existed amongst the officers of the garrison, and
many sporting gentlemen, to witness the result.

AGRICULTURAL VARIETIES.

THE BEST HOME MARKET.--The _Norwich Mercury_ of last Saturday contains
no less than seventy advertisements relating to the sale of farming
stock; and a majority of these are cases in which the tenant of the farm
on which a sale is announced is described as one "quitting the
occupation," or "retiring from business." We should like to know how
many of those parties have managed to amass a fortune, or even to
acquire a moderate competency, under that protective system which, as
they have always been taught to believe, was devised for their especial
benefit. From the ominous newspaper paragraphs, announcing the
liberality of landlords to their tenants, which have lately become so
numerous, we rather suspect that most of those farmers who are retiring
from business do so to avoid greater evils. It is worthy of remark,
however, that, amidst all this agricultural depression, which has now
lasted some twelve months at least, the "home trade"--which the
advocates of the corn law always describe as entirely dependent on the
farmers obtaining high prices for their grain--is in a healthier state
than it has been for several years past. The _Standard_ lately stated,
on the authority of a Mr Spackman, that the United Kingdom contained
20,500,000 individuals dependent on agriculture, and only 6,500,000
individuals dependent on manufactures; and, as we have frequently seen
the same absurd statement brought forward at farmers' clubs as
"agricultural statistics," it is possible enough that many persons may
have been led to believe it. Those who do so, however, would find it
rather difficult to explain, under such a division of the population,
the fact, that during four or five years of high prices, which the Duke
of Buckingham designated "agricultural prosperity," the 20,500,000 souls
should have been unable to create a brisk demand for manufactures; while
a single year of cheap provisions has done so much to improve trade, and
relieve the pressure from the shoulders of the labouring classes. Who
that looks at these two facts can have the slightest doubt in his mind
as to what it is that makes the best home market?--_Manchester
Guardian._

CURIOUS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT.--The following novel and interesting
experiment has lately been successfully made by Mr A. Palmer, of Cheam,
Surrey:--In July, 1842, h