6a6
I {hall not quit the fubjeft of Italian governments without remarking, that fuch defertsas Sardinia , under a defpotic monarch, and Iftria under a defpotic ariftocracy, are to beclafled among political leffons. The tendency and refult of fuch cafes are fufficient to{hew the principles of government: the leaders fhould fpeedily correct the negledt offuch fyItems. When people are well governed, things cannot be thus. The wifdomapplicable to the prefent moment is to watch the colour and fpirit of the age; to com- •>pound, and to yield, where yielding is rational.
Academies. —There is an agrarian fociety at Turin , which has publithed four vo-lumes of papers: a patriotic fociety at Milan, which has publifhed two volumes ; neitherof thefe focieties hath any land for trying experiments. At Bergamo , Brefcia, andVerona, there are alfo focieties without land. At Vicenza , the republic has given fourcampi for the purpofe of experiments. At Padua , I viewed the experimental garden,of about a dozen acres, under the direction of Sig. Pietro Arduino ; the expence ofwhich is alfo paid by the ftate. At Florence, a fimilar one, under the conduct of Sig.Zucchino ; this was in good order.
Venice —Perhaps no country ever had a wifer plan of conduct than the Venetians, inappointing a gentleman fuppofed, from his writings, to be well {killed in agriculture(Sig. Arduino ), to travel over all their dominions, to make inquiries into the (late ofagriculture, its deficiencies, and practicable improvements; and the idea was, that theacademies of agriculture, in all the great towns of the republic, would have orders totake fuch fteps to effeCt the improvements as would moll conduce to national profperity.The plan was admirable; all, however, depends on the execution; as far as the aca-demies are concerned, I fhould expeCt it to fail, for none of them are eftablifhed uponprinciples that will allow us to fuppofe their members {killed in praElical hufbandry jand without this, their ideas and their experiments would of courfe be vifionary.
Brought over, - 396,507
Cows and cow-calves, rudt, ... 166,46s
He-goats, - 1 - - - 42.597
Sheep, ..... 768,250
Rams and wethers *. - ... 143,502
1,895,525
The miferable ftate of this ifland will bell appear from calculating the number of acres. Templemantells us, that it contains 6,600 fquare miles. England be makes 49,450 ; the real contents of which, inacres, are 46,915,933 ; Sardinia , in the fame ratio, contains 6,261,782 : the number of goats and fheep inthe ifland is 1,332,550; there is, therefore, about one fheep or goat to every five acres. Without viewingthe ifland, I will venture to pronounce that it would, without cultivation, fnpport a fheep per acre ; abovefix millions ; and reckoning the fleeces at 3s. 4d. each, the wool only would produce one million ilerlinga-year. It is faid, the King of Sardinia offered to fell the ifland to the Emprefs of Ruflia for a million fter-ling. The purchafer of it would have a noble eftate at twice that price, feeing the immenfe improvementsof which it is capable. The fee-fimple of molt of the ellates are to be purchafed at a very eafy rate, aswell as the fovereiguty. The climate would admit of wool, as fine as the Spanifh ; if it were made into animmenfe fheep-walk, with culture only proportioned to their winter fupport, it would yield an exportableproduce of full two millions fterling annually.
Gemelli mentions the ifland being capable of producing as fine wool as Spain ; they rear them only forfupplying their tables with larob3 and cheek ; and to have flcins for dreffing the people ; and no attentionwhatever is paid to the quality of the wool, which is good for nothing but to make the Sardinian ferges.
* Gemelli, tom. ii. p. 148.
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