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RURAL ECONOMY

O P Henry C. Taylor.

YORKSHIRE.

COMPRIZING THE

Management of Landed Eftates^

AND THE

PRESENT PRAGTIGE of HUSBANDRY

IN T H £

AGRICULTURAL DIST'RICrS

OF THAT COUNTY.

Bj Mr. MARSHALL.

the second edition,

In two volumes.

VOL. I.

LONDON:

Piintedibr G. Nicol, Bookfellcr to His Majefty, Pall Mall |

G, G.and J. Robinso?^, Paiernofter RoW}

and J. Debrett, Piccadilly.

M,ecc,xcvi.

n%

Henry C. T^,vlor.

ADVERTISEMENT.

FROM Norfolk*, I paiTed, in November
1782, through Lincolnfhire, into YpRK-
5HIRE : where I fpent fix months : princi*
pally, in obferving and regiftering its Rural
Pradlices : a tafk I was the better enabled
to perform, in fo fhort a time, as piy early
youth was fpent among theni ; and my ac-
quaintance, with the prefent Pra(5litioners,
cxtenfive.

When I left the County, in May 1783, I
confidered myfelf pofleiTed of Materials fuf-
ficient for the purpofe, which I bad at that
time in view. But, on digeiling my papers
(after I had feen the Pradlice of Norfolk ^
through the Prefs), I found many additions
wanting, to render my Regifter fit, as a fepa-
rate Work, for the public eye. I therefore
paid this Country a fecdnd agricultural vifit,
in March lafl, (1787;) and have made a
A 2 farther

* See the Preface to the Rural Economy of Norfoik,

IV ADVERTISEMENT.

farther ftay in it of nine months : during
which time, I have not only filled up the
denciencies, I was aware of; but have re-
ceived a greater influx of frefli information,
than I had any reafon to expect.

It was mv intention, when I came into the
Coont^^ to have made excursions, into
its feveral Diftricls ; but having found, in the
immediate enviro;:s of the station, full
employment for the time appropriated to the
County, I am under the neceflity of poft*
poning the intended excurfions. 1 ppftponc
them, however, with lefs regret; as, in ac-
quiring a general knowledge of the Rural
Economy of the Kingdom, the primary
object is to obtain, with flillnefs and accuracy,
the widely di^'ering Pracfices of Statio^is,
chofen in distant Departments. The
partial excellencies of intermediate Dis-
tricts, howfoever dcfirable they may be>
Are objeds of a fecondary nature.

Pickering, 21 December 1787.

PUBLISHED, March I78S.

ADVER-

ADVERTISEMENT

T O T H E

SECOND EDITION.

THE Surveys that have recently been
made, under the Diredlion of the
Board of Agriculture, have precluded
the neceflity of extending my Examinations,
in this County.

I have, however, purpofely refrained from
profiting by thefe Surveys, in this Edition ;
as it is my intention to go through the whole
of the Board's Report?, analytically, and to
felc6l fuch Notices, and Particulars of Prac-
tice, as may have efcaped my own Obfer-
vations, in the feveral Departments of the
Kingdom. Indeed, it has been my defire,
in reviling thefe Volumes, to comprefs them,
rather than to enlarge their bulk, and to

confine

VI ADVERTISEMENT TO THE

confine them, as clofely as I could, to my
QWN Observations on the established
Practices of this Department.

For, it may be proper to reinark, that, at
the time thefe Volumes were written, the
Completion of my General Defign was in a
{late of great Uncertainty'. I was therefore
the more anxious to inftil into them the
pradical Ideas, whjch a length of CiXperience
had furnilhed, but which had not been pre-
vioufly regiftered : and the precarious ftatc
cf my health, at that time, was another
motive for m.y wifliing Xo incorporate them
with the Practice I was then regiftering ;
more efpecially, perhaps, as it was the Prac-«
tice of my native Country. But on revifion,
I have found them, in genera^ fo firmly
engrafted on the provincial pravflice of the
Diflridj as not to be feparable from it, with-
out violence. Some general Obfervations on
the Extirpation of Weeds, being the chief
part of the adventitious matter I have been
abl(^ to fcparr.te, with flricl propriet)'.

HoweveFi

fcECbND EDITION. vii

However, in profecuting this deliberate
Revifal, I have been attentive to improve
the general Arrangement of the Work^
and have made fuch other Corrections
and Alterations, as Time and increafmg
JExperience have enabled me to make.

To each Volume, I have now prefixed an
analytic TABLfe OF Contents ; as well
to give the Reader a comprehenfive View of
the general Subjeft, with its various Diviiions
and Ramifications, as to lighten, as much as
poffible, the Labor of Reference.
London, Stptemier^ i'j()6*

ANALYTIC

ANALYTIC TABLE

O F

CONTENTS

OF THE

FIRST VOLUME.

\_ THE

COUNTY OF YORK.

Divided into Natural Diftrids, i.
Weft Yorkfhire, 2.

The Weilem Morelands.

Craven, 3.

The Manufacturing Diftrifl.

The Vale of York.
Eafl Yorklhire.

Cleveland, 4.

The Eartern Alorelands.

The Vale of Pickering, $.

Note on Nati-ral Districts.
The Wolds, 6.
Holdernefs.

Confidered as a Subjefl of Rural Survey, 7.

Rivers.
Mines, 8.
Manufadures.
Sea Ports,
Vol. I. a The

Contents.

The Weftcrn Divifion unfit as a Subje6t of
Study.

The Natural and Acquired Advantages ofEafl
Yorkfhire, 9.

Variety of SoU and .urface.
Indullry of iis IriJiauitanu.
Spirit of ioiprovemenc.

THE

VALE OF PICKERING*

Introductory View OF this District.

I. Its Situation defcribed, 10.
II. Its Extent about 300 fquare Miles,

III. Its Surface and Soils.

IV. Its Climature behind its Latitude, 12.
V, its Rivers and Brooks nnmerous, 13.

Geological Remark on the Brooks of the Nor-
thern Margin, N. 13.
VI. Irdand Navigations, 14.

An eligible one fuggellcd, 15. ,

VII. The Townfhips of the Vale, 16.
VIII. The State of Inclofure.
IX. Prefent Produdions, 27. y
X. Ornamental Appearance.

THfi

Contents. xi

THE

RURAL ECONOMY

O F

THIS DISTRICT.

DIVISION THE FIRST.

ESTATES AND THEIR MANAGEMENTo

Sect. I. Eitates and Tenures, i8.
I, Size of EiUtes.
II. Proprietors, 19.
III. Tenures, 20.

The ancient Privilege of Windrake de-
fcribcd, 2 1 .

Sect. II. General Management of Eftates, 21.
Prefatory Remarks.

Differs widely from the Norfolk PrafHcc
Inltance of great Indaigence to Tenants.

Its Effects, 2i.
Inftance of an immoderate Rife of Rent, 24.

Its Effed.
A fair medium Rent is the moft advan*

ugeous to all Parties, 25.
Coniidence is the only Tie, between Land-
lords and Tenants at Wiu.
Eftates may be rented higiier under Leaie,

thai at Will, 26.
Leafes recommended, 27.
The Management of Eitates is a Matte of
the higheil Iroporunce in Ci\'ilized
Society.

22 I. Manor

xii Contents.

I. Manor Courts, 27.

Their many Ber\efits to a Country, 2§»
Their Revival luggefted.

II. Purchafe of Lands, 29.

The Value of Lands fluftuate.

Caufe of Flufluation.

Principles obfervable in Purchafing and

Selling Lands, 30.
The prefent Purchafe Value of Lands in

the Vale, 31.

III. Tenancy.

Moftly at Will,
Some Church Leafcs.

IV. Length of Leafes.
V. Rent of Land, 3I.

High in Proportion to Quality.

Reafons afligned for this.

The Rental Value of Land well underftood

here.
A Subjeft, in general, too little attended

to, in the Management of Ellates, 33.

VL Covenants and Cuftoms of Tenantry, 34.
Tenants, heretofore, kept up Farms as

their own.
But Confidence being lofl, Leafes are be-
come requifite, and Covenants neccflary.
Woodlands now taken into Hand.

VIL Removal of Tenants, 35.

Time of Removal, in this DiftriA.
Conditions of Removal.
General Remarks on the Time of Re-
moval, 36.

VIIL Receiving Rents, 38.
The I ime varies.
The Manner bimple, 39.

IX. Forms of Leafes.

On the Ufe of Collefting the Forms of dif-
ferent Diftrifti.

The Head* of a r orm, in ihis DLbift, ana-
lytically arranged, 40.

Sect.

Consents. jdii

Sect. III. Inclofures, 45.

Note on Judge Fitzherbert.
The Frogrefs of Inclofure, in the 1 fland at large.
Its Progrefs in this Diftrid, 47.
The Townfhip of Pickering deicribed, 48.
The fingular Hiftory of its Inclofure, 50.
The Principles of Inclosure examined,

54-
Origin of Commons.

Fitzherbert's Authority.
The Laying out of Townflilps, 56.
Each 'I ownfhip was one common Farm.
The infeparable Alliance of common Paftures
and common Fields, 57.
The former necefiarily belonged to the ap-
propriated £«?/</;, 58,
Fuel and Fanage, on the contrary, belonged to

the Habitations,
The rightful Claim of ancient Houfes, 59.
Their ufurped Claim oi Prefentation.

Similar to that of Church Advowfon, 60.
The prefent Rights of Lands and Houfes.
A Houfe without Lands.
Lands without a Houfe.
The Sites of ancient Houfes, 61,
TJie Jntereft of dormant Lands.
The Interefls of Situation confidered.
The Limits of Right, on unllinted Commons,
63. .

The Common Stock, in Proportion to the

Winter Food.
Fitzherbert's Authority, 64.
The Lord's Right on the Pajlurage of Com-
mons fully confidered, 65.
The Wood of a Common belongs folely to the
Lord of the Soil, 68.
Fitzherbert's Authority.
Unlefs fet afide by ancient Cuftom, 70.
Peatbogs and Moory Heaths, their rightful

Claimants, 71.
The Rights of Lords of Manors fummed up.
The Right of Soili feparately confidered, 72.
RECAriTULATiON of the General Interefls.
Commonright Lands held with Common-
right Houfes.
Commonright Lands held without Com-
pionright Houfes, 73^.

a 3 QDminox*

xiV Contents.

Comronright Houfes, 74.

Commonright Sites of Houfes, 75.

The Lord of the Soil, 76.
The Pickering In closure Bill exa-
mined, and its Claufes remarked on, 77.
The Trial at Law concerning it, 80.

The Uncertainty of the Law inftanced, 81.
Th* Knarefborough Bill noticed, 82.
Gcuw-ral Principles of Inclofure are eflenijally

neceffarv to he ertabliihed, 83.
The Sinnington Bill analyzed, and remarked

or, 84.
The Middlcron Bill noticed, 90.
A Gemral Principlh of Inclofure.
The DiFrERE>T Modes of Inclosure.

J. Inclofure by Exchanges, 91.

J. Inclofure by private Commiilion, 92.

3. Inclofure by Aft of Parliament.

A GENERAL BILL OF INCLOSURE pro-
pofed, 94.

The Interefls enumerated, 9^.

The Quantity of Approbation required, 96.
Concluding Remarks, 97.

SiCT.rV. Farm Buildings, 98.

I. Materials.

I. Stones the chief walling Material.
3. Pantiles a common Covering, 99,

Remarks on their Manufafture, ico,

3. Deal, 101.

4. Bricks.

5. Cements.

Ar.alyfis of the Cements of Pickering

Caftle, IC3.
General Observations on Cements

and their Application, 109.
An improved Method of Slaking Lijne«

114.
A Cement yi!l thought of, 115.

6. Oak.

II. Farmeries, 116,

On Fancy Farm Houfes.

General Principles in Rural Arc hi tec-

TURI-

The prevailing FarmYard of this Diilrift, 118.
Inllance of a Chamber Barn, 1 19.
Rcmarka en Chamber Barnfloors.

A Simple

Contents. xy

A Simple Plan of a (inall Farmery ofiere^,

122.

Inftance of a Granary over a Bam Floor,

Remark on Bam Doors, 124.
The YorkHiire Barn compared with that
of M or folk, 135.

III. Operations in Rural Archite^hire.
I. Laying on Pantiles, 126.
z. Copings of Roofs and Gables, 1280

3. Eaves Gutters, 131.

4. Water Citterns or Tanks, 132.
^. Painting Window Leads, 735.
6. Floors of Cement.

3scT. V. Drinking Places, 136.
I. Made Pools, 137.

The Methods in Ufe, in different Coub^

tries.
The Yorkfliire Method defcribed.

1. The Run, or CoUeding Surface, 139.

2. Forming the Bafonof the Refervoir, 141.

3. Liming ihe Bed of the Clay, 144.

4. Claying the Bafon, 146.

5. Covering the Clay with Hard Materials,

149.

6. Seafon of Making, 152,

7. Expcnce of Making, 153.
Remarks on the Utility of thefe Fools*

'56-
General Obfervations on Covering, 157,

Pavement recommended, 159.

11. Made Rills, 162.

Rife of the Praftice, in Yorklhire, 163,
The Requifites in planning a Rill, 164.
The Method of executing it, 165.
The proper Fall.

The Lnejnies of Made Rills, 16$.
The Kill of Kirbvmooriidc.

The firft Coft. '

Its Superin tendance.
Inttance of Mifcarriage.

Hints for preventing Mifcarrkges, N,

HI. Field WelJs, 168.

a 1^ S^.cp'

xvi Contents.

Sect. VI. Roads, i68.

Their Hiftory, in this Diftria, fltetchcd, 1 6g.
A Principle in forming Roads, 170.
Remarks on Repairing, 171.
Practical Remarks on Forming.
Further Remarks on Repairing, 176.
Working Way-Reaves recommended, 177.
On the w'idth of Roads, 178.

The Turnpike Bill deficient in this Re-
fped.
Remarks onGraffy Lanes, 179.
On the Height of Road ITedges.

Should be adapted to the given Countr)',
181.

Sect. VII. Shores and Embankments, j8i.

Definition of the word Shore, N. 181.
A General Principle, i8i.
The State of this Diftrid.

The Weft Marflies an Inflance of proper

Management, 183.
The Eaff Marfhes the Reverfe.
Practical Remarks on Reclaiming

Fenn V Lands.
Inflance Lf River Embankment, 187.
Another Inflance, 189.
A General Pri NCiPLE,inthe I^Ianage-

MiNT OF Estates, 190.

Sect.VIII. Fences, 190.

I. Gates, 191.

On the Height of Gat«.
On Hanging Gates.

General Jnftruiflions for Hanging
Gates on Pivots 192.

II. Fence Walls, 194.

Remarks on their Eligibility.

Their Conftruftion, in this Diilrifl, 19^.

III. Pofls and Rails.

Uied were as a Temporary Fence.

IV. Dead Hedges, 196.

A fuperior Method of Eddering.

V. Live

Contents. :^yH

V. Live Hedges, 197.

Prefatory Remarks.

1. Species of Hedgewood, 198,

2. Planting Hedgewoods, 200.

With a Ditch.

On level Ground, 201.

On forting Hedge Plants, 202.'

Burying the Plants !

3. Defending young Hedges, 204.

Setting Ridgets of Earth, on the outer
Brink of the Ditch, 205.

4. Trainjng young Hedges.

Guarding, Weeding, and Pruning,

206.
On Prun -.ig with fingle Stems.

5. Aftermanagemeht, 207.

Age of Felling.

Method of felling, 20S.

6. Treatment of old Hedges.

Reclaiming thin Hedges, 209.

On reverfing the Ditch of old Hunted

Hedges, 210.
General Remarks on the Hedges of

this Diftrift.
Caufes of their Excellency.
Their Ages afcertained, and remarked

on, 211.
Means to prolong the Duration of

Hedges.
Tenants have not a permanent In-

tereft in Hedges, 213.
A Hayward neceiTary on a large

EUate, 214.

Sect. IX. Hedgerow Timber, 215.

Its EfFeft on Inclofures.

General Obfervations on this Subje^, 217,

DIVISION

XviH C O K T E K T S.

DIVISION THE SBCOND.

WOODLANDS

AND

PLANTATIONS.

SiCT. I, Natural, Woods, 219.

PrcfatorA' Remarks on their pafl and prefcnt
State, in this Dillritl.

\. Raifing Woods, 220.
From Sci-'ds.

Nature's Method, 221.
from Stools of Fallen Trees.

The Praftice of thi? Diitrift detailed.
The Progrefs of Sapling Timberlings,
Remarks on " Wavers," 224.
The Succefs cf Raifing Timber Trees,
from Stools, uncertain.

II. Selling Woodland Produce, 224.

1. The Age of Selling, 225.

2. The Mode of Diipofal, 226.

Remarks en Sale by Acctiow.

3. The Method of Valuing 1 im'oer here.

III. Taking down Wood Timber, 227.

Method of Cutting.
Peeling and Drying Bark.

IV. Fallen Timber, 228.

Markets and Prices.

V. Bark of Oak, 229.
\ I. Carriage of Timber, a30,

A diftinft Employment, here.
The Price of Carriage, by the Mile.
/'.■z Inference drawn, refpeding the
Propagation of linbcr, 251.

Sect

Contents. xiK

Sect. II. Plantations, 231.

The prefent Spirit of Planting noticed.
The Plantations of the Woids, 232.

The Beech recommendeJ.
Inftance of Impruvement, by Planting and
Draining a Moory Site, 133.
A Detail of this Improvement, 234.
The Progrefs of different Foreft Trees, on»
■ Drained Moory Soil, 235.
Remarks on the proper Trees for fuch '^
Situation, 236. '

DIVISION THE THIRD.

AGRICULTURE,

Sect. I. Farms, 239.

Sizes of Farms are remarkably fmall.

General Remarks on this important
Subject.
Charafteriflics of Farms, 241.

Sect. II. Farmers, 242.

Sect. IE. Workpeople, 1244.

Sect. IV. Beafts of Labor, 245.

Their Hiftory in this Diftri(fl.

Caufcs of the Decline of Oxen, 247.

Their Eftimation, here, 248.

Their Comparifon with Horfes.

Hint on the Breeding of Working Oxen, 25CV

Method of Working Oxen, here.

Reflcitigns on the Age of Working, 25 1 .

Skct.

JM ' C O N' T E N" T S.

Sect. V. Implements, 252.

I. Waggon of the Vale.

An laiprcvf ment of the Wheel wifher. N.

G £ N E R A L R E M A K K s on thf propci Width

beiAcea the Wheels of Carriages,

Gateways propcfed as a Gauge, 256.
IT. The Plow of the Vale, 257.

Ge:.e.>.ai. Remarks od the Conftru£Uon

ofPiO'Ai.

III. The Common Sledge, 261.

IV. The Molding Sledge, 262.
V. The Winnowing Mill, 264.

j:s Kifter)' in this Diilrid.

Sect. VI. TI.e Weather, 267.

The Barometer ; its real Pretenfions.
l^ht ieuing oun and oJ*ir Guicies, 26S.
Progrefs of i^nng, 270. [
Remarks on tnc 1 oiiation of the Oak and

tne Aih.
Th^ L^ects of an exceCivcly uct Summer
teilowinga Succeffionofdry ones, 271.

Sect. VII. The Plan ofManagementofFarms, 272.

I. The Hiftory of Farm Lands, in the Vaje.

The Eft'ecl of a Change of Management,
274.

II. The prefent Objects of the Vale HuT-
bandry, 275.

Animal ProduAions.
Marketable Crops,
Sabofdinaie Crops, j.76,

III. The Courfe of Practice, 277.

Genera! Cbfervations on this Subject.
It fhou'd ever be guided by exiting Cir-

cumftances, 278.
A Part of the Piadice of the Vale cen-
(uied.

SiCT.

Contents. xxi

Sect. VIII. Soils and their Management, 279.

I. Species of Soil.

A Variety of Soils ; its Effsfls on Ma-
nagement, 2S1.

II. Subfoils.

Geological Remark, 283.
Underdruir.ing.

III. Reclaiming Rough Grounds, 284.

1. Sodburning Rough Sward.

1. Paring and Price.

2. Method ct" Burning and Price,

.85.

3. Applying the Afhes, 288.

A NEW Process ftruck out.

4. Proper Sealon of Sodburning,

290.

5. Crops which fucceed this Ope-

raiion, 291.
The V,"h?at Crop inftaftced.
1^ General Obsehvations on

So DBU RATING.

la Ufe on Strong Lands re-
commended, 293.

2. Reclaiming Furze Grounds, 294.

3. Reclaiming Woody Waives, 2g^.

Piadxical Remarks on Reclaiming

Por-Est Lands, 296.
Exemplitied on the Lands of

Pickering, 298.
An Inference refpe<Eling the

Breaking up of old Grafs

Lands, 300.

IV. Tillage, 302.

1. Plowing wi'Ji Reins.

2. Laying Lands -crofs Slopes, 304.

The Lit'wCls of this Practice, 305.

Sect. DC. Manures and their Management, 307.
1. Afhes of the Moory Karth of Heaths.
Their Eftiraation, as a' Manure.

II. Marl of Newton Dale.

A Produce of Peer. faction.
The Waterwhichproduces i: defcriBed,
328. . •

Thr

txii Co

N T E N T S.

The Procefs of Nature in producing jtj

309.
Analyfis of this Produftion, 311.
Its Application, as a Manure.
ni. Lime, 312.

Prefjatory Remarks, on its high Ef-
• tiraation, as a Manure, here.

I. The Materials from which it is

burnt, 313.

Analyfis of the Pickering Stone.

Analyfis of the Kirby Stone, 314,

Analyfis of the Malton Stonc>

Note on the Rubbifh of Lime
Quarries.
Analyfis of the Driffield Chalk,
316.
». The Procefs of Burning Lime de-
tailed, 317.

1 . The Conftruction of Limekilns.

2. The Raifmg and Breaking of

Stones, 318.

3. Coals, and their Proportion to

Stone, 319.

4. Methods of filling the Kiln, 320.

5. Mechois of drawing the Lime,

with Remarks on " draw-
ing" and' Handing" kilns,
J. Coft and Prices of Lime, 324.

Note on ihe Limekilns of Bro*
therton.

4. Applicatior of Lime, 326.

Its Euefts on different Soils.

COMPARATI VeExPEK I ME NTS

requiiite to afceruin its
right Application, 327.
The Crops for which it is ap-
plied.

5. The Methods of Liming, 328.

A Theory of this Procefs at-
tempted.
Different Modes of Preparation.
An Improvement fuggel\cJ,_)30*

6. The Time of.preading.

7. <^antity fei on.
IV. Dung, 330.

SxcTr X. Semination, 331.

Sict;

Contents. Jtxiii

SfiCT. XL Weeds and Vermin, 332.

I. Species of Weeds.

Catalogue ofCorn Weeds, 333*

II. Means of Extirpation, 338.

1. By Fallowing, or Cleaning the Soil.

2. By Weeding, or Cleaning the Crop,

339-

III. Vermin, 340.

1 . Mice, and the Means of deftroying
♦ them.

2. Rats, 343.

3. Dogs, 344.

Canine Madnefs.

Sheep worried by Dogs, 3 3 J.

A 1 AX on Dogs propofed, 347,

SiCT. XII. Harvell Management, 348.

L Harvefting with the Sickle, 34.Q,

The People employed.

The IVietiiod of Cutting and Bind-
ing

The Advantages of employing
Women in the Bufinefs of Reap^
ing, 350.

Setting up sheaves.

tl. Harvefting with the Si the, 351,
Different Praftices recited.

1. Method of Mowing, 352.

2. Setting up Corn, in Singlets, or

" Gaits,'' 353.
Note on the Origin of this Praftice.
Praftical Direftions in performing

it.

3. Binding Singlets, 354.

4. Setting up Mown Corn, in Stooks,

Remarks on thefe two Operations.
General Remarks on Harvefting

Barley <tnd Oats, 357.
The Comparative /\dvantages of

Harveiting in Sheaf.
Apparent Inconvcnicncics.
P radical Remarks on Mow ing Corn

for Sheaiinof, 5 co.

Sect.

XXIV

Content i.

SiCT. XIII. Farmyard Management, 361:

I. Barn Management.

1. Binding Straw.

2. Winnowing, 362.

PraAical Remarks on Winnowing*
with the Machine Fan.

II. Yard Management, 364.
I. Expenditure of Straw.
The Advantage of Sheds.
The Treatment of Cattle in Sheds,
.365.
2. Railing Manure, 366.

The Straw chiefly paffes through

the Cattle.
The improvident Management of

Dung, in this Country.
Dung Pits, and- bottoming Dung
Yards with Mold, i;^commended,
367.

Sect. XIV. Markets and Paper Money, 369.

Markets of the Vale.
Paper Money, 370.

Its Prevalency in this Country.
Inftnnce of aCobler turning Banker, 371.
Refledlions on the Crime of Coining.
A Crime in which Hie Profperity of the

Nation is invoKeJ.
Yet a Crime which is, now, countenanced
by Governnen:.

.. SHIR,

A¥-«4.y.- ify-V/ (\,.^r l^'i,

CouiVTY of York

THE

RURAL ECONOMY

O F

YORKSHIRE.

THE COUNTY

DIVIDED INTO

NATURAL DISTRICTS.

YORKSHIRE has always been fpoken
of as the firft Province of thefe king-
doms. If we confider its fuperior magni-
tude ; the variety and ftrength of its natural
features ^ the fertihty of its foils ; and the
induftry of its inhabitants ; the abundance
and copioufnefs of its rivers ; the richnefs
of the views on their banks ; and the wild-
nefs of thofe which are fouiid among its
mountains ; — it is well entitled to pre-emi-
nence.

Vol. I. B Viewed

D. H. HIU LIBRARY

ft THE COUNTY.

Viewed as a field of Rural Economy,
it is divifible into mountain, upland, and
VALE. The Vale of York, falling gently,
from the banks of the Tees, down to the
conflux of the Trent and Humber, is Na-
ture's grand divifion of the County, into
East and West Yorkshire.

WEST YORKSHIRE naturally fubdi-
vides into mountains, which I fliall term the
Western Morelands; into Craven, a
fertile corner cut off from the county of
Lancafter; and into a various manufac-
turing District: EASTYORKSHIRE
into Cleveland; the Eastern More-
lands; the Vale of Pickering audits
furrounding banks ; the Wold?; and Hol-
derness.

The WESTERN MORELANDS are
links of the extenfive chain of mountains,
which rife with the StafFordiTiire Morelands,
and continue through Derbylhire, York-
{hire, Weftmoreland, and Cumberland, with
but few interruptions, to the Highlands of
Scotland. Thefe mountains are covered with
heath : but the vallies, w;iich interfed: them,
are cultivated. Wenfleydale, the largcfl of
thefe vallies, is fertile ; and abounds with
romantic fcener}'.

CRAVEN

YORItSHIRE. 3

CRAVEN is well cultivated, and rich in
foil, but not uniformly fo ; its furface being
broken : it is neither a valley, a vale, nor a
plain ; nor does it fall under the idea of a
mountainous or an upland country. It is
frr^all, compared with the other Diftrids of
Weft Yorkfhire.

The MANUFACTURING DISTRICT
is ftrongly featured. The northern and
weftern parts of it mix with barren mountains.
The more fouthern and eaftern limb, — a
lovely declivity (helving gently into the Vale
of York — is rich and highly cultivated ; ex-
cepting the moil fouthern extremity, which
partakes of the fandy hills of Nottingham-
fhire ; and excepting the mountains on its
weftern margin, which affimilate with thofe
of Dcrbyfhire.

The VALE OF YORK is various in fer-
tility. The fens at its bafe,and a heathy plain,
part of the ancient foreft of Galtres, north-
eaftward of the city of York, are drawbacks
from its produdtivenefs. In a general view,
however, it has not, in this country, its equal.
The vales of Gloucefter and Eveftiam are
more fertile, but lefs extenfive. The wide
flat of country which lies between the hills of
Surrey and Kent, and the Downs of SuiTex,

B 2 mav

4 THE C O U N T V.

may vie with it in extent, but not in general
fertility. If we eftimate the Vale of York
by the number and copioufnefs of its rivers,
and by the richnefs of its marginal banks, it
would, perhaps, be ditiicult to equal it, in any
country.

CLEVELAND is, in general appearance,
a continuation and appendage of the ^ ale ot
York ; there being no other natural diviiion
between them, than what is given by an un-
perceived elevation of furface. The waters
of the ^"ale of York fall into the Ouie and
Humber ; thofe of Cleveland into the Tees ;
which divides it from the county of Durham.

The EASTERN MORELANDS appear
as a detached mafs of mountain, broken off
from the British Alps which have been
mentioned. The northwefl: limb of this
fragment is an abrupt broken precipice : — at
the top, a barren heath : — at the foot, the
Vale of York, and the fertile plains of Cleve-
land. From the brink of this giant preci-»
pice, the Morelands dip gently fouthward
to the Vale of Pickering ; on whofe verge
rile, abruptly, a range of thin-foiled limcftone
heights ; which, in a Cmilar manner, Hielve
gently into the Vale 3 forming its northern
margin.

The

YORKSHIRE. $

The VALE OF PICKERING is a fin-
gular pafTage of country. A lake left dry by
nature. A bafon, formed by eminences on
every fide, fave one narrow outlet of the
waters, collected with in its area, and upon the
adjacent hills. Nature, perhaps, never went
fo near to form a lake, without finilhing the
defign. A dam of inconfiderable length
acrofs the Derwent, near Malton, would
deluge the entire Vale ; and the iirft paiTage
of the waters would, in all probability, be
down the fea cliffs, which are its eaflern
extremity*,

B 3 The

♦ Neverthelefs, this natural unity, which, as a Piftri(fl,
is not to be equalled in the Ifland, for entirenefs, regularity,
and diftindlnefs of outline, has heretofore been nameUfs /
The principal part of it lies within the Hundreds or
Weapentake?, of Pickering Lithe and Rydall;
t)oth of which extend over and include large portions of
the Eaftern Morelands, — a mountainous barren Country, —
while a fmall part of it (fouth of the Derwent) lies in the
eaftern Divifion of the County. In the Treatife oa
Planting, 5cc. publifhed fome years ago, I named it the
Vale of Derwent ; but to this there was an objection; as
the Derwent and the Rye (a branch of the Derwent) are
common to the Diftrift: befide, it has been the pradlice of
our anceftors to name fimilar paffages of country, from
towns which belong to them; as the Vale of Ayles-
bury, the Vale of Evesham, the Vale of Taun-
ton, ^c. And waving the privileges of antiquity and

royalty,

6 1" H E C O U N T V.

The WOLDS of York/hire appear as if,
during fome convulfion of nature, they had
been fevered (by the fea-Hke Humber and
its broad rich banks) from thofe of Lincoln-
shire. In the prefent ftate of things, they
may be coni:dered as the main link, broken
off from die chain of chalky hills, which is
thrown iiTegularly over the more fouthem
provinces. The Yorklhire Wolds are the
Downs of Surrey, on a large fcale. They are
the moft magnificent afiemblagc of chalky
hills the Illand affords. The features are
large ; the furface is billo\^'y, but not broken ;
the fwells refembling Bifcayan waves half
pacified. The ground in general is peculi^ly
graceful : JFozd and irater would render it
moil beautiful. Water is forbidden : but
wood may be had at will : and it is extra-
ordinary that the fpirit of planting fhould
have broken out fo late. Utility, as well as
ornament, calls loudly for this obvious im-
provement.

HOLDER NESS, towards the Humber, is
a low flat tradt : the Marlhes of Lincolnihire

on

royalty, which attach themfclves to Pickering j it daims,
by its central fituation, and the extenfivenefs oi its ow;p
parochial rights to the lands of ths Vale, the diftind^ioa I
have here affigncd iL (1796.)

YORKSHIRE. 7

on a reduced fcale. But the more central
parts are diverfified in furface, and the upper
margin, which forms the fkirts of the Wold
hills, is a lovely line of country. On one
hand a fertile vale, abounding with wood and
water : on the other, dry airy downs, rifing,
with an eafy afcent, to the highefl Wold.

The County considered, as a Subject
OF Rural Survey.

In rivers, the County under furvey is
fingularly well fupplied. The Humber,
which might well be ftyled the River of
Rivers, bounds it on the fouth. The Tees
forms its northern confine. The Don, the
Air, the Wharf, the Ouse, and the Der-
went rife in its mountains, and wind through
its plains. In a commercial light, thefe
rivers areobje(5ts of the firil magnitude. The
tide flows into the center of the county.
Not only Hull, but Torky T^adcafier, Ferry^
bridge 2knd Do?jcaJier, may be called inland
ports.' The Don is rendered navigable, to
Rotherham, Sheffield ; the Air, to Leed^, Brad-
ford ; the Calder, tQ Wakefield and to near
Halifax ; the Oufe, to Burroughbridgc ; the
Derwent, to Malton -, the Hull, to Drijield,

B 4 at

8 THE COUNTY.

at the foot of the Wolds ; and the Tees, to
Yarm, on the borders of Cleveland, at the
head of the Vale of York.

If, with the natural advantages this county
poflefles in its rivers, we view thofe which
are given it by its MINES of coals, alluirii
iron, lead, copper ; and its MANUFAC-
TURES of woolens and iron wares j com-
merce appears to be Angularly indebted to it :
while to the SEA PORTS of Whitby and
Scarborough — as nurferies of hardy fea-
jnen — the nation at large owe much.

But national policy and commerce make
no part of the prefent defign ; unlefs whcu
they are intimately connedied with rural
ECONOMICS. It therefore remains to view

the county, aSaSUBJECTof RURAL ECONOMY.

No country entirely mountainous, nor one
which is dillurbed by manufa(5ture, can be a
fit fubjedl of ftudy, for rural knowledge.
The WESTERN DIVISION of the County falls,
chiefly, under one or other of th^fe defcrip-
tions. There are no doubt lands, in W>ll
Yorkfhire, which are highly cultivated; efpe-
cially about Doncafter, toward Fe^"r)'bridge \
a paiTage worth perufing.

Natural

YORKSHIRE.

JVATURAL AND ACQUIRED ADVANTAGES

OF East Yorkshire.

But if we attend to the eastern divi-
sion, we fliall find colled:ed, within compre-r
heniive limits, almoft every defcription of
country which is interefting in rural affairs.
A rich, well cultivated plains a group of
almoft barren mountains, inviting objedls of
improvernent ; a fertile vale, various in foil
and cultivation ; with a trad: of chalky
downs, terminating in a rich marfhland coun-
try : including grafs land of every clafs, and
arable land of almoft every dpfcription. It
is the Ifland in miniature.

Nor do thefe natural advantages,
alone, render Eaft Yorkfhire a defirable objeift
of ftudy: the industry of its inhabi-
tants makes them peculiarly attentive to
MINUTIAL matters; while the spirit of
improvement, which has lately diffufed
itfelf, among all ranks of men, renders this
Diftrict fingularly eligible, as a field on which
to trace the greater outlines of manag::-

MENT»

THE

r H £

VALE OF PICKERING,

INTRODUCTORY VIEW

O F

THIS DISTRICT.

I. QlTl^-^iTTON. The fituation of this
k-J diviiion of Eall Yorkfhire has been
already given. Its outline is feme what
oval.

II. The EXTENT of its larger diameter
about tliirtyfive miles ; its greatell: width
about twelve miles : including, in its area,
and the cultivated lands which hang upon
its banks, and which as property belongs to
ir, about three hundred fquare miles, or
200,000 acres.

Ilf. SURFACE and SOILS. The area
of the Vale is extremelv flat ; nearly leve> ;
but being broken by hillocks, of diltcrent
magnitudes, irregularly fcattered, — and fonie-

timcs

i Cleveland

□ ^7

Jt-tirsUy I

' '-- 2 \ifrnnatcm *~* ^ 'itutc'nl

! * E a ItingA^'o od

c

^ , . . c

\l.

\>^^A#r/7

Crarrif^

1 The Vale, of Pickerixg

\-n \Dal^^ '^-- Tnniti-' ' U/^^,*C!;j j, 5

hSithcrp / J- JN

vui

J?,/i7li7fi.

-~-_ c,,r

^ I

O \ •p. \ ■ti- '^i ^-»..

o

^

4 ^

^'-'^o 1 '^

^»^o^^* \

•t

id its Adjacent Hiljls

■'" I '^

TT /^^ /.•«•//' /,-, )>-,-M /* (iit<j/-U lii-^trc^n J'titit-^ /c <in</ //

.7.V->vi-,.- yRs*^

YORKSHIRE. i^

times by promontories fhooting from the
marginal banks, — the eye can feldom judge
either of its flatncfs or its extent.

Thefe hillocks and headlands are
invariably fertile ; moftly a fat clay : while
the bafe on which they il:and is either a rich
fandy loam -, the comxmon foil of the weft
end of the Vale ; or; an inferior clay, intcr-
fperfed with patches of moory foil : the
prevailing foils of the marilies, and carrs, of
the Eaftern divilion.

The MARGINS are varioully foiled. The
fkirts of the banks are moftly a rich middle
loam ; dry, yet cool (how eligible for the
fites of villages !) but generally decreafe in
quality^ with the rife of the hills which back
them *.

The face of the wold hills (which on
this fide are bold but not broken) termi-
nates, at the fummit, in a thin chalky loam ;
—the foil of Epfom and Banftead Downs.

The range of hills which rife at Malton,
and fill up the fpace between the Wolds and
the Heights of Hambledon; which at prefent
<ire without a name ; but which 1 ftiall terra

the

• For the s&BsTRATA of the Vale, fee the Scilion
SoiLS} and their Makacement.

12 VALE OF PICKERING.

the HowARDiAN Hills* ; are lower and
lefs abrupt; tenninating in a various foil ; co-
vering a well grounded, well wooded, fine
fporting country ; —the inferior hills of Kent.

The NORTHERN MAR G IN rifcs, in gene-
ral, ftill lefs abruptly ; terminating in a thin
limelione loam, lying on a chain of height?,
broken by wooded vaJlies, and backed by
the moreland hills ; which are interfe<Cted
by cultivated ** dales," appendages of the
♦* country" out of which they iifue.

IV. The CLIMATURE of the Vale Is
aiove the latitude it lies in (540.). The
fummer feafons are three weeks, at leaft, be-
hind thofe of the fouthern provinces. What
is remarkable, the feafons on the fouthern
banks, about Malton, lying of courfe with a
north afpe(ft, are forwarder, by more than a
week, than thofe of the northern margin,
which lie full to the fun. The fubllratum
of both is the fame ; namely, Limeftone
Kock. The faO, perhaps, may be accounted
for, by the pile of mountains which rife behind
the northern banks ; and which, though they
difcharge rivers of water, ft ill retain at their

bafes

♦ Castle Howard, the mcgnificent refjilence of
Howard, Earl of Carli^lf, is leatcd among ihcle
hillocks.

Yorkshire. 13

bafes a fufficient quantity, to keep their fkirts
cool through the fummer feafon.

V. The RIVERS of the Vale are the
Der WE NT and the Rye; which, by receiving
the waters of tke Cojiay the Seven, the Dove,
the Riccal, and other inferior brooks *, is
more copious than the Derwent, at their
conflux. The rivers have their rife in the
moreland mountains, are colledred in the
dales, and wind through the wooded vallies,
into the area of the Vale ; through which
they move, with fluggard pace, to their
narrow outlet. As a proof of the flatnefs of
the Vale, the waters of the Rye are fomc
four or five days, in paffing from Hemfley to
Malton (about fourteen miles) : and thofe of
the Derwent, not lefs than a week, in moving
from Ayton (about fifteen miles) to the
fame general outlet. It is highly probable, '^
that, in a fi:ate of nature, a principal part of
the Vale was fubjedl to be overflowed. Even

now,

* A remarkable circumftance attends thcfe brooks ;
all of which, from the Rye to the Cofta (the Seven in a
dry fummer not excepted) fink (when at dead water) in the
vallies between the Limeftone Heights. Some of them
rife again in the fame vallies in which they fink : others
difappear entirely. In the time of floods they all occupy
the channels, which nature has provided for them, on the
furfaccj and which, in the annexed Sketch, are marked by
dotted lines.

14 VALE OF PICKERING.

now, fince rivers have been cut, and em-
bankments made, extenfive fields of water are
ilill to be feen, in times of floods ; not, how-
ever, through natural necefiity, but for want
of further exertions of art. By increafing
embankments, and by remoring obll:rudtions
natural and artificial *, the rivers, in their
highefl fwell, might be kept within due
bounds.

VI. INLAND NAVIGATION. The
Derwent is made navigable to Malton ; afid
might, without extraordinary expence, be
continued fo to Ayton ; and the Rye and its
branches might, with little exertion of art,
be made navigable to Pickering, to near
Kirkby, and to HemHey. But a fequellered
vale, without mines or manufactories -[', and
with two fea ports in its neighbourhood, and
an inland port on its margin, requires the
lefs afiiftance from internal water carriage.
A removal of the orefent obll:ru(ltions of the
rivers is wanted, here, rather than more arti-
ficial ones. 1 796*

* The cararaS-like mill dam acrofs the Der.vent, at
Old Malton, is a public r.uir.;j.ce which reflects difgrace on
every man of property in the Vale. It appears as if in-
tended to finifh what nature has left undone !

»

f Excepting a manufactory of coarfc linen, which pre-
vails, more or lef>, I believe, through the fevcral diftri^ls
c»f Eail Yorklhire.

YORKSHIRE. 15

1796. Since the firfl edition cf this Work
was publifhed, two fchemes have been fug-
gefled, and furveys made, by oppoling inte-
refts, for bringing fca coals into the Vale, by
means of inland navigation ; the one from
the port of Whitby, the other from that cf
Scarborough.

The latter is, by far, the molt pfafticable.
The bafe of the Vale is nearly level, from end
to end, and the eafi: end of it is not txcti-
fively elevated above the tide ; and its dif*
tance, from Scarborough, as appears on the
map, is inconliderablc.

This Ihort afcent being furmounted, the
only difficult)^ would be palled. A canal, of
feventy or eighty miles in circuit, might be
run round the Vale, 'u:khout a hck ! and
without injur}- to the courfes of the natural
rivers.

The direction of fuch a -canal would be
nearly that of the dotted line cf the map
annexed (though not traced for this purpofe).
It would of courfe fupply four market towns,
and upwards of fifty villages, with water car-
riage : not only of fuel, manures, farm pro-
duce, and timber; but of palTengers, — on
the Duke of Bridgwater's plan of ftage boats :
the cheapell: and moll ealV mode of travelling.

From

}6 VALE OF PICKERING.

From the weft end of the Vale, a commu-*
nication would not be difficult to make, with
the canal, lately undertaken in the Vale of*
York ; and thus open an inland communi-
cation, by water, between Scarborough, York,
Hull, and the manufacturing dillrid: of Weft
Yorkihire.

Should this Ifland continue to profper, half*
z century longer, there can be little doubt of
an improvement, fo felfevidcntly great, beu)g
carried into effeft.

