60 THE MANOR
any dead wood lying about on the ground.1 In areas where the
waste was large and under little control, he obviously had even
• greater opportunities to take what he would.
Many other things were available: for example, turves were
cut in immense numbers. Some of these were used for roofing
sheds or for making up balks; some were dried and used for
fuel. Clay was dug for use in mill dams or for dikes; sand and
gravel were excavated for building purposes. Bracken was cut
and used for litter; the sedges of the fens and ponds were much
sought after for thatching. Wild fruits and berries were gathered
for the kitchen, and on every side the peasants found something
of value which would help them in their struggle to live.
This, then, was the peasant's world. Naturally conditions
varied throughout England. Some villagers had but little
"waste" at their disposal, others had unlimited areas: in some
parts the meadows were rich and provided ample crops, in others
they yielded but poorly, and so on. The reader must constantly
bear this in mind: it is one of the inevitable drawbacks of a
general picture that it fails to showindividual details and interest-
ing variations. We must be on our guard against imagining too
great a uniformity: on the other hand we need not let this reduce
us to a pessimistic belief that no general account of the medieval
manor and its occupants is possible. It is possible if only we will
bear these conditioning factors clearly in mind.
1 See, for example, Yorks Inquis. i, 28 (Pickering Forest, 1351); Ramsey
Cart. I, 307 (1251); Oust. Rents, 83.