trb@cbscc.UUCP (Tom Balent) (04/22/85)
Since you asked, from the Encyclopedia Britannica: Tull, Jethro (b. 1674, Basildon, Berkshire - d. Feb 21, 1741, Prosperous Farm, near Hungerford) , agriculuturist, writer, and inventor whose advanced ideas helped form the basis of modern systems of British agriculture. Tull trained for the bar, to which he was called in 1699; but he chose instead to operate a farm on which in about 1701 he invented a seed drill that sowed seeds in neat rows, saving seed as well as making it easier to keep the weeds down. While travelling in France and Italy, he was impressed by the cultivation methods in use in the vineyards. His observations inspired him to loosen the soil around his crops, and thus increase the access of water to plant roots, by means of a horse-drawn hoe. His ideas were subject to violent attack because of their novelty, but they gradually gained wide acceptance. trb at&t-ns columbus