VII. TOVv'NSHIPS. The feet of the
marginal fwells are ftudded with towns and
VILLAGES ; which, in fome parts, are not a
mile afundcr ; but, in others, are farther dif-
tant, and lefs regular.

To thefc marginal townships belong,
generally, the lands of the Slope, with a
portion of the area or bottom of the Vale ;
which, through this reafon, is thinly inlia-
bited. From the center, weftward, a few
villages are fcattered ; but from thence, eaft-
ward, the entire area, one townCiip excepted,
is included within the townftiips of the mar-
gin.

VIII. STATE OF INCLOSURE. A
century ago, the marginal townihips lay,
perhiips, entirely open ; and there are vef-

tiges

YORKSHIRE. 17

tiges of common fields in the area of the
Vale. The weft marflies, church property,
have been longer under inclofure : and the
central townfliips were probably inclofed,
long before thofe of the margin ; the foils of
that part being adapted to grafs ; and while
the furrounding country lay open, grafs land
was of fingular value. At prefent, the en-
tire Vale may be faid to be in a ftate of
INCLOSURE; a fubje(ft which will be fpoken
of, fully, in its proper place.

IX. PRODUCE: wood, grafs, and corn :
the two latter at prefent intermixt, from the
center of the area to the fummit of the mar-
ginal heights.

X. The wood, though abundant, being
confined principally to the vallies of the mar-
gins, does not afford general ORNAMENT ;
nor even appear to the eye at a diftance.
On a near view, however, fome of thofe val-
lies contain great beauties. The fituation of
Rivaulx, the fite of a dilapidated monaftery,
would fatisfy the moft craving eye. Were
the extenfive woodlands, which thefe vallies
contain, fcattered on the bofoms of the fur-
rounding hills, the Vale of Pickering would
be a pafTage of country, as fingular in point
of beauty, as it is in natural fituation.

VoL.L C THE

THE

RURAL ECONOMY

O F

THIS DISTRICT.

BIVISION THE FIRST.

LANDED ESTATES,

AND THEIR
MANAGEMENT.

I.

ESTATES AND TENURES.

I. THE LANDS of the Vale are much"
in the hands of fmall owners. The only
large eftate, which it contains, lies on its
Wcftern margin; and this, for magnitude
and intirenefs, is exceeded by few cftates m
the kingdom. The towns of Hemfley and
Kirbymoorfide, with the villages in their

neigh-

YORKSHIRE. 19

heighbourhoods, and an immenfe tra6t of
Moreland, reaching to the verge of Cleve-
land, are included in the Dun combe eftate.
The Earl of Salisbury has a confide-
rable property fcattered acrofs the richer
part of the Vale, from Sinnington to Brawby:
and there are fome few other off eftates of
Noblemen, in different parts of the Diflridt*

II. The Crown ftill retains, in right of
the Dutchy of Lancafter, fome property in
the antient foreft of Pickering; and the
Archbishop of York has i cbnfiderable
eftate in the marfhes*

Sir William St. Quintin Has a good
property, about his refidence at Scampfton,
and fome other Gentlemen have refidences
and property in the Vale.

But the major part of the lands of the Dif-
tri<n: are the property, and, in general, are in
the occupation, of yeomanry ; a circum-
flance this, which it would be difficult to
equal in fo large a Diftridl. The townfhip
of Pickering is a fingular inftance. It con-
tains about three hundred freeholders, prin-
cipally occupying their own fmall eftates ;
many of which have fallen down, by lineal
defcent, from the original purchafers. No
great man, nor fcarcely a Country Gentleman,
C 2 has

20 ESTATES AND TENURES.

has yet been able to get a footing in the pa-
rifh ; or, if any one has, the cuftom of por-
tioning younger fons and daughters, by a
divifion of lands, has reduced to its original
atoms the eftate which may have been accu-
-mulated. At prefent, no man is owner of
three hundred pounds, a year, landed eftate,
lying within the townfhip ; although its
rental, were it rack-rented, would not be lefs
than fix or feven thoufand pounds.

III. The prevailing TENURE is free-
hold ; which, however, is in many cafes
fubjedted to a fmall free-rent, refer\'ed by
the Crown, or the feudal lords of which it
has been originally purchafed. In Pickering,
which is ftlll held by the Crown as part of the
Dutchy of Lancailer, the free-rent of the
townfhip is 28I. 13s. which is received
annually, by the freeholders in rotation, and
paid, in part, into the hands of the lefTees of
the Crown i the remainder, I underfland, to
the heirs of the late Lord Feverfliam *.

The COPYHOLD tenure is lefs prevalent,
here, than in fome other Diftridls : never-

thelefs,

» Part of the townfhip, it is faid, having been given up
in difcharge of monies advanced tlic Crown by a citizen of
London ; who, in parcelling it out, has referved a free-rent
of 81. 2S. 6d.

YORKSHIRE. 21

thelefs, it occurs in different parts of the
Vale.

The Weft marflies are principally under
Bishops lease for three lives.

An antient privilege, founded in con-
veniency or a degree of necefiity, and efta-
blifhed in right by long cuftom, ftill remains
evident in this Diftrid:. This privilege,
which is here termed a windraket and v^hich,
probably, heretofore was granted, and may
ilill be traceable, in different parts of the
kingdom, gives the occupiers of one parifh
liberty to drive their cattle, to water, over the
commons of another, which happen to lie
between a meffuage, hamlet, or village, and
a brook or other convenient watering place ;
with, however, a proVifion, that the cattle fo
watered fhall not be fuffered to " couch and
Jayer" on the ground driven over. But this
original ftipulation having in fome cafes been
negle^ed to be complied with, the windrake
has, in time, gro\yn into a right of common-
age. An inftance, wherein fucha right has
been eilablifhed, will be mefitioned under the
article Inci^osures,

C 3 GENERAL

22 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES,

2.
GENERAL MANAGEMENT

O F

ESTATES.

Prefatory Remarks.

THE LEADING PRINCIPLES of ma-
nagement, here, ditter widely from thole
which prevail in Norfolk *. Here, tenants
are in full polleflion of the farms they oc-
cupy ; which, until of late years, they have
been led, by indulgent treatment, to confider
as hereditary poiTeflions ; de (bending from
father to fon, through fucceffive generations ;
the infertion of their names in the rent-roll
having been conlidered as a tenure, almoft as
permanent and fafe, as that given by a mpre
formal admiflion in a copyhold court.

One of the firfl eftates in the Dii'lri*^ af-
forded, fume years ago, a llriking inllance of

this

• See THE Rural Economy of Norfolk.

YORKSHIRE. 23

this indulgent treatment. In the early days
.of its late poiTeflbr, the tenants were not only
iuffered to bequeath their farms, to their re-
fpeillive relations, but to fell xho. " good-will"
of them, to Grangers .

The effecfts of this, perhaps, unprecedented
indulgence were thefe : the happinefs of
thoufands.of individuals ^ — a refpedtability of
character of the fource of fo much benevo-
lence ; ^ retardation of improvements in
hufbaijdry; and, confequently, a lofs of pro-'
duce to the prefent community ; this being]
one of the few inftances I have met wifh, in]
.which a lownefs of rent has opefated as ^\
raufe of indolence jn the renter.

In the later part of life, this benevolent
characSler, perceiving perhaps the evil efFe<fl
of too great indulgence, or aOiuated by other
motives, increafad his rent roll fome ^o per
cent, j^ut ftill he preferyed his refpe(5lability :
for his farms were ftill moderately rented.

The prefent pofl'eflbr has repeated the ad-
vance J but whether with equal propriety and
jCqual credit, is a matter not necellary to be
difcuffed in this place.

A iimilar condudt has been purfued, on

another confiderable eftate in the Vale, and

with fimilar effcd^s. The firil rife was mo*?-

C 4 derate.

24 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATE^.

derate, and made with judgment ; the lafl ill
judged and immoderate ; intailing years of
wretchednefs on numbers, who had hitherto
partaken of the common comforts of life *.

Thefe, and other inftances which have fal-
len within my knowledge, are fufficient
evidences of the folly of deranging an eflate,
by exceffive rents. Heretofore, the tenants
on the eftates above noticed, not only kept up
cxiilingeredtions, in proper repair, but rene^ived
with fubftantial buildings i and made other
improvements upon their refpedtive farms,
with the fpirit of owners ; conlidering them,
in every refpcd:, as their own eftates j under
a confidence that no advantage v/ould be ta-^
ken of fuch improvements ; but that they
would remain with themfelves, and defcend
to their families. — Now, necefiary repairs
are neglecfted, buildings fuffered to diminiih,
and improvements in hufbandry laid afide ;
FOR ALL CONFIDENCE IS LOST:
one rife has not been thought fufficient, and
tvyo may be thought too few. It is faid,

and

• 1796. Forturutely for tbcfe tenants, though unfor-
tunately for their Country, the rapid increafe of paper money,
and the confequent increafe of the prices of farm produce,
has fa\'cd them from that extreme of poverty, whid^
threatened them, at the time the above pafLagc was written.

YORKSHIRE. 25

and I am afraid with truth, that the common,
good management of laying down lands with
grafs feeds has been difpenfed with, ** for fear
^' the field fhould look green, and the rent
f- of the farm be raifed" !

Let this be as jt may, it is abundantly evi-r
dent, that both extremes, in the rate of rent,
are prejudicial to an eftate ; and that in fix-
ing a rental, as in all other human affairs,
there is a HAPPY MEDIUM, which, though
often difficult to find, always deferves to be
feduloufly fought. No attention ought to
be fpared, in endeavouring to afcertain the
FAIR MEDIUxM VALUE of an eilate to
be raifed j for on this, only, the advance can
be adjufted with propriety.

It is evidently a want of policy, in the
manager of an ell:ate, to do any adl which
forfeits the confidence of tenants at
WILL. For, in this cafe, confidence is the
only tie between landlord and tenant ; and
if a rife of rent be necefl'ary, it fliould be
made with judgment and moderation, and at
one advance ; that the necefiary confidence
may not be {haken, and the eftate thereby
rendered liable — to the wajte of tenants at ivill,
drhen to defpair.

With

.20 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATEii.

With a LESSEE, the cafe is ditterent : the

Jeafe is, in this cale, the tie : the mainte-

iiancc of buildings, the ufage of lands, and

the term of occupation, are iixt ; and tlie

refponfibility of the tenant may, in this cafe,

apoloo-ize for an exceflive rent, though it

will not always -be found a guard againft its

evil efuct^. However, it may be fairly inr

i ferred, that an e{late can, with propriety, be

i rented higher under leafc, than at will : and

I further, that LEASES, OR a firm reliance

IN THE TENANTS, ON THE HEAD AND
HEART OF THEIR LANDLX)RD, ARE, ON
EVERY ESTATE, ABSOLUTELY NECE^JSARV
TO IMPROVEMENTS IN HUSBANDRY.

It is not my intention to draw general iur
ferences, unlefs they refult aptly from f;i<5ts
under cbfervation ; and unkfs they tend
to what appears to be an .obvious improve-
ment, in the general management of the
Diftria under furvey. Nor is it my intentiop
to ^i^.*aif, or even to recoir.mjnd, unlefs when
fuch improvements prefent themfelyes to my
mind, in flrong colours.

It appears, evidently, that, on the larger
elites of this Diftric^, the tenants (entirely at
will) have loil much of the confidence, whicl;i
ou'rht to fjbfift between landlord and tenant j

and

YORKSHIRE. 27

and it flrikes me, clearly, that it would be
good management, on fuch eftates, to grant
leafes, on the larger farms, and fix the fmalier
ones at fuch rents, and under fuch aflurances,
as will reftore fpirit and peace of mind to
their occupiers.

The management of a landed eflate is not
a light matter; the profperity and happinels
of the country it lies in, arc nearly conneCtc^d
with it. And no other apology, I flatter
myfelf, will be required for publifliing the
foregoing fadls and refleflions ; or for ven-
turing to recommend an innovation, which
prudent management might have rendered
unneceiTary.

The particular departments of manage-
rnent which require to be fpoken to, under
this head, are,

1 . Manor Courts. , 6. Covenants,

2. The Purchafe of Lands. 7. Removals.

3. Tenancy. 8. Receiving.

4. Length of Term. 9. Heads of Leafe.

5. Rent.

L MANOR COURTS. Thefe antient
fources of the law of villagers are ftill pretty
generally kept open ; even in manors where
neither copyhold nor free-rent tenants re-
main J and where, of courfe, their legality is

dif-

?8 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

iiifputable. Neverthelefs, they have flill their
uies : the cleanlirjg of rivulets and common
fewers,— the repair of roads to grounds, —
the fufiiciency of ring fences, — and the^lli-r
mation of daiviages by impounded cattle, —
the llocking of com.mons, and the removal
cf public nuifances, — are matters which fre-
quently require the interpofition of a juryj
who, in places where they are ilill impanel-
led, are confidered, not only as judges of the
-general welfare of the manor, but are fre-
quently called in, as arbiters of private dif^
ferences : and who are fo fit to fettle village
difputes, as a jury of neighbours, who have
perfonal knowledge of the parties, and the
fubiect matter in difpute ?

In a manor, where the lord has no interefl
in the well ordering of the lands and the in-
habitants it contains, it might feem unrea-
fonable to oblige him to maintain a court, at
his own expence; but if fines for non-ap-
• pearance, and amtrciaipents for deiaults,
could be legally recovered, the extra charge,
if any, would be fmall, and might be borne
by the county. And tliere appears to be no
folid objeaion to a regulation, which would
in the end be productive of public as well
ac p-ivate o-ood : for whatever tends to the
"^ ad^

YORKSHIRE. H

advancement of cultivation and the well or-
dering of fociety, contributes to the virtue
and profperity of a Nation.

II. PURCHASE OF LANDS. From
the multiplicity of fmall eftate?, in this Dif-
trid, frequent transfers of property take
place ; a market for land is always open, and
the fair market price pretty accurately un-
derllood; confequently, the fluctuating
VALUE OF LAND may here be obferved. With
advantage.

Some years ago, the price was extremely
high ; forty or fifty years purchafe, upon a
very high rent : lands not worth fifteen fhil-
lino-s an acre rent were fold for forty pounds
purchafe. This, however, was not uniform,
through the Diflria : for, at the time thofe
extravagant prices were given, in one part of
the Vale, lands, of twice the rental value to a
farmer, were fold. In other parts of it, at ex -
adlly the fame rate ; though the diflance
between them is only a few miles ; and In
the fame Diftridt, fimilar land is not, now,
worth thirty pounds.

The caufe of this difparlty Is a proper
fubjedt of inveftigation. The fituation in
one cafe is dry, with good roads ; in the other
low, and the roads deep and miry, ^hat

is

.50 MANAGEMENT C? ESTATES.

is chiefly inr the hands of TmaH owners — moft
of them monied men, and anxious' to increafe
their pojfejjlojis : this principally in the oc-
cupation of tenants. In that the rage of
pofl'eflion Iiad broken loofe, and ideal values
had in confequence been fixed to the lands
on fale ; while the lands of tins were out of
fafiion, and of courfe negle(^ed. A move-
able commodity may be carried to the befl
market ; but land can only be fold at wlrat
is cfteemed the fair market price, in the place
it happens to lie in.

Hence it feems to follow, that a perfon
who wilhcs to purchafe, at a cheap market,
without regard to locality, iliould look for a
neglected Diilricft, and endeavour to avoid the
neighbourhood of fmali owners, and that in-
ordinate lurt: of polTeiTion, which is evidently
epidemical, but not continual.

On the contrary, one ^vho wants to fell
fhculd wait, if he can, until a dear time
offer itfelf i or otherwife accept, perhaps to
a difadvantage, the fajhionahle price of the
day.

Thefe inferences, however, are more
flridlly applicable to fm?.ll than to large pur-
chafcs.

The

YORKSHIRE, jl

The prefent medial price of land, in this
Diflricfl, is about thirty years purchafe, upon /•
a fair rental value; but varies^ much with
the circumflances it happens to be under.

III. TENANCY. Upon moil of the
larger efl:ates„ leases are unkuQ\yn ; the
farms have been let at will, and held as
hereditary polTcliions, through faccefUve ge- '
Derations. Bat i: has been already obferved^ j
that the balls, on which this fpecies of tenancy |
formerly reiTed, has of late years been fapped,!
and is no longer fufficiently fecure, either'
for landlord or tenant.

In the marlhes, in which the Archbishop
of York has confiderable property, leases
FOR LIVES is the ordinary tenancy; and
there, it is obfervable, rapid improvements ini
hufbandr}^ have been made. The farms are
of a good lize ; and in the hands of men of
property and fpirit ; — ranking, in every ref-
iptOif with the fuperior clals of yeomanry.
See Farms.

IV. LENGTH OF TERM. Lime
being the fa(ftitious manure of the Diflri<^;
and upon old-inclofed land, the principal
means of improvement ; it may feem that
a Ihort term would be here fufficient. But
if it be confidered that the nature of much

of

ji MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

of the land, and the etlablidied pradice and
prcxiuce of the country, require an altemacy
of corn and pai^ure, fourteen years is a rea-
' fonable term : if the price of labor and
produce could be foreknown, twentvone
years would, for the tenant, the eilate, and
the communit^^ be more eli'^iblc.

V. RENT. Extremely high. In mo(t
parts of the Vale, much higher than even in
Norfolk. There are lands under the ordi-
nary courfe of hulhandry let, to farmers, at
thirty to forty {hillings an acre. In many
parts of the kingdom the fame lands would
not let for two thirds of the price.

Thcfe circumftances imply a goodnefs of
rland, and a fuperiority of management, — or
improvidence on the part of the renter. The
three may be concerned. The land is good,
and the management, in one particular, ex-
cellent ; and it is allowed, tliat to this piece
of management is principally owing the pre-
fent high rate of rent.

Formerly, it was the univerfal pra<fUce to
plow with four oxen and two horfes, toge-
ther with a plowman and one or two aflift-
ants. This extravagant plowteam is now
univerially reduced to two horfes and a plow-
maa. It is at k'all remarked, by men of

obfervation

YORKSHIRE, 33

bbfervation and judgment, that, without this
faving in the mode of tillage, the prefent
renXs could not be borne.

It mufl be obfervedj however, that the
lands, let at the above extravagant rents, lie
in eligible fituatibnS, and are kt in fmall
parcels. The larger farms lie, in general,
in lefs eligible fituations ; and there are
few, if any> fo high as twenty fhillings art
acre*

To fpeak of the medium rent df the Dif-
trid: would be Vague ; the rate of rent is, of
ought to be, proportioned to the quality of
foils 5 and lands worth from a pound to a
penny an acre may^ probably, be found on
the {ziTLe farm.

This variation of foil enables tl^ obfervant
cultivator to make accurate diflindions, in
the expence of management and produce j
andjConfequently, in the rental values of lands
of different qualities : and this may account,
in fome meafure, for the extraordinary efti-
mation in which good land is held in the
Diftria.

This diftin6tion isy in general, too little at-
tended to, upon large eftates ; the number of
acres being, generally, too much regarded,
and the quality of the foil too little. Maps

Vol. I. D are

34 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

are convenient inAruments in the hands o(
managers of eftates ; hut unlefs they fhew,
with fufticient accuracy, the quality ^r^fitu^
atiofif a? well as the quantity of the land
they reprefent, they become dangerous
guides in fixing a rental : an accurate valu-
ation is much more elHmable than a hand-
fome map. The art of funxying may be
learnt in a fchool ; but the judgment requi-
fite in the valuation of lands can only be
obtained, by great experience in the field,
and by fome confiderable fhare of knowledge.
of the particular kind of land to be valued.

VI. COVENANTS. Under the old
tenancv, repairs wQzt done, and new ere<^ions
made, entirely by the tenants, landlord allow-
ing timber ; and, on fome extraordinary
occafions, a fum certain towards the work-
manfhip and the other materials.

Gates and heiiges were entirely under the
management of the tenant i landlord allow-
ing timber for the gates and dead fences, as
well as for implements^ ufed upon the farm ;
alfo hedging fhiiF and brufhwood, for /m^/.

The management of the land, too, was left
to the tenant, who plowed and cropt it, in the
fame manner as he would in all probability
have done, had it been his own eilate.

While

YORKSHIRE. 35

While the neceffary confidence on the part
of the tenants remained, thefe principles of
management were abundantly fufficient. The
tenants took care of the eftate as their own ;
the landlord's only care being directed to the
annual receipt of the rent. But finding the
tenants alarmed, and feme of them no doubt
dilTatisfied, with the recent additions of rent,
it was thought prudent to introduce new re-
gulations, refpedling timber and the manage-
ment of lands. Woodlands have been in*
clofed, and woodwards appointed. The
plow has been reftrained, and particular crops
prohibited.

VII. REMOVALS. The time of the
removal of tenants, here, is invariably Old
Lady day.

By the cuftom of this country, tenants at
will are allowed to clear the premifes, pre-
vious to the day of removal, of hay, Jiraiv,
and manure ! quitting the farm, on that day>
and leaving it entirely naked of every thing,
except the icheat on the ground ; which, at
harveft, he reaps and carries off'! paying only
for the " on-fland," or rent of the land which
the wheat has occupied *.

D 2 For-^

* Barley fown before Ladyday, on fallow^ is alfo the
tenant's, paying the incoming tenant fw Jhc on-ftand«ftly.

3^ MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES^

Fortunately, however, for all parties con-
cerned, removals have, until very lately, been
little pradiifed in the Vale : for a worfe time,
or a worfe mode, could fcarcely be devifed.
Old Ladyday is the middle of fpring feed-
time ; — Aock are ftill in the houfe ; — the hay
and ilraw partly eaten, and in part to eat ;—
and, at that time of the year, the roads, having
been foakcd and cut up, during winter, and
iliffened by the winds of March, are in their
very word flate. Thefe are difadvantages
to the out^oin^ tenant. The inconveniencies
of an incoming tenant entering upon a farm,
deftitute of manure, and materials to raife it
from, need not be enumerated.

In Cleveland, the time of removal is
much more judicious. The incoming tenant
takes poireilion of the arable land at Candle-
mas,— of the pal^ure grounds at Ladyday,
and of the mowing grounds at Mayday ; —
when the outgoing tenant quits every thing
but the wheat.

Thefe regulations are adm.irablv adapted to
REMOVALS IN SPRING, and render them
more eligible, in many refpevfts, than Mi-
chaelmas REMOVALS; even when tem-
pered with the Norfolk, regulations *.

0/J
• See NoRF. Ecos. Art. Fokm of Lease.

YORKSHIRE. 37

Old Michaelmas throws wheat feedtime too
backward, and the unthralhed corn incurs a
long and frequently tedious connexion, be-
tween outgoing- and incoming tenant : be-
fides, the hay, the turneps, the feedage of
leys broken up, and of young clover after
harvefl, make a long account between them :
whereas, in Cle\eland, the wheat on the
ground, and perhaps a little remaining hay,
are the only things to be valued (or re-
moved), and the remaining wheat in the barn
(if any) the only thing the outgoing tenant
leaves behind him. If the barns be cleared
by Mayday, which in general they may be
without impropriety, the connexion between
the outgoing and the incoming tenant (or
landlord) diffclxes, entirely, on the dav cf
removal ; which, namely Cld Mayday, is
an eligible feafon, and a leifure time of the
year.

The chief inconveniency, attending this
mode of removal, is that of the incoming
tenant (refiding, perhaps, at a dillance) put-
ting in the fpring crops. But there is no day
in the year, on which this difagreeable bufi-
nefs can be done, without inconveniency to
all parties -, and all that can be done is, to
£nd out fuch days, and fix upon fuch regu-

D 3 lationSjk

3? MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

lations, as will reduce the inconveniency
within the narroweft bounds poffible.

From the obfervations I have hitherto
made. New Michaelmas with the Norfolk
regulations, and Old Mayday with thofe of
Cleveland, appear to be the mofl eligible
feaibns of removal.

VIII. RECEIVING. The time of re-
ceiving varies on different eftates. On one.
Candlemas for the Michaelmas rents, and
Midfummer for thofe of Ladyday, are the
eilablifhed times ; and were they adhered to,
better days, for the purpofc, need not be
chofen ; though in ftricl propriety the iirfl: of
March and the firfl of June might be flill
better *. But to fuit the conveniencies or
the caprice of the receiver, the ordinary
times are feldom adhered to, the tenants be-
ing left in a Aate of uncertainty, as to the
time of receipt ; notices being fom^etimes
given and countermanded, repeatedly : a flate
of embarraffment this, to the tenants, which
implies unpardonable management. On a
large eftate, the days of audit fhould be as
fixt and invariable, as the days of entrance
and removal ; and nothing but extraordi-»
nary circumflances can warrant a deviation.

Upoa
• Sec NoRF. EcoN. MiN. 47.

YORKSHIRE. 39

Upon another eftate, ftiil more confiderable
than that above alluded to, the pradice is to
receive a few days after the rents become due ;
namely, about Lady day and Michaelmas,
Worfe feafons would be difficult to fix upon.

With relpe<fl to the mode of receiving, it
is here reduced to the loweft degree of fim-
plicity. The tenants not only repair and
fence, but pay the land-tax of their refpec-.
tive farms, which they rent at a fum certain,
fubjedt to no dedudion ; confequently, there
are no accounts to be fettled, nor any voucher
to be examined.

IX. FORMS OF LEASES. It has been
obferved, that the leafe is a fpecies of tenancy
uncommon in this Diilri(Ct : I know but of
one eftate on which it has been adopted ; an
off eftate in the family of a Scotch noble-
man. This eftate is, I believe, principally
under leafes of fourteen years.

The form is not altogether excellent ;
but in fome refpefts it is lingular ; and in
others judicious. It exhibits the outline of
management of that particular eftate, and
gives fome idea of the Rural Economy of
the Diftridt. There are claufes in it which
many good tenants would object to -, but
there are others which are well adapted to

D 4 the

40 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

the prefervation of the cftate, without ap-
pearing to be oppreijvc or dilgraceful to the
tenant.

Leafes are annually becoming more and
more neceflary ; and it is my intention to
adduce the forms of thofe of difterent Dif-
tri^. The formation of a leafe requires
great circumfpedion. A collecflion of di-
gefted claufes will facilitate the taik of draw-
ing a new form, or improving an old one ;
and will at the fame time produce, with the
moft fubftantial materials, a compendium of
the general Management of Ellates, in dif-
ferent parts of the kingdom.

Landlord agrees to let; — certain fpe-

/cified premifes ; — from Ladyday; — for a rent

agreed upon ; — during fourteen years, ** and

thence from year to year fo long as (both

parties) fhall pleafe."

Also, to put the buildings in tenan tabic
repair.

Landlord reserves all mines, quarries,
and royalties i timbers, and timber-like trees,
fpires and other trees j — with power to fcarch
for, cut down, and carry away, at feafonable
times ; together with full power of fporting,
&c. &c. (Tenant being allowed fuch damages

to'

YORKSHIRE. 4t

as two Indifterent perfons " of equal degree ''
{hall determine.)

Also a power to enter upon the premifes,
from time to time, to view the repairs, and
the condition thereof.

Tenant agrees to take ; — and to pay,
without deduv5lion (except the land tax) half-
yearly ; namely, at Michaelmas, and Lady-
day (or within twenty days, demand being
duly made), under forfeiture of the leafe.

Also, to pay fuch afTelfments, and to per-
form fuch fervices, duties, and culloms, as
*re or lliall be incumbent on the premifes.

Also, to perform the cuilomary leadings,
or boondavs, obferved at the lord's principal
manfion ; also ** all other fuits, fervices,
" duties, and cuiloms of any kind, which
*' now are or Ihali at any tim.e, during this
" demife, be taxed, charged, or impofed !"

Also, to obferve all rules, orders, and
bylaws of the courts leet and baron of the
lord.

Also, not to let, nor fjffer any peribn
whomfoever to occupy, the whole or any
part of the premifes, " other than him
** the faid (tenant) his executors or admini-
*t flrators, their or his wife or children ; — or
'* a cow-gait to a cottager, holding under

*' the

4t MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

"the lord;" — without fpecial licence ia
writing.

Also, to keep the buildings, fences, and
watercourfes in good repair ; and to fcour,
yearly, fuch ditches and watercourfes as
landlord lliall direct : provided the part fo
fet out do not exceed one lixth of the whole.

Also, not to cut down, (hred, top, or lop
timber or other tree* ; but to defend, froin
cattle, all trees and hedges.

Also, not to burn fern, nor furze, for afhes
for fale, without confent.

Also, not to fow rape, hemp, nax, woad,
weld, madder, or hops ; nor more than a
fpecified quantity of potatoes, without leave.

Also, to hoe, properly, all lands fowa
with turnep feed, and *' to drefs and weed
** them according to good hufbandry," —
under the penalty of i os. an acre.

Also, to fpend on the premifcs all tlie
grafs, hay, and lira w grown thereon.

Also, not to fell nor carry oft dung, or
other manure.

Also, not to ftock the premifes with
rabbits.

Also, not to futter pigs to go loofe with-
out being rung. But in all things to ufe the
premil'es in a hufband-like manner.

Also,

YORKSHIRE, 4^

Also, to refort with his corn, grain, and
grin to his lord's mill.

Also, to employ fuch mole-catchers, and
vermin-killers, as landlord fhall appoint q^
approve.

Also, not to obfbru^ workmen, nor game-
keepers, 6cc. &c.

Also, not to fport, nor keep fporting dogs,
&c. &c. without leave in writing.

Also, in the lajl year, not to fow more
than one fourth of the arable land with
wheat.

Also, in the laji year t to fufFer the oncoming
tenant to enter, after MicJiaelmas, to fcale
and drefs the grafs lands, — and to plow the
arable for fallow, or for crops, — and to fow
and harrow, — without hindrance.

Also, at the determination of the demife,
** whether by furrender, forfeiture, or other-
** wife," to leave the laft year's inanure^ilraw,
dung, and compofl.

Also, to leave, m tenantable repair, and
without wafte or fpoil, all the houles, build-
ings, fences, ditches, and banks; and to
difcharge all taxes, and other outgoings due
from the premifes.

Tenant binds himself, 5cc. in a fpe-

cified

44 MANAGEMENT OF ESTATES.

cified fum for the due performance of the
feveral covenants.

Tenant to be allowed [by au\irJ of
arbitrators) for the wheat of the lall: yesr :—
to be valued in Auguil: or September, before
it be cut: — deducting, from the eilimate
value, the rent of the land it may grow on,
agreeably to a fpecified valuation.

Also, for the turnep fallow of the lall:
year.

Also, for the hay and ilraw left uncon-
f^jmed. And for the manure of the lall year;
TOG^THEi; WITH the ufe of fuch land as
landlord fhall appoint, for the confumption
of hay and ftraw, after the expiration of tht
termy until Mayday,

Also, during the tertrij, to be allowed lime-
ftone for the ufe of the farm ; fuch lime-
ftone being raifed by the landlord, tenant
paying fourpence, a waggon load, fpr raifing
them.

Mutually agree that all unprovided-
fpr difputes ihall be fettled by arbitration.

INXLOSURES.

YORKSHIRE. 45

INCLOSURES.

THERE has, no doubt, been a time (and
not perhaps many centuries pail) when the
entire country lay open ; when common
fields, common meadows, common paftares,
open woods, and exteniive forells and walles,
were the only divifion of lands, in this
kingdom. Even the demefne lands of the
feudal lords appear to have, once, lain open
with the lands of their tenants.

FiTZHERBERT, who wrote about two
hundred and fifty years ago *, fpeaking of the

herbage

* Akthony FiTZHERBERT was Judge of the Court
of Common Pleas, in the reign of Henry VIII. Befide
his h'citu>a Brevium^ Juftice of Peace, and other works
in the law, he left two on Rural Economy — the Boke
OF Husbandry and the Boke of Surveying ;—
the firft trcatifes, probably, which were v/rltten on the
fubje(5t, in the Englifh language ; and the beft that were
written, for more than a century afterward. There has
been fome doubt about whether thefe two treatifes were
really written by Judge Fitzherbert ; but I flatter mj-
fclf I fhall, in its proper place, be able to adduce fufjicient
evidence of" their being his produdJons*

46 INCLOSURES.

herbage of town/hips, fays, " by that Is to be
** underllood the common pafture of the
** town whereupon the lierdman keepeth the
** tenant's cattle ; for it may be fo good that
" the tenants need not to have any feveral
** pafture" [hnporting in this place ftinted
pailure] ; ** but that their common pafture
** fhould be able to find all their cattle, both
** horfes, mares, hearts, and fheep : and fo
" it was of eld time, that all the lands, mea-
*' dows, and paftures lay open and unclofed.
" And then was their tenements much better
** and cheaper than they be now j for the
" moft part of the lords have enclofed their
" demefne lands and meadows, and keep
*' them in fevetalty; fo that their tenants
" have no common with them therein." In
this ilate the cultivated lands of the kingtlom
appear to have lain, in Fitzherbert's day.
For in his lafl chapter, the fubjedl of which
is, " How to make a townihip that is worth
" twenty marks a-year worth twenty pounds
" a-year," he recommends incloiure; — not
as a known improvement to be perfevered in,
but as a fcheme eligible to be adopted.

In the prefcnt century, more efpecially
within the lafl fifty years, inclofure has made
a. rapid progrefs j and its effcifls have in

general,

YORKSHIRE. 47

general, I believe, been equal to thole fore-
feen by Fitzherbert, The garden is the
higheft ftatc of cultivation 5 open fields and
common paftures the loweft ; feparate in-
clofares a middle ftate, which feems to be
well adapted to the prefent population of this
country.

Let this be as it may, the fpirit of inclofure
continues to be fuch, that, in half a century
more, an open field, or an undivided common
may be rare, and the remembrance of them
will of courfe foon wear away. This is there-
fore the proper time to regiller interefting
fadts, relative to the fubjec^, and this Diflri<ft
the proper place for adducing them.

In my own remembrance, more than half
the Vale under obfervation lay open : now,
fcarcely an open field, or an undivided com-
mon, remains. Befides, the largeil: parifh in
the Vale — one of the moft extenfive pariihes
in the kingdom — is now under inclofure j
and the circumftances attending it are fuch, as
have feldom occurred : a fuitable opportunity,
this, for endeavouring to afcertain juft ideas
of a fubjecft, which, though it has of late
years been much agitated, appears to be, even
yet, imperfedtly underftood.

\Ti the beginning of the prefent century,

the

48 IN CLOSURES.

the immediate townlhip of Pickkring re-
mained in its ancient uninclofed llate.

Having been thought too large to be kid
out conveniently as one townfliip, it had been
judiciouily fplit into two divifions, by a
natural line, a confidcrable brook, which
runs through it.

On each Tide of the brook lay a fuite of
COMMON FIELDS; three in number; for
the unvarying round of wheat, 6cc. bean?;,
&c. fallow. Thefe common fields were ref-
pedlively divided into oxgangs, evenly fcattered
over every field ; fo that each occupier might
have an equal or fimilar fhare of good and
bad, near and diilant land ; the houfes being
in this, as in every other common-field town-
fhip, placed in the /cicv/. Each field con-
fided of twenty two oxgangs ; each of which,
on one fide of the townfliip, contained twenty
four acres — on the other, twelve acres : con-
fequently the fix fields contained 2376 acres.

Each divifion had likewife its common

MEADOW.

Other poi-tions of the townfliip were laid
out in STINTED PASTURES, wholly ap'
pendant to the common-field lands ; each
oxgang of which having a right to a limited
number of gaits, for coii's and working oxen.

The

YORKSHIRE. 49

The remainder of the townfliip, contain-
ing many thoufand acres, was common.

During tliis century, the common fields
and common meadows have been gradually
contradling, by amicable exchanges and tranf-
fers, and are, now, in a m.anner wholly in-
cloled. The ftinted paftures have, at dif-
ferent times, been inclofed " by cdmmijjion ^"
namely, by the unanimous reference of the
parties concerned, to certain arbitrators or
commillioners, appointed by themfelves ;
without calling in the aid of parliament.
The commons are now under inclofure, pur-
faant to a bill procured for that purpofe.

This bill, and the circumftances attending
the procurement of it, afford a llriking
pi<!^ure of modern inclofures by a<ft of par-
liament.

The lands to be appropriated, in this cafe>
confided of 3,700 acres of culturable foil,
valued (by the commifiion under the inclo-
fure) at 3s. to 50s. an acre rent ; and of a
fl-ill greater quantity of heathy barren land,
reaching to the center of the moreknds,
valued (by the fame) from below 3s. down
to 3d. an acre. The quantity of oxgang or
common-field land (as above afcertained)
2 376 acres ; and the number of ancient ccm-
VoL . I. E mon-

50 INCLOSURES.

mon-right houfes, or lites of fuch houfeS,
two hundred and fixty.

To thofe 2376 acres *, and thefe 260
houles or fites, the commons belonged ; but
in what proportion had not, for ages perhaps,
been clearly underllood. Within memory,
it feems, an attempt was made to llint them ;
but the regulation lafted only one year. Be-
fore and fmce that time, they have been, in
the flrid:eft fenfe of the word, unjlinted c'om^
monsj for all kinds of commonable ftock ;
excepting sheep and working oxen ;
which la 11 were, by the hy-laivs of the toivn-
f-fp> confined to the {tinted paftures, and the
upland commons ; and the former, to the
upland commons only.

It may be taken for granted, that the firll
mover to an inclolure is private mtereft, ra-
ther than public fpirit. In the cafe of
Pickering, the land owners, in general,
were fatisfied with the open ftatc of the
commons. Some of them who had inherited,
— or purchafed at an advanced price, — lands
which lay conveniently to the commons,
were, ofcourfe, adverfc to an inclofure ; and
the mere house owners were either appre-
henfive of the fmallnefs of their claim, or

their

* Together with the meadow lands.

YORKSHIRE. 51

their voices were too weak to be heard,
among thofe of the land owners.

Under thefe circumftances, the commons
lay open, and would probably have conti-
nued in that ftate> had there been no other
intereft in the townfliip, than that of the
owners of its lands and houses.

But the tithe, of three or four thoufand
acres of corn land, was an objedl of too great
magnitude to be overlooked, by the lelTee
(for lives under the Dean of York) j and,
being i^txi, had charms in it too fafcinating
to be loft fight o£

A(fluated thus powerfully, the Jejfee of the
//>/^^j applied to the land owners, to join
him in an application to parliament, for an
inclofure. The land owners refufed. Their
condudl, however, was impolitic and ill
judged ; and a fair opportunity lofl is not
eafily regained*

The leflee of the tithes adled under a rel-
iefs impulfe j and no matter the inftruments
he made ufe of, fo they anfwered his pur-
pofe. He, therefore, applied to the house
OWNERS i who, feeing riches within their
reach, which till then they had never thought
of, grew frantic with expecflation.

A law agent, well fuited to the defign,
£ 2 Wiii

52 I N C L O S U R E S.

was pitched upon ; and other agents, no lef*-
qualified, gave him their beft alTiflance. An
equal divifion of the commons, among the
houfes only, was the prize held out ; and a
bill, framed for the purpofe of obtaining it,
was fent up to Parliament.

A faint ill conducted oppolition was made,
by the land owners ; but a more powerful in-
terefl:, well applied, having got there before
them, their intentions of throwing out the
bill were fruflrated.

Parliament, however, feeing probably the
iniquity of the bill, without being willing to
enter into a minute invertigation, or able, at
their difVancc, to afcertain with conveniency
fufficient facfls, left a principal matter open to
a trial at law; namely, whether the commons
fliould be divided among the houfes, only 3 or
whether one moiety of them fliould remain
with ** the lands of the townlhip, which,
** upon the firlt of January 1784, belonged
** to the owners of antient common-right
" mefluages, cottages or lites."

In confequence of this order of Parlia-
ment, the queftion was tried, on a feigned
iliiie, at the allize for the county, in the fjm-
mer of 1785.

The

YORKSHIRE. 53

The trial was conduced with the fame ex-
ertions, on the part of the promoters of the
bill, and with the fame tamenefs and ilj
judged confidence, on the part of its oppo-
fers, as had been evident in every llage of
the bufinefs. Thefe circumflances co-ope-
rating with the " uncertainty of the law,"
a verdid: was obtained, in favour of the
houfes.

Thus, by management ^ — without even the
(hadow of r^^^/ being offered, — the owner of
a mere cottage without a garden-place, or
of a heap of ftcnes which had long lain as
ruins, and who could have no rightful ad-
vantage whatever from the commons in their
open ftate, became entitled to an equal {hare,
under the inclofure, with the largeft land-
owner ; who, perhaps, previous to the paf-
fmg of this law, occupied rightfully, fome
hundred acres.

It is true, many poor families may gain a
temporar)^ relief by this inequitable tranfa(n:ion ;
and lo far the bill may have operated bene-
ficially. But it muft be evident, to thofe who
have a knowledge of the townfliip, and who
think impartially on the fubjedt, that they
might, with equal propriety, have been re-
lieved out of the inc^ofed lands, or the per-
il 3 fonal

54 IKCLOSURES.

fonal property of the land owners ; and it
could not be the intention of Parliament, to
be inftrumental in transferring the property of
one man to another, without a fufficientreafon ;
ve may therefore fafely conclude, that Par-
liament, in this cafe, were either impofed
Upon, or judged erroneoufly ; or that they
are in want of fome

General Principles of Inc^osure,

I fhall not prefume to dicTtate to Parlia-
ment ; but as I have beftowed an unufual ihare
of attention on this important fubjed:, and
may not have another opportunity, fo fuitable
as the prefent, of fpeaking my fentiments
upon it, I will here throw together the ideas
which have ftruck me, as a groundwork for
further argument.

It will be proper, in the outfet, to take a
view of the origin of commons, and the
iirft laying out of townihips,

f itzherbert, whofe opinion in this cafe is
valuable, fpeaking of cuftomary tenants, in
his 1 3th chapter of Surveying, fays, " Cuf-
** tomary tenants are thofe that hold their
•* lands of their lord, by copy of court-roll,
*' after the cuftom of the manor. And there
^- t>e mar.y tenants wi,*hin the fame manor

** that

YORKSHIRE.

SS

•' that have no copies, and yet hold by like
" cuflom and fervice, at the will of the lord :
** and in mine opinion, it began foon after
" the Conquefl. When William Conqueror
** had conquered the realm, he rewarded all
** thofe that came with him, in his viage
*' royal, according to their degree. And to
" honourable men he gave lordlhips, ma-
*' nors, lands, and tenements, with all the in-
*' habitants, men and women, dwelline in the
*' fame, to do with them at their pleafure."
And in his 40th chapter, in which he pro-
pofes to improve by inclofure, he fays, " It
'* is undoubted, that to every tov/nfhip, that
" ftandeth in tillage in the plain country,
** there be arable lands to plovv^ and fow, and
** leys to tie or tedder horfes and mares
** upon, and common pafture to keep and
" pafture cattle, beafls, and flieep upon;
** andalfo meadow ground to get hay upon."
In another part of the fame treatife, chap-
ter 4. ^' Of foreign paftures that be com-
*^ mon," he fays, ** This is a dark letter to
** be underilood without a better declara-
** tion, for it may be underflood three ways.
" In many towns, where clofes and paftures
*' lie in feveralty, there is commonly a com-r
^* mon clofe taken in, out of the commons

E 4 ** or

5^ INCLOSURES.

