of the husbandman ; and

as the increury is FInirly but rising in the barometer, we may venture to ant:cip.de that the ehave,:e he permanent. If so, the grumblers will

have less TO■1,011 to 1111111,1:-: they hoped.—Dch/in Er( ,lry The weather her; has ken. ,•' thr the last few da■ s ; however, the harvest busines is how v, .-a;.ly over, and from all we can learn, we are led to believe that ;Le viaat 1, Euff,rol materially. hilt that oats and barley are not at all as bad n;s v; •, a:;ticipated.-77pperary Consi;i:ttioth

The accounts from the districts are most melancholy ; the good potato crops have been oil d : a luxuriant meadows rotted by the inces- sant rains; a considerable in ef the nle at hes been beaten down, and

lies flat on the voluel, rfeetly t•- !,•,:ri for any thing but manure ; the large full-eared corn Is blighted in the ; , and the small grain has been literally

washed out of the car, and lv boOrri:.g; to grow. Several of the rivers about here have overflowed, coal rocks of b have been swept away in their merciless current. The potato:: aro abundant, but of a most inferihr quality ; the soapy

moisture beizi; coo- :del tduly iner, a by the floods; the operation of digging this esculent is r,-fi,rmed Ii. ii a rd women, who are livarly up to their middle in water. Every Oh, g kolzs unfavourable; turf is wet and bad, and we fear the most drfeelful remit fro:a tlte ensuing winter. There is no use in concealing the fliet—almost every :e tile of the harvest is destroyed, and the fanners, in the moat desponding re elition, know out what to do.—..1.fayo Teleyraph. With few and short hitervale °illy, the weather has continued, since our last, wet and gloomy, the rain telling with pe iless aspect upon nue meadow: mid corn- fields, adding eerie. limt . to the ruin a-A devastation which prevails, and giving the country a most inelaneholy alone re nee, which the hare,. o labourers behold in absolute despair. In oniefeir twee which they eegerly avail themselves of to sisatch part of their crop from ilep:elling ruin, they are driven from work the ronainder of the day, which unite,: what little they had saved. In many places the wheat flied, are only half ewe not gathered in, but the grain lying on the field drercl.A1 with water, and in others the corn will never be cut.— Li/eerie/I Chronicle.

'We have this week traversed a coffelflerable portion of the county of Louth, and ran say from a rrsanal acquaintance with the subject, that in many dis- tricts the wheat crop may be considered a complete failure, even the straw being, discoloured and unfit for use. A greac breadth both of oats and barley has been laid prostrate. and notwithstanding that both crops may come near an average, yet there will be a eons:der:Ode difficulty in getting them in. Part of the marshy lands adjoining the great ling of Ardee, on which a short time since cattle were feeding, is liow navigable for boats, and in sonic places the mere tops of large cocks of hay arc visible above the surface—whilst such of the turf- clamps, as have not been carried away, are almost completely submerged. We fear the agriculturist has a nalliticiloly prospect before him.—Droylieda Jaarnal.

Our correspondent's letter gives a most deplorable account, particularly of the state of the wheat crop. We trust, however, that in other parts of Ireland the 3tate of things is not so bad.—Utster Times.