** or fields, by the tenants of the town, for
,** their oxen or kine, or other cattle, in
*' which clofe every man is llinted, and fet
" to a certainty how many beafts he ihall
** have in the fame, and of what manner of

** beafts they fhall be. Another manner

** of common is moll commonly in plain
" chainpion countries, where the cattle go
'* daily before the herdman, and lyeth near
** adjoining to the common fields ; and it

*' may lie in two or three places or mere.

*' The third manner of common is the lord's
*' outwoods, that he common to his tenants,
*' as common moors or heaths, the which
•' were never arable land."

The fame, or a fimilar dirtribution of lands
remain, in every uninclofed townlhip, to this
day. Each township is one common farm;
laid out into tliree arable divifions, for coryi j
a flat of meadow land, for f^iy -, — and one o^
vnort pn/iures, for ftock.

It appears evident from obfervation, in dif-
ferent Diftrids of the Kingdom, that, inlaying
out a townfliip whicli contains a diverfity of
foil, the dried and heft land^ have been laid
out as arable fields ; the wcttefl, if futficient-
ly found, as mowing ground ; and the re-
mainder as pallure land, and as a fource of

fuel.

YORKSHIRE. 57

fuel. In fome townfhips, part of the pallure
ground has been fet apart as a flinted pafture,
for fome particular fpecies of cattle ; and,
in others, part of the commonfield land has
been laid to grafs, for the purpofe of tedder-
ing horfes upon, in the corn year?, and feed-
ing iheep upon, in the fallow year.

In townfhips of a more uniform foil, good
land, fit for arable, has been fet out as com-
mon pafture ; for, in the days when town-
fhips were laid out, it would have been lefs
poffible to have cultivated and manured the
common fields of a townfhip, without a com-
mon pallure, than it would now be, when
the ufes of clover and vetches are known, to
manage a farm entirelv under the plow.

It is therefore evident, that common paf-
tures and comm.on fields are, in their original
intention, and ever have been in their ufe, as
infeparable as animal life and food: — it was
pecefTary to keep w^orking frock, to till the
fields, and almofl as neceflary to ha^e other
live flock, to confume the flraw, and to raife
manure. And it may be fafely drawn, as an
inference, that the herbage of the common
paflures of a given townfhip belong, in their
Qriginal intention, to the arable and meadov/

lafids

jS I N C L O S r R E S.

lands of that townfhip : for, without themi
the former muft have lain in perpetual fal-
low, and the hay of the latter have been ufe-
Icfs. Confequently, h the original intention t
every hoiife which occupied a portion of the
arable and ?neadow land of the townfliip, had
a right to a like portion of the he?'bage of the
coonmon paflures ; and this without any re-
gard to the time of its being erected ; name-
ly, whether before or after the laying out of
the townfhip.

But with refped: to fuel, and the panage,
(when thefe were not referved to the lord)
the original intention was undoubtedly diffe-
rent; for a certain plot of woodland (for in-
flance) was fet out, in proportion to the num-
ber of boufes in the townlhip, at the time of
fetting it out. This was a grant of the lord,
to the houfcs in beings at the time of the grant -,
which particular houfes thereby obtained an
exclufive right to the fuel and panage thus
granted ; cther^vife an unlimited and ex-
ceflive increafe of houfes mi^ht have abridged
the original habitations in their right, and
have done away the original intention.

Since the improvements in navigation, and
in the art of mining, have taken place, many
common woodlands have, probably, been

cleared

YORKSHIRE. 59

cleared away ; for it is evident, from ob-
lervation, confirmed by tradition, tha^ many
of the grafsland commons, which now remain,
and which, a few years fince, were thickly fcat^
tered over the kingdom, were formerly co-
vered wholly, or partiall)^ with Avood j the
original fources of fuel and panage : which
fuel and panage belonged excluiively to the
original houfes : confequently, when the land
which produced them was cleared, thefe
hoiifes had a plea for an excluiive right to the
herbage which fucceeded.

Thus the ancient houfes having, by original
right, a claim upon the woody and, by impli-
cation, upon the herbage which fucceeded it,
they became obje(^s of importance, compared
with modern houfes ; and it appears to have
grown gradually into a cuftom, which in
time became law, that no modern houfe, nor
even the lands of the townfliip which lay to
them, fhould enjoy either the fuel or the her-
bage of the commons.

And thus the antient houfes, b3^im plication,
gained in part, and, by ufurpation, entirely, a
privilege oi prefenting the lands of the town-
ihip, with the freedom of the commons ; which
privilege has rendered them more valuable,
than modern houfes, of equal iize ; and this

di£-

6o I N C L O S U R E S.

di&erence in value is the real intereft they
have in the commons.

It is the moft they ever had, or can of right
have, v.'hilc the tcmir.ons remain open. For
a mere houfe, without land, has neither plow
to work, manure to raiie, nor fodder to con-
lume, and cannot, in the ordinary courfe of
hull'andr}-, make any ufc whatever of the
bcrh.igc of a common.

And with refpeft to the privilege of pre-
fentation, it is equally vague, in the owner of
an antient houfe, to lay claim to an equalized
ihare of the lands of a common, becaufe
he has a power of enfranchiling the lands
of others, as it would be in a lay-pre-
fenter of a living, to lay claim to tlie
henelicc, becaufe he has die advowfon.
Whatever the advo-icfyn is worth, fo much
interefl the prefenter of the herbage of a
common, or the profits of a living, has in that
common, or that living.

From thefe premifes v.-c may infer, that
iiO\i\ neither an antient houfe without lands,
of a given townil:iip, belonging; to it, nor a
parcel of land without an antient houfe being
held witli it, is entitled to any ihare of the
common herbage of that townihip. But,

when-

YORKSHIRE. 6f

whenever this houfe regains land, or the land
is again laid to an antient houfe, the right of
commonage returns. The right, therefore,
only lies dormarit ; and is not, m either cafe,
extinguiflcd.

The fame of a fite. While covered with
ruins, it can have no right either to fuel or
herbage : but whenever the houfe is rebuilt
and inhabited, a right of fuel returns ; and
having had lands laid to it, a right of herbage.
And whatever a lite is worth over and above
the value of the land it contains, fo much ia-
tereft it has in the comrnon lands of the
townfiiio it lies in.

The Lnterell: oi dormant land^ may be afcer-
tained, in a iimilar wav : whatever their value
is depreciated by the alienation from the
commons, fo much Icfs interefl: they have in
a diviiion of them. To {hut them out of an
Inclofure Bill is to take them by fdrprize, and
thruft them out of the townlhip ; thereby
ftranslins that ri^ht which before had only
llept i and which might the next year, or the
next day, have awakened in its fulleft luflre.
• Befide thefe particular interefts, there is
one general intereft tcbe conlidered; namely,
iht Jituation of lands, houfes, and fites, with
refpe(ft to the common to be inclofed ; — for

boufcSf

#2 I N C L O S U R E 5.

houfes, at leail, which are fituated contiguous
to a common, had, in the firft inftance, have
had, ever lince, and muft have, while the
commons remain open, a greater benefit
from its herbage, and have on that account
been fold and purchafed at a greater price,
than houfes iituated at a diftance ; and, of
courfe, have a right to a greater fhare of the
lands to be inclofed.

The interefls oi fites vary in a fimilar
manner.

But, with refpedt to landsy this fpecies of
intereft is lefs evident. While common fields
and common meadows lie open, they have
little advantage or difadvantage from fitua-
tion, with refpe(5t to the common pall:ure<
But where the arable and meadow lands have
been inclofed, and the pal^ures remain open,
fituation becom.es of confiderablc importance.
And where the appropriated lands have been
ion a: held in leveralty, and have been fold
and purchafed under thofe circumllances, the
lands which lie near to the common pafhires
feem to have gained, by the circumftance of
inclofure, ratified by long ufage, an extracr^
dinary zrA perrnanoit interel^ in the herbage ;
an intereft which they can never lofe, fo long
as the appropriated lands remain inclofed, and

the

YORKSHIRE. 63

the ccmmon paftures remain open. Hence,
it is unwife in thofe, whofe lands lie at a dif-
tance from the common paflure, to fufFer a
partial inclolure to take place ; for by that
means they are eftablifliing, to their own dif-
advantage, a fpecies of intereft in common
paftures, which before had no exiftence.

Before we proceed farther, it may be pro-
per to confider the Imits of commonright ^ on
unftinted common paftures.

It is generally underftood, and may, I be-
lieve, be conlidered as the common law of the
realm, that each commonright houfe has a
power to fummer as much ftock on the com-
mon, as the lands which lie to it- will winter;
or, to fpeak more practically, a right to ftock
in proportion to the value of the lands, re-
fpedtivelyheldv/ith the commonright houfes:
for it fo happens, that by improvements in
huft>andry, iince the time of laying out town-
ships,— more efpecially where the appropri-
ated lands haye been inclofed, — commons in
general are unable to fupport, in fummer, fo
much ftock as the arable and meadow land
can, in winter ; confequently, it is become im-
prad:icable to adhere, ftridtly, to the antient
regulation : which antient regulation, how-
ever, I

64 1 N C L O S U R E ?.

ever, though time has rendered it in fnort
cafes impradticabic, is as flrong an evidence,
as is neceUary to be produced, in favor of the
herbage of unftinted commons belonging
folely to the land.

That the idea is antient, and not of mo-
dem invention, may be feen in Fitzherbert ;
who, in his 6th chapter, ** Of Foreign Woods,
** where other men have common, but where
" the lord may improve himlelf," fays^
*•' It is clearly ordained by the ftatute of
" Merton, and after confirmed by the fta-
" tute of Weilminiler, that the lord fhall
** improve himfe If of his wafles — leaving his
** tenantsy//^t/V;?/ common. It is necefiary to
** ht knownv^hit isfupcient co.'/imon ; and that
" to me feemeth by reafon lliould be thus :
** To fee hon' much cattle the hay and the
*' draw, a hulband getteth upon his own te-
" nement, will find fufiiciently in winter, if
*' they lie in the houfe and be kept therewith
** all the winter feafon ; for fo much cattle
" fhouid iie have common in fummer ; and
" that is fuficicnt commzn. It confequently
follows, that the occupier of a houfe without
hnd could not, of nc^ht, keep catile upon the
common in fummer ; becaule his tenement

afi:cided

YORKSHIRE. 65

afforded him neither hay nor flraw, wherewith
to keep them in the houfe, during the winter
feafon.

Laftly, the intereft of the lord of the foil
requires confideration. Here, Fitzherbert's
treatife may be taken as a fafe guide. The
groundwork, of the firil: feventeen chapters,
is a ftatute of Edward I. named Extent a Ma^
nerii'y of which Fitzherbert himfelf gives the
following account : " In mine opinion, this
ftatute was made foon after the Barons'
wars, the which ended at the battle of
Eve(ham, or foon after, in the time of
king Henry III. whereat many Noblemen
were llain, and many fled, who after were
attainted for the treafon they did to the
king. And by reafon thereof their caflles
and manors were feized into the king's
hands. And fo for want of reparation the
caftles and manors fell to ruin and in decay.
And when theKin^and his Council fa w that,
they thought it was better to extend them,
and make the mofl profit that they could of
them, than let them fall to the ground and
come to no man's help and profit; therefore.
King Edward I. ordained this ftatute to be
made the fourth year of his reign, wherein
is contained many and divers chapters and
Vol. I. F ** articles,

66 INCLOSURES.

*' anjcles, the which, at that time, were but
" inflru<flions how and what they ihould do
" that were Commiflioners or Sur\'evors in
** the fame."

Inftrudtions, framed by Parliament, and ex-
plained by an able Judge, afford evidence of
the highefl authority.

A claufe of the ilatute, refpedling common
paftures, mns thus : ** It is to be enquired of
'* foreign pail:ures that be common liow many
*' and what fort of cattle the lord may have
** in the fame, and what the pallure of a beafl
" is worth by the year."

It is this claufe which Fitzherbert fays is
" a dark letter to be underilood without a bet-
*' ter declaration j" becaule there are three
forts of commons : namelv, a i^inted common
clofe i — 'A tended common, open to the com-
mon field ; — and the lord's outwoods, or un-
ftinted common pailure. In the two former,
he fays, " the lord liiould be put to a cer-
** tainty — and every man be feinted either by
■J* yard-lands, oxgangs, rents, or fuch other
" cufLomas the tenants ufe, — and the lord in
** like manner." — But in the outwoods, *• me
** feemeth tlielord fhould not beilintednor fet
** to a certainty, but put his cattle upon fuch
" manner of commcn pallure at his pleafure;

*' bceaufe

YORKSHIRE* 67

** becaufe the whole common is his owa, and
** his tenants have no certain parcel thereof
** laid to their holdings ; but all only bite of
** mouth with their cattle :" by which is evi-
dently meant (from various ^2L^2igQS>) fufficie?Jt
bite for the tenants' cattle. Hence, it clearly
follows, that if the herbage of the common
be more than fufficient for the cattle of the
townfhip, the overplus, be it more or lefs,
belongs to the lord. On the contrary, if the
herbage of the common is not 7nore than fuffi-
cient to fummer the cattle, which the town-
fhip can maintain in winter (in an uninclofed
ftate), the lord has not [merely as fuch) any
intereft whatever, in the herbage of the com-
mons within his manor.

In another claufe, refpecfling outwoods fpe -
cially, — the ftatute orders, that it " be en-
*^ quired of foreign woods, where other men
" have come-in, what part of thofe woods the
** lord may improve himfelf of, and of hov/
** many acres, and for how much the vefiurCj
*' that is to fay, the wood oi every acre may
" be fold, and how much the ground is worth
** after the wood be fallen, and how many
" acres it contains, and what every acre is
" worth by the year."

By this claufe, it is implied by Parliament,
F 2 that

M INCLOSURES.

that the nrood of a common belongs folely to
the lord : and Fitzherbcrt's expofition of it
implies the fame idea : ** The declaration of
" this ftatute is doubtful j becaufe of the
** non-certainty of what isfufficient commoJi ,"
—which having explained as above, he con-
tinues, ** You {hall underftand that there be
" four manner of commons, that is to wit ; —
** common appendant, — common appurte-
'* nant, — common in grofs, — and common
** becaufe of neighbourship. Common ap-
" pendant is where the lord of old time hath
** granted to a man a mefeplace and certain
** lands, meadows, and paftures, with their
*' appurtenances, to hold of him. To this
** mefeplace, lands, and meadows, belongeth
** common, and that is common appendant.
" — Common appurtenant is where a man
*' hath had common to a certain number of
*' beafts, or without number, belonging to
** his mefeplace in the lord's wafle : this is
J* common appurtenant by prefcription, be-
'* caufe of the ufe out of time of mind. —
" Common in grofs is where a lord hath
** granted, by his deed, common of pafture
'* to a flrangerthat holdeth no land of him,
** nor ought to have any common but by
** reafon of that grant by deed. — Common

'' of

YORKSHIRE. 69

** of vicinity or neighbour/hip is where the
" wafte grounds of two townfhips lie toge-
** ther, and neither hedge nor pale between
" to keep their cattle afunder : this is com-
*' mon becaufe of neighbourfliip j and it is
*' not ufed nor lawful to pin the cattle fo
** goi^g y ^^^ i^ good manner to drive and
** chace befide fuch common."

Of common in grofs, he fays, "the lord
" may not improve himfelf of any parcel ; for
*' it is contrary to grant, though there be fuf-
** ficient of common," But "ye fhall un-
'^ derfland that how be it a lord may not im-
** prove himfelf of his wafte grounds, yet may
'* he lawfully fall and fell all the wood,
*' broom, gorfe, furze, braken, fern, bufhes,
*' thorns, and fuch other, as free-ftone, lime-
^' flone, chalk, turves, clay, fand, lead-ore,
*' or tin, to his own ufe ; for the tenant may
" have nothing by reafon of common, but
*' only bite of mouth with his cattle."

Hence, we may conclude, that the cutting
of fuel (if pradifed) was, t^en, merely on fuf-
ferance.

In his explanation of a claufe refpe(5ling
panagCy &c. he fays, *' Where this ftatute
'* fpeaketh depmiagioy that is to be underftoo4
** where there is any mafl growing in the

F 3 <* lord's

70 I N C L O i U R E S.

* lord's wood, wherebv men's fwlne may be

* fed and relieved ; what profit that may be

* to the lord ; for there is no man that can
' claim of right to have the maft, the which

* is a fruit, but the lord ; and the lord fhall

* have it in foreign or outwoods, as well as
^ in his parks or feveral woods j and as the

* quantity of maft is, fo the lord's bailey

* ought of right to lay men's fwine there-

* unto from Michaelmas to Martinmas, and
' to make a true account thereof at the lord's

* audit, what he taketh for every fwine."

Thus it appears, that not on\y fuel, but
fanagey likewife, was originally a matter of
fuiferance, when enjoyed by the tenants.

From thefe premifes, and from the prc-
fent infufficiency of commons, we may fafcly
infer that the lord (merely as fuch) has no
intereft whatever in the herbage of commons
within his manor. But we may infer, with
equal fafety, that of the lijood of a common
the lord is fole proprietor ; except where a
right of fuel and panage has been ellabliOied
by long cuftom j for, in this cafe, prefcrip-
tion has fruflrated the original intention ;
and, here, the koujes have a joint intereft with
the lord.

Laftly,

YORKSHIRE/ 71

Laftly, with refpecCt to heaths and peat-
jnoorsj frcm which the inhabitants of a town-
fhip have, by prefcription, a right of cutting
fuel :

The ftatute orders, that it be enquired of
moors, heaths, and waftes, v/hat they be
worth by the year : — and Fitzherbert fays,
** Moors, heaths, and wailes, go in like man-
** ner as the herbage of the town ; for the
** lord's tenants have common in all fuch
** out grounds with their cattle ; but they
** {hall have no wood, thorns, turves, gorfe,
** fern, and fuch other, hut by cujlo?^, or elfe
'' fpecial words in the charter."

We may therefore conclude, that the lord
has no interefl in the hjerhage of a heath 5 nor
in thtfuely except there be ??iore than Jiiffici'
ent for the ufe of the inhabitants of the
ancient houfes 3 in which cafe the lord feems
to have an interefl in the overplus ; provided
he can reap the benefit of it, without injuring
the herbage*

From the fum of this evidence it appears,
that, at this day, lords of manors, in general,
have no other interefl in the commons, with-
in their refpeftive manors, than in the jnines,
the quarriesy and the i^JGod, The herbage be-
F 4 longs

7» I N C L O S U R E S.

longs to the land ; and thtfoe/ (where cuT-
tom allows it to be taken) to the houles.

As to the right of foih it appears to be
merely honorary : for the foil cannot be re-
moved, nor turned to advantage, without de-
flroying or injuring the herbage. A Icrd of
a manor has, however, a claim upon the
/oil, though indirect : for no man, nor fet
of men, can break it without his confent.
But this feems to be a claim of honor rather
than oi inter eft ', for, while tlie commons re-
main open, he cannot, in ftridl legality, reap
any emolument from it.

Thus we have enumerated five dillin^t in-
terefts.

I. COMMONRIGHT LaKDS* HELD WITH

COMMON RIGHT HousrS. To thefe lands

the

• By COMMOVRIGHT land is meant the original com-
mon field and common meadow land, and fuch other laad,
lying within the townfhip, as has, by grant or prrlcriprion,
a right of commonage when held with a rommonright
houfe ; in conL-adiflinclion to fuch lands cf the tONvnfcipas
have not, and to the lands of the reft of the kingdom -which
never can ha\'c, by any legal a<S, fuch a right, though held
with a commonrlght houfe. Suppofe lune tenths of the
townfhip in a flate of temporary alienation, by fome legal
circumflance which could not be a\ oided, or by any circum-
ftance whatever, could the other tenth part catch the oppor-
tunity

YORKSHIRE. 73

the benefit of the herbage belongs, in proportion
to their value ; and the right of the relpec-
tive parcels, to ihare in a divilion oi the
la7ids^ ought to be afcertained by their intrin-
fic qaahty, and their affinity to the common
(where this operates on their value in the open
flate) taken jointly *.

2. COiMMONRIGHT LaNDS HELD WITH-
OUT COMMONRIGHT HousES, The Original
right of thefe lands was indifputably the

fame

tunity in the interval of rufpence, and appropriate the lands
of the commons to this one tenth of the townfhip ? It
would be abfurd to fuppofe it. If one tenth cannot by any
advantage choufe the other nine, why {bould nine parts of a
townlhip be fuffered to ihare the right pf the tenth ? See
p. 52.

* To fet afide the lands of the townfhip entirely (as in
the cafe of Pickering) is too abfurd to be treated of f-^ri-
oufly. Suppofe nine acres of ten, or ninety-nine of one
hundred, of a given townlhip, to belong to one houfe, and
the other one-hundredth part to be divided among two hun-
dred and fiftynine houles : or fuppole the comcncns of a
given townftiip to contain mary thoufand acres, and the
appropriated commonright lands to cmfill .f 2376 acres ;
that the commonright houfes of the tov-.nihip were only
two, and that 2370 acres of the appropriated lands be-
longed to one houie, the other fix acres to the other houfe ;
would it be equitable in either cjfe to divide by the houfes ?
If not in thefe cafes, why in any cafe v/here the principle of
right is precifely the fame ?

94 IN CLOSURES.

fame as that of the other lands of the town-
(hip ; and their temporary aliaiation is merely
a circumflance, which does not extinguifh,
but only fufpends, their right to a benejit of
the herbage. Whatever this temporal-)^ alie-
nation depreciates them, below the other
lands of the townihip of the fame intrinlic
quality, in fimilar lituations, fo much pro-
portionably lefs is their right to a {hare of
the lands of the common *.

3. CoMMONRiGHT HOUSES. The pro-
portional rights of houfcs depends on the
nature of the commons to be inclofed.

If they produce herbage alone, — 2i com-
rnonright houfe ought to fhare with the
lands, in proportion to its extra 'value t^s fuch ;
that is to fay, v.hatever it is worth more than a
non-commonright houfe of the fame intrinfic
value, in a limilar lituation, fo much it
ouglit to be eflimated at, in the general va-
luation

* The depreciation her:: intimated will feldom take
place i for the appropriated lands of a to-AiLliip arc worth
more la the occupier of a commonnght houfe ; becaufe they
intiile him to a greater Ciare of the commo.n paiiurage, thaii
to the occupier of a non-commonrijht houfe, to whon^
thry can feldom give any adequate privilege.

YORKSHIRE. 75

iuation of the commonable property of the
townihip *.

If the common to be inclofed produce
fuel alone y the houfes (or the houfes and the
lord of the foil, if an overplus can be proved)
are alone intitled to it.

\i herbage and fuel jointly^ the lands and
houfes have rights in it, proportioned to the
herbage and the fuel it produces -f*.

4. CoMMONRiGHT SiTES. The right of
fites is fimilar with that of houfes : whatever
the dormant right of prefentation and the
dormant right (^i fuel are worth, fo much in
proportion they ought to ihare with the
lands and houfes.

5. The

* The extra value of .eommonright houfes varies with
the value of the commons and the number of houfes.
Thus, fuppofe the commons of two diftiuil townfhips to be
of equal value, and that one townfiaip contained ten, the
Qther one hundred commonright houfes ; the right of pre-
fentation would be worth more in that than in th'n town-
fhip : and where herbage alone is the produce of the
common, the right of reprefentation and the extra value are
the fame.

f If part of the commons to be inclofed produce her-
bage alone, and ocher parts principally fuel, and a feparate
divifion be made (as in the cafe of Pickering), the extra
value is compounded of the right of prefentation to the
herbage, and the right of cutting fuel ; either of which
^eing eftimated, the otr.vr is 0: courfc- fuficiently afcertained.

;6 r N C L O S U R r s.

5. The Lord or the soil. To the lands
of a common, on wliich open 'woodlands ftill
prevail, the lord of the foil has a principal
right. But whatever the bite of mouth is
worth, fo much in proportion the land is en-
titled to ; and if a right oi fuel be ellabllfh-
cd by cuflom, the houfcs have their clami.
Whatever proportional advantage the feveral
interefts would receive, in an open flate, fuch
proportions of the land they are feverally iii -
titled to, under an inclofure.

l{ valuable mines and quarries ht given up,
the lord ought to receive an equivalent, in
hnd, and is entitled to fome fhare, for the
mere chance of mines, and quarries, being
hereafter difcovered. But of naked commons,
.affording neither wood nor fuel, and of which
the mines and quarries are referved, the lord
cf the manor (merely as fuch) has not, on
the principles offered, anv right to fhare in
a divifion of the foil, faving the honorary right
wliich has been already meptioncd*.

WJiile

" III M? c.ii of Piclcering, the Crown, as owner of the
*♦ honor, forelts^Jid manor of Plciceri.^g" (in right of the
dutchv of Lancafter), had one tenth qf the principal part of
the tovvninip, and one fifteenth cf the remaining pai;t,
g::j^t:.c cy the 2<lI of Inclofur'^

The

YORKSHIRE. 77

While the Pi<:kering bill Is before
me, I will make a few further remarks.

I. Fhe comniijjioners appointed : three of
them, only, being direded to value the com-
mon lands, and to fet out the king's allot-
ments. Of thefe three, one was nominated
by the chancellor of the dutchy of Lancafter ;
one by the leiTee of the tithes (who could
have no fpecial right of nominatioro as no
part of tlie commons was ordered by the adt
to be fet out as tithes) ; and the third by the
proprietors of the townfhip. Before the
lands were valued, and the allotments fet out,
the commiflioner of the tithe-lelTee obtain-
ed an appointment under the Crovv'n j in

con-

The v/oodlands, in this cafe, had formerly been inclofcd
and held by the Crown in feveralty ; and the remainder of
the commons given up entirely to the appropriated lands of
the townfhip ; fhutting out even the parlc, and fome de-
mefne land of the dutchy, from a right of commonage; fo
that neither wood nor woodland is by the acl given up : yet
all the manerial rights are referved ; except the honorary
right offoil^ and except quarries ofjlone and Jl ate : which
laft are fufficiently abundant in the old appropriated lands
to fupply the townfhip with building materials and lime
manure for at leaft a thoufand years. Therefore, the con-
fid^ration given up was of inconfiderable value — compared
with that which was given as equivalent ; but which ap-
pears to be, in t/^is particular cafe^ unicafonablc and ex-
cellivc.

^ I N C L O S U R E S.

confequence of which the townlhip was in
effect valaed, and the Crown allotments (ct
out, by the agents of the Crown, without
the proprietors of the townlliip having, in
nny cafe, a cafting vote ; their commifTioner
becoming, under thefe circumftances, a mere
by-ftander.

It would be well if, in cafes of importance,
honorary commijjioners, chofen out of the in-
dependent gentlemen of the neighlx^urhood,
could be appointed ; as a check upon adting
commiflioners, in predicaments of this na-
ture.

2. New rCiic^'s to be made, and old ones
to be repaired ; — common drains to be
opened, and public refcr'-joirs formed, by the
commilHoners, at the joint cxpence of the

,lands to be inclcfed.

The forming of refervoirs of the waters
collevfled by the roads, for the purpofe of
public drinking pools, ought to be a ibanding
claufe in every Inclofure bill ; and commif-
fioners, moft efpecially in upland fituatlons
away from running waters, ought to pay due
attention to it.

3. Lands, exceeding the yearly \'alue of
three fhillings an acre, to be divided and
mclojsdy — the rcfidue to be allotted, only ;

leaving

YORKSHIRE. 79

leaving it in the option of the perfons to
whom they be allotted, to inclofe them, or
let them remain in a ftate of open common ;
lubjeca: to fach regulations as the commif-
(ioners fhall appoint.

Too much cannot be faid in praife of this
diftindtion. Good land will always pay for
incloling, and be the mofi: valuable in that
ftate ; but bad land is frequently too dear at
that price : many men of comfortable for-
tunes have, in this Diftrid:, been beggared,
and the fortunes of others injured, by the in-
clofmg of lands which have net yet paid, nor
probably ever will repay, the expence j and
the fame may be obferved, in other Diftridts
of the kingdom.

4. A good regulation refpe<fling fences is
likewife noticeable. The ad: allows a privi-
lege of placing a fence, on the outfide of the
ditch, upon the adjoining allotment, to de-
fend the face of the young hedge ; and to
remake and remove fuch fence during and
within the fpace of ten years. Alfo to con-
tinue the fence at the ends (by rails reaching
over the crofs ditches (to the ports or rails of
the adjoining crofs fences.

5. Lallly, the reference of matters in dif-

pute

gd INCLOSURES.

pute to a trial at law requires the mofl: ma-
tire confiieration.

The appropriation of commonable lands is
an important matter : they are ufeful, in an
open ftate ; but would, in general, be much,
more ufeful, in a ftate of Inclofure. Whoever
has reaped a rightful benefit from them, time
immemorial, ought to have that benefit con-
tinued to them : and all that Parliament has
to do is, to afcertain the quantity of right, of
each party or interefl concerned, in the par-
ticular bill before them i — or to refer fpecial
matters, in difpute, to fome other inqueft,
more peculiarly adapted to the neceiTary en-
quiries ; — or to refufe the application.

A court of afilze is, perhaps, the moll im-
proper inquefl-, which could be referred to,
for fettling difputes rcfpedling Inclofures :
and are, certainly, much lefs adapted to
make the neceiTary enquiries, than a com-
mittee of the Houfe of Commons -, where
every Member is a judge, and has fufficicnt
time for deliberation ; whereas, in a court of
aflizc, all is hurry and tumult ; with only
one man to think, and the mind of this one
man necclTarily crovvded, with a chaos of
ideas.

It

Y O R K S H I R>. 8f

It will however be faid, that a fpecial jury,
of the coupty in which the fite of Inclofure
lies, ar^ the fitted to determine the rights of
the claimants. This, in theory, is plaufible ;
but is feldom verified in pradtice.

In the cafe of Pickering, only four of the
fpecial jury attended ; and one of thefe was a
tradefman of the city of York. It is highly
probable, that not one of the jury refided
within twenty miles of the fite of Inclofure ;
or had the fmallefc fliare of perfonal know-
ledge, either of the fite, or the fubjedt of
Inclofure. A jury impanelled, in any other
county of the kingdom, might have been
equally qualified for the purpofe.

It was therefore a. mere trial at /c7'Z£;, which,
to a proverb, is a game at hazard. The
houfes were, once, within a point of lufing
the game : Sir Thomas Davenport died, and
Mr. B. (their two leading counfel) was put
under arreft, the day before the trial was to
have come on; and their agents, fanguine as
they had heretofore been, now, on thofe
accidents happening, gave themfeives up to
defpair. But, by chance, or by management,
the trial was pollponed. The houfes, now,
came into court, fully prepared, while the
land, by a train of ill luck or bad management.
Vol. I. G was.

ii 1 N C L O S U R E S.

was, in efFedt, left without an advocate j
and, folely by " the uncertainty of the law,"
loft its right. Even the houfe owners, them-
felves, confidered the verdicfl as a game art-
fully won — and their /arge allotments, as
plunder bravely got. Right was out of the
queftion : tlie idea of it had been abforbed,
long before the decifion, in rancour and ill
blood ; 2L circumftance more to be lamented,
than the inequitable divifion of the commons*
In the cafe of Knaresborough, too, a
difpute, between the land owners and houfe
owners, was ordered to be decided by legal
contefi. There, as at Pickering, the houfea *
claimed the whole ; but the lands happenings
in that cafe, to employ the better forces, they
gained the day. Almoft the whole foreft
was divided among the land owners : even a

me flu age

* In this cafe the houfes were divided into mcffuages and
cottages-— one melTuage was confidered as equal to twa
cottages. This diftinction, which is not uncommon, has
moft probably arifen from the circumftance of the wood- *
lands being grubbed for the fake of herbage. A mefluage,
namely, a houfe with which land was anciently occupied^
had not only a privilege of cutting fuel in the outwoods,
but, of necefTity in early days, a privilege of taking plow-
hoot ^ cartbooty &c. Hence, i ts claim upon the herbage which
fucceeded the wood became greater than that of a mere
cottage, with which no lands being occupied, had no ufe for
implements of huft)andry.

YORKSHIRE. 83

melTuage did not Ihare, on the befl land,
more than two acres. The land owners had
offered the houfe owners a greater propor-
tion ; but they chofe to take their chance in
a court, as other defperadoes take their chance
in a lottery — a landed ertate, or nothing ;
and, it is laid, what fome of them <Tot did
not pay their extra expences. Here, the
poor man lofl his right : a circumflance which
renders the cafe of Knarelhorough harder
than that of Pickering.

Thefe are facts which appear to be fuf-
ficiently flrLking, to induce Parliament to
eftabliih fomc general principles of
Inclosure, and to enquire, themfelves, in-
to the rights of claimants : or, if a committee
of Parliament cannot conveniently determine,
to order reference to a commilfion of inde -
pendent difmterefted men, in the immediate
neighbourhood of the fiteof Inclofure -, who,
having perfonal knowledge of the premifes,
and the claiming parties, are beft enabled to
judge of their refpedive rights : or, if the
oppofition in Parliament be llrong, and the
matters in difpute too weighty to be left to
reference, to fend back the petitioners, and
let the commons remain open. It does not
G 2 follow.

g^ I N C L O S U R E S.

follow, that becaufe a few individuals, infli-
gated, perhaps, by one more interefted than
the reft, take it into their heads to try their
fortune in a Bill of Inclofure, that a fuitc of
valuable commons fliould of neceflity be
inclofed. A few years might reconcile dif-
ferences in opinion i and, then, there might
be no difficulty in afiigning every man his
rightful (liare.

The fate of S i N n i n g t o n was determined
by that of Pickering ; the different interefts
having agreed, previoufly to the trial, to abide
by the decinon of the court.

The Sinnington bill is entitled to a few

remarks :

I . 'Tithe. It is difhcult to write with tem-
per on the fubiedt of tithes. At the time
they were inftituted, fpecie was little in ufe,
as a medium, between the producer and the
confumer of the productions of the foil 3 and
then it might be neceffary, that the clergy
fhouldbe fupported out of its immediate pro-
duce. But to continue this ancient regu-
lation, in a time when money is become the
univerfal medium of property, and when
improvements in cultivation engage the at-
tention of alUcanks of mankind, is an im-
propriety.

YORKSHIRE. 85

propriet^,% which none but the abettors of
oppreilion will defend.

A general dilTolution of tithes, though
fervently to be defired, is not probably yet
near at hand : the bugbear innovation i?, at
prefent, too terrible in the eyes of the Many :
but, under the circumftances of the prefent
times, to increafe the quantity of titheable
lands, as in the cafe of appropriating com-
mons witho"" affi.^ning feme certain part of
them, or Jome other eqwrcaknt, in lieu of
tithes, is a crime which poflerity will never
forgive.

In the cafe of Sinnington, ever}^ thing is
done which, under the falfe principles of the
bill, could be done : indeed more ; for even
the. general principle of the hill was broken
into, with refpedt to the tithes, The adl
alligns one tenth of the commons fir the
tithe of the commons ; and, at ter wards, em-
powers the commiliioners to fet out a fur-
ther parcel of them, for half the tithes of
the old-inclofed lands of the tovrnfhip, be-
longing to the commonright houfes : which
is, in ^^t^i giving fo much of the commons
to the commonright lands^ independent of
the houfes. And fiirther authorifes the com-
miflioners to award a perpetual modus or

G 3 money-

86 I X C L O S U R E S.

money-payment, in lieu of the other half of
the coinmonright lands -, and for the "whole of
the dormant lands ; namely, fuch lands as had
not, fome time previous to the pafling of the
bill, a comm.onrighthoufe belonging to them* .
Thus the entire towndiip is freed, for ever,
from a fpecies of oppreffion, which the whole
kingdom is entitled to be relieved from.

2. Lord of the foil . The Sinnington Bill
afiigns one frce-a?id-twentieth for the right of

foil only ; all other manerial rights whatever
being referyed. No quarriesy or known beds
o^ marly &c. on thefe commons.

3. Denizen right. The priory of Keld-
holm, which anciently flood at a fliort
diftance from thefe commons, without the
boundaries of tlie townfhip of Sinnington,
had a right or freedom of commonage, for
iixty beafts, and four hundred iheep. This
right has, of late years, and perhaps ever fincc

the

* The falfe ground of this diftinfllon has been already
(hewn. Suppofe a transfer of a principal part of thefe
lands to have taken plac' (through ordinary circuiriftances,
without any finifter views to an Inclofurc) about the time
the exclufion of right tal:es place, — would the mere clr-
cuwflar.ce of fixing the particular day of exclufion twenty-
four hours before or twenty-four hours after the day of
transfer, alter, either one way or the other, the natural
right of fuch lands to fhare in the benefits of the Inclofurc !

YORKSHIRE. g;

the dilTolution of the priory, been exercifed
in part, but never perhaps wholly. The Earl
of Scarborough, who is at prefent in pofTef-
fion of this right, has received little more
than a yearly acknowledgment : neverthelefs,
on a diviiion of the commons, his claim be-
came important ; for the ancient right, in its
fulleft extent, was equal, perhaps, to half the
pafturage of the commons under inclofure.

In this cafe, the dictates of common pru-
dence would have led the promoters of the
bill to have fixed the quantity of right, be-
fore they went to Parliament. This, how-
ever, was negled:edj and all the zO: em-
powers the commifTioners to do, in this re-
fpect, is, to examine into the merits of the
claim, and fet out fuch a part of the com-
mons, as appears to them to be a compen-
fation. The confequence is, an injunction
has been granted to ftop proceedings : through
which circumftance the inclofure is at a
ftand, to the great inconveniency of the
townihip. A certain ^nd confiderable ex-
pence is incurred — commonable flock fold
off— and fencing materials prepared — with-
out, at prefent, any certain advantage ac-
cruing ; a predicament this, which ought
to caution the promoters of Bills of Inclo-

G 4 fure.

88 I N C L O S U R E S.

fure, to have a clear underftanding with the
fcveral interefts concerned, before they bur-
den the townfhip with the cxpences of a bill,
and the confequent inconveniencies.

4. Alien claim. Another claim is made
upon thefe commons — by the owner of a
farm which lies by the fide of them, and
"whofe llock has, time immemorial, been i'si'
fered to depafture upon them. It is fup-
pofed that this encroachment has* been made
thro* the means of a iviiulrake * acrofs a
corner of thefe commons, to a river which
runs at a diftance ; or that it has been fuf-
fcred to take place, through mere neglcvft:
let this be as it mav, it ought to be a lellon
to uninclofed townihips, to attend to the
flock of their reipe(^i\ e common?. I term
it an incroachment, becaufe there is not a
more general pontion, than that the com-
mons of a given townihip belong, in original
ri^ht, to the lands and houfes of that town-
lliip, and that no right of com.monage can
be juftly claimed, by the lands and houfes
of another townfhip, unlefs a fpecial grant,
or lomething adequate to it, can be pro-
duced. Cuftom may, in this cafe, be con-
iidered, in law, as adequate to a grant ; —

althousrh,
• Sec Estates and Tenures.

YORKSHIRE. 2.^

although, in equity and common fenfe, ic
might feem more reafonable to award da-
mages, for a trefpals, than a portion of the
commons, as a compenlation.

5. 'Fencing. The whole to be inclofed,
within lix months from the time of flaking
out. Counter fences may be made upon
the adjoining allotment, and over the termi-
nating crofs ditches *. Sheep to be kept
out of the new inclofures, during the firfl
feven years ; and all kinds of flock out of
the lanes, during ten years ; — after which
tim.e, the furveyors of the roads of the town-
iliip may let the grafs of the lanes and bye-
ways, and apply the rents to the repair of
the roads : — an admirable claufe !

6. Appeal. By this bill, perfons aggrieved
may appeal to the Quarter-Seflions ; except
in fuch cafes where the determinations of the
commillioners are dire(fled to be final. This,
in fame cafes, mav be a check upon the adt-
ing commifiioners ; but is far from being
equivalent to a fpecial commillion of gentle-
m.en, reiident in the neighbourhood, who
would, in all cq/es, be on the fpot, to be ap-
pealed to. To do Itridl juflice to every indi-
vidual, in a complicated bulinefs of this na-
ture,

* See Page 79.

^ I N C L O S U R E S.

tare, is beyond the power of abilities and
honedy to accomplilli ; but the nearer this
fummit can be approached, the better ; and
every probable means lliould be employed in
attempting it.

In the cafe of Middleton, l->j/f the
commons were afligned to the houses, /ja/f
to the LAND, in prqportion to the land tax :
a mode of divifion which has, I believe, been
pretty generally adopted in the Vale.

This method of apportioning the Ihares
of the land owners is, in townfliips where the
land tax is levied by rack rents, more equi-
table, than it is in cafes where it is paid by
ancient valuation, as it was in Middleton
when the Inclofurc took place : but it can-
not, in either cafe, be llridly equitable i nor
approach io near to llridl: equity, as a valuation
accordmg to circumflance^, at the time of
inclofure.

On thisy alone, an equitable diviSon of
commc»nable lands can be made ; not with
refpecl to la::d, only ; but with regard to
every other fpecies of commonable p^/operty-.
Whatever benefit the several in-
terests, AND the individuals Op THE
RESPECTIVE INTERESTS, RIGHTFULLY
ENJOYED, PREVIOUSLY TO THE INCLO-

SURE,

YORKSHIRE. «^l

SURE, OR WERE, in reverfioUy rightfully

ENTITLED TO, (aS DORMANT LANDS AND
houses), such PROPORTIONAL BENEFIT
THEY ARE SEVERALLY ENTITLED TO,
UNDER AN EQUITABLE APPROPRIATION.

BEFORE I take leave of this fubjedl, I
will note the effeds of the three different
means of Inclofure, which have been, in
different townfhips, made ufe of, in this
Diilrid: : namely,

1. Inclofure by Exchanges, Sec.

2. Inclofure by private commiflion.

3. Inclofure by A6t of Parliament.

I. Inclosure by Exchanges. In the
northwefl divifion of the Vale, the common
fields and common meadows have moftly been
inclofed, progreflively, piece after piece ;
either in the original flips, lingly , or more
than one of them have been joined by pur-
chafe, or by private exchanges between the
feveral proprietors : by which means the
whole of the appropriated lands of the town-
fhips, in which this fpecies of Inclofure has
taken place, have been, in procefs of time^
inclofed and held in feveralty.

This method of Inclofure is attended with
at leaft one difagreeable confequence. The

common-

92 I K C L O S U R E 3.

common-field lands having lain principally
in fingle ridges, fome of them, perhaps, near
a milw in length, the Inclofures are badly
proportioned. They are either too long for
their width, many of them refembling lanes
rather than fields; or, if cut into lengths,
there are no driftways to the inner divilions :
— beiides, much unneceffary fencing, with all
its attendant evils, is by this mode of Inclo-
lure incurred ; and what is yet worfe, each
man's property is llill, perhaps, fcattercd over
ihe townihip.

Imclosure by private commis-
sion. Some entire towniliips (except per-
haps th^ unllinted commons), and many
ftinted paihires, ht;ve been laid out by com-
milnoners, chofen unanimoufiy by the fcveral
intereils concerned, without foliciting the
aflillance of Parliament.

By this means, the dii'tincS properties are
laid together, in well fized and well pro-
portioned Inclofures, with proper roads and
driftways ; and this without the expence, the
inconveniency, or the uncertainty attending
an application to Parliament.

3. Inclosure by Act of Parlia-
ment. Bv this expedient, the advantages
abovementioned are obtained in their fulleft

extent -,

YORKSHIRE. 93

extent J but they are unavoidably burdened
with a train of attendant evils, which render
this mode of Inclofure much lefs eligible,
than that of inclofing by general confent.

T'i'^V, however, is frequently impradicable :
obftinacy has its adherents, in every town-
(liip i and where various interefls are con-
cerned, as in the cafe of dividing unftinted
commons, it is fcarcely poffible that every
intereft, and every individual of each inte-
reft ihould be of one mind. Therefore,
without ycwd' exertion of legal authority, un-
ftinted commons, in general, muft continue
to lie open,

' But it does^ not follow that, becaufe fomc
is neceiFary, much fhould be ufed. It may
be received as a found pofition, that in cafes
where an Inclofure would be highly beneficial
to a townflilp at large, a great majority of
the individuals concerned would forward a
meafure, evidently calculated to promote
their own intereil: 5 provided they could ob-
tain it by fome certain and known vi\t2^\%^ It
is the idea of giving up a certainty for an uyi-
certainty, of entering the lift of contending
interefts, and of being outwitted or over-
powered by their neighbours, which deter
men, whofe fortunes are not defperate, and

whofe

94 INCLOSURES.

whofe difpolitions are peaceable, from en-
gaging in contejis about Inclofures-

At prefent, a notice of a petition to Par-^
liament, for the appropriation of unftinted
commons, implies the war-hoop — havock ! —
and lie's the bed fellow who gets the mofl
plunder. And, until fome GENERAL
LAW OF INCLOSURE be eflablifhed, this
uncivilized mode of procedure muft necef--
farily continue.

The multiplication of flatutes has ever'
been fpoken of as an evil ; and though pub-
lic ads may in general be meant, private
bills may properly be included. There needs
no apology, therefore, for venturing to recom-
mend one A(5l of Parliament which would
preclude the pafling of a thoufand.

Parilli Bills of Inclofure mufl occupy much
of the attendance of Parliament, and divert
their attention from matters of more public
importance. Belides, private intereft, al-
though it may not be able to exert its influ-
ence in Parliament at large, may be difficult
to fhut out, entirely, from its committees :
but what can lower the dignity of Parlia-
ment more, than private interefl being per-
mitted, in any way, to warp its determi-
nations ?

That

Yorkshire. %s

That a GENERAL BILL OF INCLO-
SURE might be framed, to anfwer the piir-
pofe of an equitable appropriation of com-
monable lands, in a much higher degree, than
has been, or perhaps ever can be obtained, by
feparate bills, appears, to my mind, indu-
bitable ; and why fuch a m.eafure has not
long ago been adopted, would be difficult
for any man, out of Parliament, to conceive.

It would be improper, in me, to di(Ctate
to Parliament, and might be wTong to offer
my fentiments, too freely, in this place ;
but having ventured to cenfure tlie prefent
mode of Inclofure by ACt of Parliament, it
is incumbent on me to convey feme idea, of
what I conceive v/ould be an improvement.

In every townfhip, four distinct in-
terests claim a right of fharing in its com-
monable lands : namely, lands, kcitfes, tithes^
and the lord]hif. The tv%'o former have a
benefit in commons, in their open flate ; but
the benefit of the other two arifes, folely, out
of the Inclofure *. Hence it follows, that

it

* The tithe of wool, lamb, and milk, only excepted;
articles of fmall value, compared with the tithe produce
erf" lands, in a ftate of cultivation.

1796. If, in any cafe, as in the appropriation ofmarfhe*
or fens, the eftimate value of the ti:r;i fhould be greater,

9S I N C L O S U R E S.

it is the confent and approbation vi the iv.o
former interells, which ought to be obtained,
previouijy to a change from the open to the
inclofed ilate ; for the t\vo latter may be
fuppofcd to be always ready to receive pro^
pofals for an Inclofure.

It has already been feen, that when the
tithe and the lordfhip are able to draw over
to them a third interefl, they can gain the
defired point. But the evil effecfts of Inclo-
fiires, thus condudled, have alfo been feen.
Therefore, in fixing a general rule, for the

QUANTITY OF APPROBATION requifitC tO

an Inclofure, the other interefls are more par-
ticularly to be attended to.

Were the lands and the houfes equally
Situated, with refped: to the commons to be
inclofed, a majority of each might be i^-
ficient. But this not being the cafe, in any
towniliip, a larger proportion feems necef-
fary. Three fourths might, in many cafes,
be too fmall ; but as Inclofures are, in all
human probabilit}% beneficial to the public,
it might hz impolitic to fix it higher.

Thus

in the open than in the inclofed ilste, the owners of fuch
tithes ought not only to have a difienticnt voice, but to
iiavc a fuitjblc rccompence.

YORKSHIRE. ^7

thus it appears to me, that, in framing a
general law of Inclofure, three fourths, in
-vaiuey of the land, and three fourths, in num-
her, of the houfes, with the confent of the
lordof the foil, ought to be confidered as the
requifite quantity of approbation.

Authorized and guided, by a general law
of this nature, the hvi'imtii of Inclolure would
be fafe and ealy. Every man, before he fet
out, would know, with certainty, his pro-
portional fhare ; and the Adl would empower
the feveral interefts to make choice of com-
miffioners, to fecurc to them their refpedtive
rights.

Numberlefs Inclofures remain yet to be
made j and it were much to be regretted,
that the attention of Parliament Ihould be
fo unprofitably employed, and that the pro-
perty of individuals fhould be fubjeded to
fo much hazard, as it is to be feared they
will be, while common lands are continued
to be appropriated, by separate bills,
without any established principles of

INCLOSURE *.

Vol. I. H FARM

* June 1796. During the laft feffion (1795-6}, a Bill,
of the intention here propofed, was brought into Parlia-
ment, by the Prefident of the Board of Agriculture. Bat
Parliament being diffolved, before the BiU had pafied the
lower Houfe, it now remains in fafpence, for the decilion
of the new Piaxliament,

98 FARM BUILDINGS.

FARM BUILDINGS.

I. THE BUILDING MATERIALS,
which are now in common ufe, on this fide
of the Vale, are chiefly,
Stones,
Pantiles,
Deal :
But there are other materials, which require
to, be noticed ; namely.
Bricks,
Cement,
Oak.
I. Stones. The flones, in ufe, are of
t^vo kinds : freejlone and Ihnejione *. The

former

• In the quarries froni which thefe materuls are drawn,
the limeflone generally forms the upper ftratum, rifing to
within a few inches of the furfiace. The foil, itfelf, is ge-
nerally a limeftone gra%'d ; under which is frequently
found a flratum cf thin flaielike limeftone, that incrcafes in
thicltnefe, as the depth increafes ; from one to four or fix
inches thick; lying, in general, loofe and horizontal.
Thefe are the « walling ftoncs" ufed m the iaces of build-
ings;

YORKSHIRE. 99

former being lefs perifliable, are ufed for
foundations, coins, cornices, and the coping
of ridges and gables ; the latter, being more
eafily raifed, and requiring lefs labor in
dreffing them for ufe, are, in farm houfes at
leaft, generally ufed in facing the walls ; and
when properly hammered, and properly
forted, fo as to give the thickeft to the lower
courfes, leflening the fize of the ftones, from
iive or fix to three or four inches thick, as
the building rifes, a much Jieater material
cannot be employed ; nor, if kept free from
conftant moifture, one which is more lafting,
or which preferves the face of youthfulnefs
fo long.

2. Pantiles. Formerly, Jiraw and a

hieavy kind o^Jlate were the common cover*

ings ; but, of late years, pantiles have become

Imiverfal, for ordinary buildings ; and blue

Jlate for better houfes.

In the fouthern counties, pantiles are con-
fidered as an ordinary material : but the

H 2 eftimation

ings ; for which ufe, one of their edges is hammered into a
bricklike form : an operation fomewhat tedious ; but not
equal to that of chijfclling freeftone. Under the walling
ftones, an irregular limeftone rock (of many fe^c in depth
perhaps) is ufually found; and, under this, a bed of grit, or
freeftone, of unfathomed depth.

ICO

FARM BUILDINGS.

cftimation of them, there, arifcs from an im-
proper method of ufmg them ; not from any
intriniic demerit of the material itfelf, when
properly manufactured. From London to
Grantham in Lincolnfhire, fcarcely a roof of
pantiles occurs : north of Grantham, they
are become the almofl univerfal covering.
They have two qualities fufficiently valuable
to recommend them in any countr)' : cheap-
nefs and li^^htnefs.

Much, however, depends on the manufac^
turingy as well ai on the layingy of pantiles.
If the materials be not fufficiently expofed
to the adtion of the air ; or, if of diflimilar
natures, though fufficiently tempered, they
be not umtcd/uficientlyinto one homogeneous
mafs, or uniform fubftance, the tiles that
are made from them are liable to perifh ; not
only before burning, as well as in the kiln,
but after being expofed to the influence of
the atmofphere, upon the roof of a building.
Or, if the materials be good and well pre-
pared, the moulds be truly made, and the
moulding fkilfuUy executed ,—Mh if they
be fuffered to warp in drying, or to twift in
being fet injudicioufly in the kiln, they are
wholly unfit to be laid on, as a covering ma-
terial i and ever)' judicious workman refules

them.

YORKSHIRE.

[91

them. Were workmen, in general, or thofe
who have the fuperintendency of workmen,
more fcrupulous, in this refpedt, than they
generally are, manufacturers would be more
diligent in their endeavours to approach the
flandard of perfection -, by which means this,
in many cafes, moft eligible covering might
grow into univerfal eftimation.

3. Deal. In a Diilrid, furniflied with
three confiderable fea ports, and a river na-
vigation, it is no wonder that deal fliould have
been long in ufe, as a building material.
Floors have been laid with it, for near a cen-
tury ; and, of late years, it has been ufed for
almofl every purpofe of building. Beams,
joifts, and entire roofs, are now, almoft uni-
verfally, made of fir timber.

4. Bricks. Where ftones are far to be
fetched, as towards the center of the Vale,
bricks are become a common material. If
brickearth be found near the fite of building,
as it generally may in fituations where ftones
are fcarce, clamp bricks are confidered,in this
country, where coals may be had at a mo-
derate price, as the readieft and (all things
confidered) the cheapefl walling material,

5. Cement. Formerly, ordinary flone
buildings were carried up, entirely, with

H 3 ** mortar ;"

102 FARM BUILDINGS.

** mortar ;" that is, common earth beaten up
with water, without the Imalleft admixture
of lime. The ftones, themfelves, were de-
pended upon as the bond of union ; the ufe
of the " mortar" being merely that of giving
warmth to the building, and a degree of fliir-
nefs to the wall.

The event, however, proves that walls
built without lime have, in many inftances,
Aood for ages. Even part of the walls of
Pickering Castle, formerly elleem.ed a
fortrefs of coniiderable ftrength, have been
carried up with a cement, which, to appear-
ance, feems little fuperior to common mor-
tar: ncverthelefs, fuch is the eite(ft of time,
upon walls which are expofed on every fide
to the atmofphere, that they now hold to-
gether with coniiderable tenacity.

To this effecft of time ; or, more accurately
fpeaking, to certain laws of nature which, in
procefs of time, produce this eifecH" ; we
ought, perhcip*^, to afcribe the ftonelike con-
texture of the cements of ancient walls,
rather tlian to any fuperior Ikill in preparing
them.

The citadel, or central ftronghold, of the
fortrefs under notice, has been built with
better cements ; which, however, vary much

in

YORKSHIRE. 103

in outward appearance. One fpecimen,
which I have collected, is a fmooth chalklike
fubftance -, another, a coarfe rough mafs, com-
pofed of fand and fmall gravel, with a fmaller
proportion of chalklike matter.

In the fofle, which furrounds the outer
wall, lies a fragment (perhaps part of the
parapet or embrafures of the outfide v/all),
whofe cement has acquired a ftonelike hard-
nefs, efpecially the part which is expofed on
the outer furface *.

I have beflowed fomc attention on the
decompofition of thefe four fpecimens. The
refults are as follow :

Exp. I. Cement of Pickering Castle:
—the coarfe?- fpecimen, taken from the ruins
of the cetitral tower ^

In general appearance, it refembles dirty
chalk, thickly interfperfed with fmall gravel j
fome of the granules as large as peas. Its
tenacity that of common writing chalk ; the
afperities eafily broken off with the fingers.
H 4 One

* The age of this fortrefs would perhaps be difficult to
afcertain. l^art of the outer wall was repaired and foms
towers raifed by (I think) Edward VI. But when the
parts, which are here the fubje6l of notice, were eredted, is
probably uncertain. They are faid to be of very great an-
tiquity ; and are worthy of the refearch of the Antiquary,

IC34 FARM BUILDINGS.

One hundred grains, pounded, dried, im^
merged in water, and balanced together with
the menilruum, loft in folution 2^i grains
of air, and yielded by filtration 40 grains
of reiiduum ; which afforded, by elutriation,
35 grains of gravel and rough fand, and 5 grains
of fufpendible mudlike rnatter : the folution
yielding, by precipitation, 64 grains of cal-
careous earth.

2^ grains of fand and gravel,
5 grains of filt,

64 grains of pure chalk,

1 04 grains.
From this analyfis it appears,

1 . That the proportion in this cafe (fup*
pofing crude limeftone in lumps fit for burn-
ing to be of equal weight with fand and
gravel) was three meafures of unflaked lime
in lumps, to two of fand and gravel.

2. That the fand and gravel, in this cafe,
had been '■joajljidy either by the brook, which
runs at the foot of the Caftle mound, or more
probably, by hand ; the proportion of dirt
being fmaller than that which is generally
found among drift fand.

3. That the lime had not regained the
whole of li^fxt air. The increafe of weight,

which

YORKSHIRE. 20|

which appears in the fynthefis of this experl-f
ment, is a fufficient evidence, were it not
corroborated, even unto proof, by the defi-
ciency of air thrown off in the folutlon. Tq
try whether the increafe, on one hand, and the
deficiency, on the other, agreed as to quan^
tity, I refufpended 50 grains of the chalk
obtained in this experiment : it loft exactly
23 grains in folution; as 50 : 23 : ; 64 : 29!.
Therefore, the increafe of weight, in this cafe,
appears to be wholly owing to the deficiency
of air.

Exp. 2. Cement OF Pickering Castle;
— -Jiner fpecimen of the central tower.

General appearance that of ftale lime, run
together with water, and baked to a cruft :
almoft a pure white : furface rough ; fhew-
ing the cells and the unbroken granules of
the original lime. — Contexture, more brittle
than common chalk ; full of pores j the ma-
terials do not appear to have been well incor-
porated, at the time of preparation.

One hundred grains yield, in decompofition,
twentyone grains of air.
42 grains of whitifh grit,

5 grains of fufpendible duftlike particles,
56 grains of pure chalk,

103 grains,

io6 FARM BUILDINGS.

Obs. Tiie refiduum, in this experiment, is
evidently the powder cf freeftone. The par-
ticles are fmall, and of irregular figures ;
very different m appearance (when magni-
fied) fi-cm common land. I >vas at a lofs to
afcertain their nature, until pounding fome
fireeftone, and wafliing it in the manner I had
done the reiiduum, I found it to refcmble ex-
a(5lly the fcrtytwo grains of wafhed grit of
the experiment. It appears to have been
pounded or ground ver)' Imall, and to have
been ^ut through a fine fieve ; the whole
being in a ftate oi grit ; no fi-agment fo large
as a pin's head.

It is obfer\'able, that the cement of this
experiment is ii:eaker than that of the lal^ :
but whether from the nature of the bdje, or
from the -proportion of lime being lefs, or
from the two united, is not evident.

It is alfo obfervable, that, in the decompo-
iition of this fpecimen, a urinous finell rofe,
during the folution ; and that the edges' of
the firft filter attract moifVure from the air.
It is at prefent a practice, among fome plal-
terers, to make yfe of urine in the preparation
9f plafter.

Exp. 3. Cement or Pickering Castle:
taken, irom the ruins of the cid cuter it^all

facing

YORKSHIRE, loj

facing the northweft. Colle<fled in three or
four different places ; a few feet above the
foundation ; and moftly from the inner parts
of the wall (where it has parted) ; not from
the outer furface.

Its appearance is that of fandy Icam, inter-
fperfed with fpecks of chalk ; feme of them
larger than peas, lis, fragility fimilar to thaf
of dried brickearth.

One hundred grains of this fpecimen yield
thirteen and a half grains of air.

30 grains of rough fand, and a few large
fragments,

37 grains of filt and fine fand,

-36 grains of calcareous earth.

103 grains.

Obs. There are two caufes of the iveaktiefs
of this cement : the fmall proportion of hme,
and the impurity of the hafe : a heterogeneous
mafs of fragments of various kinds, fome of
them apparently gypfeous ; of fands of dif-
ferent fpecies, principally of a cryfballine
afpedt ; but chiefly of mere mud, or of land
fo fine as to be impalpable between the fin-
ders. It is therefore evident, that the' mate-
rials, in this inftance, have not been iL-aJhed,

Exp.

io8 FARM BUILDINGS.

Exp.4. Cement OF Pickering Castle:
taken from 2l fragment in the northwefl cor-
ner of the fofle.

\n general appearance fomewhat refembling
the laft noticed fpecinien ; but in contexture
very different. The cruft of the outer fur-
face, which has been expofed to the influ-
ence of the ^tmofphefe, probably, during
rnany centuries, has acquired almoil the
hardnefs of limeftone: nor is any part of it
to be broken with the fingers : neverthelefs,
this fpecimen, alfo, is full of lumps of un-
fnixed lime ; fome of them the fize of fmall
hazel nuts, and, at the time I took the fpeci-
men (the feafon wet), as foft almofl as butter s
when dry, they are of the confiflency of very
foft chalk.

One hundred grains of this fpecirnen yield
fifteen grains of air.

8 grains of fragments,

J 2 . coarfe fand,

36 ' fine fand,

3 of a fizelike matter,

45 chalk.

104 grains.
Obs. The conftituent parts of this refw
duum refcmble thefc of thq^ lafl fpecimen ;

except-

YORKSHIRE. 109

excepting the abfence of the mud, which has
evidently been ivafied away ; and except-
ing the prefence of a mucilaginous matter,
whofe nature I am not at prefent able to
guefs ; nor have I leifure, at prefent, to pur-
fue the enquiry.

Gen. Obs. i. All thefe cements, whether
weak or ftrong, have laid hold of the flones
with a degree of firmnefs proportioned to
their refpeclive flrengths. Every crevice of
the wall is filled with cement : the whole
form one united mafs.

Hence, it is more than probable, that thefe
cements have been poured into the walls, in a
liquid flate, in the ftate oi puddle -, and they
appear to have operated, with refpedt to com-
pa*£tnefs, as the puddle of the canal-makers.

2. The fubjedls of Exp. 3. and 4. are
ftrong evidences, that, in the preparation of
thefe puddles, the antient builders were very
deficient. Not more than half of the lime
they contain appears to operate. The lumps,
whether large or fmall, are more than wailed ;
weakening, rather than ftrengthening, the ce-
ment.

3. From the whole of thefe experiments,
it is evident, that the feveral cements had ac-
quired the principal part of their fixed air ;

chief! V,

no FARM BUILDINGS.

chiefly, perhaps, after they were depoflted irf
the buildings. The air in the flronger fpe-
cimens hears a confiderable proportion to the
entire quantity of cement ; and being infinii-
ated, in the clofc ftate above-mentioned, may
have added greatly to its compnSimfs,

Hence, it is highly probable, that the
Aonelike tenacity of old cements is cliiefly
owing to the tranfmutation of lime and fand
to calcareous earth and fand j — a fubftance
refembling the original limeftone.

On examining a wall, which has been built
with loam alone, -without any admixture of
lime, and which has probably flood about a
century, I find that the loam has laid no hold
whatever of the flones, and that time has
made no alteration on its contexture. It is
ftill the fame friable fubflance, it probably
was, the day it hrfl: became dry in the build-
ing ; without having the fmalleft appearance
of acquired tenacity, obtained during the
century of time it has been expofed to the
influence of the atmofphere.

It is therefore probable, . that the atmo-
fphere imparts nothing, voluntarily, of a co-
hefive nature to the mortar of walls which
are expofed to it.

But it is more than probable, that cement,

con-

YORKSHIRE. ui

Containing a portion of /me, imbibes from
the atmofphere fomething, which gives it a
degree of tenacity, fuperior to that which it
had on its firft becoming dry in the wall •
and it is a fadl, well eftablifhedy that lime
begins to imbibe, the moment it grows cool
from the kiln, t^at which the fire has de--
prived it of; namely, fixed air ; which fixed
air being imbibed, after the cement is depo-^
fited in the walls, is, probably, a principal
caufe of tenacity.

This being admitted, it may fcem to follow,
that the more quickly it is transferred from
the kiln to the building, the greater portion
of air will be imbibed, after it is laid in the
walls, and, of courfe, the greater effedl will
time have on the tenacity or cohefion of the
cement : and hence, we might be led to in-
fer, that, if the antients had any fuperior fkill
in this matter, it confided in their hallening
the lime from the kiln to the building.

But, in pradice, it is obferved, that frefh-
made mortar does not fet fo well, dees not
cohere into a foft ftonelike fubitance, fo rea-
dily, as that v/hich has been prepared fomc
time before it be ufed.

This fa(ft, perhaps, is accounted for in the
lime having had, under this circumflance,

time

112 FARM BUILDING^.

time to lay hold of the particles cti fandy witll
\\hich it is intermixed.

But, on the fame principle, it feems to fol-
low, that if the preparation be made too long
before the m-Ox^tar be laid into the wall, it
will have regained too much of its fixed air,
to lay hold, fufficiently, oXxh^JioneSy or other
materials, which it is intended to bind toge-
ther.

Let this be as it may, it is common, in
pra<5ticc, when mortar is not ufed, prefently
after m»aking, to cover it up clofcly from the
outward air. It is the opinion of a perfon^
who has paid this fubjeft confiderable atten-
tion, that, if mortar be buried within the fur-
face of the ground, it may be kept twelve
months in perfecftion.

The fame perfon, whofe penetration and
judgment, in the few fjbjcdts he has more
particularly employed his mind upon> are fu-
perior to thofe of moft men, has ftruck out
a new idea relative to \}i\t Jlaking of lime for
mortar.

Lime, whether it be intended for cement
or for manure, ought to be reduced entirely
to a ^ry po^'der. And, for cement, it ought
to be mixed, in this ftate, evenly and inti-
mately with the iand.

It

YORKSHIRE, I13

It is difficult, if not utterly impofiible, to
reduce lime entirely to poiuder, with water
alone 3 fome part or other will always be
fuperfaturated, and thereby be reduced to
zpajie-y while the outfides, which are expofed
to the atmofphere, will (unlefs the ftone be
extremely^/f«£') fall in granules, not into pow-
der.

Every piece of parte, and * every granule,
though but the iize of a pea or a muftard
feed, is ufelefs, if not detrimental to cement ;
for, with thefe, the grains of fand cannot
be intimately mixed ; much lefs be coated
with them ; as they may, and undoubtedly
ought to be, with U?ne i?i powder.

But if, inftead of water, wet fand be ufed
in flaking the lime ; (piling it with the lime
in knobs, layer for layer, and covering up
the heap with it ;) thofe evils are avoided :
no part is fuperfaturated, nor are any gra-
nules formed by the adtion of the outward
air.

Belides, another grekt advantage is obtain-
ed by flaking the lime, in this manner, with
the fand with which it is intended to be
incorporated. The two ingredients, by be-
ing, perhaps, repeatedly turned over, and
by palling through the fieve together, ne-
VoL. I. I ceflTarily

JT4 FARM BUILDINGS.

ce/Tarilv beccme intimatelv blended : more
intimately, perhaps, than they could be
mixed, by any other procefs, equally fimple.
If the fand be ivajhed (and all fand mixed
with lime for cement ought to be wafhed)
the labor of preparation i?, by this method
of flaking the lime, confiderably leiTened.

But, in xh^ preparation of cement, slak*
ING THE LIME makes only one flage of the
procefs 3 MIXING THE INGREDIENTS inti-
mately, and uniting them clofely together,
into one compa(ft homogeneous mafs, is an
operation which requires the flrifteft at-
tention.

We have feen the ufelefsnefs of unbumt
lumps of lime in cement ; and the good
efFedl o{ puddling cement has been at leail
conjecflured.

Compatinefs feems to be eflential to the
hardncfs of cement. When mortar is laid
on with the trowel^ it remains in the Hate in
which it is laid, and does not run together
into a clofe form, like melted metal or

LIQUID CEMENT.

Much care, therefore, is requifitc, in the
preparation of mortar for the trowel . Work-
ing it, with the fpade alone, is infufficient.
"Beating it with the edge of a board, a kind

of

YORKSHIRE. 1*5

of wooden axe, is more efficacious, but is
very tedious. Mills for the grinding of clay
are common, and fufficiently effedtive of the
purpofe intended : but a mill, for the grind-
ing of mortar, I have not yet feen, nor have
I ever heard of fuch a contrivance.

6. Oak. This is, now, almoft wholly laid
afide, as a material of the houfe carpenter;
except for door and window lintels, wall-
plates, and fome few other purpofes, which
require ftrength and durability. The ports
of Whitby and Scarborough take off the
larger timber j and the refufe has, of late, been
much in demand^ for the purpofe of inclo-
fure. Deal has ofcourfe gained ground, as a
building material. There are, however,
fome few men, who flill retain a fufficient
partiality for the oak, to ufe it freely In every
fpecies of building, under a full perfuafion
that, in the end, it will prove the chcapefl
material.

Having thus enumerated the materials of
building, in moft common ufe in the Diilridl,
I will proceed to give fom.e account of the
BUILDINGS themfelves; and of fuch ope-
rations, in rural architecture, as merit par-
ticular notice.

I 2 II. FAR-

n6 FARM BUILDINGS.

II. FARMERIES. The fplrit of im^
provement, which has fo evidently difFufed
itfeif through this extenfive county, is in no
particular more confpicuous, than in Farm
Buildings; nor, perhaps, docs any part of it
afford fo many ftriking inno^cations^ in this
particular, as that which is under furvey.

The Fancy Farm-Houses, which have
been eredled in different parts of it, I pur-
pofely pafs over. Tafle, whether true or
falfe, mere ornament without ufe, is foreign
to the prefent fubjeCl: and I have, in another
work, profelfedly on the fubjecft of rural
ORNAMENT, fpoken my fentiments freely, on
ornamental buildings.

In Rural Economy, llraight lines and

rio-ht angles are firll principles, which can

fehhm be deviated from, with propriety ;

either in laying out a farm, or in planning

Farm Buildings.

Here, the great objetft is to obtain the de-
fired conveniences, at the leaft expence, pre-
fent and future taken jointly, fo long as the
given conveniences may be required. To
thefe principles w^e may venture to add,— the
greater number of conveniences there can be
included, in one building, the cheaper will
thofe conveniences be obtained.

There

YORKSHIRE. 117

There is a certain width, which can fel-
dom be exceeded, with propriety, in Farm
Buildings ; but the nearer this width is ap-
proached, the greater quantity of conveni.
ency will, in general, be obtained with a given
expenditure. The long cube form, with the
plain fpan roof, can never be difpenfed with,
without evident impropriety, in conilrudting
Farm Buildings.

The number of Inclofures which have, of
late years, taken place, and the fpirit of im-
provement, which has gone forth upon the
Wolds, have given exillence to farmeries
of almofl: every form and dimenllon.

The practice of houling cattle in winter,
which will be fpoken to hereafter, requires a
greater quantity of building, than that of win-
tering them in the open yard. But the quan-
tity of barnroom requiUte in this country,
even on the ara,ble farrns, is much lefs than
in the fouthern provinces, where barley and
oats are harvefled loofe, and where the Ihovel,
or the fail fan, is ufed in the drefling of corn.
Here, corn is univerfally bound, and the ma-
chine fan in almoft univerfal pradlice. fn
Norfolk, one man exped:s a floor of fifteen
feet by twentyfour to himfelf j here," two men
wUl thrafh, contentedly, on a floor^ nine
I Q feet

l!8 FARM BUILDINGS.

feet by twelve ; ten by fifteen is a full fize4
floor.

Such being the requifites of a Yorkfhire
Farmery, it is no wonder that the new ones,
which have been ere6led, {hould be compofed
of a ftring of fmall buildings. They are
generally fonned into a fquare, open to the
fouth, in imitation of thofe of other countries,
where cattle are wintered in the area between
the buildings, not in the buildings themfelves.

In one inftance, I have cbferved the cattle
hovels fpun out, in fuch a manner, as wholly
to inclofe the dung yard. But the hovels, in
this cafe, were only fcven feet wide ; not wide
enough for cattle to ftand acrofs them ; they
being placed in them, lengthway, in pairs.
The quantity of walling, the number of doors,
&c. and the quantity of roofing, with the
fubfcquent repairs incident to low flraggling
buildings, render this, and every other plan
which refembles it, altogether ineligible, in
any Diftri6l where cattle are wintered under
cover, Wide houfes, or open fheds, wide
enough to permit cattle to ftand acrofs them*
arc in many refpe(fts preferable.

In oppofition to the Farm Yard laft men-
tioned, there is, likewife in this neighbour-
hood, an inflance of the entire Farmery (of a

fmalJ

YORKSHIRE. 119

fmall upland farm) being comprifed under
one roof!

The fite is a long fquare. One end is oc-
cupied' by a fmall dwelling place for a
** hind," or bailiff; the ground floor of the
remainder, by a flable and cattle houfes;
over which are a barn and hay chamber;
with a CHAMBER BARN-FLOOR ! a thing I
had not feen, nor conceived an idea of, before
I obferved it, in more inftances than one, in
this Diftricl.

This, juft noticed, is the only one I have
feen, in a '/lew eredtion ; I have, however,
had full opportunity of obferving the ufe of
another, thrown over a cow houfe, in a large
old building, which had long been ufed as a
barn, flable, and bealt houfe.

The advantages of a chamber barn-
floor are drynefs, cleannefs from dirt car-
ried in with the feet, and fecurity againil
pigs, poultry, and various accidents, to which
ground floors are more liable : for thrashing
ii'/jeat upoi}^ chamber floors are obvioufly pre-
ferable to ground floors y moll efpecially in
low dirty fltuations.

No effential difad vantage has yet ftruck

me, refpedling a chamber thrafhing-floaar i

but with refped^ to a chamber barn,

I 4 there

I2« FARM BUILDINGS.

there is one which is obvious ; namely, that
of having the corn at harvefl, a bufy feafon,
to raife one ftory higher than ordinar}\

If a barn be built againft a rifing ground,
this objeiftion fall?, in part, or wholly. Even
on plain ground, it appears to me that (efpe-»
cially where cattle are houfed) it would be
groatly pverbulanced by the advantage of
obtaining a fuite of flablcs, cart houfe, and
cattle houfes, without the expence of roofing,
in the firfl inftance ; and which, if fubftan-
tially built, would laft for ages to come
without repairs.

The flooring of a chamber barn might, on
the whole, be fomewhat more expenfive
than that of a ground-floor barn ; but the
thraihing floors, if of plank, would be laid
cheaper, and laft much longer, in the former,
than in the latter fpecies of building ; and
the mow floors, if laid with clay on rods *,
would foon regain their extra coil, in keep-
ing the bottoms of the mows dry and fweet ;
and in preferving it more fecure from ver-
min, than ground floors generally do.

It is not my intention, even to intimate,
that in corn countries, fuch as Norfolk,

Kent,

• See tweRuhalEcokomy ofNoRioLK,Miv. 15-

Y P R K S H I R E. 121

Kent, and other DiArl^fls, where cattle are
wintered in yards, that chamber barns would
be univerfally eligible ; but, in a country
like this, or in any country, or on any farm»
on which grafsland predominates, and where
the houfing of cattle is pradifed, I fee no
fufficient objed:ion to chamber barn-floors,
nor to entire chamber barns. On the con-
trary, it appears to me, that, on fmall grafly
farms, in low damp fituations at leaft, they
would be found fingularly eligible.

But although a ciofe yard is unneceflary,
where cattle are houfed, a fmgle building,
like that which was laft defcribed, is perhaps
too iimple, to be altogether eligible ; efpe-
cially in an expofed fituation, where foma
degrees of ihelter ar'; requilite.

Two buildings, properly placed, would
give this neceffary Hielter ; one of them a
barn, with offices under it ; the other, the
dwelling houle, placed at right angles with
the former : the two buildings touching at
the corners onlyj forming two fides of a
fmall yard with their ends, for hogs, poultry,
^c. and a larger one with their fronts, for the
dungpit, &c. with a fmall archway commu-
nication between them.

This, however, is intended by way of

hint.
J

121 FARM BUILDINGS.

hint. To enter Into the particubrs of a
plan, which I have not feen executed, would
be breaking into the delign of the prefent
work : neverthtiefs, it might be wrong to
fupprefs'this idea (\shich ftruck me while I
WAS iketching a plan of a Farmery on the
above orincioles) with re^^ard to aspect.

It is ufjal, in planning a farm yard, to place
the main line of buildiiig with its front to
the fouth ; in which cafe, two wings become
necelTary to ikreen the yard from northealt
and Dorthweft winds : and perhaps this has
ellablilhed the common practice of incloiing
a farm vard, on three lide?, with buildings.

But if, inllead of the back of a building
being placed to the north, the angle of two
buildings were directed to that point, the
yard would be moil elt*e^flually lk.reened from
the north, the northead, and the northweft
wind, without an unnecellary multiplication
of low narrow buildmgs, to eke out a third
iide with.

On a capital corn farm, on which a num-
ber of fubftantial buildings are required,
three lines of building may be eligible ; but
on any itnall farm, or on almoi'l any farm on
which grafs lands abound, two lines of build-
ing, forming a chcveron or carpenter's fquare,

and

YORKSHIRE. 123

and placed with the angle toivards the norths
would, In my opinion, be greatly preferable.
Another idea in rural architecture,
new to me as that of a chamber threfliing-
floor, I have feen executed, in a fiibftantial
manner, by two of the firft occupiers in the
Vale; namely, a granary over a barn

FLOOR.

In all other barns I have feen, -the fpacc
over the floor, whether this be large or fmall,
and whether the building be low or lofty, re-
mains entirely ufelefs *. The idea of occu-^
pying the lower part of this fpace with a
cattle houfe, as well as that of filling the up-
per part of it with ^ granary, have perhaps
been originally and recently ftruck out, ia
this countr)' -f*.

In the two inftances in which I have feen
granaries over barn floors, the joifts
are fupported by t^vo beams, thrown acrofs
the building, and the flooring of the granary

let

* Except in one inftance, in which a very fpacious
building having been converted i|ito a barn, joifts were
thrown acrofs out of the reach of the flail, and the mows
continued over the floor.

t Since this was written, I have been informed, that, in
fome parts of America, chamber barns, over cattle houfes,
are in cqmmon ufe. 1796.

124 i A R M B U I L D I N G S.

let into ths walls, at the ends j fo that, not-
withllanding the granaries may be furrounded
with vermLi, they are, in a degree, fccure
from their attack.

In the floor is a trap door, \nth tackle
over it, to raife and lower the corn from
^^d to the barn tioor.

The height, befA-een the fiOor?, is thirteen
/cGt. This, in my opinion, is too great a
height, T^'i feet high is the moft the flail
rcq^uires * ; and ever}' inch abo^^ that height
renders the gran^r}-, in many reipects, lefs
commodious.

Confining the duft, which always rifes
more or lefs in thrashing, appears to be the
enlyobiefliontoa barn-floor granary :
I mean in a barn with pitching holes to hoiife
the com at. Butif vENTiLATORsweremade,
immediately under the granary floor, with
valves to open or (hut as the wind (hould
change, the health of the thra{h,er would» iii
&I1 probability, be lefs injured, than it gene-
rally is, by this laborious and unhealthful
employment.

Indeed, in this country, where tall, wide
folding barn doors are grown into difufe,

vent

* See NoRF. Ecos, MiH. 35.

YORKSHIRE* 12^

vent holes of this kind are, in feme degree,
necefTary to every barn floor. Even upon
the Wolds, a corn country, the ufe of large
doors is declining : fome good barns have
lately been built, with cotnttiOn-fized doors ;
one at each end of the floor : opening, how-
ever, in two parts, one above the other ; fo
that the lower half can be fnut, to keep out
pigs and poultry, while the upper one is
opened, to let in light and air.

This is a fortunate circumflance for the
owners of landed ellates : folding doors, large
enough to admit a load of corn, are expenfive
in the firft inflance, and frequently require
repairs ; befides the thrafhing floor, be it of
what material it may, being liable to great
injury, in the a<i^ of drawing- loaded waggons
upon it.

Indeed, throughout, the Yorkshire
Barn is charadlerized by frugality. In Nor-
folk, barns of one hundred and fifty to two
hundred pounds coft are not unfrequently
built : here, a very convenient one, and fuch
a one as will fatisfy a good tenant, may be
built for forty or fifty pounds. What a
faving is this, upon a large eflate !

III. The OPERATIONS which require
to be noticed are,

I. The

126 FARM BUILDINGS.

1. TTie method of laying pantiles.

2. The method of coping ridges tud
gables.

3. Eaves gutters.

4. Water cil^erns.

5. Painting window leads.

6. Mortar floors *.

I. Laying Pantiles. Formerly, it was
tl^e pradice to hang pantiles upon the naked
fpars, bedding their ends in mortar, and
pointing them at the fides, to prevent fnovy
and rain from being beaten through, between
them.

This method has t\vo evil effedls : lime
is liable to expand, contra(fl, and perifh
with the weather ; to which, in this cafe, it
is fally expo fed. The confequence was, if
the cement laid faflhold of the tiles, it broke
them ; if not, it Aid from between them, and
left the roof room expofed to the weather.
The other bad efFedt of this method is, their
being liable to be thrown off, in high winds,
by the inward air being pent up, and finding
an eafy paiTage through this flight covering.

To remedy thefe two evils, it has, of late
years, been the common pradice to " fheet"

the

* Particij'ar5; which are intercfting to thofe, only, who
pra^life in Rural Archite^urc.

V O R IC S H I R £. i2j

the roof; that is, to Interkth, with plaftering
laths, between the tihng laths, and to covfer the
entire roof with a /lieet of Hmc mortar : and
over this, to lay the tiles on ** dry ;" that is,
without bedding or pointing them ; being
careful not to fufFer any part of them to
touch the mortar : — to prevent which, thei
moft effediually, a flip was nailed on, between
the fpars and the tiling laths, to raife the tiles
fufficiently above the fheeting.

This method, which has been pra(5lifed
fome fifteen or twenty years, has been found
effecflual, againft the two inconveniences
above mentioned ; but it has lately been
found, that, in twelve or fifteen years, the
laths begin to fail ; owing, it is fuppofed, to
their being placed too near the outward air ;
from which the lime alternately abforbing
and imparting moifture, the laths become
fubjeded to decay. I am rather of opinion,
however, that this effe<ft is caufed by the
tiling laths, checking the defcent of the rain
or fnow water, which beats in between the
tiles. Or it may be owing jointly to the
two caufes.

Be this as it may, an improvement has
lately been ftruck out, which brings the art
to as great perfedlion, perhaps, as it is capable

of

J28 FARM BUILDINGS.

of. This improvement confills in nailiri'g
the plaftering ladis benedth, inftead of upon-,
the fpars ; laying the main coat of plaftering
ahrce the lath<;, between the fpars ; after-
wards, fmoothing the under fide with a
thinner ct)at. This method removes the
cement from the more immediate adtion of
the atmofphere, gives a free circulatiori to
the air and tlie water (which may be beaten
in) between the tiles and the plaftering; and,
at the fame time, gives neatnefs to the room
beneath 3 without the expence, or the in-
conveniency, of a counter ceiling.

There is one very great conveniency
arifes from laying on pantiles dry. If, by the
wind, or by accident, a tile be thrown off or
broken, it may be replaced by a plowman, as
well as by a profefled tiler : a conveniency,
which upon a farm, perhaps at a diftance
from workmen, is of no fmall value.

2. CopiNGii. Kidge Tiles y being laid en-
tirely on mortar, and being expofed in
the fullell manner to the adtion of the
winds, are very liable to be thrown off j
as well as to be broken by the weather : it is
no uncommon thing, in places where ridge
tiles are ufed, to fee half of them difplaced
or broken ; the heads of the fpars having

nothing

YORKSHIRE. 1^9

nothing but the mortar to hide them, with-
out any thing to defend them from the
weather. The ill ccnfequence is evident.

In this country, where freeftone which
will fland the weather abounds, ridgb
STONES are in common ufe.

The form triangular ; the half of a long
fquare, divided diagonally. The bafe or
broadeft fide is hollowed, to receive the top
of the tiles : the oppofite angle forms the
ridge. The angles of the bafe are generally
drefled off, to prevent the wind from laying
hold of them ; and to give them a niort fnug
and neat appearance. They are fet on with
mortar, in the fame manner as ridge tiles are
laid.

The coping of gables, let the walling ma-
terial be what it may, is ufually of drefled
ftone, fcipported, at the foot, by an orna-
mental bracket of the fame ; projeifting ten
or twelve inches without the lide walls ;
giving a d-egree of lightnefs, and an appear-
ance of confequence, to the building.

The end of the firfl flone of the coping
refts on this corner bracket ; the others, re-
fpedively, on thofe next below them.

There is an evil effect attends the common

method of putting on thefe copings : the ends

Vol. I. K . of

130 FARM BUILDINGS.

of the ftones being ufually cut fquare, ancJ
laid flufli with each other, to prevent their
flipping, and to give them a fmooth uniform
appearance, the: joints between them, when
the mortar begins to fail, receive rain water,
and condii(5t it into the end wall ; by which
means their principal intention, the prefer-
vation of the wall, ;s rendered defedlive.

To prevent this effedt, I have obferved, in
a few inftances, an ingenious expedient prac-
tifcd. The upper ends of the coping ftones
are pared down, to about half their common
thicknefs (as from two inches thick to one),
with a flope, futiicient to give defcent to
water, when they are laid upon the gable :
and the lower ends have notches cut on
their under fides, to receive the reduced
points of the upper ends, about an inch be-
neath them.

By this expedient, the water is effe^ually
<Tot rid of, without endangering the firmnefs
of the coping ; but fimplicity being, by this
means, dlilurbed, the eye is difpleafed, with
what however is, upon the whole, a very
valuable improvement *.

Oa

* Perhaps, giving the upper ends of the ftones, a wedge-
like form, and cutting bird's mouths in their lower ends,
to receive tl:c points, would be aa improvement.

YORKSHIRE. 131

On this fide of the Vale, the Morelands
afford, in great abundance, ilones well fuited
to thefe purpofes : but, on the Malton fide
of the Diftridl, freeftone is lefs abundant :
neverthelefs, fuch is the conveniency of in-
land navigation, the Defwent brings a fup-
ply of thofe ufeful materials, ready dreffed,
and fitted for ufe. And now, when inland
navigations are become fo prevalent, there is
fcarcely 1 diftri(fl in the kingdom, which
might not be fupplied with them, from one
place or other, at a moderate expence *.

3. Eaves Gutters. The troughlets
made ufe of to catch rain water, dripping off
the eaves of roofs, are ufually formed by nail-
ing two narrow flips of board together : but
eaves troughsj made in that manner, are
liable to warp, and become leaky at the joint ;
^ — the bottom ; — the mdft effential part.

Here, they are pretty univerfally hollowed

out of a triangular piece of -ivood, -^vfith. a

round-mouthed adze. A piece, fix to eight

inches fquare, flit diagonally, affords two

K 2 triangular

* The price of the ftoncs, which are raifed near Leeds,
and carried, by water, down the Air, and up the Derwent,
to Alalton, are as follow: Ridge Jiones fifteen pence a yard,
or five pence a foot : Copings the fame price: Brackets tw©
ibillings and fixpence each.

131 FARM BUILDINGS.

triangular pieces fit for tTiis puqDofe. Ths
hollowing is not a work of Co much labor
as theory may fuggeft. They are ufually
made of deal. Gutters thus made are iliffer,
and more eafily fupported, — are lefs liable to
warp, and much lefs fubje(5t to leak, — than
thofe made in the ufual manner.

4. Water Cisterns. In Surrey and
Kent, there are inftances of wells, three
hundred feet deep. The expence of tackle,
and tlie expence of labor, in railing water,
for Q\try domelHc purpofe, and frequently
for the ufe of flock, from this intolerable
depth, would, it is natural to imagine, have
long ago driven the inhabitants to feme ex-
pedient, for collecting rain water : yet llill
they draw water out of the bowels of the
earth j or, in very dry feafons, drag it per-
haps three or four miles, uphill, in water
carts !

In the ifland of Bermudas, and in fome of

. the Weft India iilands, the inhabitants have

{generally fpeaking) no other frefli water,

than that which they colle(fl from the atmo-

fphere, in tanks; and it is ftriking to fee the

• fmall quantity of colle<!^ing furface, requifite

to the fupply of a family, with this neceffary

'*'^kment ; a furface which is finali, in com-

parifon

YORKSHIRE. i33

parifon with the roofs of a middle-llzed farm
houfe and offices.

In this Dillrict, in which water cifterns
are growing into general ufe, efpecially in
upland fituations, I have feen an inftance
where the dwelling houfe, alone, affords
more than a fufficiency of water, for every
ufe of the family. Nor is it the conveniency
of having a conflant fupply of water, always
at hand, which alone conftitutes the utility
of water ciflerns. Rain water, preferved in
quantity under ground, is pure and palatable
in a fuperior degree : cool in fummer, and
warm in winter. It is particularly grateful
to cattle ; efpecially when they are ill : and
it is highly probable that, as a menftruum of
aliment in general, it is the mofl %vholefome
water.

Thefttuation of a water ciftern is generally
under the kitchen, or in a vacant corner of
the yard, near the kitchen door.

The forms of water cifterns are various.
The deeper they are funk, the better they
keep the water. 1 he cube is perhaps the
moil convenient figure j but a double cube
would perhaps keep water better. A cif-
tern nine feet cubical would contain twenty-

K 3 i^ytn

134 FARM BUILDINGS.

fcven cubical yards, or about ninety wine
hogsheads of water.

The materials of water ciflerns, in this
Difi:ri<5l, are clay, bricks, and tarras.

The method of making has lately received
a confiderable improvement. When the art
was lefs known, than it is at prefent, an irre-
gular hole was dug ; the determinate figure
of the ciftern being given by the walls ; be-
hiiid which the clay was ramined. Now, the
intended form of the ciflern when finifhed,
is given to the excavation ; whpfe fides are
fquared and pjummed, with the exadtnef^
with which a wall is carried up. On this
wall-like face of the excavation, the clay is
laid plafier-ivife with a trowel, coat over coat,
two or three inches thick -, and againft this
firm even face of plallering, the brick work
is raifed. The bottom is, or ought to be
m all cafes, bedded with three or four inches
thick of ftrong clay, beaten into a fmooth
even waxlike fubflance. On this flooring of
clay, a double floor of brick is laid ; and, on
the margiii of this, the fide walls are carried
up, half a brick thick. The bricks are, \
believe, invariably laid in tarras.

The covering is fimilar to that of a well ;
with a pump, or a roller and bucket. The

latter.

YORKSHIRE. 135

latter, perhaps, the more eligible ; efpecialiy
if the admiffion pipe were carried down to
near the bottom of the cill:ern ; by which
means the water, at the furface, would always
remain undifliurbed and pure.

5. Painting Window Leads. This
is not introduced as a thing of importance :
but the pradice feems to be peculiar to this
cou^tr)^ It gives a degree of neatnefs plea-
fing to the eye ; and the paint is faid to be a
preferver of the lead. The color invariably-
white.

6. Mortar Flooiis. A new fpecies of
cottage flooring has lately been thought of,
and is now pretty commonly formed, in
this neighbourhood.

The materials are lime and fand ; mixed
in nearly the fame proportion, and prepared
in the fame manner, as the common mortar
of bricklayers ; except, that for forming
floors with, it is generally made flronger,
and is always made up fofter, than it is ufually
done, for laying bricks in.

The yncthod. The bed being prepared,
the materials are carried on, in pails, in a
Hate between pafte and batter ; laying them
on four or five inches thick, and about one
inch higher than the intended height of the

K 4 floor ;

136 FARM BUILDINGS.

floor ; to allow for the fettling, in drying.
The whole being well worked over with a
fpade, the furface is fmoothed with a trowel ;
and, as it dries, is beaten, repeatedly, with a
flat beater, to prevent its cracking ; the work-
man, in this operation, {landing on planks.

A fortnight or three weeks of dry weather
will render it fliff enough to walk upon.

If, after the laft: beating, crofs lines be
deeply graven on the furface, a floor of ce-
ment has the appearance, as well as iht ufe-f
fulnefs of a freellone floor.

DRINKING PLACES,

IN DISTRICTS abounding with upland
grafs, we may expccl to find artificial
DRINKING PLACES foF the ufe of pafl:uring
Aock. But no I^iflri£t in the kingdom will
gratify our expedtations fo fully, in this ref-
pe(fl, as that which is now under obfervation.

In

YORKSHIRE. 137

111 tliis country, there are three fpecies of
ATti^cial watering places ;

1. Made Pools.

2. Made Rills.

3. Field Wells.

I. MADE POOLS. The art of "pond,
making" ranks among the moll uieful arts
in Rural Economics. In many high Htua-
tions, no other expedient can be pradtifed,
with propriety-: rills cannot be railed, nor
wells lunk and worked, but at too great an
expence, for the purpofe of watering flock.

On the hills of Surrey and Kent, ponds are
made to hold water, tolerably well, with
chalk, beaten firmly together * : and in
Norfolk, I apprehend, they have been for-
merly made v/ith marl. In all countries
where unfathomed beds of clay are common,
drinking pools fufficiently retentive may, at
a fmall expence, and without much art, be
formed ; and are, in general, fufficiently
abundant.

But the art of niaking retentive pools,
with CI. AY, in loofe alforbejit foils, is a recent

difcovery,

* Experiments have, it is laid, been tried with chalk,
upon the Yorkfhire Wolds, without fuccefs; owing,
probably, to the too great hardnels of the Wold-challc.
A dudlile foft chalk is fitted for this purpofe.

138 DRINKING PLACES.

difcovery, which has been hit upon in this
Diftri(ft ; in which it has made a rapid pro-
grefs, and is now in univerfal practice, among
farmers of every clafs. Indeed, lor a country
like this, where upland foil is kept princi-
pally in grafs, it may well be confidered as
the moil: valuable difcovery which has lately
been made in Rural Economy *.

There is little difficulty in making a pit
hold water, with clay alone ; provided it be
kept up full to the brim ; but once emptied,
its rctentivenefs is loft. There are two caufes
of this lofs of rctentivenefs: — the cracking
of the clay by drought ; and its being liable,
whenever the water fublidfs, and even per-
haps when tilled, to be perforated by "Jiiorms ;
which convert the bafon into a filter, and
for ever deltroy its retentivenefs. It is
therefore neceffary, that thofe two enemies
Ihould be guarded againil:.

To guard againll: the latter, a coat of lIiME
is fpread, under the clay : above it, a coat of

EARTH,

* Francis and Robirt Gardin'er, well-diggers
and hfli-pond makers, of Driifiild, are entitled to much
more than the credit of this difcovery. The York Agri-
culture Society voted them a premium of ten pounds:
were the Nation to grant them ten thoufand, it would not
\>c mo:e than they merit.

YORKSHIRE. 135

EARTH j and, over all, a covering of stones
is laid ; for the double purpofe of guarding
againfl drought, and for preventing the feet
cf cattle from injuring the clay ; which
alone is the caufe of retentivenefs ; and on
the proper ordering of which the art princi-
pally depends.

But many other particulars are requiiite to
be known, before the art can be fufficiently
underllood, to be pratftifed with certaint}',

1 . The Run, or collecting furfacc,

2. The Refervoir.

3. Liming.

4. Claying.

5. Covering.

6. Time of making.

7. Coih

I. The Run. A bare firm iurface, as a
road, colledls the greateft quantity' of water.
A gfoffy Jurface retains the rain water which
faHs upon it, and which, in level iituations,
is condudledinto the foil, by wormlioles and
other inlets, v/ith which graisiand generally
abounds ; efpecially in fummer, when a col-
ledlion is of the greatell: value. However,
if the fubfoil be retentive, ditches, efpecially
of arable inclofures, will frequently afford a
fupply, even in fummer ; but, in an upland

SITU-

140 DRINKING PLACES.

SITUATION, where the fiibfoil is generally
ublorbent, a road, or an artificial run, be*
comes neceflary.

In upland Diftridls, as the Wolds of York-
(hire, and the Downs of Surrey and Kent,
the furface is generally broken into hill and
dale, and diverfitied by fmaller vallies and
inequalities. In fituations of this kind,
ARTIFICIAL RUNS are moft wanted, and
maybe mofteafily made. I have ittw fome
faint attempts at making them, on the Wolds
of this Dill:ri£t, by cutting a few grips, with a
fpade, above the refervoir ; but they were too
few, too ihort, and too feldom fcoured, to
anfwer, in any confiderable degree, the in-
tended pu^pofe. They, neverthclefs, ihewed
plainly enough, the utility of channels for
catching hafH^fhowers, falling on grajfyjlopcsy
oiF which a confiderable quantity of water
will efcape, provided there be channels, at
proper diilances, to receive it.

To reap the greatcft benefit from an arti-
ficial run, and to make it with the greateft
cafe, — form the bafon at fome confiderable
diftance from tlie head of a valley; from
which, down to the relervoir, open a main
I hannel, by two furrows of a plov/, turned
€utward. From this main llem, plow lateral

branches.

YORKSHIRE. 14!

branches, with an cafy defcent towards it,
along the iides of the Hopes, by iingle
furrows, turned downhill ; by which means
the plowing will be rendered ealy, the chan^
nels made free on the upper fides for the ad-
miflion of water, and high on the lower fides
for retaining it.

The plow would not belefs expeditious, in
fcouring, than in making the channels : or,
perhaps, a more fledge-like implement would
be iHll more effectual, than the plow, in
clofing the filfures and wormholes, which
prefently are fonned in watercourfes laid drv s
and which, if left open, abfcrb an incon-
ceivable quantity of water, before they be
faturated ; efpecially if the current of water
be retarded, by grafs, or other obftruclions.

2. The Reslrvoir. The Jituatlon of
the refer voir depends principally on the run.
Near the lide of a road is, in general, the
moft delirable fituation ; provided a fufficient
defcent can be had, from the road to the
refervoir. Roads leadinp- alon^ the fides of
flopes can only afford a fupply to the grounds
on their lower iides. But, in this country,
when a road leads dovim the defcent, it is
generally furnifl:ied,on both fides, with ponds;
fome of them, perhaps, not having more than

a hundred

1-^2 DRINKING PLACED

a hundred ynrds of run, off a narrow ro?d
way; y"t, from that fmall quantity of furface>
are fufficiently fupplied with water.

In ihtfitucztion of a pond, there is one thing
requifite, which does not fecm to be attended
to, even by the mofl fkilful in the art. The
requifite I fpeak of is that of admitting a
wafte-vvater place, on the upper fide of the
refervoir, to prevent the water, when the
pond is fall, firom running through it; by
which means it becomes fihed up, unnecef-
farily. For the n»Lture of foul water is fuch,
that, whenever it changes from a current to
a ftaj^nant ftate, it der:ontes a coniiderable
part of its foulnefs ; fo that the water, which
leaves a full refer\'oir, is finer, than that
which enters it ; the fediment of courfc
being left behind in the refervoir. Where-
as, if the current into the pond were to ceafe
when the pond is fufficiently filled, the
fediment of the overplus water would be got
rid of. The pond would receive, in this cafe,-
no other foulnefs, than that which was given
by the ouantity of water, requifite to fill it *.

The

• A Cx^^X C.^.TCFl Pool, between the run and the
refervoir, would arrcft rr.uch of the foulnefs of water, col-
]t€tii funi z road; and, in a fituation which could admit

of

YORKSHIRE. 14^

I'be form of the refervoir is, univerlally,
that of a iliallow bafon, or more ftridly
fpeaking, that of a flat cone inverted j the
lides {helvino; flrai^ht from the brim to an
angle or point, in the center. If the exca-
vation be made fixty feet diameter, its greatefl
depth is about feven feet : if forty feet dia-
meter, the depth is about five, — before the
coats of clay, &c. be laid on *.

The firfl bulinefs, in Jetting out^ refervoir,
is to take the level of the lite, and drive piles,
as a guide in forming the banks, and in
making the conducing channel, and wafle-
water place.

If the iituation be on ^ijlope, the excavated
mold is ufed in forming the bank, on the
lower (ide : if nearly levely the mold requires
to be removed, or (if laid round the edge)
the conducting channel to be raifed.

If

of it, v/ould be worth the trouble of forming. In many
fituations, the mud it might collect, would amply repay the
expence of forming it.

♦ A refervoir fet out twentytwo yards diameter, by
feven f;et deep, u-ill, when finifhed, meafure about fixty
feet by fix, and will hold about two hundred and ten cubical
yards, or neir feven hundred hogfheads of water. Forty
feet diamrter by four feet deep, when finifhed, contains
fixtyrwo cubical yards, or two hundred hogfti. "ads (oflixty-
three gallons, wine meafure).

i44 DRINKING PLACES.

- If clay or llone be excavated, it is laid
leparateiy afide, to lave carriage.

If the lower lide be railed with the exca-
vated materials, they ought to be firmly
worked together, or fhould He a fathcient
time to fettk ; otherwil'e, the fide, thus
formed, is liable to fettle, after the refervoir
be nnimed ', by which means cracks are
formed, and a mifcarriage enfues.

The excavation having received the in-
tended form, its fides are made firm and
finooth, for the reception of the lime.

•3; Liming. The ule of lime being
mefelv that of preventing earth worms firom
perforating the coat of clay, the proper quan-
tity depends, in fome meafure, on the nature
of the foil. A fat rich earth, among which
worms alv»ays abound, requires more than a
dead hungry mold, or a dry ilonev bottom j
on which retentive pools are faid to have been
made, without lime. However, as no foil,
perhaps, is entirely firce from thofe enemies
to ponds, it would be folly to rifque a mif-
carriage, in any fitua^ion ; as the expence of
liming makes but a fmail portion of the
whole expence.

The only preparation of the lime is that of
flaking i:, and picking out the cores; no

biting

Y O R K: S H I R E. ifS

fifting or fkreening being, in general, ufed ;
though obviouflv uleful.

It is ufually laid on with a fpade or fhovel j
but a fisve wouldj perhaps, be found, by
the inexperienced, a better tool ; and the
extra labor no objedt.

The thicknefs of the coat, laid on, is about
half an inch. Half a chaldron of lime is
fufHcIent to complete a pond of forty feet
diameter. The principal part cf it is kid
on, beneath the clay ; a few bufhels, only,
being referved for fcattering round the edges,
to prevent the worms from getting ifito the
clay *.

Vol. I. L 4. Clay-

* A ftiU more fecure, and, on the whole, a more eli-
gible method of liming has lately been thought of, and is
now (June 1787) in practice, at Lockton (in this neigh-
bourhood) by the CommiiEoners of Inclofure, in making
PUBLIC DRINKING POOLS, for the ufe of the to'.vnfhip.
Inftead of fcattering the lime,- in powder, it is formed,
with fand, into mortar ; a regular coat of which is fprcad,
about an inch thick, not only beneath, and zt the edges of
the clay, but over the entire fufface. This is an obvious
improvement, which appears, to human forefight, to bring
this method of forming pools near to perfeftion. The
clay becomes cafed, on either fide, with a regular coat of
cement, and is thereby fecured, in perhaps the completeft
manner poflible, from the attack of worms. The labor
and expence, however, is by this method increafed. A
pOnd, riineteen feet diameter, took two chaldrons anJ a

half

146 DRINKING PLACED.

4. Claying. In this operation, the
manual art, and the labor, principally center.

Upon the Wolds, clay is ibmetimes fetched
fix or feven miles j and is feldom found
at hand, in fituations where artificial pools
are moll \^'anted : the carriage of the clay,
therefore, generally becomes a heavy article
of expence.

The choice of clay is thoucrht to be lefs
efl'ential, than the working of it. Good
ponds are faid to have been made with com-
mon loamv moid ; but it is wron^ to depend
-< ' or

on any thing, but a ftrong dudiile clay, if it
can be had, within a moderate diftance.

The thicknefs of the coat, now pretty gene-
rally laid on, is about five or fix inches, in
the rough ; beating it down to about three
inches. In the infancy of the art, two coats
of»clay, of about that thicknefs, were laid
on ; but one coat has been found efFe(flual,
and much lefs expenfive. However, it is
probable, it will not rrove fo durable.

The

half of lime, arid five Dnall cart loads of f^md. Both the
materials were fifted, and worked up, In ihe ufual w^y.
Into mortar. Great caution is neceUsry in laying on the
clay, in this cafe. If the mortar do not lie fome time to
ftiffcn, the clay difplaces it : if it get too dry before it be
covered, it is liable to craclc.

YORKSHIRE. 147

THe method of beating will be difficult to
defcribe i yet it moil elpecially requires de-
fcription.

The drier the clay is worked, the lefs
liable it will be to crack with drought, when
fihiflied. In a dry feafon, however, it is
necelTary to moiften it : for which purpofe
the center of the pit is fometimes finiflied,
firft, to colled: the water of fliowers ; the
carriage of water being, in fome cafes, ex^
penfive.

In laying on the clay, the workmen begin
at the bottom of the pit, and work upward ^
laying patch after patch, or circle after
circle, until the brim be reached \ taking
great care not to carry on fticks, ftraws, dirt,
or any kind of foulnefs, among the clay, or
with their feet; and being careful not to
difplace the lime, in throwing it on : to pre-
vent which the lime is not fpread over the
whole, at once •■, but is fcattered on, as it is
wanted to be covered with the clay.

A plot of clay laid on, and adjufted, it is
beaten flat, with a wooden " mell," or beetle,
made, at prefent, of thefe dimeniions : the
head fourteen inches long, and three inches
diameter ; the handle four feet long, and
fuited in thicknefs to the hand of the work-

L 2 man.

143 DRINKING PLACES.

ftian. Beetles of difTerein fizes have been
in ufc, in different ftages of the art ; but none
of them have been found to be fo well
adapted to the operation, as that in ufe at
prefent.

The fird operation is performed with the
fiJe of the beetle, to level the protuberances,
and fmooth the rou^hneffes, fo as to make
the whole into a regular flieet of an even
thicknefs.

This effecfled, it is Aruck, forcibly, with
the en^ of the beetle, which is driven down
nearly, but not quite, to the lime ; leaving
the furface full of fomewhat honev-comb-
like cells or dints. If the beetle be ftruck,
unguardedly, quite through to the lime, a
piece of clay, and a little lime, if required, is
carefully placed in the breach, to prevent a
defedt, in the part thus injured.'

The whole being gone over, in this man-
ner, with the enJy the furface is again levelled
down, with the J:Je, of the tool ; the work-
man walking backward.

The next beating is with the enJ, but not
quite fo deep as before ; and the roughneffcs
being again levelled with the JlJe, it is again
worked over with the en^ ; but iiiW fhallower
than in the middle beating.

Tho

YORKSHIRE. 149

The firft ftrokes with the end of the beetle
ought to clofe the bottom of the clay, firmly,
with the lime and the bed on which it is
fpread ; — the fecond ought to unite the
middle of the clay with the bottom ; — and
the lall to clofe, without a pore, the upper
part with the middle j — and the laft ftrokes,
with thtjide of the beetle, ought to be fuffi-
ciently forcible to clofe, entirely, the dimples
formed by the laft-given flrokes with the
end.

If thefe feveral operations be thought infuf-
fiCient, it is continued to be worked with the
end and fide of the beetle, alternately, until
not a flaw can be found ; the entire coat of
clay being manufactured into a lead-like flieet,
firm enoucjh to bear a man without an im-
prelTion, and a horfe without injury *.

c. Covering. The firil coat is of com-

mon earthy to affift in keeping out the

drought, and to mal^e a bed for the ftones i

to prevent their afperities from piercing, and

L 3 thereby

* When two coats of clay were in ufc, the upper one
was laid upon the rough furface of the laft end-beating ;
by which means the two coats became, by the fubfequent
beatings, incorporated in one thick fheet. A fubftantial
method, .this, of which the prefent -cippears to be rather a
refinement, than an improvement.

150 DRIKKING PLACES.

thereby injuring, the fheet of clay. This
coat may be three or four inches thick, ac-
cording to the nature of the ftoncs with
which it is to be covered. If thefe be large
and irregular, mere earth is requifite, than
when thf ilones are fnnall, fnr.ooth, or flat.
The leaneft mcft infertile foil is fitteft for
this purpofe. Worms and weeds are
equally to be feared ; and a rich foil is
genial to both. In this point of yiew, two
coats of clay are much preferable to a coat

•- of clay, and a cent of rich mold.

Pondmakers feem not to be fufficiently
#ware of the mifchievoufnefs of weeds : in-

^ deed, fome ponds will remain, for feveral

• years, in a manner free from them. But I
have feen others, in which weed?, even docks

» '(near the edge) have grown luxuriantly. It
•ns probable that the tap-rooted weeds ilrllvC
throiigh the feveral coats ; and, whenever
the roots decay, a perforation mufl be left.

iSlold taken from a drv found hi;2:hland
fituation is, in all human probability, lefs
liable to propagate aquatic weeds, than the

earth of a low fituation or a bog *'.

The

• I have obArved an LngCiious and fioiple mediod of
kecpmg the weeds under ; efpccially at the edges, where

t?wy

YORKSHIRE. 15}

The mold being rendered level and fmooth,
ih^jiones are laid 011 : firlt covering the mold*
with the larcreil:, laid with a flat iide down-
ward, to prevent their finking down to the
clay ; and upon thefe laying Imaller, until
the coat be made five orlix inches thick *'.

A PAVEMENT would be a more regular
covering; and, if the ftones were fet in lime
and land, would not only prevent worms
from getting into the mold, and upp^r fide of
the clay, v/hen the pond happened to be
dry ', but would, in all probability, prevent
ivecds 'y and, Vv'hen the pond required to be
cka7icd irom. mud, would be a recrular floor to-
work upon.

The only objection I have heard made to

PAVING the bottoms of ponds, is, that it

would be a temptation to cattle to go into

L 4 tjie

they arc gene.r.illy mo'l abundant. Though all the fides of
a drinking pool be open, cattle will go to particular places
to drink J and, in thele places, the weeds are trampled upon
and killed. Therefore, to check the ranked, |he parts
which arc moft free are covered wieh thorns, while thofe
which are weedy arc left open, for the cattle to drinlc at.

* Sir::zv has been ufed between the clay and the ftoncs ;
and, in the inftance (mentioned in a foregoing note) in
which an improved method of liming was pra£lifed, a layer
of thick y^A war, laid, grafs-fide downward, upon the lime ;
aj>^, upon the uds, about fix inches thick of loofo flones.

I5» DRINKING PLACES.

the water, in hot weather ; and, by ftanding
thefe, would not only foul the water, but in
time tread up the pavement, and injure the
cliy ; whereas fliarp loofe ftones prevent
their going farther than the edge. If the
ilones made ufe of in a pavement were fuf-
iiciently large, the latter part of the objection
would fall ; and whether cattle ftanding in a
peol, in fummer, be detrimental or beneficial,
may be a difputable point.

However, whether or not the infide of the
bafon ought to be paved, the rim ihould
certainly be i^fbroad fmooth caufeway, with
a gentle grafly llcpe from it ; efpecially on
the lower fide ; that the cattle may approach
the water, without wading in dirt, to the
injury of the bank ; and without having
fharp loofe ftoncs to walk and fj:and on, while
drinking.

A drinking pool, formed by a fkllful
artift, full to the brim, free from weeds, and
finooth round the tdgc, is, in a green paf-
ture ground, as agreeable an object, as the
eye can be entertained with.

(). Season of making. Autumn is cf-
teemed the bell: time. Drought and froft are
both enemies to new-made ponds. In au-
tumn, drought has genernllv abated, and a

fuflicicncy

YORKSHIRE. 153

rufficiency of rain water may be expefted in
this feafon, to fill them before froll:s fet in.
A covering ol Jlraiv over the ftones is the
ufual guard againfl the extremities of fea-^
fons.

If a refervoir be formed in a llope, where
the lower fide requires to be raifed with loofe
earth, it ought (as has been already intima-.
ted) to remain a conilderable time to fettle,
before the coatings be put on : otherwife, it
is liable to fettle afterwards, and crack the
clay. I have^feen an inftance of mifcarriage
through this neg-led:. If there be much
made earth requifite to be raifed, the excava-
tion ought to be formed, twelve months be^
fore the claying be done,

7. ExPENCE. Although it is now twenty
years fince the difcovery was made, the art is
iHll partially hid under the veil of myftery ;
and is not yet become familiar to common
farm laborers. In this neighbourhood, ponds
llill continue to be made, by men from the
Wolds 'y all of them, in reality or pretence,
pupils of the firfl inventor5.

Thefe men generally work by the grois ;
the price being in proportion to the diame-
ter : but they feem to have no regular method
pf calculation.

Trn

154 DRINKING PLACES.

Ten pouTids were given, and may now be
considered as a medium price, for twenty
vards diameter * ; forming, claying, covcr-f
ing, and, generally, digging the clay, indu-
ded : all carriage and extra labor being done
by the empkyer.

A circle twenty yards ic diameter contains
in its area 314 fquare yards. TKcrefore,
each fquare yard oijurficf coils, at this price,
it ven penceha lipenny.

The folia contents of % cone, whofc bafe is
6c feet diameter, and whofe height is fix
feet, is 209.4. cubical 3-ards ; each of which
cofts, in the above inftance, elevenpence -
halfpeDny.

Five pound? have been given for a pond,
twelve yards in diameter : which is tenpence-
halfpenny, each fquare yard oi furface ; and,
fuppofmg it four f<et deep, tv»o ihiilings
each cubical ^'ard of water.

Three guineas were given for forty feet
diameter, and four feet deep, tlie excavation
having been prcvioufly foniied. This may
be called four pounds for the grols ; which

is

* In the cajiv -cLyi of the ari, and irh-:n two cccs af
c'ay were ufcd, iweji'.v pounds vrzrc givm {z(r pond* of das
dimenrion.

YORKSHIRE. 155

is about fevenpence a fquare yard of fur>
face ; or fifteenpencehalfpenny, each cubi-
cal yard of water.

The men, in the laft cafe, earned about
three ihilHngs and fixpence a day, without;
extraordinary exertion. In the firft mention-
ed inftance, the fame workmen did not (ac-
cording to their own affertion) make more
than two (hillings and fixpence, a day. But
a large pond gives longer employment ; and
the bufinefs of pondmaking being uncertain
and inconftant, travelling workmen can
afford to make a large pond at a cheaper rate,
than a fmall one.

The curve fuperficiesy or fuperficial contents
oithtjidcs, of a cone twenty yards in diame-
ter at the bafe, and rwo yards high, is about
320 fquare yards. This, in making a pond
of thofe dimenfion^. is fbe quantity of coatings
for each yard of which near 'jid, was given
in the lirfi inilance, and lefs than 'jd. in the
laft. Sixpence each fquare yard of furf ace to
be coatcd^may perhaps be taken as a fair medium
price.

To afcertain the quantity of coating, to be
done, mxcafure the exacft circumference or rim
of the pit, when finally formed and adjufted
for claying : this dimenlion multiplied by half

the

X56 DRINKING PLACES.

the length (or depth) of the fide (meafurlng
from the brink, down the flope, to the cen-
ter) is the quantity of fjrface to be clayed and
coated. The digging would (under this
mode of calculation) fall proportionally hea-
vier, on a large pond, than on a fmall one ; but
this would be counterbalanced by the advan-
tage abovementioned.

The quantity of clay ufed, in the firft in-
ftance, was about forty cart loads, fetched
about three miles ; in the lall:, about fifteen
loads, fetched one mile. The quantity of
lime, in the former cafe, one chaldron ; in the
latter, half a chaldron.

From the fum of thefe particulars, it is
plain, that the larger the pond, the lefs, in
proportion, is the expence. A refervoir, to
contain two hundred cubical yards of water,
requires little more than three hundred fquare
yards of coating j whereas one, to contain only
lifty yards of water, would require one hundred
and twenty yards of coating : ccnfequently, a
cubical yard, of the former, would only coft
(at ninepence a yard for manual labor, ma-
terials, and carriage) eighteenpence ; while
the fame quantity, of the latter, would coil
near two fhiliings and fixpence.

The UTILITY of Drm king Pools requires

not

YORKSHIRE. 157

not to be dwelt on : but the superiority of
pools, made in the manner above delcribed,
to thofe which have formerly been made, bv
fome other art, or which have been formed
by nature or accident, may with propriety be
mentioned. During the dry feafons which
have prevailed of late years, it has been ob-
ferved, that newly m^ade ponds retain a fupply
of water, when the waters of other ilagnant
drinking places are dried up. This can only
be accounted for, perhaps, by their ptrftO:
retentivenefs, and by their being free from
weeds, which convert to their own nouriih-
ment, and throw off daily by perfpiration, a
great quantity of water. Upon the Wolds
their excellence was moll: confpicuous :^
while one man was driving his ftock, three or
four miles to water, his neighbours, who had
" made ponds" upon their farm.s, were free
from this fericus inconveniency. In many ,
fituations, artificial Drinking Pools may repay
the expence of making, the Rrd dry feafon.
Driving ftock to diitant water, in hot weather,
and in a bufy feafon, is an expence, and a
detriment to the flock fo driven, which it
would be difficult to eilimate.

General Observations. — On exa-
mining ponds, in this neighbourhood, which

have

158 DRINKING PLACE".

have been made fome years, tlie evil eftecb
■of ccrjcring ivith hofc ftoncs is evident.

For one, two, three, or more yards round
their cdgeSj according to the time they have
been made, the ufe they have been Hable to,
and to the fteepnefs of their lides, — the ftones
are entirely difplaced, or trodden into the
clay ; which is, by this means, expofed to the
feet of cattle, and to the open attack of
drought and worms. For a wliile, the clay^
even thus expofed, prcfer\'es its retentive^J
nefs ; hut, in time, it is deftroyed, and the
moft valuable part of the pond entirelv loft.

This etfevll is fo probahle, fo evident to be
forefeen, that, en iirft reflection, it feems afto-
nifhing fo unfuitable a covering lliould be
univerfally adopted. A cattle, when it goes
into a drinkiniT pit, necelTarily throws the
chief part of its weight upon its fore feet ;
which, in the acft of drinking raoft efpecially,
are placed, as for the intention of forcing,
w'hatever they ftand on, down the flope,
toward the bottom ci the pit. Upon loofe
flones, laid on a fteep furface, cattle cannot
make a ftep, or move a foot, without pro-«
ducing this efFecft, in a greater or lefs degree ;
and, by repetition and length of time, the
entire coat (except fome few which happen

to

YORKSHIRE. 159

to be trodden into the clay) muil, in the na-
ture of things, be forced into the center.

But this practice, evidentl)' abfurd as it un-
doubtedly is, in this Diftrid:, was firil efta-
bliihed upon the IVoIdsy whoit (lone is of a
perilhable nature ; a fpecies of tv^^/^ ; which,
on being expofed to air and water, and to the
treading of cattle, unites into a cement ;
which, forming a regular caling, preferves
the clay from injury, for a conliderabie length
of time. Loofe chalk as a covering was, there-
fore, a crood thought of the iirfl inventors (in-
deed upon the Wolds there v/as no alterna-
tive) ; and it is not to be wondered at, that
their pupils, moftly day laborers, fhould imi-
tate the pi-a(flice, in this country, by making
ufe of ly)Je [tones.

Periihable or fcftjrones of any fpecies, a
ftrong rough gravely or tv^nfandy would, I
believe, be better than loofe hard unperifliable
ftones.

But, in this neighbourhood, where ftcnes
of various kinds abound ; or, in any country*
where ftones of a proper fize can be pro-
cured, at a moderate expence ; there appears,
to me, to be no choice, with refpeft to cover-
ing. A regular firm pavement, flrong
enough to bear flock witho!>t an impreflion,

would.

i6o DRINKING PLACES.

would lafl through ages ; and although t^ic
expence, in the firll: inAance, would be fome-
thing more than that of loofe ftones, its dura-
bility would, in the end, doubly repay it.
Even the Wold oonds, which have been
made, fifteen or twenty years, are many of
them beginning to fail, and will, in a few
years more, require to be freili coated :
whereas, a pond properly paved would, in all
human probability, remain perfect, for at
lead a century.

There would be an advantage of a paveix
pond, which may notflrike ever)' one. The
clay and its coverings, while the pond is
filled with air, appear to be a firm folid mafs,
which wouH require a great power to dif-
turb it. But the pond being filled with
li'ater, the texture of the clay is changed, and
the relative gravity of all the covering ma-
terials ccnfiderably altered. They no longer
adhere to the bottom with the fame firmnefs,
nor, in fz^, lie upon it Vv'ith the fame weight,
they did before the \v ater was let in. For iff
inftead of ftone, the clay had been covered
with blocks of wood (for inilance), whofe
fpecific gravity was lefs than tliat of v.'ater,
they would have rifen to the furface, and
have left the clay wJiolly expofed : even

flones

YORKSHIRE. i6i

flones themfelves lie, in water, with little
more than half their weight, in air.

This propenfity in the covering materials,
when covered with water, to rife towards the
furface, and the ftate of foftnefs which the
clay is reduced to, by a free communication
with the water, render them very liable to be
difturbed by thefeet of cattle ; while fubter-
raneous watery after heavy rains, may infi-
nuate itfelf beneath the clay, and not only
difturb the lime, but raife up the clay, and
afBft in rendering the coatings ftill lefs firm ;
or, in other words, in promoting the general
tendency of the- whole, to form an artificial
. quickfand, or quagmire.

But if a pond were properly paved, while
the coats were yet in a firm folid ftate, the
pavement, being an inverted dome, and act-
ing as an arch agaihft their upward ten-
dency, would preferve them, in that ftate, fo
long as the arch itfelf ftiould remain per-
fed: ', which would, of neceffity, be until the
ftones were worn cut, or the foundation on
which they refted ftiould give way. For the
preffure of the feet of the cattle being di-
rected towards the center, would v^t\iQr Jiiffhi
than weaken the arch * ; while the fwelling
Vol. I. M of

* Hpnce, the deeper the fides of the Pool, the Jlronger
the pavement.

i62 DRINKING PLACES.

of the clay and the foil (if any), with the
water which would of courfe filter through
the pavement, would afilft in promoting the
general union.

If irregular rough pebbles were ufed, the
ftattefl ends ihould be placed downward, to
prevent their injuring the clay, and the
points upward, to prevent the cattle from
Hiding into the pond while drinking ; as well
as to prevent their fVanding upon tiiem, after
their thirfl were quenched.

But ftones hammered into a long-cubical
form, like the Scotch flones now ufed in
paving the ftreets of London, would make
the firmeft pavement ; their upper edges cr
ends being left rough, for the purpofes lait
mentioned.

It appears to me, that a well made pond,
paved in the workmanlike manner, in which
the ftreets of the metropolis are now in general
paved, muil of neceflity remain perfe<ft, until
an eruption of the earth, or a general dilTo-
lution take place : provided the rim were, from
time to time, repaired, to prevent the feet of
cattle from breaking up the edge of the bafon.

II. iMADE RILLS. The heights of the
northern margin have neither fprings nor
rivulets (fome very few inftances excepted),

nor

YORKSHIRE. 163

lior any other natural waters, than the brooks
which wind at the bottoms of the deep vallies,
that divide them -, and the rivulets which
generally run at the feet of the precipices,
that terminate them.

Formerly, thefe brooks and rivulets were
the only refources which the villages, that
are fcattered on thefe heights, had for water,
both for the ufe of cattle, and for domeflic
purpofes.

In procefs of time, wells were funk; but
they are of fuch a depth, as to make the
labor of raifmg the water, little lefs than that
of fetching it, from a moderate diftance.

This kind of natural neceffity has led to
an expedient, which, though not new in prin-
ciple, is perhaps entirely fo in fimplicity of
execution, and might be pra<5tifed with great
advantage, in many fimilar fituations *.

The moreland mountains rife generally
with an eafy afcent, from the beds of the
rivulets laft mentioned, to a height much
exceeding that of the hills to be watered ;
and frequently abound with fp rings, almoil
to their higheft fwells.

M 2 Thefe

* 1796. This was written, before I had feen the
" potwater leats" of Devonlhire. See West of Eng-
land, art. Farmeries.

t64 drinking places.

Thefe fprings arc colle(fled, and conilu(fted
by a narrow channel, down the llope of the
mounuin lides, and along the Blcc of the
precipice, until the fummit be gained -, the
waters being thence conveyed to the place or
places dclired.

In PLANNING an artificial rill, a level, and
fome little knowledge of the country, are the
requilite guides. The furveyor begins at
the place to which water is required to be
brought ; and afcertains the lowell: part of
the brink of the precipice, from which water
can be condu(fled. The face of the preci-
pice is traced in like manner ; and, if necef-
fary, the afcent of the moreland hills ; until
fprings, or their natural rills, can be com-
manded.

If his level bring him to the bottom of
the fteep, ibon enough to catch the rivule:
which runs at its foot, thQ work is readily
completed. If not, he goes above its high-
eft bend ; generally to the head or higheft part
of the valley (between the heights and the
morelands) and winds along the fide of the
oppofite fwell, to fome more elevated iburce.

If, when he arrive on the n:creland hills
(or by in obfer\'ation from the top of the pre-
cipice) he find that nature does not furnifli

the

YORKSHIRE. 165

the rcquifite quantity of water, high enough
to give the neceflary fall, the intention is of
courfe fruftrated.

In EXECUTING an artificial rill, opening
a (hallow channel, of a width proportioned to
the quantity of water to be conduced, is the
principal operation. In making ftagnant
pools, we have found, that much art is ne-
celTary to make them retentive ; but, in
formino; the bed of a rill, no fuch art is re-
quiiite. It is the nature of running 'waters
to render the furface, on which they run,
firm and retentive. Sand is, I believe, the
chief material ufed in forming the channels
of thefe rills ; and this only in places, where
an open rock, or other porous ftratum, is
crofied.

Much, however, depends on the quantity
ofy^//, and the quantity of water. If the fall
be but little, and the quantity of water, at the
fource,be fuch as not to admit of much wall:e,
grea; care is requiiite, in forming the bed of
the iiii.

The FALL is regulated, in a great degree,
by the quality of the ground. On good
ground, the channel is nearly level. Over
faulty ground, the water runs with a current j
for the double purpofe of getting quickly
M 3 over

i66 DRINKING PLACES.

over it, and rendering its channel the moi^c
retentive.

The principal enemies of artificial rills
are leaves, in autumn, and fnows, in winter.
To remove the obftruflions, which thefe not
unfrequently caufe, and to repair fuch
breaches, as time will always make in the
works of art, a fuperintcndant is neceflary tp
every artificial rill.

The Rill of Kirbymoorside is, I be-
lieve, the largefl, and was the iirft, which
was brought upon thefe Heights*. Since
the introduction of this, feveral others have
been raifed j and fome few unfuctefsful at^
tempts have been made : the channel was,
in one inflance (that oi Newton) extended ^
confiderable way before the impracticability
of completing it, at a mo4erate expence, was
difcovered j a piece of mifcondudl: which
nothing but a want of accuracy, in the ufp
of the level, can lead to -f-.

^ Th?

♦ This rill was brought to the villages of Gillimore
and Fadmore, near forty years ago ; and has been extended
to Kirby, about thirty years, — by Joseph i'oRD ; a fcif-
taught engineer, of great i-gei uity and fome j udgment } a
man to whum the country owes much.

f The mifcarriage, in this cafe, was not owing to a
want of elevation in the fource, but to a depreflion of the

channel

Y O R K S PI I R E. 167

The Jirfi cofi of the Kirby rill was not,
altogethT, one hundred pounds. The dif-
tance, about ten miles : watering (befides
the town of Kirby) tv'o villages, and a line
of cultivated waterlefs upland country, about
four miles in length.

Befides the iirfl: coft, which was raifed by
fabfcription, a superintendant has ten
pounds, ayear, for keeping it in repair, and
free from obilru^ions ; which yearly falary
is paid by the voluntary contribution of the
perfons benefited ; each being rated agree-
ably to the eftimated benefit received *,

M 4 III. FIELD

channel at the foot of the fteep ; the head of the valley (if
fiich it may be called) being lower than the top of the pre-
cipice, at the given point. This fhevi's the neceflity of
tracing the entire channel, with fufncient accuracy, before
any other expence be incurred.

In the cafe of Kirby, the channel is raifed, fome feet, by a
bridge-like mound of earth, tl^rown acrofs the crown of the
valley.

The fame mpund ferves the purpofe of condu£ling ano-
ther rill, acroft the fame difficult pafs ; from whence the
Kirby rill takes an eaftward, the rill of Wellburn (applied
principally to the watering of pafture grounds) a weftward
diredlion.

* In a bill, which is now before Parliament, for inclofing
the commons and remnant common fields of the townfhip,
a claufe is wifely inferted to eftablifn a legal ajfejpmnt for
the prefervation of this rill.

i68 DRINKING PLACES.

III. FIELD WELLS. The fkirtsof the
margin, formerly arable fields, but now
grafsland inclofares, were, on their being
inclofed, equally dcflitute of natural and ar-
tificial watering places. Water for flock,
however, was in a degree necefTary j but
the art of pondmaking was not then known,
Wells were therefore funk : the depth,
twenty to thirty feet, according to fituation.
The water is raifed, either by a pump or by
a roller and bucket. The receptacles, ftone
troughs. Sometimes the well Is funk in
the line of a fence, fupplying two fields with
water.

In Situations which are low and flat, yet
dry, pools are difficult to be filled ; and wells
of courfe more eligible. They are readily
funk, and feldom dry, in fuch fituations.

6.

ROADS.

THE SPIRIT of improvement has, in np
particular, made greater exertions, than in
the FORMING OF RoADS. Within my own
•emembrance, all the roads of the Dillridl

lay

YORKSHIRE. 169

lay in their natural form ; that is, in a ftate
of flatnefs, in flat lituations ; or in hollow
ways, on the acclivities of hills. Now there
is fcarcely a flat road, or a hollow way, left
in the country. The more public roads, at
leaft, are now univerfally barrelled-, the
banks of the hollow ways havinf{ been thrown
down, and the flat roads raifed into a con-
vex FORM.

Formerly, the floughs and inequalities
were filled up, with a foft fort of gravel ;
wliich, being foon reduced, or finking in the
mire, on v/liich it was laid, only added to
ihe quantity of dirt, and the heavinefs of the
road. Now, the univerfal covering, on
this fide of the Vale, is limestone, broken
into fmall pieces, affording a rough but
durable road. .

But notwithftandinfj thefe exertions, and
the quantity of labor and money which have
been expended on thefe alterations, the roads
are ftill far from being commodious, or even
fafe. The fame folly of doing over ?nuchy
which difcovers itfelf, too plainly, in the
roads of almofl; every Difi:ri(Sl of the kingdom,
is here m.anifefl:.

Roads can fcarpely be raifed too little : a
gentle defcent for rain water is all that is

rpquifite

ire R O A D S.

rcquifite or ufeful, and conftitutes the fole
intention of raifing them. And the only
drain, the fide of a road requires, is a mere
channel, with outlets, to prevent the water,
thrown oft by the road, from colledling by
the fide of it.

Therefore, in forming a road, all the
preparation requifite (previous to the cover-
ing) is to form fach a channel, on either fide,
by paring down tlie outer edges of the Jite ;
cafting the foil upon the margin, or carrying
it off, for fome ufeful purpofe. Not a fpade-
flill of earth fhould be thrown into the middle
of the fite, except to level inequalities. The
cowcexity (the llope formed by the paring on
either fide excepted) lliould be given, en-
tirely, by the fbones or other hard materials \
v/hich ought to be laid on '2, firm furnace. If
the fite be naturally unfound, the foil ought
to be removed, or to be made firm by undcr^
draining. For until a firm foundation
be obtained, it is highly imprudent to be at
th-=: expence of laying on a covering.

Nevcrthclc fs, a general method of rai-
sing Roads, in this and almoft every other
reclufe Diflridt, is to dig a deep ditch on either
fide ; to cafl the loofe earth into the middle
of the fite -y and, on this, to ^'^^^ z narrow

high

YORKSHIRE. 171

fjtgh riJge of hard materials. The tKtCt. is,
earriages being necelTarily confined to one
track upon the ridge of the road, the materials,
which are not preffed into the loofe dirt
beneath, are foon cut through, by the wheels
of carriages always paffing in the fame ruts ;—
through which, the artificial bog, below,
rifes to the furface.

The method of repairing is equally
erroneous. Inftead of the ruts being clofed,
by pecking in the ridges on either fide of
them, or by filling them with ^ifeiv additional
ilones; the entire road is covered with a
thick coat: and fo often as frefh ruts are
formed, fo often is this expenfive, and there-
fore doubly abfurd, method of repairing
repeated ; until having laid coat over coat,
and piled ton uponton,unneceirarily,a mound
of earth and ftones, refembling the roof of a
houfe, rather than a road, is formed.

The FORMING andREPAiRiNG of Roads
incur a heavy tax, on landed property ; and
the SAFETY of roads is a matter of public
concern.

Some years ago, the Legiflature paid con-
fiderable attention to this fubjed:, and ex*
tended their authority, perhaps, as far as
could be done, with propriety.

It

172 ROADS.

It might be difficult, perhap?, to frame "t
-general tais^y for the forming of Roads ; bcw
cauie different fituations require difterent
FORMS. In low fituatioD?, a common dram,
or a ditch, by the fide of a road may be ne-
cefiary ; but, in abforbcnt upland fituations»
i^either of them are admiliible : the road
ought to fall, gently, to the foot of the
HEDGES AXK, on either fide, when it leads
through a lane of a fuitable width ; or, to

THE FOOT OF A MOUND OT EARTH, nulcd

(with the parings of the road) tor the pur-
pofe, when the lane is too wide, or the road
pafies over an open country. In low retentive
fituations, where deep drains are requifite,
iJTriilar n:!Ounds ought to be formed, as

GUARDS to the SHORES Ot DITCHES An^OT^

them ; openings being ir-ade, at proper dif«-
tances, tor the railage of the wster colle^cd
by the road.

The CONVEXITY of a road ought to be
fuch as will throw off the rain water, which
falls on it, without endangering, in any dc«
gree, a top load.

Before a top-heavy load can be ozcr^
turned^ the entire weight mull be thrown
upon the wheel or wheels of one fide ; con-
fequently, the nearer it approaches to the

dangerous

YORKSHIRE.

>73

dangerous eqiiipoife, the greater injury the
road will receive.

Thu3, fuppofe a loaded waggon to weigh
two tons. Upon level ground, each wheel
would iullain half a ton j but, upon a (helving
road, fteep enough to bring the load to the
equipoife of overturning, the entire weight
would reft upon two wheels, only ; each of
which would, in this cafe, fuftain one ton ;
confequently, if we reckon preiiure as injury,
the damage done by a carriage, at the point
of overturning, is twice as much, as that
which is caufed, by the fame carriage, en
level ground ; and the nearer it approaches
to one or the other of thefe extremities, the
more or lefs injury the road will fuflain by it.

Nor is the injury, the road itfelf is fub-
jed:ed to, the only evil effed: of afteep-lided
road. The ADDITIONAL friction which
is thereby caufed, between the inner naves
of the wheel and the body of the carriage,
&c. (or between the iron work which feve-
rally belongs to them) gives an addition of
rejiftance to the team ; whofe extraordinary
exertion^ on this account, is at once injurious
»to themfejves, and to the road.

Moft of the ROADS about the metro-
polis^ and many parts of the GREAT isORTH

ROAD

174 ROADS.

ROAD between Gunnerby Hill, in Lincoln-
fhire, and Ferrybridge, in Yorkfliire, are,
for road furveyors, proper fubje(!3:s of ftudy.

The furveyors of roads. In general, are as
uninformed, or as inattentive, about the re-
pairing of roads, as they are about the form-
ing cf them.

Ruts are the principal enemies of a
barrelled road. On a waved road they ferve
as condudtors to convey off the water : but,
on a convex road, the defcent of the water
ought to be, immediately, from the crown
to the channels on either fide.

The great art, therefore, in the manage-
ment of CONVEX ROADS, is to form them,
in fuch a manner, as to prevent ruts, as much
as pofTible ; and, if they appear, to be at-
tentive in doifig them away, before any ma-
terial injury take place.

The obvious method of preventing
RUTS is to keep the road low, at the crown,
and guarded, at the edges ; fo that even top
loads may be drawn over every part, with
conveniency and fafety.

Upon the roads above fpccified, it would
be ditticult to endanger the moft top-heavjf
load ; except by running wilfully upon the
hedgebanks. Every foot, from fide to fide,

k

Y O R K S m il E.

'/3

is fravelable road-y and every part impartially
travelled over.

On the contrary, upon the roof-like roads,
of this and other countries, the driver of a
top-heavy load dare not leave the top of the
ridge ; and the drivers of loads which lie
lower, for a variety of reafons, follow the
beaten track : even horfemen, who are
timorous, are afraid to leave it ; and thofe
who are not fo, purfue it for obvious reafons ;
no other part of the road being beaten, or con-
venient to travel upon.

Of a road, proptrly formed, the immediate
channel on either lide (being a fpecies of
ivajly^ay) is frequently the cieanell:, firmeft,
and, if freed from ftones and other obflruc-
tions, the pleafanteil: horse path. But
who, poflefTed of common prudence, would
ride upon the tender brink of an unguarded
ditch ?

The effcdl is notorious : horfes, and car-
riages of every kind, are equally confined to
the fame narrow track, upon the ridgi: ;
frequently confiding of two ruts and a middle
path, with no better quatcring, for horfes
which draw double, ihaa there is in a narrow
by lane, or over a rutiy common.

The

176 k O A D S.

The method of KEEPING convex roads
IN REPAIR is not to permit them to be worn
into ruts and holes, until they be impallable,
and then to load the whole furface, found or
unfound, with a thick coat of materials ; but
to pay, from time to time, due attention to
the wearing of them.

Ruts and hollows, which are yet too fhal-
low to require to be filled in, flioulJ be
opened, on the lower fide, to prevent water
from (landing in them ; but thofe, which are
too deep for this operation, fhould be levelled
in, without lofs of time.

Upon fione roads y this may frequently be
done, by collecting loofe ftcnes, and chipping
off the neighbouring protuberances (equally
tfangerous on the furface of a road) and bund-
ing them in the hollows to be filled up ; thus
removing two principal evils of ftone roadsy
in doin^ awav a third.

• But 'additional materials being, in many
Cuif^s, requifite, tliey ought to be laid ready
in proper recefies ; for the purpofe of level-
ling irrequalitics^ as fzi\ as they are made ;
srid thereby preventing the evil effecls of the
^orft ?nerr>v ''^T p v^^^ ^^'in "^ ^?;.^, — fr.ivJ-

The

YORKSHIRE. 177

The road between Lvnn and Wilbech,
over the marllilands of Norfolk, is formed
entirely of y?//, a fpecies of fea mud, fo fine
as to be fcarcely palpable ; neverthelefs,
with the precautions of keeping the furface
free from fianding 'water, and oi levelling in the
ruts and hollows^ with a ho^yfofaft as they are
formed, \t is, in wet weather, one of the fineft
roads in the kingdom.

I have obferved, in other parts of the
ifland, roads^ covered with nothing but com-
mon fa}idy kept in good condition, by the
fame eafy means. And the roads, which
have been held out as patterns, are all
managed, whether oi gravel or of Jione, in a
iimilar way*

Indeed, all well manao-ed turnpiice
JiOADS have men conjlantly employed upon
them, for the purpofe of repairing fmall
breaches, in order to prevent large ones ; and
every township ought to employ a no ad-
man, or WORKING WAY-REAVE, One OF

more days, in each week, throughout the
year, for the fame excellent purpofe.

Inftead of exhaufting the whole of the
ftatute duty (as it is called) in laying on coat
upon coat, at fome certain feafon of the year,
and letting the roads lie until the return of

Vol. I, N that

T73 ROADS.

that feafon, zs~ much r-glc<n:ed as if they did
not belong to the tovvnlhip ; — llich parts,
only, as are worn too thin, ihould be covered :
a futficiency of materials being referved, and
diltributed in the moil convenient manner,
for repairing occalional breaches.

Before I dole this fe(ftion, two particulars
require to be fpoken to :

The width of roads ; and

The height of hedges on the fides of roads.

The Road Ads, pafled in the thirteenth
year of the prefent reign, order, that every
" horfe or driftway" {hall be made eight feet
inroad', and every " cartway" leading to r.
Ir.arket town, ihall be twenty feet broad;
that the laiw of ever)' ** highway" fliail be
thirty : and the Icjie of every ** turn pike
read" fliall be fixt}" feet i::ide -, without fpe-
cif}'ing any particular breadth of tra-
Vexable road.

In ibme few lituations, as in the bottom

*of a narrow valley, between two lianjinj

\\T)od?, and where a ditch and a mound ot

earth are reauilite on either fide of the ro€td,
i. '

a lane^ fixty feet in width, may be, in fome
degree, necefiary But, in ordinary fituations,
that width incurs a 'icajle of landy without
any adequate advantage. Indeed, upon ele-
" * vate^i

YORKSHIRE. 179

Vated heights, and in other expofed lituations,
the traveller is thereby deprived of the
jhelter, which is required, and which a clofer
lane would afford.

Nor does the lofs of culturable land, and
the circumftance of expofing travellers un-
neceilarily to the inclemency of the weather,
conflitute, in this and other cafes of a fimilar
nature, the fum of impropriety i gi^^-Jfy lanes
are the greateft nuifance an occupier of land
can have in his neighbourhood : and it would
be well if fome general hrj) could be infti-
tuted, for their regulation.

In the laft fection, it was mentioned, that
in the Sinnington Inclofure Bill, an admirable
claufe is inferted, refpecfling the grafs of the
roads to be fet out. For the firfl: ten years,
no flock whatever are to be turned Icofe into
them ; nor, after that time, are they to be
common ; the furveyors, for the time being,
having a power to let them, and apply the
rent to the repair of the roads of the to-wnfiip.

With refpedt to the drying of roads, after
rain, more depends on the height of the
HEDGES, than on the width of the lane. The
crown of a barrelled road, thirty feet wide,
with hedges kept down to four feet high,
will dry, nearly as foon, as if no hedges were

N 2 near

i8o ROADS.

near it, and much fooncr, than a road in the
middle of a lane, fixtv feet wide, with hedges
and perhaps a line of coppice wood, a? may
frequently be feen, thirty or forty feet high,
rifmg on each fide of it ; depriving the road
entirely (unlefs when the wind happens to
blow lengthway of the lane) of a free com-
munication of air.

in low, and indeed in ordinary fituations,
high hedges, on the fides of roads, are doubly
hurtful : thev are not only injurious to the
road itfelf, but, in clofe we-dther, are oftenlive
to the traveller, and very injurious to the
beafls of burden and draught, which are em-
ployed upon them. The Highway Act
therefore wifely orders, ** that the polTelTbrs
** of the land next adjoining to every highway
*' fhall cut, prune, and plalli their hedges."

But this falutary claufe has, hitherto, been
very little attended to. In many counties, it
would be difficult to find an inftance, in which
it has been obeyed, or enforced.

The magirtracy of this county, however,
may claim fupcrior merit, in this refpe(ft.
The road between York and Doncailer,
near forty miles, is fingularly well kept in
this particular fcarcely one licentious bufli

is

YORKSHIRE. itl

is left : and many of the lefs public roads
of the county are laid open in a iimilar
manner.

But excellent as this regulation undoubt-
edly is, in low as well as in ordinary fitua-
tions, — more efpecially where roads lead
through old inclofed countries, in which
lanes are frec^uently too narrow, — it would,
if indifcriminately ^ enforced, be greatly de-
trimental, in wide lanes and expofed litua-
tions ; where Jl)elter, rather than a current
of air, is defirable,

However, the execution of this law being
in the hands of magiftracy, its evil tendency
may be eafily checked, without injuring the
more general intention,

7-

SHORES* AND EMBANKMENTS.

THE DIVERSITY of country, which,
the Diftrid: under furvey exhibits, requires

N 3 a varied

* Shores. This term has been criticifcd, through a
want of its import being fufficiently attended to. It
comprizes not only sewers and other artificial sur-
face

i82 SHORES AND EMBANKMENTS.

a varied exertion of art, with refped: to sur-
face WATER. Upon the hills, art is re-
quired, to retain it upon the furface ; in the
lower parts of the Vale, art is equally
wanted, to hajhn it to the river, or general
outlet.

It has been already mentioned, that much
of the bottom of the Vale is, by natural
fituation, liable to be overflowed by the
rivers in times of flood. Nevcrthelefs,
eveiy part of it, I apprehend, is fo fituated as
to be capable of being laid fufficiently dr)%
by the rivers at dead water.

Therefore, the only exertion of art, in this
cafe requifite, i^, to open fufficient shores
from the rivers to the grounds to be laid
dry; fmking fufficient ditches, from the
fhores ; and fufficient drains, from the
ditches.

Many

f ACE drain:, but every natural conductor and
RECEIVER of SURFACE WATERS. It is hcfc ufed, as a
GENERAL TERM, which is neceflary in a work of this \
nature. It includes every Pafiage, Outlet, or Vent, that
affifts in free ng the surface of the foil from collected
water : whether '^ he a Kennel or Strand, — a mnde Ditch
or Sewer, — a Kivulet, Brook, or River of whatever mag-
nitude,— or the Sea itfelf.

See the word<- sewer and str.a>nd, inthePROViN-r
piALiSMs. {1796.)

YORKSHIRE. 183

Many efforts, of this nature, have heen
made, with fpirit and with fuccefs. The
West Marshes, in general, are a ftriking
inftance : for although they lie upon a flat,
and but barely above the level of the waters
of the Derwent, they are, at prefent, kept
principally in an arable ilate, and chiefly in
wide flat beds. Neverthelefs, by keeping
open furrows, deep ditches, and clean fhores,
the land, in general, is left as free from fu-
perfluous moifl.ure, as if it were elevated a
mile above the Derwent.

But the East Marshes (and fome other
fmaller portions of the Vale^ flill remain a
difgrace to the country ; lying, chiefly, in a
flate oi fenn — provincially " Carr /' — over-
run with fedges and other paluftrian plants;
which aflbrd, during a few months in fum-
mer, a kind of ordinary pafliurage to young
flock. In the winter months, they are gene-
rally buried under water, and, in the fummer
mojiths, are fubjed: to be overflowed.

The .rem.cdy, in this cafe, (and in other
cafes of a fimjlar nature, — of which almoil
£very Diflirid: m the kingdom afl^ords an in-
stance) is, to bank out the river, which
.winds through the middle of it -, and, in
N 4 doing

i84 SHORES AND EMBANKMENTS,
doing this, to sink a common shore, on

THE outer side OF EACH EMBANKMENT.

If, at the lower end of thefe shores, the
RIVER Yitsfufflcientiy lou\ at the time of dead
water, to receive, freely, the drainage of the
marfh, the work may be completed, at an
inconsiderable expenditure, compared with
the magnitude of an improvement of this
nature. Flood gates, placed at the out-
lets, to give vent to the furface waters, col-
le^ed within the (ite of improvement, and
to orevent the waters of the river, in times
of floods, from flowing back upon it — are
the only additional requifites.

If the furface of the rher, at dead water,
fliould be found to lie too high, for the necel-
fary depth of the Jhore, Marsh Mills *,
placed in the lo^wer parts of the fite, will, in
any ordinary cafe, do away the deficiency of
fall.

The expence of a mill is, in the firft
inftance, confiderable ; befldes an annual ex-
pence of repairs, and attendance. But fup-
pofing the firft coft to be one or even two
hundred pound?, and the repairs and attend-
ance to be ten or even twenty pounds, a year,
the whole expence would be inconfiderable,

when
♦ See No*r. Ecov. Min. ii8.

YORKSHIRE., i«S

when compared. with the improvement of
converting, 'perhaps, two or three thoufand
acres of unprodu3ive fenny groundsy into

ARABLE, MEADOW^ and PASTURE LANDS,

o^ Jive, or perhaps ten times its valye.

In the cafe immediately under notice,
mills, if requilite, could be eifeiStive on ontt
fide of the river only. The rivvlets and
BROOKS, on the north fide of the Derwent,
are too copious to be difcharged by a mill.
But, by embanking thofe rivulets, and by
furnifhing each compartment of the marfli
with a mill, the delired improvement might,
on a certainty, be made. On the fouth and
eaftfide of the Derwent, lefs difficulty would
arife : the embankment of one rivulet, per*
haps, would be found the only addition re*
quiliie to the general improvement *.

It may be unneceifary to fay, that the "ex-
cavated mold of the shores ought to go
towards raifing the eankments; thus ob-
taining, in one operation, the two principal
means of improvement ; or that main ditches

pug^^t

* Since writing this article, a meeting of the pro*
prietors of thefe marfhes has been held, to confider of
an application to Parliament, for Jiraightening and en-
larging the bed of the Derwent ! But the propofal was
over- ruled.

r86 SHORES AND EMBANKMENTS.

ought to be led from the lliore, into tlie area
of the fjte to be improved.

One thing, however, may not be fo ob-
vious: namely, the situation of the

BANKS, with respect TO THE RIVER.

If the BANKS be fet upon the immediate
brinky as in general they are, they become
liable to be injured, by the fmallell; deviation
of the RIVER. Belides, the waters of floods
being, by this means, confined (fuppofing a
bankment on either iide) merely to the bed
of the river, the banks require to be railed
to an unneceii'ary height.

But if the lines of embankment be run at
9L proper dijlance from the ri^cery as ten,
twenty, or thirty yards, the banks are placed
out of the way of danger, from the river ;
and a greater area being left for the waters
of floods to fpread over, their rife will be
proportionably lefs, and the requilite height
of bank will of courfe be ieiTened, in the
fame proportion.

Theory may conceive a ivafie of land by
this means ; but experience ihews, that fuch
an apprehenfion is ill grounded. The em-
bankment is eouallv beneficial to the land it
enclofes and to that it fliuts out from the
river. The enriched waters of floods, now

confined

YORKSHIRE. 1S7

confined by the banks, depofit, on the in-
clofed flips, the particles which, hitherto,
they had fcattered over an extent of country.
Bv this means the fwamos, and hollows of the
flips, are prefently filled up \ and, in time,
the entire furface is raifed.

I have obferved an inftance of this kind,
in which the ground, on the river fide of the
bank, has been raifed, near a foot, above the
natural level of the ground, on the other fide
of it.

By this elevation of furface, the land is not
only laid dry, but, if the waters be of a good
quality, is at the fame time enriched.

Thefe flips, if of fufficient width, are An-
gularly well adapted to the purpofe of ozier
BEDS : and are eligible pasture grounds.
The banks are places of fafety, for fl:ock to
fly to, in floods ; a fpecies of refuge they had
not, when the whole lay open.

The EXPENCE of embankment, inordinary
cafes, and under proper management, is far
from exceflive.

This Vale affords more than one inflance
of RIVER EMBANKMENTS. Brawby mooK,
containing about three hundred ^cres of low
marfliland foil, over run, in an open ftate,
V'ith furze and rufhes, together with fome

inter-.^

i58 SHORES AND EMBANKMENTS.

iatcrfpaces of fed gey grafs, was liable to be
overflowed by the river Seven, which runs
on the upper lide of it ; the Rye, which
waihes it on the pther iide, being its natural
Ihorc,

Thefe three hundred acres are the entire
property of the Earl of Salisbury , and,
in tiieir open ilate, were let out in one hun-
dred gaits, for young flock, at ten /hillings
each gait, producing his lordlhip, in that
liate, fifty pounds a year.

The embankment coH about fixty pounds ;
namely, about thr^e quarters of a mile, at
one Ihilling a yard. But the niins of an old
bank lelTened the expencc, in this cafe.

The bank, when liniihed, was about (t\tT\
feet high j wide enough, on the top, for cattle
to wjjk upon ; iloped fuiiiciently to prevent
its fliooting, or being trodden down by cattle ;
and faced with green fods, to guard againll
llie floods

Tjii? improvement is w^orth tracing. Be-
(ides the embankment, which, it the old
bank had not alTilted, might have cofl one
hundred pounds^ a ro^d, through the middle
of the fite of improvement, W2^ requifite to
be formed ; — the whole to be inclofed ; and
fome crcdions to be made. Suppofe th^

roadj

Y O R 1^ S rt t R E. 189

road, the inclofure, and the buildings to cofl
three hundred pounds, the whole expence
would amount to four hundred pounds, or
fifteen to twenty pounds, aveaf.

The rent, in the firft inflance, was, I be-
lieve, fixed at eight IhillingS an acre. Three
hundred acres, at eight (hillings, produce
one hundred and twenty pounds ayear ; I'o
that, in the outlet, tliere appears to be a clear
improvement of fifty pounds, ayear, In
twelve or fourteen years, it may be worth
twice that rent, the foil being deep, and of
a quality which, though not rich, is fuited,
by fitu^tion, to both corn and grafs. Whea
the ftipulated improvements are made, by
the firfh occupiers, the three hundred acres
will be worth, at leaft, two hundred pounds
ayeaf ; namely, foitr times its former

VALUE.

Another iilftanCe of river embankment
occurs in t^is townfhip. The commifiioners,
linder the A(fl of Inclofure, have wifely fe-
cured the lower grounds to be inclofed, from
the waters of floods, which have, hitherto,
occafionally overflowed them. The remedy,
in this cafe, was eafy : a partial embankment,
only, was neceflary ; and the bank, in the
parts where it wa^ wanted, feldom required

to

igo SHORES AND EMBANKxMENTS.

to be raifcd, above two or three feet high.
Neverthelefs, the advantage obtained, at this
eafy expence, is that of enabhng the refpec-
tive occupiers of the lands under inclofure,
to change them, from a flate of unproducftive
fward, to that of arable land ; and, by that
means, to improve them, perhaps^ to three
times their prefent value.

If, in the management of estates,
any fuperior faculty be requifite, it is that of
being able to ftrike out and execute intrin-
sic IMPROVEMENTS j fucli as givc a per^
manent increafe of re n troll, — vi^ithout
diminifhins: the respectability of its
owner.

8.

F . E N C E S.

THE PARTICULAR articles which re-
quire to be noticed under this head are,

1. Gates,

2. Fence Walls,

3. rolls and Rails,

4. Dead Hedges,

5. Live Hedges.

I. GATES.

YORKSHIRE. 191

I. GATES. The common field gates of
this country are, in general, made Jlighter
and much taller than thole of other Diilridts.
In Surrey and Kent, three feet eight or nine
inches is the ordinary height of a gate ;
which is, there, compofed of four common
bars, and a ftrong top rail. Here, gates have
generally fix or feven bars, all equally flight ;
and the common heii>ht is five to fix feet.

o

Horses are the greatefl enemies of gates.
A low gate, let its ftrength be almofl what it
may, is no fence againlt a refolute powerful
horfe. If he can place the mufcular part of
his chcjl firmly againfl: the top rail, fcarcely
any llrength of wood can refiii him. But if
the top bar be placed high enough, to receive
his windpipe y inllead of his chefi:, his power
of injuring the gate is, in a manner wholly,
taken away. It is, therefore, no wonder tliat,
in a country where the breeding of horfes has
long been a common practice, high gates
(hould have' grown into common r.fe.

The HANGING OF GATES is an art little
underftood, even by the hangers of gates
themfelves ; though highly interefting and
ufeful in Rural Economy.

A perfon, here, who has paid unufiial atten-
tion to the fubjcct, and v/ho has, in reality,

mack

i)\ FENCES.

made Hlmieif mafter of it, ftill continues to
hang his gates upon pivots, fixed at the feet
of the hartrees *.

This was undoubtedly the original method
of hanging gates, and is^ ptrhaps, all things
confidered, the beft.

It is probable, that, ill the infancy of the
art, the foot of the hartree was itfelf formed
into a pivot, while the upper part of it was
confined to the poi't, or perhaps to a tree,
with a rope or a withey*

In the inll:ance under obfefvation, the up-
per part of the hartree is hung, in the ufual
manner, with a hook and eye ; and the foot
of it is ihod with a pivot of iron, fet upon
a large bani ftone»

The great advantage of hanging gates
on PI voTs is that of their being readily altered,
with refpecfl to fall, or catching : moving the
piTOt llone a quarter of an inch, this way or
that, with an iron crow, is frequently a fuffi-
cient regulation : the pivot, too, takes part
cf the iveight of the gate.

But gates, to be hung with pivots, require a
peculiarity of CONSTRUCTION. Evcr}^ g^^tc,

when

• Hartree •, the pnncip.il end-piece^ into whirh the
bar? are m-.rdfeci, and by which the gate is hung : oppol'^d
A) :he HEAD, the oppwfite end piece.

YORKSHIRE. 193

when fhut, ought to hang plumb and level ;
that is, the head fhould be, everyway, up-
right, and the bars horizontah

This requilite, however, and at the fame
time a proper fall, cannot be had in a gate
made,//z //6fj^//j;T, and with zjiraight bar tree.
Either the lower part of the hartree mull be
crookedy or the gate mufl be made, out of the
fquare ; that is, the bars mufl Hand fomew^hat
obUquely, not perpendicularly to the har-
tree ', and in this cafe the pivot mufl be placed,
not in the center, but on the oiitjide of the
foot : the firfl to throw the point of the pivot
behind t\\Q pin of the upper hook, to give the
gate a fall when open at right angle ; and
the latter, to throw the point of the pivot
without the pin of the hook, to give the gate
a fall, at the poll, and make it catch with cer-
tainty.

This being underflood, it is eafy to con-
ceive that, if the lower end of the hartree be
crooked, and if the elbow or convex fide of
the bend be directed, not to either pofl, but
towards the middle of the gateway, the ne-
cefTary falls may be had, without throwing
the gate out of the fquare, or the pivot out
of the centre of the hartree.

I mention this method of hanging gates
Vol. I. O the

194 FENCE?.

the rather, as, notwithflanding Its advan-
tages, it is gro\%Ti into almoft total difufe ;
owing, it is very probable, to a want of
knowledge of the proper principle of con-
ftru(n:ion. I fliall, in another Diilrict, have
occafion to fpeak fully of the method of
hanging gt^fes on hooks.

II. FENCE WALLS. The. common
homeftall fence of this Dilh-idis l:W/j either
of brick or llone. — Eattoning, in the Norfolk
manner, is unknown, and c\oit paling fcldom
made ufe of.

In the morelands, and upon the limeftone
heights, ilone walls are the common field
fence. Liye hedges, are, in thefe fituations,
flower of growth, and more difficult to raife,
than they are. In warmer better foils ; whereas,
llones are plentiful, lying, in fome places, an
incumbrance to the furface.

Inhoipitable and uncrn-mental as naked
fione walls may fecm, they are, in many fitu-
ations, the mofl eligible fence : — cheap and
durable.

They are of two kinds, ** double" and
" fmgle :" the latter, which are compofed of
fmgle flones, piled one upon another, arc a
fufficient fence againfl flock, provided they
be raikd hidi enoueh ; but are liable to be

thrown

YORKSHIRE. 195

thrown down, by the wind. The former,
which are built in the common wall manner,
but without mortar, are more expenfive in
the firft inftance ; but, if properly raifed, will
endure for a length of time, with little or no
repairs.

The MODERN FENCE WALL, of which

many miles have been built in confequence
of the new Inclofures that have lately taken
place, is of the following form and dimen-
jQons.

The height five feet. The width, at the
bafe, twentytwo inches, narrowing to fixteen
inches, at the top 3 which is coped (as a guard
againft flieep) with the widell: and flattefl of
the ftones, laid afide for this purpofe.

A frame of wood, of thefe dimeniions. Is
fet up, as a gauge, and as a guide to the
builder.

The loweft^r/V^ which has, I believe, been
given for raifing, carriage, and walling, is
five fliillings and fixpence, for a rod of feven
yards. But a (hilling, ayard, may be taken as
a more medial coft. Each yard takes about
a three -horfe-cart load of ftones.

Ill, POSTS AND RAILS. In moft
countries, the prevailing temporary fences are
hurdles. Ports and rails are only uied for

O 2 the

196 FENCES.

the defending of young hedges, and for
other permanent purpofes ; being generally
put down by a carpenter, and are feldom
removed, until they becom.e ufelefs as a
fencing material.

But, here, they arc confidered in a different
light. They are (fpeaking generally) the only
temporary fencing in ufe. If a piece of
ground require to be divided, for one leafon,
or for a few weeks, a line of ports and rails
are run acrofs it ; not by a carpenter, but by
a common farm laborer. And, when the
purpofe is anfwered, they are removed and
laid up, for another occafion.

I mention this circumflance, as pofts and
rails are more durable, and a much better
fence againfl horfes and cattle, than hurdles
are; and the labor of putting down, and
removal, is much lefs than inexperience may

imagine.

IV. DEAD HEDGES. The ftakc-and-
edder hedge prevails in this Diltricl:, and is, in
general, conftrufted with uncommon ikill.
The fi'perionty of conftrudlion lies, princi-
pally, in the eddcring.

In other places, the edders are tr'vnmed up
to naked rods : here, the foray, towards the
top, is left on. Thefe fprayey tops, being

wound

YORKSHIRE. 197

wound round the bodies of the fucceeding
adders, lay hold of the flakes, thereby pre-
venting their linng. If the twigs of the
edders be infiifficient, brambles, or other
pliable brulhwoods, are wound in, with the
fame intent.

But the moft eiFe(ftual way of preventing
cattle from throwing off the edders, which
method is here fometimes praftifed, is to
carry on the tWo operations of eddering and
filling together, burying thefprayey tops of the
edders among the filling ; by which means they
are effeiftually fecured from the horns of
cattle ; and even, while they remain found,
from the hands of hedgebreakers.

V. LIVE HEDGES. The management
of hedges appears to me a matter of fo much
importance, in the management of an estate,
and is a fubjedt to which I have paid fo much
attention, that I always find it difficult, when-
ever I fit down to write upon it, to confine
myfelf within due limits.

In this Difi:ri(!i, I find ample matter to
animadvert upon. The finefi: hedges in the
kingdom (if any one particular fpot can
claim a fuperiority) are now growing in this
neighbourhood; and more new ideas, re-
fpeding the management of hedges, have oc-
O3 curred

198 FENCES.

curred tome, in the Diilri^fl now under notice,
than in all the others I have examined. It
would therefore be ^\TGng to treat the fubjedt
{lightly, in this place. ^BiU I will endeavour
to comprefs the matter, which I have accu-
mulated, within as narrow a compai's as may
be.

The fubdivifions which the fubjecl", in this
place, requires are :

1. The fpecies of hedgewood.

2. The method of planting new hedges.

3. The method of defending them.

4. The method of cleaning and training,

5. Their after management.

6. The treatment of old hedges.

I. The prevailing hedgewood is the
haivthorji. Formerly, it was in this, as in other
places, gathered in the woods and rough
grounds. But, at prefent, and for fome years
pail, ** garden quick wood" has been pretty
generally, though not yet univerfally, planted.

But although the hawthorn is the common
hedgewood of the Diftridt, and, in ordinary
fituations, may be the moft eligible, I have
feen crabtrce ufed on cold fofls, as v/ell as in
bleak, fituations, with great fuccefs. In an
inrtance where cr^btree and hawthorn weje

planted.

YORKSHIRE. 19V

planted, alternately, by way of experiment,
the crabtree plants have outgrown thofe of
the thorn, in a ftriking manner. In fix
years, they have acquired llems as thick as the
wrift, with tops fufficient as a fence, againfl
ordinary flock.

Upon the Wolds, I have obferved the elder,
a plant which braves the bleakeft fituation,
rnade ufe of as a hedgewood ; but never
faw it planted with fufficient judgment, to
anfwer the intended purpofe. Neverthelefs,
in the abundance and luxuriance of this plant,
upon the moft expofed parts of the Wolds,
it is evident that, with proper management,
it mi2:ht at leaft be made a fkreen to better
hedgewoods.

The holly I have fecn raifed (in the prac-
tice of a man who has paid great attention
to the bulinefs of hedgeplanting, and in this
particular with great fuccefs) with an unuflial
degree of rapidity and certainty.

The fecrecy of the art lies in the ti?ne of
frajifplanting : a holly tranfplanted, in sum»
MER, fcarcely receives a check from the
removal : a fa6t, this, which few planters
are aware of. — Thoufands of hollies are
every year defrroyed, by removing them in
the v/inter n^onths,

O 4 2. Plant-

200 FENCES.

2. Planting. The common method is
to turn a fod, ten or more inches wide, upon
the brink of the intended ditch, and, behind
this, to fet the plants, in a leaning pofture ;
covering the roots with fome of the befl: of
the mold the ditch affords ; and, behind the
plants, to lay the remainder of the excavated
earth, in a low broad bank.

The ordinary ditch is ver}' fmall ; barely
aftording mold to back up the plants with.
Neither the ditch, in front, nor the bank, be-
hind, are confidered, as they are in Norfolk,
a guard to the young hedge.

Tbc Pickering Inclosure Bill orders,
that the ditches, in the lo'-joer grounds y when
they are neceffar)- as drains, {hall be made
four feet wide, and two feet and a half deep.
But, for the uplands, no limits are prefcribed ;
the diflarice, between the outer brink of the
ditch, and the line of hedgewcod, being the
only thing limited. This width is fixed,
throughout, at four feet and a half. In this
cafe, the outer bink of the ditch being the
boundary line of each m.an's property, and a
narrow ditch, only, being wanted, a flip of
v/holc ground is left between the inner
brink and the firft turned fod, for planting
the c^uick behincj.

One

YORKSHIRE. 201

One deviation, liowever, from this general
mode of planting under the Inclofure Bill
occurs. In this inflance, a narrow trench,
only, is dug againft the boundary line ; leav-
ing fuffioient room, between the inner brink
of the trench, and the line of quick, to place
the dead fence ; by which means the owner
of the land, getting his young hedges w'ithin
his own premiies, is no way liable to the ill-
nature or neirlio-ence of his neighbours. And,
inftead of laving in the plants behind the
firfl-turned fod, the ground is dug four or
five feet wide, and the plants fet in a trench,
upright, in the nurfery manner j having, in
this cafe, a line of prepared earth on eitlier
iide to feed amon?.

Nor is tliis the only inftance 1 have m.et
with, in the Diflrixfl, of planting hedge-
wood ON A LEVEL. The fame judicious
planter has, in dividing upland inclofjres,
planted hedges v/ithout any ditch ^^'iiatever.
His pradbice has been to plow a flip of ground,
on each fide of the intended line of the fence,
the preceding fpring ; and having previoufly
dunged it, to plant it with potatoes. Du-
rine fummer, the land is reoeatedlv cleaned
with the hoe ; in autumn, the potatoes be-
ing removed, the entire flip is gathered into

fi ridge.

202 FENCE S.

a ridge, with the plow ; and, the enfuing
Ipring, the quick is planted, nurfery-wile, in
a trench, run along the middle of the ridge.
The fuccefs of this method has proved equal
to what might be expelled, from manage-
ment lb obvioully judicious.

Another new idea, which has been flruck
out, and carried into practice, by the fame
perfon, is that of sorting hedgewood
plants: not according to the thicknefs of
their items, or the fize of their tops, but
agreeably to the itrength of their roots.
When the plants are put in, indifcriminately,
the ftrong foon outgrow, and overpower, thofe
which are weaker. But plants, which are
iudicioufly forted, rife together, without de-
Itroying each other. Befides, in doing this,
many worthlefs plants arc thrown afide, and
thofe which are weak are referred for
fuitable fituqitions ; while the lirongeit are
plar.ted where the greatefl: ftrength is re-
quired.

But the Iddcji idea I have met with in
hedgeplanting is that of burying the
plants! by covering up their heads, an
inch or more deep, with mold : and this,
not as an experiment, but in the pra(:^ice of
a common laborer.

The

YORKSHIRE. ao^

The method of planting, in this cafe, is
the common one of fetting the plants behind
the *' cape-fod," or firft-turned fpit. But
inflead of leaving the heads two or three
inches above ground, the plants are fhortened,
and the heads placed about an inch below
the furface.

Obferving a work of this kind, prefently
after it was executed, I waited with impa-
tience to fee the event. In due feafon, the
plants made their appearance ; not in a
number of irregular fpreading flioots, as
from an expofed head 3 but riling, with one,
or perhaps two or three, ftraight upright
fhoots, of peculiar ftrength and beauty.

They did not, however, rife at the fame
time ; fome of them remaining in the ground,
feveral weeks, after the earheft made their
appearance. The covering of mold, there-
fore, ought, perhaps, to be as fine, and laid
on as light as poflible, to prevent obftrucftions
to the tender fhoots in riling *.

The

* On clofe examination, I find, the talleft ftrongeft
flioots rife from fuch as were barely, or perhaps impar-
tially, covered with mold : fuch as were buried deeper are,
atprefent (in the month of Auguft, thefirft year of planting),
fhorter and weaker ; owing, perhaps, to their rihng later in
the fpring. It is therefore probr.bh th;;t the lighter and

thinner

20+ FENCES.

The advantage of burying the plants ap-
pears to be the valuable one of giving the
youn^ hedge an upright tendency, and
there!)y preventing the ftrength of the roots
from being expended, on ufelefs fide fhoots.
Plants, thus raifed, take the growth, and
probably the habit of seedling plants.
The roots, in this cafe, may be confidered as
PREPARED SEEDS, fumifhed with a peculiar
iT:ren":th of vegetation.

3. Defending. Ports and rails are the
common dead fence. Sometimes one, fome-
times two rows : a moft expenfive way of
defending a young hedge.

In the lower parts of the Vale, where ftones
are not too numerous, and where deep ditches
are requifite, the Norfolk method might be
introduced with great propriety *.

Bat, in iloney foils, that method is imprac-
ticable : and, there, two rows of ports and
rails, or fome other dead fence adequate to
them, are, in inofl cafes, abfolutely necertary
to good management.

It

tliinner the covering, provided it be fufficicnt to prevent
fjde (hoots, the inure eligible h this pra6lice. Sorting the
plants, t!jo, agreeably to tlie ftrcngth of their roots, is pro-*
b.ibly requifite.
* Sec NoR! ^ EcoN. Sect. Live Hedges, Subd. V.

YORKSHIRE. 20^

It is therefore wife, in the framers of In-
clofure Bills, to fecure the right of placing
fences, during a certain number of year^,
upon neighbouring allotments, as guards to
the young hedges *.

I have obferved, in more than one inftance,
the good efiedls of fetting a fharp ridget of
earth, on the outer brink of the ditch, as a
guard to the face of young hedge plants j
efpecially againft horfes. In one inilance, a
young hedge was defended by two fmall
ditches, one on either lide, with banklets of
this kind, without any dead fence whatever ;
and this, too, againll: well bred hunters: fuch
as would, in a chace, have taken the hedo-line
and both ditches, without hefxtation. Cattle
are lefs terrified with thefe devices.

The prac'Tiice of pricking thorns into the
firft-turned fod, upon the inner brink of the
ditch, as a guard to the face of the quick
againft fheep, affords a degree of temporar}'
fecurity; but deprives the plants of that air
and exercifc, which is necefiary to a luxuri-
ancy and firmnefs of growth.

4. Training. This department of the
management cf liedges is too much neglected,

in

* See Se(5l. InclooUREj p. 79.

2fc6 FENCE S.

in all countries. The planting, and the firil
ere(flion of guard fences, generally receive
a tolerable Hiare of attention. But repairing
thefe fences, from time to time, — dcflroying
weeds, — and giving the young plants a pro-
per tendency, are matters which are feldom
confidered as elTential to fuccefs.

In this Diftrid:, the fr'.nt fence ii, in ge-
neral, too little attended to, or neglected too
long; the young plants being frequently
brouzed and ftinted, before the necefiary
guard be thought of, or placed.

With refpeCt to rj^ecding^ however, the
DiflriO is above mediocrity,". But in regard
to training the plants themfclvcs, by fh^iking
oiF the luxuriant f.dc flioots, and thereby
promoting the upward grov/th of the hedg-
ling, it is very deficient.

I have, nevcrthelefs, had frequent oppor-
tunities of obfervinij one inliancc, in which
this requifite bufinefs, in the railing of hedges,
has been executed in, perhaps, a fingular
manner. Ii this inilance, each plant is
trained with a fmgle Jler/i, — pruned in the
nurfery manner.

One advantage, of this method. Is that of
rearing every plant, with a degree of certain-
ty; the tops bcirg, in t'.iis operation, attended

to.

YORKSHIRE. 20;

to, as well as the fl-ems : thofe of the
ftronger plants being leflened, to give head-^
room to the weaker.

Another very great advantage, efpecially
on a flieep farm, is that of getting the young
plants out of harm's way. Sheep are danger-
ous enemies to young hedges ; and every
expedient to guard agalnft their mifchievouf-
nefs, in this refpedt, deferves at leaft a trial.
Strong plants, judicioufly planted, and trained
in this manner, may, with a degree of cer-
tainty, be got out of the reach of fheep, in
three or four years.

The labor is coniiderable, but by no means
exceffive. In this one inftance, the expence
of labor appears to be greatly exceeded by the
advantages obtained by it.

The pruning fhould be done in winter or
fpring, while the fap is down ; or while it is
rifing ; not in the fummer feafon.

5. Aftermanagement. In thiis de-
partment, the Diflri(5t under furvey excels :
not in the manner of cutting, but in the fre-
quency of it. Many young hedges are cut,
before they are twenty years old ; and the
cutting, of fuch as are thriving at leaf}, is
ufually repeated, every five or fix years ; a
practice which ought to be univerfally fol-
lowed.

2o3 FENCES.

lowed. Nothing is more injurious to a
hedge, than unfrequent cutting.
- The prevailing method of cutting is that of
"buck-heading;" — namely, cutting the ftems
off level, about three feet hi^h above the
level of the inclofure ; generally winding a
few ftraight boughs, horizontally, between the
heads of the ftems, to prevent flock from
forcino; throuo;h between them. A more
Jifnplc, or a cheaper metliod than this, can-
not, perhp.ps, be devifed ; efpecially as the
ditch is feldom touched ; the roots being pur-
pofely fuffered to ftrike acrofs it ; by which
means they enjoy free pafturage on either
f^e.

On the Malton fide of the Diilrid, the pre-
vailing method of cutting is that of plajhing^
in the Midli^nd manner : an operation which
I lliall have occafion to fpeak fully of, in its
proper place.

6. Old Hedges. The pradlice of re-
planting wcrnout hedges, in the Norfolk
manner, I have not met with, in this Diftrid:.

Stoppir.g^n'jr/^'j with, dead hedging y there-
by effectually preventing their ever clofmg
again, is a piece of unpardonable manage-
ment, which is nowhere more picvalent, than
in the Vale under obferyation.

One

YORKSHIRE. 209

One inflance of exertion, however, in or-
der to RECLAIM a live fence, from a row of
large old thorns, the remains of a neglecfted
hedge, occurs in this Diftri(fl, and would do
credit to any country. It is the only one of
the kind I have met with.

The bufhes, or feparate detachments of the
old hedge, being trimmed, on both fides, and
the main flems cut out, at the ground, or
headed at fuch heights as circumftances re-
quired, the long llender boughs, growing
in the line of the fence, were trained into the
vacancies, with flrong flakes, in the espalier
MANNER : a bank of earth having been pre-
vioufly thrown up, and the lowefl ground-
boughs LAYERED in it, in order to flrike
root, and fend up frefh plants, to afTift in fill-
ing up the vacancies, effedlually.

This mode of treatment is not applicable
to fuch hedges, only^ but to every live
hedge, in which wide vacancies are found.
The befl time for filling them up, in this
manner, is when the hedge is felled to the
ground.

Another inflance of pradlice. In the ma-
nagement of old hedges, which had been
planted on broad banks, with ditches cr. either
fide J and which, through the narrownefs of
Vol. I. P the

210

FENCES.

the pafture, and the negled of timely cutting,
were become ftunted, and thin of ftems,
merits notice.

The thorns, in this cafe, were felled to th«
ground ; the ditch, to the fouthward or weft-
ward of the hedge, re-made ; and that, on the
north or eaft fide of it, filled u'P with the exca-
vated mold. By thefe means, the plants
were fupplied, immediately, with frefh paf-
turage in made earth ; and let loofe to feed,
at large, in the adjoining inclcfure. The
effea is ftriking.

Perhaps, reversing the ditch of an
old hedge (with 2LjingIe ditch) might invi-
gorate it, in a fimilar manner, by giving the
plants a fre(h field of pafturage. The expe-
riment, however, ought to be tried with
caution. Depriving old plants of all their
main roots (though they were at the fame
time cut off by- the ground) might be dan-
gerous, c:*'"

General Observations. From what
has been laid, on the ordinary treatment of
hedges, in this neighbourhood, it is evident,
that their fuperiority is not owing to an excel -
lency of management. The richnefs of the
foil i the negleft of the ditches ; the fre-
quency of cutting J and, above ell, the pre-

fcnt

YORKSHIRE^ 211.

fent AGE of the hedges, account fufficiently
for their present flourishing state.

Thofe which ftrike the eye with a pecu-
liar luxuriancy of growth, are about fifty
YEARS OLD : and it is abundantly evident,
that hedges, growing in a good foil, may, until
they have reached that age, be headed fence^
high, with a degree of fafety. But, on a
nearer view, it appears to me equally evi-
dent, that the practice cannot be exercifed,
in perpetuity, with any degree of propriety.

On examining hedges, which have not
been planted seventy years, and which
have been treated invariably in that manner, I
find they have already received irreparable
injury. The underling plants are, already,
fo far deflroyed, as to leave vacancies, of
three feet or more in width j while the
mailer plants, now no longer of themfelves a
fence againfl fheep, have acquired flems of a
tree-like fize.

Felling to the ground, and training
a range of neii) Jlefns, is the only effectual
remedy of this evil. |But this, when de-
ferred too long, is impradlicable, or at beft
uncertain. Large old ftems will not, al-
ways, fbirvive the operation ; but if applied,
P 2 in

iti FENCES.

in time, and with due care, the remedy it
certain.

It would be difficult, perhaps, to prefcribe
rules for felling hedges to the
GROUND, by their ^^^j, or the intervals of
time between the fellings. Perhaps, no
hedge ought to ftand more than fifty
YEARS, from the firfl: railing, nor more than
thirty years, between t\it filling.

But, by their sizes, and the ftate of their
growth, fome general rules may with pro-
priety be mentioned. No Jiem (howfoever
healthful, nor how fizeable foever to the
neighbouring ilems), of more than ayod?/ in
circumference y ought to be fuifered to remain
Handing.

If there be a great difparity, as there gene-
rally is, in they^2;^j of the ftems^ either the en-
tire hedge ought to be felled, before any of
them acquire the limited fize ; or; in head-
ing them, the larger ought to be JJ:ortcned,
proportional) ly to their refpe^ivefxes j in order
to lefTen their deflrudlive tendency, and to
give the weaker an opportunity of gaining,
at leaft, a temporary afcendency *.

If

♦ An expedient of this kind I havie feen executed with
every appearance of fucccfs.

YORKSHIRE. 213

If the plants, let their age and fize b^
what they may, grew mojfy, or wear the gcr
jieral appearance oijiuntedncfs^ they ought to
be removed, that a more healthy race may
be trained up, in their ilead.

The fame as to h e A D i n G . No particular
age can be pointed out, for the firft cutting ;
nor can any certain interval of time, between
the headings, be prefcribed^ with flri(Ct pro-
priety. Soils and fituations inHuence the
growth of trees ; and, v.ie>ving the manage-
ment of hedges in a general light, the tops
ought to acquire a degree of usefulness be*
ioi^ they be taken off.

A bough, fx or eight inches in circumference^
?s large enough for a Jiake ; and, when the
ilrongefl have got to this fize, the remainder
are generally fit for the Ji I lings of dead
hedges : that, therefore, is the ftate in which
jhey ought to be cut.

It would, in my opinion, be better manage-
ment, in a man who occupies his own ejlate, to
burn them, and give their aflies to the winds,
than to fuffer them to remain on the items,
after they have reached that fize.

But, in a tenant, wlio has no permanent in-
tereft in the hedges he occupies, negled is

F 3 J^r^

Qi4 FENCES.

lefs criminal. — It matters not, to liim, whether
the live hedges upon his farm remain lufii-
cient fences, one or tivo centuries. He is no
way concerned in the purchafe value of the
eflate, unlefs it be in the depreciation of it.
His plan of management (if he has any in
this refpedl) is to make his hedges fubfer-
vient to his own interell: i efpecidly when he
has no certainty uf continuing in pofleflion.

Thefe circumftances are not mentioned,
here, with a view of breeding ill-blood be-
tween landlords and tenants ; but to endea-
vour to convince the former, that it is incum-
bent on them to pay fome attention to the
live hedges upon their eliates.

It is now a ciiflom, pretty generally adopt-
ed, upon wooded eflates, to appoint ivoodivardsj
for the prefervation of timber and under-
wood.— And, upon every large ellate, Iving in
an inclofed country, it is, in my opinion,
equally neceffarv to appoint a hayward, for
the prefervation of its hedges.
' An EXPERIENCED HEDGEk would, per-
haps, be the fittert for this employment. In
ordinary cafes, as where heading, only, might
be requifite, orders might be fufficient ; but
to the raifing of new hedges, and the renewal

of

YORKSHIRE. 215

of old ones, perfonal attention ought to be
paid, not only to the planting and the felling,
but to the fencing and the weeding, until the
ne^y or the renewed hedge be out of danger.

HEDGEROW TIMBER.

THIS is an interefting fubjec?: to the pro-
prietors of inclofed eftates : and no country
affords a better field for obfervation, than
that under furvey.

The old- inclofed parts of this neighbour-
hood, when feen at fome diftance, have the
appearance of woodlands ; the inclofures
being rnoftly narrow, and full oi hedgerow
timber.

The age, on a par, is about fifty years.
In half a century more, the value of the
timber, of fome parts of it, if fuffered to ftand,
will probably be equal to the value of the
land : a circumftance, this, of no fmall im-
port to the owner. But the detriment to the
occupier requires to be confidered.

In this country, it feems to be a general

idea, founded perhaps on experience, that

P 4 lofty

2t6 HEDGEROW TIMBER.

lofty hedgerows are benfficiai to grafs land\
increasing its prodiKftivenefs, by their v^-annth,
and giving fhelter and (hade to pailuring-
ftock. The roots, even of the a/h, arc con-
fidered as inofenji'-je to land, in a ftatc of
grafs 'y in which flate, the grounds thus loaded
with hedges and timber trees, is almoft uni-
ycrfally kept.

Indeed, it wt)uld be impollible, in their
prefent flate, to occupy them as arabU Lind.
There are entire inclofurcs, every foot of the
areas of which mull neceilarily be occupied
by afben roots -y neverthelefs, they give an
ample fupply of hay and paflurage. One to
two tons of hay an acre. And, in many of
them, three acres will aflFcrd fufficient paf-
turage, for two cows, of the largefl fize. The
rent, from thirty to forty ihillings an acre.
Strong evidences, thefe, that the roots of the
afr are not ver\' injurious to grafs land.

It is evident, however, that the oak^ when
fufiered to thru ft its /wi? fpreading bead into
the iiiclofure, is injurious to the herbage be-
neath it ; that the kceoes of the apy are very
detrimental to aftergrafs ; and that the
hedges are annually receiving irreparable da-
mage ; — no general plan of training up the
trees, with tall ftems, having, I believe, Ln
any inllance been adopted .

YORKSHIRE. 217

General ObservatioxNs. From what
is here mentioned, we may conclude, that the
advantages accruing from the planting of tim-
ber trees, in the hedges of inclofed common-
fields, of a foil, and lying in a Situation,
adapted to grafs, — are far fuperior to any
difadvantages ariling therefrom, even where
they have been fuffered to grow, in a ftate of
almoft total negledt.

Land which has lain open, and whichhas
been kept in a ftate oi aration^ during a fuc-
cefiion of ages, is equally produdlive oi grofs
and trees. And it is generally good manage-
ment, to let it lie in grafs, for fome length of
time, after inclofure.

In this neighbourhood, it is evident to
common obfervation, that trees flourifh, with
unufual vigour, in the newly inclofed laads of
arable fields ; and that their injury to grafs
land is inconfiderable, when compared with
the value of the timber they produce. The
low fpreading heads oitho, cak^ and the leaves of
the aJJj, appear to be the chief inconveniencies,
of thefe two fpecies of trees, to gJ'afs land.

But an alternacy of corii and grafs is gene-
rally eligible, on lands which our anceftors
have made choice of for common fields -y and
the roots of the af:) are not only obflruQions

to

si8 HEDGEROW TIMEER.

to the plow, but the general nature of the
plants is, in a lingular degree, inimical to com.

It is, therefore, neceilan' to eradicate the
ti/h from the hedgero\%'s, before the land be
again broken up for arable ; or to preclude
this tedious operation, in the firil inilancc, by
planting oak in its ftead.

The HEAP cf the oak may be raifed to
fuch a height, as not to be mjurious to
grofsy nor to the hedgs while yet in a youth-
ful llate, even though it were fuifcrcd to
run UD to its natural height.

Whenever the inclofures are broken up
for corn, the hedges ought, in common good
management, to be headed, and kept in a
d\^-arfiih ilat^ ; in which cafe tall-stem-
MED OAKS would be a valuable iburce of
T I M 3 E R , without being, in almoil any degree,
injurious, either to the hedge, or to the
CORN, growing under them.

B'jtthe TRAiMiiG or youxg oaks, and

the genera:. MANAGEMENT OF HEDGE-
ROW TIMBER, can:iot, with any degree of
prudence, be left to a mere occupier. View-
ing hedges as nurfsries of tmaber, a hedge-
man becomes eilentially necellary to every
landed cilate.

DIVISION

DIVISION THE S5C0KD.

WO O D L A N DS

AND

PLANTATIONS.

I.

NATURAL VvOODS.

THE VALLIES, which fever the lime-.
ftone heights, on the north fide of the
Vale of Pickering, and give pafiage to the
rivers and brooks, that take their rife in
the morelands, it has been faid, are moftly
filled with wood. Formerly, it is probable,
conliderable plots of woodland were likewife
fcattered, at the feet of thofe heights ; but,
if there were, moft of them are now done
away : fome few patches, however, remain.

On the fouthern banks of the Vale, too,
are fcattered fome valuable tracts of wood-
land.

The

220 W O O D L A N D S.

The TIMBER of thtfc wocxis is chieflv
OAK, with a fmall proportion cf a?h.
BzECH, even upon the limef.iyne height-, a
i:tuation to which it is peculiarly adapted,
feldom if ever occurs, in natural woods : a
degree of evidence, this, that the oak and
the ASH are w.^/ryfj, lineally dcfcendca xrom
the ancient foreil^, which heretofore occupied
thefe hills ; and that the bejch is «'/ -' natrce
of this part of the ki;;gdom. The lu^eflone
heights of GlouceftcffhiTc, Herefordthire,
and South Wales, are hung on every iidc
with BEECH, growing, to all appearances,
in a ftateof nature.

The information which I have gained,
Terpe<Sting the woodlands of the Diftrid: un-
der furvey, falls under the following heads ;

1. Raifing. 4. Timber.

2. Difpofal. 5. Bark.

3. Felling. 6. Carriage.

I. RAISING. The pradice of railing
woods from acorns, a pradiice which, for-
jiierly, has evidently prevailed, in different
parts of the iiland, cannot ea/ily be traced, in
this. In fome few inftance^, however, art
may have been employed ; but the generality
of the old, well timbered woods, which were
llanding within the prefent centur)% but

wliich

YORKSHIRE. 121

which now are nearly extlnguiflied, have, it
is highly probable, got up, fortuitoujly^ from
feedling plants rifing in negleBed roughefs :
a fpecies of propagation, which is fliU ob-
fervable, in almoft every v^oody wafte -, and
is, in truth. Nature's only method of
propagating timber oaks.

An oak, which fprings from feed, in an
open plairiy throws out horizontal branches,
on every fide ; and, being browzed upon by
cattle, takes zjhrub^like form. But oaklings,
riling in a thicket , are fecure from the bite of
cattle, and are taught, by felfprefervation, to
fhoot upward, with 2.Jmgk ftem ; the fooner
to gain the afcendency of the fhrubs, which
furround them.

This early habit of {hooting upward, per-
haps, afterward promotes an upward ten-
dency. It is alfo probable, that plants, whofe
confiitutions are naturally weak, are unable to
cope with the difficulties which furround
them ; confequently, that thofe, which
ilrugglc through hardfhips fo evidently great,
are of an afpiring robuft nature. Be this as
it may, it is obfervable, that oaklings, which
rife naturally in thickets, generally make tall
vigorous trees.

But moft of the woods, which at prefent

remain.

jM WOODLANDS.

remain, on this fide of the Vale, have beei>
raifcd from stools of timber trees, formerly
taken down.

This method of raifing woods is called
** fpringing" them ; or, with greater pro-
priety, RE-SPRINGING them : a pra<flice
which has long been prevalent, in this coun-
try ; where coppice wood is of lefs value,
than it is in moil others,— ^/wt'/, hedging ma-
terials, and a (tw Jirki/i hoops being the only
faleable articles.

When a wood is intended tobcRLSPRUNG,
the timber is felled a few inches above
ground, leaving the bark of the liools as en-
tire as poffible.

Before the young fhoots make their ap*
^jearance, the ground i?, c: ought to be,
finally cleared, from the fallen timber and
topwood, and the fences made up. Jf the
timber, or topwcod, be fuffered to remain
among the ftools, until after they have made
their firfl fncct, much mifchief is necelTarily
dene, in getting them cff. And, if the young
fciplings be fubjc<fted to the bite of llock, ef-
pecially in their infant ftate, the lufs will not
.readily be retrieved.

Formerly, defending the timberlings from
foreio:n encrrucs was the onlv care beftcrwred

upon

t O R K S H I R E. 225

-Upcri *' young fprings ;" and this, perhaps,
not very rigidly attended to. Now, the
fences aire pretty ftriiftly kept up, and the
plants, themfelves, from time to time weeded,
— provincially, *' looked ;" — that is,
TftiNNED ', the underwood and crofs-grow-
ing timbeflings being, in this operation, re- ^
moved ; to give air and room, to thofe which
are more promiiing.

The bufinefs of weeding is generally
deferred, until the weedling plants have ac-
quired a degree of USEFULNESS J by which
means the operation becomes doiably pro-
fitable.

The Jirji thinning, I believe, is generally
given, as foon as the undergrowth is large
enough for stakes, and iXiQ/econd, when it
is long enough for rails ; the former being
given at about ten, the latter at about twenty
years old. At every ten years, afterward, for
half a century at leaft, pofls as well as rails .
may, generally, be taken, with double ad-
vantage.

TiMBERLiNGS, trained in this way, will
reach, in a tolerable foil and a mild fituation,
thirty to forty feet in height, and v.ill mea-
fure from twenty to thirty inches in circum-
ference, in about forty years.

It

J24 WOODLANDS.

It is obfervable, that when a wood is in-
tended to be fprung again, for timber, the
entire ground is, or ought to be, cleared of
every tree, great and fmall. Single trees,—
STANDARDS, — pfovinciallv, " wavers," —
left in a wood, under an idea of their being
too young and thriving to be taken down,
feldom retain a luxuriancy of growth, after
the neighbouring trees are removed ; but,
by their drip and ihade, do certain injury to
the young faplings, rifing round them.

It is alfo obfervable, that there is a great
inequality of fuccefs, in raiiingtimber in this
way : while, in fome inftances, there will be
a tenfold futiiciency of (hoots to be trained ;
in others, too great vacancies will be found.
This may be owing to management, or
to the AGE of the timbers taken down. A
young wood mzy be fprung, afrefh, with a de-
gree of certainty. But, perhaps^ there is
danger, as well as difficulty, in regenerating
an old one.

II. DISPOSAL. It has already been
intimated, that the large feediing timbers,
which formerly reared their heads in this
Diftridl, are now nearly extirpated. There
is, I believe, but one eflate, and that not of

confiderable

Yorkshire* ^

confiderable magnitude, upon which any
large timber can now be found.

I. The AGE OF SELLING is, thefeforc,
lower here, than in mofl other countries*
There are inflances of fapHng woods being
fold, 2X forty or fifty years old-, and, when
fituated near a new Inclofure, are thought to
pay better, at that age, than they would have
done, had they been fuffered to ftand a longer
time.

One fold, 2X forty years old, neated to the
feller, about twenty pounds an acre. The
foil a cold fpringy clay, — worth, in a ftate
of ordinary improvement as arable land, i^wtvi
or eight fhillings an acre. But it would cofl
a conliderable portion of its value, to change
it from a ftate of woodland, to that ilate.
Therefore, confidering the coft of improve-
ment, in one cafe, and the profit of the
weedling plants and underwood in the other,
it is much more eligible to keep this, or any
wood fimilarly circumftanced, in its prefent
flate, or to improve it, to the utmofl, as^
woodland, than to fubjedt it to agi'kultural
management*.

Vol. I. Q^ 2. The

♦ See Wfst of England, Minuts 35, for Calcu-
latioQs on this fubjedt.

126 WOODLANDS.

2. The MODE OF DISPOSAL is to fell it,
in the grofs, jianding ; by autiioriy or hy pri^
vate contract. The former, however, is, for
the feller, the moll eligible mode of fale ;
where men of property and chara(fler arc
bidders.

The buyers of timber are, generally, men
of bufmefs ; profeflionally verfed in the value
of wood ; and able to make their own valu-
ations, with fufficient accuracy ; while the
feller is obliged to rely on the abilities, and
the integrity, of a third perfon ; who, being
uninterefted in the fale, wants the main
ilimulus to rigid accuracy.

But, in a sale by auction, with a fuf-
ficient number of bidders, the feller's valu-
ation is of little confequence : the bargain,
in this cafe, is transferred to the bidders :
the contej} is not between feller and buyer,
but between bidder and bidder ; both (or all)
of whom being judges of the lot under fale,
the feller has more than a fair chance of fell-
ing it, for its full value.

3. The METHOD OF VALUING grOWH

timber is to eilimate every tree : not, how-
ever, by an exadt admeafurement of each ;
but by taking the dimenlions of a few, with
fufiicieat accuracy. The valuer, having by

this

YORKSHIRE. 227

this means adjufted the eye, he depends Jif-
terward upon that alone ; except now-and-
then checking it, with the rod and line. If
the trees be of moderate girt, the rod and
line are fometimes difpenfed with, by men
in great practice ; who, with the arms only,
can take the girt, and the ground length,
with fufficient accuracy.

III. FELLING. The pradice of re-
fpringing fallen woods being the eflabliflied
practice of the country, that of felling tim-
ber trees a few inches above ground is uni-
verlally prevalent. Grubbing, or grub-
felling in the Norfolk manner, is feldom, if
ever, pracftifed.

The PEELING of oak timber is generally
done, by the day ; the laborers being, I be-
lieve, invariably employed by the timber-
merchant, not by the tanner : practices
which are productive of a confiderable faving
of bark. Men, working by the ton or the
quarter, or tanners, paying by weight or
meafure, will not peel the boughs fufficiently
near ; it is againfl their intereft to do it. But
it is the intereft of the timber merchant, or
of the tanner, if he purchaie by the grofs, or
by the ton of timber, to peel, fo long, as the
bark will pay for the labor. This accounts

0^2 for

42? WOODLANDS.

for the fmallnefs of the twigs, ufually peeled,
in this country : if the bark run freely, t\vigs,
not much thicker than the finger, are fre-
quently ftripped.

The method of drying bark, in this
Diflri<ft, is generally the common one of
fctting it, in a leaning pofture, againft poles,
lying horizontally, on forked flakes. But,
in a wet feafon, or when the ground is natu-
rally moift, it is laid acrofs a line of topwood,
formed into a kind of banklet, raifing the
bark about a foot from the ground. By this
prad:ice, no part of the bark is fuffered to
touch the ground : and it is, perhaps, upon
, the whole, the beft pradicc, in all feafons
' and fituations.

IV. FALLEN TLMBER. For oak
timber, the principal markets have, hitherto,
been the ports of Whitby and Scarborough.
But there is, now, very little ihip timber left.
The feedling woods are few and fmall ; and
faplings, in general, /landing thick upon the
ground, perhaps three or four from a ftool,
rife too ftraight, and are yet much too young,
for the purpofes of fhip building. It is a
fa6t, however, that at prefent (1787) the
fpirit of fhip building is fo flat, that, fcarce as

Ihip

YORKSHIRE. 229

fiiip timber is really become, the market is
now overil:ocked.

The medium price oi J1:ip timber, de-
livered at the ports, is 3I. to three guineas, a
ton, of forty feet. But the price varies with
the times, and flill more according to the
quality, that is the crookednefs of the wood.
Oak timber, tit for the purpofe of the boiije^
carpenter, may now be bought for fourteen
pence, a foot.

Ash timber is chiefly worked up by the
cartivrights 'y and by coopers, into butter-
iirkins, and dairy utenfils. The price, one
fliilling to eighteenpence a foot, in the flick.

This fnnilarity of price, between afh and
oak timber, is owing to feveral caufes : the
prefent want of demand for oak ; the prefent
fcarcity of afh ; and to the circumilance of
afh timber being, on the fpot, at its principal
market ; whereas oak requires to be carried
twenty miles, before it can be placed in a
fimilar fituation.

V. BARK. Oak bark is here fold to the
tanner, ready prepared for his ufe. The
timber merchant not only dries it in the wood,
but flacks or houfes it ; and generally fbaves
and chops it, ready for the tanpit -, felling it
to the tanner, at fo much a quarter.

CLs This

23© WOODLANDS.

This cu{lom appears to be founded on a
falfe bails : the tanner is, or ought to be, the
beft judge of the mode of preparation, and
the operation ought to pafs under his eye.

The practice of grinding bark does not
feem to have yet got footing, in the Diftri<5l :
whenever it does, it will of courfe bring the
preparation of bark into its proper channel.

The medium price of chopt bark, is i os. 6d.
a quarter.

VI. CARRIAGE OF TIMBER. The
carriage of timber has ion^ be«n a dlilindt
employment, in this part of the Diil:ri<ft.
The price for t^venty miles, the neareft dif-
tance, is about 1 5s. a ton, of forty feet ; for
forty miles, the longeft diflance, 30s. has
been given :— tliis is, in both cafes, ninepence,
a ton, a mile.

Supposing the price of oak timber, at the
ports, to be three pounds, a ton ; and that it
lies at the weftern extremity of the Vale j
the carriage reduces the price, in the place of
growth, to "^os. a ton; which is one half o£
the price at market. But timber, which
grows only twenty miles from the ports, is
reduced in price, by carriage, only one fourth
of its market price ; and that grown, with-

ia

YORKSHIRE. 231

in ten miles of market, no more than one
eighth *.

Thefe circumftances {how, in a flriking
manner, the advantage of propagating tim-
ber, in the neighbourhood of fhip yards;
and point out the impropriety of railing it,
at a diflance from water carriage; or fome-
cflablifhed inland market.

PLANTATIONS.

THE SPIRIT OF PLANTING can

fcarcely be faid to have gained a footing in
the DiftriiCl under furvey.

Of late years, the paflion of taking down
has been much ftronger, than that of railing

0^4 up.

* Some years ago, the price of ordinary afh timber, at
Scarborough, was I id. a foot. There was an inftance of a
parcel being carried, fomewhat more than twenty miles
(the inland market being of courfe overftockcd) at the
rate of 5d. a foot, for carnage. This reduced the price to
6d. a foot, in the place of its growth. Had fuch alh timber
been carried, at thofe prices, from the extremity of th«
Vale, it would have neated only 2d. a foot.

xp, PLANTATIONS.

up. Indeed, in ibme parts of it, the na-
tural WOODLANDS, which abound, render
PLANTATIONS the Icfs DecclTary.

But upon the ic-i/Uj, and other heights ad-
jacent to the Vale, shelter plantations
are every where wanted ; and it muil be a
matter of aftoniihinent, to every one who
gives it a moment's reflection, that the fpirit
of planting {hould, in theie iituations, have
lain dormant fo long.

Upon the wolds, however, it has at length
lifen into achoo. Sir Gro. Strickland
has fcattcred a number of iheltering clumps,
upon the heights, towards Malton ; and Sir
Christopher Sykes and others are placing
ikreen plantations, upon the bleak fwells of
the higher Wolds. Should this laudable
fpirit di5ufe itfelf into a general pradtice, not
only the face of this fine paii^e of country,
but the very foil, or at Jeaft its produce and
value, will in a ihort time be changed.

The ikreen plantations, which I have ob-
ferved upon the Wolds, are ail of the mis-i
CELLANEOUs kind; — pines and deciduous
trees of various forts, mixt together.

It ftrike! me, however, that the beech,
alone, would be the moft eligible tree to be
propagated upon the Wolds : it is peculiarly

adapted

YORKSHIRE. 233

adapted to calcareous foils ; and thrives with
lingular vigour in expofed fituations. Upon
the chalky hills of Surrey and Kent, it is
the prevailing timber tree. Upon the hills
about AmerfliatTi in Buckinghamlhire, too,
a chalky foil, the beech thrives with un-
common beauty and luxuriance : and its
wood feems to be growing daily into efli-
jnation.

Sowing the mafts, in drills, and cultivating
the intervals, is perhaps the moft eligible
method of propagating thist ree, forthepur-
pofe here mentioned.

In the Vale, the almoft only plantations,
which have been made with a view to uti-
lity, are fmall clumps of Scotch Jir, planted
for the purpofe of giving flicker, and fhade,
to pafturing flock.

There is one inflance, however, in which
a more regular plan of improvement has been
chalked out, and executed.

This inilance of improvement, having
been profecuted w^ith judgment and perfe-
verance, and by one from whom I have re-
ceived more ufeful ideas, in planting, than
from any other man I have converfed with,
is noticeable.

The

234 PLANTATIONS.

Thcj^te of improvement was a low moory
fwamp, lying barely above the level of a
fivulet, running by the fide of it. The/u6-
foil a blue clay: the topfcil a black peat
earth, of an irregukr depth i var}dng from a
foot to three or four feet deep. The turf a
mat of rulhes, fedges, and other paluflrian
v/eeds, equally unpalatable and unproduc-
tive, either of hay or pafturrge ; fome parts
of it being dangerous to flock. The firm
triangular : the area, containing nine or ten
acres, an entire flat ; except a gentle defcent
towards the longeil corner. The Jituation,
though low, extremely chilling, being ex-
pofed, on every fide, in a naked watery
plain.

The Improvements, obvloufly requifitc
in this cafe, were ivarmtb^ and a proper de-
gree of dryncfs.

To obtain thefe, the rivulet and the fur-
rounding ditches were deepened ; and a deep
counter ditch, main drain, or Hiore, funk at
a diftance from the boundary {tv^Q^ ; leaving
an irregular border, of five to ten yards wide,
entirely round the area of the fite of im-
provement ; which, by this fimple operation,
alone, was removed fufficiently out of the
water's way -, except at the loweil extre-
mity.

YORKSHIRE. 235

mity, where the main drain had its outlet
into the rivulet.

The BORDER, too, by the lame operation,
was laid fufficiently dry, for the purpole of

PLANTING.

The loVefl extremity, and the moifter
part of the margin next the rivulet, were
planted with aquatics ; the drier parts
with FOREST TREES of various fpecies.

It is now fourteen or fifteen years, fincc
this improvement was firfl let about. The
border of planting begins already to have, at
fome diftance, the efFedl of an entire plan-
tation of equal circuit ; while the area,
within, enjoys all the advantages which
llielter can give it.

What remains to be faid, here, refpe(5ting
the efted^ of the improvement under detail,
is to mention the prefent flate of growth,
and the comparative progrefs, of the different

SPECIES of FOREST TREES, UpOnaDRAINED
MOORY SOIL *.

It is an opinion of the improver of this
plot of ground, that a drained moor is the
driej} of foils : an opinion founded on his
own experience. The fummers of Eighty-
five

♦ The further improvement of the area will be men-
tioned in its proper place.

236 PLANTATIONS.

five and Eightyfix were very dry ; the plan-
tation made little progrefs, and the area was
unprodu(ftive. This year (1787) the fum-
mer has been moift ; — the trees and the grafs
are equally luxuriant.

MooRV SOIL, when perfe6:ly dry, repels
water lil^e a dry fpunge ; but, like this,
when once it is faturated with moifturc, it
retains it longer, than common earth does.
But a moor, eiFe(ftual]y drained, and placed
above the level of colledled moifture, is not
readily filled with water ; it may therefore
be julUy ranked among the drieji foils.

This accounts for the rapid progrefs which
the liiRCH and the Scotch fir (both of
them mountain plants) have made in thefc
plantations. In the drier parts, they arc
more than twenty feet high ; far outftripping
^very other fpecies ; except

The Norway spruce, which, for the
firfl ten or twelve years, at leaft, thrives
vigoroufly. But fome plants of this fpecies,
planted fourteen or fifteen years ago, are
getting ragged, and appear to be in an un-
thriving ilate. But whether this be owing
to the feverity of the late winters, or whe-
ther tile roots, being now crampt for room^
have got dov.ri to the uncultivated moor, or

the

YORKSHIRE. 137

the cold barren clay which lies under it, is
uncertain.

The American spruce, too, the pine-
aster, the LARCH, and the Virginia
CEDAR, thrive abundantly, in this foil and
fituation ; but none of thefe have been
planted more than feven or eight years.

The ASH and the broad-leaved elm
alfo make a promifing appearance ; but the
OAKS, though they look healthy, do not
fhoot upward *.

On the moifter parts, the alder takes the
lead. But the ash, the asp, the poplar,
and the osier, grow with fufficient luxu-
riance, to fhew, that their iituation is per-
fet!illy agreeable to them.

A patch of 0ZIER3 were kept down, ex-
perimentally, as an ozier bed. The growth
was luxuriant ; and the profit, the fecond to
the fifth year, ample ; the produce, at leall:,

hve

* This, however, is thought to be covins; more to late
SPRING FROSTS, than to the nature ot the foil. Silver firs
have done worfe than the oaks ; but (hoots, feveral inches
in length, have been evidendy obferved :o be nipped ofF,
hyfumfmr frofts ; which, it is obfb.-'. able, are much ftronger
in low than in high fituations; owing, p?rh.ips, to the
greater quantity of moifture in the air : This, at leaft,
accounts for the extraordinary quantity of hor.'-y collected
in low fituations.

ifi PLANTATIONS.

five pound?, an acre, yearly : but the plant*
beginning to decline, and an ozier ground
not being calculated to give the required
(lielter, the experiment was not purfued.

Gen. Obs. Upon the whole, it appears to
me evident, that the osier, the ash, and the
BIRCH are the moil eligible fpecies to be
planted on a drained moor ; keeping them
in a flate of coppice wood, and felling the
inner and outer edges of the border, alter-
nately : the firft fall for flakes ; the fecond
and fucceeding falls for rails.

By this means a perpetual shelter
would be fecured.

A few Scotch firs, planted at proper
diilances upon the margins, and kept pruned
on the inner fides, would add a degree of
ornament, witliout being deflrudlive of
utility.

DIVI-

DIVISION THE THIRD.

AGRICULTURE.

I.

FARMS.

THE SIZES OF FARMS var}% in dif-
ferent parts of the Dillrict. On. the
Wolds, they are principally A/rj-c- ; in the
V A L E and the Mo r elands, extremely frnalL

Coniidering the Vale, diflindly, more
than half of its lafids are laid out, in farms,
under twenty pounds, ayear. Perhaps, three
fourths of the Vale, and the lands belonging
to it, lie in farms, of lefs than nfty pounds,
ayear.

In the welt marihes, and in the richer
PARTS OF THE Vale, low moill fituations,
inhabitants are thinner, and farms larger.

But viewing- the Vale, coUedtivelv, there
is not, perhaps, in this kingdom, another
Diilri(5t of equal extent, and of which

HUS-

240 FAR M S.

HUSBANDRY is tllC PRIMARY OEjECTi

which contains (6 great a number ofjarms,
or rather parcels of land in diftin<fl occu-
pation ; many of them being occupied, not
by TENANTS, but by owners *.

The advocates for small farms will
conceive, that a Diftrlcfl thus laid out mud
neceflarily excel in hufbandry j and tliat the
fuperiority of management mult, of courfe,
be in proportion to their degree of fmallAefs.

On the contrar\% however, no country,
perhaps, aftbrds ftronger evidence of the fal-
lacy of thofe conceptions. A mixture of
good and bad management is evident, in
every quarter of it ; and it is on the larger,
not on the Jma/kr farms, we find a spirit
OP IMPROVEMENT, and a superiority of
MANAGEMENT prevail.

Poverty and ignorance are the ordinary
inhabitants of fmall farms : even the fmaller
cftates of the yeomanry are notorious for bad
mansgement.

It is on the lareer eflates of veomanrv, and
en the larger fiirms of tenants, we muft look
for the beft practice of the Diftri^It.

It

* "When this vns written, the West or England
lad not pafkd under my obL-rvatioa. (1796.)

YORKSHIRE. 241 •

It is not meant, that a regular gradation
of management can be traced, by the mag-
nitude of farms : many exceptions might be
pointed out. Nor does it follow, from the
evidence of this Diftridt, that very large far 7?is
are conducive to good management. An
occupier of eight hundred or one thoufand
pounds, ayear, is too fully employed, with
the OUTLINES of management, to attend
fufficiently to minuti.^, much lefs to con-
ceive and execute ufeful improvements*
His beil management is to prefs forward, in
the beaten track of the country he farms in j
depending upon the amplenefs of his bufinefs,
to make up the deficiencies, ariiing from the
unavoidable neglect of minutial matters.

The CHARACTERISTIC OF FARMS, in the
Vale, is grass, with a fmaller proportion
of arable land.

Formerly, the area of the Vale was prin-
cipally grafs, and tlie margins open arable
fields. Now, the latter is inclofed, and prin-
cipally applied to the ufe of the dair)^ ; while
the former is much of it fubjedled to arable
management.

Upon the whole, although the admixture
of arable be conliderable, the Vale, in a
general point of view, comes under the deno-
mination of A grassland country.

Vol. I. R FARMERS.

j^, FARMERS.

2.

FARMERS.

FROM WHAT ha? been faid, in the laft
feftion on Farms, a general idea of the
Farmers of the Vale may be gathered.

Among the lower claj's of tenants, little in-
formation cran be expefted, and llill lefs from
the inferior yeomanry y whofe fcanty poffeiTions
are too frequently marked, with an inferiority
of management.

It is from the SUPERIOR CLASS OF YEOMAN-
RY, and from fome few principal te-
nants, we muftexpeftto learn the beft prac-
tice of the country. It is on the farms of men,
whofe independency, converfation, and per-
haps reading, has led them to think, and a<i^,
without prejudice, we muft exped to find a
fuperiority of general management, andafpi-
rit of improvement prevail.

It has long been obferved in the economy
OF N ations, that where liberty is ellablifhed
there commerce and the arts tiourifh. And

it

Yorkshire. ^43

it Is equally cbfervable, inRuRAL Economy,
that where independency refides, there Agri-
culture improves. A monied man, culti-
vating his own eftate, enjoys the highell de-
gree of independency ; a leafe tenant the
next ; tenants at will the loweft.

It has alrcadv been intimated, that, in this
Diftridl, tenants at will (ibme very few per-
haps excepted) have lofl all confidence ^ and
conlequently have lofl even their ideal inde^
pendency. They dare not improve left fomc
advantage fhould be taken of their improve-
ments. It has alfo been faid that leales are>
yet, but little in ufe.

Therefore, among the yeomanry, alone,
we muft look for that degree of indepen-
dency, which is effentially necelTary to im-
provements in Agriculture.

No country, of equal extent, can boaft of
fo numerous a body of yeomanry, as the Vale
under furvey y nor any country, I will venture
to athrm, where indullry and fru8:alitv are
more confpicuous ; or where a perfonal in-
dependency is more ftrongly rooted, among
men in middle life.

R 2 WORK.

144 WORK M E N.

WORKxMFN.

THE YEARLY SERVANTS of this
Diftria: are noticeable, for the highnefs of
their wages, and the lownefs of their hving,
and for the length of their working hours.

The WAGES, of an able man fervant, are
twelve to fifteen pounds, ayear. During the
late war, fifteen to eighteen pounds were

given !

But the fimplicity of their diet more
than compenfates for the extraordinary height
of their wages. Miik Itill remains, here, a
fbod of farmers' fervants. In fome places,
anhnal food, tJiree times a day, is expeded ;
here, once a day (except perhaps in haytime
and harveft) is confidered as fufficient.

In MALT LIQUOR, too, the farm fervants
of this country are equally moderate.

Neverthclels, if one may judge from their
appearance, and from the quantity of labor
they difpatch, their mode of living is con-
ducive to HEALTH.

The

Y<)RKSHIRE. 245

The TIME OF CHANGING SERVANTS,

which prevails through this country, is Mar-
tinmas (Nov. 22.) *. The conveniency of
this time of changing fervants, and the in-
aonveniency of changing at Michaelmas,
have been pointed out on a former occafion -j-.

BEASTS OF LABOR,

THE LONG AGITATED difpute, about
the fuperiority of OXEN or horses, as beafts
of draught, may here be coniidered with An-
gular propriety. But, I am afraid, even this
country will not furnifh fufficient evidence,
for a final decifion.

Formerly, and from time immemorial,
four or fix oxen, in yokes, led by two horfes,
alfo double, were the invariable " draught"

R 3 or

# Except in Cleveland, where Mayday is a more
general time »-f changing.

f bee ..iiNUTiiS OF Agriculture — Dates 10 and
12 October 1775.

246 BEASTS OF LABOR.

or team of the country ; not only upon the
road, but in plowing. Even in ftirring a
fallow, four oxen and two horfes were gene-
rally coniidered as requifite. And, in break-
ing up a fallow, two men and a boy were
the common attendants, of this unwieldy ex-
penfive team.

At prefent, there is not, perhaps, through-
out the Vale, a iingle ox employed in tillage :
two horfes, with whip reins, without a driver,
is now the univerfal plow team for all foils,
in almoll: every ftate.

Upon the road, however — that is to fay, in
farm carriages — oxen are llill in ufe ; but
feldom more than a Iingle pair to a carriage ;
—generally at the pole, with two or three
horfes, at length, before them. Befides, a
number of entire horfe teams, now, travel
upon the roads j things which, formerly,
were unknown in the country.

On a general view, and in the opinion of
men whofe age entitles them to be judges of
the fjbjeet, there is not kept, at prefent, one-
fourth of the worJiing oxen, which formerly
were employed, in the Vale.

Shall we hence argue, that becaufe oxen
have declined, they are ineligible as beads of
(Iraught ? It nilght be unfair to do it.

There

YORKSHIRE. 247

There are two evident caufes of the decline
of oxen, in this country.

Formerly, there was not only much more
land in tillage, but the plow of thofe days
was a heavy ill fhapen implement, requiring
at leaft one pair of oxen extraordinary to
draw it ; yet, unwieldy as it was, the quan-
tity of land, then in tillage, required that it
fhould be worked, in all feafons. At pre-
fent, the plow in ufe is admirably con-
ilrudted ; — light, and well formed for paffing
through the foil. With this plow, and with
the land in feafon, it is found, that the two
horfes alone, without the oxen, are fulficient
for the purpofe of tillage. This, in a country
where the breeding of horfes had long been
an eftabhfhed practice, was a fufficient qaufe
of the dijujeofoxen in plowing.

Their decline upon the road is, in part,
owing to the fame caufe. Four horfes make
two plow teams, and, occafionally, a road
team. This accounts, in fome meafure, for
the increafe of horfe teams, upon the road ;
but it is not the only caufe of their increafe.
When oxen were in common ufe, the roadi
lay in their natural flat ftate ; deep in winter,
and foft to the hoof in fummer : now, they
are univerfally a rough caufe way of lime-
R 4 ftones,

248 BEASTS OF LABOR.

irones, in all feafons unfriendly to the feet of
oxen. Even Shoeing is found ineftedoal,
when they go conllantly upon the road.

Under this change of circumftances, it is
no wonder that the ule of oxen fhould have
declined. On the contrary, it appears to mc
a matter of furprile, that fo great a number
fhould iliil be employed ; a circiimftancc
which, in my mind, evinces their utiiitv as
beafls of draught.

Even the tiniber carriers (an inc.::r::us
and wary fet of men) continue to ufe them ;
though their ible emplojnient be upon the
road. , They not only find them able to ihmd
working, every day, provided their feet do
not fail them ; but, what is much in their
fevor, they are found to ftand long hours,
better than horfes going in the iame pailurc.
An ox, in a good pailure, foon fills his belly,
and lays himfelf dovm to reft ; whereas a
ihort fummer's night fcarcelv afibrds a hone
time enough to latisfy his hunger.

Another advantage of oxen is, here, held
out. In ftiit pulls of every kind, mofl ^i^-
ciallj in going up lleep hills, a pair of oxen
areconfidered as a iheet anchor. Horfes, it
b argued, are fearlui, and icon lofe their
teet, in a fteep flippery road ; while oxen,

where

YORKSHIRE. 249

where they are unable to proceed, will ftand
their ground. Indeed, oxen feem to be con-
fidered as eiTentially necefTary, in an aukward
hilly country.

This idea, in a country where half bred
hunters are the principal horfes ufed in
draught, is no doubt well founded ; but
where .thorough bred cart horfes are in ufe,
it lofes much of its weio-ht.

But what are thorough bred cart horfes ?
Why, a fpecies of flrong, heavy, fluggifh
animals, adapted folely to the purpofe of
draught; and, according to the prefent law
of the country, cannot, without an annual
expence which no one beftows upon them,
be ufed for any other purpofe.

This fpecies of beads of draught cofl, at
four years old, from twenty to thirty pounds ^
will, with extravagant keep, extraordinary
care and attendance, and much good luck,
continue to labor eight or ten years j and
may, then, generally be fold for live (hillings,
a head.

If we had no other fpecies of animals,
adapted to the purpofe of draught, in the
ifland, nor any one which could be natu-
ralized to the climate, cart horfes would be
truly valuable ; they being much fu perior

tQ

150 BEASTS OF LABOR.

to the breed of fkddle hories, for the pur-
pofe of draught.

But it appears to me evident, from the ex-
perience I have had, and the obfervations I
have made, that were only a fmall tharc of
the attention paid to the B R £ E D 1 N G of draught
oxen, which now is bellowed on the breed- '
ing of cart horfes ; animals equally power-
ful ; more adtive; leiscoflly; equally adapted
to the purpofes of husbandry, (it harnelJed
with equal judgment) ; lefs expenlive in keep
and attendance ; much more durable ; and
infinitelv more valuable after they have
finiihed their labors — ^might be prodnced *.

Oxen, here, are all worked in ^^itv, and
always kJ, by one or more horfes. They
are ufually broke in, at two or three years
old ; and worked, until they be rifing fix i

when

* I do not mean to irtimats, that any breed of oxen
would be equally fi: as horfes, fcr ttiC rnut only : I have had
no experience oi either of them, in this kind of employ-
ment i which is foreign to the prefeni fubjed : let cirrjcrs
and draymen m:ike their own eiedion. All I contend for
is, that, were a prop.-r aiteation p:^d to BREED, oxen, ar.d
fpaycd heifers, equally a--; fit for the purpofes of ullage, the
Ciniage cf nianure, hay, com, and fuel, and fjr every oAcr
purpofe of DRAUGHT, in the ordinary buiinefc oi" hus-
bandry, as the heavy cirt hordes a: pref:;at uj ufe, might
bw obtained.

YORKSHIRE. 251

when they are bought up, for the Midland, or
South country graziers.

Coniidering oxen as rearing cattle, which
are worked occalionally during the years of
growth, this plan of management is eHgible
enough; but viewing them, abllractedly, as
beajis of draught, that mode of treatm.ent is
very injudicious : they are worked while
they are feeble for want of age, aukward for
wantof experience, and thick winded through
a fullnefs of growth ; and thrown up fo foon
as they have learnt to know their duty, and
are become able to lland work.

A fteer, like a colt, ought to be familiarized
to harnefs, at two or three years old j but
fhould never be fubjecl^ed to hard labor until
he be five years old : from which age, until
he be fifteen or perhaps twenty, he m.ay be
confidered as in his prime, as a beaft of
draught. An ox v/hich I worked feveral
years in Surrey, might, at feventeen or
eighteen years old, have challenged, for
ftrength, agility and fagacity, the bell bred
i:art horfe in the kingdom.

The SPECIES of ox, worked in this Diflridt,
will appear under the head Breed op
Cattle,

IMPLE^

iji IMPLEMENT S.

IMPLEMENTS.

THE Implements of the Vale, v/hich re-
quire to be noticed, are,

1. Waggons. fledge.

2. Plows. 4. Molding fledges.

3. The common 5. Machine fans.

I. WAGGONS. The waggons, and other
wheel carriages of the Vale are, in general,
confiderably below the middle fize. — A full
^ed Waggon does not meafure more than
forty cubical feet : the ox cart — provincially
♦* coop" — about twentyfour feet.

Their conjirudiou, though in many refpe(fts
iiiigular, is pafied over, as being in no wife
Pcc jliarlv excellent -. Bjt they have a defect

which

* Excrprir.g in two petty imprcvements, Vi-hich I have
ha*.^ no: cbfeneJ el/jwhere. The one is a firaplc im-
gnnremen: of the Wheel-washer — provincially " Run-
ner''— — 'A-hich frequeatly fticlcing in the end of the nave,
we^rs off ihe ends of the !inch-pin ; thereby loung its prin-
cipal intention. The improvement is made by placing a
taoh; on the oater furfacc c^ the Wafher j ^^'hich, catching

YORKSHIRE. 253

"Vwliich requires particular notice ; as it is not
peculiar to the Yorkfbire waggon ; but is
common, in a greater or lefo degree, to the
carriages of other Di{lri(!l:s.

The Turnpike-road Adt, made in the thir-
teenth year of the prefent reign, orders,
" that no pair of fuch wheels (common
three inch wheels) paffing on turnpike roads,
being above twenty miles from London,
fhall be wider ihzn four feet Jix inches, from
infide to infide, to be meafured on the
ground ;" (that is, four feet nine inches from
middle to jniddle of the ruts) " under the pe-
nalty of five pounds !"

The waggons of the Midland counties
(the fize of them extraordinary large) run
the width of five feet two or three inches,
from middle to middle of the rut. Thofe
of Gloucefi:erlliire (of the middle fize) run
four feet nine inches wide : thofe of the Vale
of Pickering only four feet three inches.

AH

the end of the linch-pin, prevents its turning round with
the wheel j by which means the entire fri£tion is, as it
ouc^ht to be, between the Wafher ?.nd the end of the box of
the nave. Accidents frequently happen, for want of this
precaution. The other improvement is a Falling
DOOR, in the bottom of the fore part of the waggon ; for
the more eafy delivery of lime, coals, and other bodyload^.

254 1 M P L E M E N T S.

All theie '.vidths are much too fmallioz the
rcfpeclive fizes of the carriages : atid how
the franicrs of the Bill, above mentioned,
could impofe a rellriiftion, evidently tending
to deflroy the reads, they \v€re endeavouring
to preierve, is a matter of fomc furprize.

In the article Roads, page 172, the effe<fts
of carriages, paifing upon (helving roads (of
the nature of which every barrelled tumpiki
road more or lefs partakes) have been men-
tioned. The damage will always be, in pro-
portion to the inclination of the road, to the
height of the load, and to the narrownefs of
the fpan of the wheels, conlidered jointly.

The center of gravity of the load (inclu-
ding the carriage), and the two points of the
peripheries of the wheels (of a two -wheeled
carriage), which arc in contaft with the road,
fonn a triangle. The extremity of damage
is wli^n tho load is in the equipoife of over-
turning ; the entire weight of the load and
carriage rcliing, at that time, upon one wheel;
which, in that cafe, injures the road as much
as a load, of mtich greater weight, would,
in paffing upon a level road. Whenever
t'x'Cvidxjidt: ot the triangle, above defcribcd, is
brought into a perpendicular pofition, the
lead is in the injurious equilibrium.

Thefe

YORKSHIRE. 155

Thefe premifes being duly confidered, it
-is obvious, that there are three wavs of redu-
cing the perpendicularity of the line ; con-
fequently, of preventing a loaded carriage
from being placed in fo deftrudlive and dan-
gerous a flate. Firil:, by raifing the depref-
fed corner of the triangle ; that is, by bring-
ing the road nearer to a level : fecond, by
fhortening the fides of the triangle ; that is,
by lowering the center of gravity of the
load ; or, in other words, reducing the height
of the carriage : third, by lengthening the
bafe of the triangle ; that is, by widening the
fpan, or placing the wheels farther afunder.
Thefe things are mathematically demonflra-
ble ; but as they mull: appear obvious, to every
one, acquainted with the rudiments of fci-
#nce, it would be wrong to load the prefent
Tolume, with a more minute explanation.

But the injurv^ of the roads is only one part
of the mifchief, arifing from the wheels of
carriages, running too narrov/. The increafc
of draught (fee Roads, p. ij^-)* ^^^ extra-
ordinary ftrefs and wear of the carriage, and
the evil effects of overturning, — are matters
o{ flill more importance, to farmers, and
other proprietors of carriages.

It would, perhaps, be in vain to conjec-
ture

«56 I M P L E M E N T S.

ture the means, through whicli the prefbnt
widths of the fpan of carriages have beert
cftahlidied, in dilferent countries; each of
which has its particular widtli; otlierwife, the
difficulty of palling in rutty by roads would be
greatly increafed.

In the prefent ftate of hufbandry and land--
carriage, and the prefent flate of roads, it
appears to me evident, that gateways,
alone, ought to prefcribe bounds to the width
of carriages.

Farm gateways meafure from eight feet
and a half to ten feet wide. I know no ex-
traordinary inconveniency arifing from a gate-
way of the latter width ; and through fuch a
gateway there would be no difficulty in con-
du(fting a carriage, with diflied wheels, run-
ning five feet or even fix feet wide. Five
feet and a half would, perhaps, be found the
beft legal width.

This increafe of width would operate, in a
variety of ways, to the advantage of land-
carriage. Roads would be lefs injured; team-
lalx)r would be lacilitated ; carriages would
lail longer ; and kads would be lefs expofcd
to danger, than at prefent.

Nor would thefe he the only advantages :
the increafed dif^anc^> between the wheels,

would

YORKSHIRE. 159

Would admit of a proportional increafe in
the width of the body of the carriage ; and
this of a proportional redudlion of the height
of the load. Advantages, thefe, befides the
additional flren:^th which the carriage would
by this means receive, which appear to me
too obvious to require farther argument.

II. PLOW. The plow, at prefent in
univerfal eftimaticji in the Vale, is of the
light, fhort, winding-moldboard fort, which,
in different parts of the kingdom, goes under
the nam.e of the Dutch plo'-ji\ or the Torkjkire
plow.

On the conftrudtion of a fhip, volumes have
been written, without any univerfally receiv-
ed principles being vet eftablillied. The Ber-
mudians, who build by the eye alone, without
either drawing or gauge to affiil: them, excel
all other nations, in the conftrucflion of fmall
veffels (the almofh ovAy produce of their
iflands) ; which are remarkable as fail failers,
and notorious for lying nearer the wind, than
other veifels.

Different as the fhip and the plow may be,
in magnitude and general appearance, there is
fome fimilarity, in the principles of their con-
flruftion ; and the difficulty of fixing thofe
principles, and of reducing them to a regular

Vol. I. S theory.

J58 IMPLEMENTS.

theory, is nearly the fame in both. The art
of conftru(5tion, in either cafe, is principally
attamed bypra<Ctice.

In this Diftria, the fpecies of plow under
notice is, in general, conftniaed better than
it is, perhaps, in any other ; yet, even here, the
plows of different makers pafs through the
foil, with various degrees of faciUt)^ and exe-
cution : neverthelefs, though I have paid
fome attention to the different makes, I find
myfelf unable to detail the minutiae of con-
flrudlion. Even the general principles I
mufl mention with diffidence.

The great difHculty, in the conflrudion of
a plow, is that of adapting it to all foils, in
all feafons, and to all depths.

If the foil break up in whole furrow, every
Inch of depth requires, in flridnefs, a fepa-
mte plow, or a feparate regulation. Here
refts the great objedlion to the winding
MOLDBOARD, which admits of no regulation
in refpea of depth.

If x.\\€: ft mi-arch, or hollow of the hindpart
of the moldboard, be raifed fufficiently high,
to turn a thick furrow completely, it is of
little ufe, in turning a thin one. On the con-
trary, if it be brought down fufiiciently low,
to turn a {hallow furrow properly, it is im-

poiTiblc

YORKSHIRE. 259

pofTible to turn a deep one with it. In a work-
manlike manner. There is not room for it
within the hollow or femi-archway of the
moldboard. The inevitable effect of this
is, either the furrow is forced awav, wholly,
by the upper part of the moldboard, and
fet on edge ; or the moldboard rides upon
the plit, raifing the heel of the plow from
the bottom of the furrow; efpeciallyin plow-
ing fward, or other whole ground.

An rpRiGHT STSRN, with a moveable
HEELPLATE* to turn the furrow at any given
depth, is, in this point of view, much pre-
ferable to a hollow moldboard ; and if its
ufe, in railing a crellofmold, for the pur-
ppfe of covering the feed, be added, its pre-
ference is ll:ill more confpicuous ; and I fee
no reafon why the Yorklhire plow fliould not
receive fo valuable an improvement.

The FOREPARTS of a Yorklhire plov%', of
the beft conftru<flion, are admirably adapted
to infmuate themfelves beneath the foil, and
to raifc the plowllice : a better form, perhaps,
cannot be contrived.

But the plows, even of this neighbourhood,
are far from being uniformly excellent, in

S 2 that

* See Minutes in Surrey.

26© I M P 1 1 M E N T S.

that TcCptci. The neck is frequently too
thick and the bosom too hollow: the former
creates an unneceflary friction ; and the latter
forms a receptacle for loofe mold to lodge
in i and both of them are detrimental tojhe
turning of the plit. The bofom may be
made too full, but the neck cannot, well, be
made too fine, on the off or outer edge.

The righthand fide of the focket of the
SH AK£ ought to be brought down to a iharp
angle, or rather to an edge ; the under fide
being made flat, and as level as may be, with
the under furface or foal of the plow. The
part which is folded back, to lay hold of the
bottom of the woodwork, too frequently
forms a foul protuberance, on the foal ; ren-
dering the plow unileady, — increafing the
fTi<flion unneceiTarily, — and, by raifing up the
fin of the iharc, preventing it from adhng pro-
perly.

The form of the Yorkihire plow is not its
only excellency : the ordinary price of the
woodwork comnlete, is not more than fcvcn
/hillings and fixpence ! the iron work about
twenty /hillings, including plates for the
landlide and moldboard. C^j} iron pLites,
fcmcwhat refembling thofe of the Norfolk
plow, lire now coming into ufe, inflead of

wooden

YORKSHIRE. 261

svcxxicn moldboards. Thofe will reduce the
general price ftill lower.

III. THE COMMON SLEDGE. This
petty implement will be confidered as un-
worthy of notice, by thofe who are unac-
quainted with the ufes of it, Neverthelefs,
here, where it is in common ufe, it is in
univerfal eftimation.

For carrj^ing harrows and other imple-
ments,— thorns and other rough wood,—
turneps when th^ ground is tender, &c. &c.
a (ledge is, frequently, much preferable to a
cart or a waggon. Some are made fmall and
light, for one horfe ; others ftrong and large,
to be drawn by a team of oxen or horfes.

The principal linguhrity of conftrutflion-
confifts in a valuable addition, to the com-
mon harrow fledge of other countries. This
addition is made with two crofs pieces (like
the crofs pieces of a cart or waggon), one
fixed upon each end of the body of th^
fledge, projeding without the fide pieces,
about ten or twelve inches, at each end. Upon
the extremities of thefe crofs pieces are fixed
two rails, — provincially, *' fhelvings," — one
on each fide ; thus increafing the width and
hollownefs of the bed of the fledge, and
S 3 thereby

iti IMPLEMENTS.

thereby rendering it capable of carrj'^ing a
larger load with greater lleadinefs.

IV. MOLDING SLEDGE. This im-
plement, I apprehend, is peculiar to York*,
ihire.

Its USE is that of fmoothing the furface
of meadows ; at the fame time fpreading the
dung and molehills.

The CONSTRUCTION is that of the body
of the common fledge, without its fide rails
and crofs pieces ; the upper edges of the fide
pieces (of the body of the fledge) being, for
this purpofe, made perfecftly flraight.

In ufe, it is drawn with the face downward,
and the fide foremoll:, acrofs the ridges.

Its EFFECT is different from that of the
J^ANDPLANE, defcfibed in the Minutes of
Agriculture ; which, having a middle
bar, kve/s the furface ; whereas this, having
no middle bar, on\y/moctbs it.

The FRONT BAR (namely, thcJjJe which
is drawn fpremoll:) forces off wormcalls, the
rudiments of anthills, and other protube-
rances of the furface ; -alfo colle(Cts the dung
of cattle and horfes, the molehills, and other
Joofe incumbrances, which lie in its way.

This collecftion of materials being driven
teforc the implement, grind each other down,

fine

YORKSHIRE. 263

fine enough to lodge in the dimples and
fiflures of the fward ; thus fmoothing the
lurface in a twofold way ; and, at the fame
time, mixing, reducing, and diftributing the
meliorating ingredients, in the mofl effe(Ctual
manner.

The FRONT BAR is fometimes (liod, with
iron, projediing, with a hoe-like edge, before
the wood work. But this is unneceflary; and
is frequently injurious, in defacing the fward.
The wood work itfelf, while the adting angle
in front remains fharp, is perhaps the bell :
but the angle foon wears off; by which means
the implement lofes its effedt, in removing
the more ftubborn protuberances. An iron
bar fixed, not beneath, but in \\\^ front of the
wood work, the lower t^^& being fet flufh
with the face of the implement, adls in a
limilar way to the wood itfelf, without being
fo liable, as this, to be worn away.

The ufe of the hind bar is to give firm-
nefs to the implement, and to finifh what the
front bar may, by accident, have left incom-
pleat j the manner of adding being in both
of them the fame.

The length or width of this implement is

ufually fix to eight feet. The breadth, or

dimenfion from out-to-out of the front and

S 4 hind

j64 I M P L E M E N T S.

hind pieces, four to five feet. The depth of
thefe pieces fix to eight inches : their thick-?
nefs about three inches.

Additional weight, if required, is given by
logs, flones, or other heavy materials, laid
upon the crofs bars which bind the two act-
ing pieces together. In places where a par-
ticular exertion is requifite, the driver will
tdd liis own weight, by ftepping upon the
implement, and remaining upon it, until the
oecafion be pafied.

V. WINNOWING MACHINE. This
excellent machine is too well known, as a
curio/ity, in moft parts of the kingdom, to re-,
quire, in this place, a general defcription *,
But the county under obfervation being the
only one in which its ujl' has been eilablilli-
ed, in common practice, it merits, in this
place, particular notice.

We are probably indebted to the Chinefe,
or other eaflern nation, for the invention of
this machine. I have feen it upon an India
paper, drawn with fufficient accuracy to fhew,
that the draughtfmanwas intimately acquaint-

e4

• The late Mr. Sharp of London made it feyera! years.
Jf^inlaw of Margaret ftrcet, Ca\ endiih fquare, ftilJ makes
it.

YORKSHIRE. 265

ed with its ufes. The Dutch, to whom
die Invention has been alcribed, iiiiported it,
in all probability, from the Eaft Indies. Let
this be as it may, it indifputably came from .
Holland, into this country.

Its firft introducClion, into the Vale, was by
a gentleman of this neighbourhood, about
thirtyfive years ago. But the introducer
committing this complex machine to the care
of fervants, without jpaying attention to h
himlelf, it was, as might be exped:ed, focri
thrown aiide, as ufelefs.

Some time afterwards, however, it fell into
the hands of a feniible fubftantial -yeoman ;
who, with the ailiflance of a friend, dilcover-
cd its ufefulnefs, and reduced it to pracCtice,

My father, who had made himfeif mafter
of the excellencies and defecfts of this pattern,
made one from it, with fome improvements.
This was the firft which was made in the Dif-
tridt, and perhaps the firfl which was made
in England.

The utility of thefe being feen, by fome dif-
cerning individuals, feveral others were con-
ftrucled, under my father's diredlion. But,
notwithftanding many of them were kept in
common ufe, and viiited as fabjecfts of ad-
miration.

i§6 I M P L E M E N T S.

miratio.^, it was fbme fifteen or twenty years
before they grew into popular eflimation.

\^'ithin the laft ten or fifteen years, the
making of diem has been an ordinary em-
plo\Tnent of wrights and carpenters. At
prefent, there is fcarcely any man, whofe
farming is confiderable, without a " Machine
Fan :" and, among the fmaller occupiers, it
is not uncommon for two or more to join, in
the purchafe and ufe of one of them.

The CONSTRUCTION of this machine has
undergone feveral alterations, and feme few
improvements may have been made in it ;
none of them, however, of moment; ex-
cept that of changing the materials of the
fail?, from boards to iheet iron. Its com-
plexncfs is the only bar to its popularity.
Should a happy fimplification of it be hit
upon, it will doubtlcfs be received into uni-
verfal practice.

The prefent ^r/tv is about five guineas.

Its ujes will be fpcken of, under Barn
Manage;!ent.

TH]

YORKSHIRE. a6;

6.

"^ THE WEATHER.

THE BAROMETER, here, as in other
places, has its advocates and its revilers.
But neither of them appear to view it in its
true hght. The former fpeak well of it, be-
caufe it has more than once faved their hay
or their corn from damage: the latter re-
vile, or perhaps break it, becaufe they have
been caught in the rain, when the weather-
glafs was above changeable : expediing that
the g/a/s fhould indicate the weather, with
the fame precifion, that a clock or a watch
{hows the time of the day.

But this is fomewhat unreafonable : it
would, indeed, be equally philcfophical to
quarrel with the fcales, when the guinea is
under weight. It is quarrelling with the
laws of nature, not with a glafs tube an4
quickfilver.

All that the barometer pretends to is, to
afcertain the weight of the atmo-
sphere j which it does with great delicacy

and

B6t THE WtATHER.

and accuracy : it is beyond the power of
nuchaKijm to form fo fine a balance.

To the improper tables of the Jews, and
ether makers (who ought to have judged
better), we muft afcribe thofe difappoint-
ments which have brought their inllrument
into undeferved difrepute. \i isftead oi fairy
rain, and changeable^ they had fubftituted
heavy, light, and medium, or merely a fcale of
degrees, the barometer would have been con-
fidered, what it really is, a balance for alcer-
taining the weight of the aanofphere ; not,
what it never was or can be, in itfelf, an in-
fallible prognofticator of the weather.

In a former work *, I digelled my ideas on
this fubject, fully, and circumfpedly. It is
now more than (^w^n years fince that work
was written ; during which period I have
continued to pay, in th^ fummer months of
almoil every year, ftrict attention to the
weather. My fuccefs has been ahuoji uni-
form-, much beyond any thing my expectation
could have fuggefted.

My THEORY and practice ilill remain
unchanged. The setting sun and the

BARG-

• ExPE?-iMEKTS and Oeservatioxs conct^n;^g
Ag?.icult'J?v.£ and U;e Vv'eather.

YORKSHIRE. 269

BAROMETER, taken joi^itlyy iwt fcpcratelyy
have been my r.^vV/'dependance : other ap-
pearances, the WIND, and the heat of
the atmofphere have, in doabtful cales, lent
their alTi (lance.

What I mean to fay further on the fub)e(fl,
at prefent, is, to recommend to every man,
concerned in matters of hufbandry, to pay due
attention to the weather. I know from my own
experience (even though I may have been in
fome degree y2?r/««^/^), that much maybe
faved bv it.

He muil: not, however, expedl that a fore-
knowledge of the v/eather is readily learnt :
like holding the plovs', and judging the qua-
lity of flock, it requires conliderable prac-
tice.

In haytime and harvefl, let him give an
eye to atmofpherical appearances, and at-
tend to the fetting fun, as a bujhicfs of the iirfl
importance ; and let him confider his baro-
meter, as a ufeful implement of hujhandry.

In the courfe of a few f-jmrners, he will
find himfelf enabled to forefee the weather,
with the fame kind of practical KK4OW-
tEDGE, as that which tells him what hay is
fit for the flack, and which bullock will pay
bed for grazing.

The

170 THE WEATHER.

The PROGRESS OF SPRING, I787, at

Pickei ng, Yorkfhirc.

.The grofsberry fohated, — lo March.

The fallow in full blow, — 5 April.

One fwallow, near water, — 12 April.

The Hawthorn foliated, — 18 April.

Swallows about houfcs, — 27 April,

Cuckow firft heard, — 6 Mav.

Swifts, — 12 May.

Oak foiiated, — 29 May.

Hawthorn blowed, 10 June.

ALh foliated, — 1 1 June.

During May, cold pinching winds ; and^
in the be einrino: of June, a very fmart froll.

QuEB^"; Do thefe circumflances account
for the unufual difference in the time of
foliation of the oak and the aih, and the
blowing of the hawthorn ; which, in a com-
mon year, happen within a few days of each
other ? The roots of the oak lie low; thofc
of the a'.h and hawthorn, fjperficially.

In June, heavy rains fet in ; and ccntinu*
cd, aln^cil wiihcut intermiliion, until De-
cember. So wet a fummer his icldom — per-»
haps fcarcely ever — happened. Hay, in gene-
ral, was fpoii: ; and thoulands of acres of
corn were little lefs than walled in the held ?
a circumflance, perhaps, entirely new in thd

annali

YORKSHIRE. 271

annals of hufbandry. I never before knew a
feafon, which did not afford a time (to thofe
who had patience to wait for it,) for harvell:-
ing hay and corn, in tolerable condition. Bat
this year, the late-ripe crops upon the Wolds,
the Northern Heights, and in the Morelands,
were, inruitablyy Httle lefs than loft. During
the latter harveft there were not, I believe,
two fair days together, until near Chriftmas !
the corn, which was carried, was of courfe
fpoilt, in the ftack or mow. Hogs were
bought up, and turned loofe among the
fheaves in the field ! *

Another remarkable circumf^ance of this
feafon was the extraordinary^ strength op^
VEGETATION ; whichwas equally manifeft in
the garden and the field.- Every thing wa^
out of /ize : Seme plants entirely disfigured.
Pafture grounds overrun with ilale grafs.
In fome ftinted paftures (grounds let out an-
nually in cowgaits to a fixt number of cov/s)
fcarcely half the grafs was eaten.

Thefe extraordinary- exertions of ve^eta-
tion are, perhaps, to be accounted for, in a
fuccelnon of dry fummers, terminating in a

moiit

* Yorkflilre was not fingular, In this difafter. Ai] ths
Northern counties, I beliete, fhared a fimilar fate.

272 TKE weather.

moill one. The foil, unable to exert itfelf
during the dry fealbns, became fumilhed with
extraordiniry powers ; to which the moill-
nefs of this fummer gave full fcope.

PLAN OF MANAGEMENT

O F

FARMS.

I. The HISTORY of FARM LANDS.
The husbandry of the Vale, like that of
many other Diilri<!ls, has undergone a total
change by inclosure.

Formerly, the entire margin, and much of
the bottom of the Vale, lay in open common
f lELD ; fubjedi, from, time immcnioml, to
the round of

Wheat, barley, or big.

Oats, bean?, or other pulfc.

Fallow.
Above thefe helds, were cxtenfivc common

SHEEP WALKS j bcIoVv thcm, COMMON PAS-
TURES,

YORKSHIRE. 273

TURES, for cattle and horfes -, and common
MEADOWS, for hay.

, Under this ancient fvftem of manao-ement,
the produce of the Diftridt was fmall ; the
fields were unproducCtive, by incellant plow-
ing, and for want of a change of crops ; and
the meadows, by being mown, year after year,
without remiffion, and without any other
m.elioration, than what chance floods might
partially afford them : while the pafturt
grounds, overrun with bufhes and weeds,
were equally unprodudlive. The principal
part of the entire produce went to the main-
tenarlce of the oxen and horfes, employed in
the cultivation of the fields. Even the yeo-
manry, with all their induftry and frugality,
ftarved on their own eftates, well foiled as
many of them naturally were.

The Inclofures, which have taken place
within the prefent century (fee the Art. In-
CLOSUREs) have not only changed the fyftem
of management, and increafed the netit pro-
duce of the Dillrid:, perhaps threefold ; but
have inverted, in a remarkable manner, the
ccmparathe value of lands.

Formerly^ the meadow lands were generally

efteemed the moft valuable part of a town-

fhip : there have b^en inftances of thefe lands.

Vol. L T cold*

274 MANAGEMENT OF FARMS.

cold-foiled, wet, diilantly fituated, and ur>-
productive, being exchanged for common-
field lands ; which, at prcjenty being naturally
well foiled, fttuated near a town, now inclof-
ed, and laid down to grafs, are oi free times
the value of the old grafsland ; fome of which
flill lies, in an intermixed unimproved flate.

This is the moll linking proof, I have met
with, of much being to be done, in fome cafes,

bya CHANGE OF GENERAL MANAGEMENT.

This extraordinir}* improvement has not
been effe(rt:ed, by the mere circumllance of
Inclofure ; but principally by that of chang-
ing OLD ARABLE LANDS TO GRASS,
AND OLD PASTURE LANDS TO
x^RABLE. A change which feldom fails,
if properly made, of being highly beneficial
to the OCCUPIER; and is frequently, as in
this cafe, permanently beneficial to an

ESTATE.

The ancient fyflem of management being
now nearly extincl, — and no circumitance of
it, except the extreme induftr)' and frugality
with which it was conduced, being worth
prefervation, — I fliall proceed to coniidcr the
Vale as an inclosed country, and defcribe

its PRESENT GENERAL MANAGEMENT:

together with the various^MPROVEMENTs,

Wllicll

\

YORKSHIRE. ijs

which have been made in it, during the laft
twenty or thirty years.

II. The primary OBJECT of the Vale
Hufbandry is

Butter j
put down into firkins -, the beft of it for
the London market ; the inferior forts for
the manufadturing towns of Weft Yorkfhire.

Cows, barren, or in calf;

Oxen, and fome feiw younger. cattle; ahd

Horses, principally for the faddle,—
have long been ftaple produ(ftions of the Vale ;
and are annually fent out of it. In confiderable
numbers, principally to the fouthern markets.
Some

Bullocks, and great quantities of

Sheep, are fatted. In the Vale and More-
lands, for the ports of Whitby and Scarbo-
rough. Of late years.

Bacon has been fent, in confiderable quan^
tity, into the Weft of Yorkfhire, and fome to
the London market.

Rabbits are not a ftaple article, in the
Vale, or on its margins, though fome good
Warrens occur.

With refpedl to vegetable produce.
Rape
hiay be confidered as that which brings moft
T 2 money

276 MANAGEMENT OF FARMS.

money into the country. Since the inclofure
of common paftures great quantities of

Oats

have been fent out of the Vale . Alfo fome
fmaller oarcels of

Barley and

Pulse

have of late years been fent down the Der-
went. But, notwith {landing the goodnefs of
the foil, and its fitnefs for

Wheat,

very little of this grain has been carried out
of the neighbourhood of its growth ; having
been wholly ufed in the home confumption.
Of late years, however, there has been an
overflow ; and Whitby has drawn part of its
fupply, from hence.

Befides thefe articles of market pro-
duce, a variety of fuboj-dinate crops are
raifed; as

Grass, or natitral herbage;

Clovejr, and other cultivated her-
bage ;

Turn EPS, for cattle and flieep ;

Potatqes, for cattle and fwine : alfo

Flax (manufadured in the Vale) ; '

Tobacco.

III. The

YORKSHIRE. 2.77

III. The COURSE OF PRACTICE.

No regular fucceflion, of arable crops and
fallow, can be traced, in this Diftridt. Every
man follows the dictates of his own judg-
ment, and fubjeds his arable land to fuch
ufes, as are beft fuited to the general eco-
nomy of his farm, in the given year.

This mode of management is not peculiar
to the Vale under obfervation, but is com-
mon to other Di{l:rid:s, in which grass*
LAND predominates; under which circum-^
fiance, aration is conlidered as a fecondary,
and in mofl cafes a fubordinate branch of
management.

When the fward becomes unproductive, it
js delivered over to the plow, and the foil
kept in an arable flate, until another piece of
fward begins to fail ; when the former is laid
down again to grafs, and the latter broke up
for arable.

In the Midland counties, where this alter-
nacy of grafs and corn has, in fome inftances,
been in practice time immemorial, a regular
courfe of hufbandry has taken place. But,
here, where this fyftem of management is irr
its infancy, and where the diverlity pf foils
is almoil: endlefs, no regular round of ma-
T 3 nagement

a?8 MANAGEMENT OF FARMS.

nagement can, with propriety, be at prefent
purfaed.

Land which has been kept in tillage,
century after century, is prone to grafs, and
will retain its fward, much longer, than land
which has been, only a few years, under the
plow. And a rich soil, coolly situ-
ated, will retain its /ward, much longer,
than thin-foiled upland.

There are numberlefs i^ftances, in which
the richer cooler parts of the early inclofed
common-field lands have now lain, more than
half a century y in grass: neverthelefs, the
fivardj though perhaps mown year after year,
and treated with no extraordinary care,
Jiill remains unimpaired : the herbage well
forted, and the produce ample.

Therefore, to fubjecft the lands of this
Diftrift, circumflanced as they are, at prejent,
to any methodical arrangement, or
regular round of crops, would be an
evident impropriety.

The only particular of the management
of the Vale, in this refpecft, which appears to
me cenfurable, is that of fuffering thi?i-Joiied
thirfiy upland to lie in a iiate oi Jwardy per-
haj^s as ** meadow" (mowing ground,) when

it

YORKSHIRE. «79

it would, I apprehend, pay much better, in a
courfe of arable management. Tur-
neps, barley, wheat, and the cultivated grafies,
equally affed it.

8.

SOILS

AND THEIR

MANAGEMENT.

THIS COMPLEX fubjed requires, in
the prefent inflance, the following arrange-
ment.

1. Species of foil.

2. Subfoils and underdraining,

3. Rough grounds and clearing.

4. Tillage.

I. SPECIES OF SOIL. The great diver-
fitv of foils, which the Vale and its environs
afford, has been mentioned. Viewed in this
light, it is a fpecimen of country which admits
not, perhaps, of comparifon. Within the
* narrow limits ofa few miles, barren HE/tTH
^nd LOW fen lands are included; with
T 4 almoft

aSo SOILS AND MANAGEMENT,

almoft every intermediate foil : unprodu(flive

GRITSTONE LAND; thin flapled LlMEn

STONE LOAM ; deeper and more produ(!?tive

*' J&EDSTONE LAND * ;" ricll deep PEBBLY

LOAM -f- ; flrong blue clay. And what
renders this circumftance flill more remark-
able, there are inllances in which the feveral
fpecies of foils, here enumerated, are include^
within the fame farm.

A farm,

* Red-stone land. — This fingular fpecies of foil is
compofed of loamSj of different qualities, intermixed with a
greater or lefs quantity of foft fdndy ftones, about the ordi-
nary fize of flints, and of a dark yellow or orange colour ; a
fpecies of grit, or frecftone. The cultivated foil is, in fome
jnftances, nearly half of it made up of thefe ftones j which,
fome men are of opinion, afford, in themfelves, a degree of
nutriment to corn crops. An inftance is mentioned (of
this as of other ftoney foils), in which a great quantity of
thefe ftones having been gathered off^ as an incumbrance to
the foil, its produ£tivenefs was much lowered; but the
flo.ies being returned, the foil alfo returned to its former
ftate of fertility. Be this as it may, the foil under notice is,
teyond difpute, one of the finefl; corn foils in the ifland.

+ Pebbly loam. This foil is noticed, as being the
moft u/eful foil, taken all in all, I have aivy where yet ob-
ftr\ ed. It is equally produvStiye of corfi or grafs ; may be
worked as arable land^ in any fcafon ; and is found enough,
Ingrafs^ to bear ftock in winter. I particularize thefe
foils, aS they may, hereafter, with a variety of others, form a
feparate fubjctft of inveftigation,

YORKSHIRE. 281

A farm, thus varioully foiled, is a fpur to
ingenuity ; obliging its occupier to break
through thofe confined opinions, and narrow
prejudices, which are too frequently con-
tradied, in countries where a uniformity
OF SOIL, and a regular routine of ma-
nagement, prevail.

This may account, in fome meafure, for
the spirit of improvement, fo confpi-
cuous among: the husbandmen cf the coun-»
try under furvey.

II. SUBSOILS. The feet and SIDES op
HILLS generally abound in landsfrings,
and COLD wet subsoils, caufed by the
waters, abforbed by the upper parts of the
fwells, lodjrin^ and ftrivin^ for vent, iji the
lower regions.

From the cloud of hills which rife to the
north of this Vale, it might be expedied that
fL vein of cold land would be found en its
margin ; but obfervation proves the contrary.

The waters of tlie Morelands find vent, in
tlie daks and dingles ^^'itil which tliey are
interfedled, and are entirely cut off from the
Vale, by a deep valley, which lies between
the moreland fwells, and the range of iime-
iione heights tliat form the inmiediate
Jjanks of the Vale ; while tJie heights, them-

felves.

282 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

felves, being in all human probability formed
entirely of fifTured rock, receive into their
bofoms the waters which their foils abforb,
and which fmk below their bafes, or rife in
rocky fountains at their feet.

Near Pickering, the river Costa takes
its rife ; not guihing forth, as from the mouth
of a cavern, but rifing, at nuniberlefs aper-
tures, through a filter of fand, which has pro-
bably been brought out of the fiffures of the

rock : the entire river, or rather river-like
I

brook, rifing within the compafs of a few
acres.

It is a fact worthy of attention, though
perhaps eafily to be accounted for, that a
tradt of country, containing about twenty
fquare miles, lying above this cfRu-^, has
fcarcely another spring belonging to it, nor
fcarcely a perch of springy soil upon its
furface.

The limeflone and redflone lands lie all
on ROCK, above the level of this fpring. The
pebbly loam, which lies below it, is equally
fortunate in a feam of gravel, which, tho'
it lie fome feet beneath the furface, renders
it fufficientlv dry to be worked, at all feafons,
and to carry ftock, in winter, with impunity.

Under

YORKSHIRE. aSj

Under thefe circumftances UNDER -
DRAINING is rendered ufelefs ; and no
inftance of it occurs in this neighbourhood,
except in the improved peatbog, which was
mentioned under the article Planting ;
and which Hes in the immediate vicinity of
' the fource of the Cofta ; by v/hofe waters,
before the channel of the river was made,
that bed of moor had been formed. The
wetter parts of the area received confiderablc
improvement from underdraining.

But altho' the fubftruclure of the margii^
is fuch as to preclude the ufe of underdrain-
ing, that of \hQ /wells t which rife in the bot-
tom OF THE Vale, renders this operation
frequently necelTary ; and, in fome few in-
stances, it has been pracflifed with great
fuccefs.

In the inftance which I moH; particularly
attended to, thirty acres of cold unproduiftive
land, lying on the Ikirt of one of thofe hil-
locks, was, by underdraining, improved to
more than twrice its former value. From a
l1:ate of rufhy ill grafied fward, it was raifed,
firft to a piece of prodin.'T;ive corn land, and
is, now, a found well heri)aged grazing-
ground. The ^^ATERIALS, in this c:.fe,
v.ood. No flgnes, in the neighbourhood.

In

lg4 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

In the MORELAND DALES, iinderdralning
would, in many cafes, be a valuable improve-
ment ; and, there, Jioni^s are abundant.

The ofal freajlonesy which lie an incum-
brance to the quarries of the margin, would
pay well for carriage, into the bottom of the
Val#.

III. THE RECLAIMING OF ROUGH
GROUNDS. The inclofures of commons
and WASTE lands, which have of late years
taken place, have direfted the attention of
hufbandmcn, toward the clearing and break-
ing up fuch lands, for the purpofes of agri-
culture.

I. SoDBURNiNG. The pra<ftice which
has gained the greateft eftimation is that of
SODBURNING — provinciallv, '* paring and
burning :" — a practice which is little known
in many parts of the ifland ; but which ought
to be well underflood by every hufbandman
in it.

I . P^rifiZ' The buflies and other incum-
brances of the furface being removed, the
fward is inverted, w^ith the bread plow, —
provincially, ** paring fpade," — in fods, about
a foot wide, and three feet long.

The Judgment rcquifite, in this flage of the
rrocefs, lies cliiefiy in determining the proper

THICK-

YORKSHIRE. aSs

Thickness of the fods. If they be pared
too thick, they are difficult to burn ; if too
thin, the fvvard is not effedlually deftroyed,
and the produce of afhes is too fmall. A
rough fpungy furface ought to be pared,
thicker, than one which is firm and bare of
grafs ; ani a hght fhallow foil ought to be
pared, thinner, than one which is deeper and
more tenacious. An inch may be considered
as the medium thicknefs.

The attention required, in this part of the
bufinefs, is principally to fee that men, who
work by the acre, break off the fods at pro-
per lengths, and clear them efFed:ually at
their outer edges.

The price ten to twelve flirllings an acre,
varying principally with the ffeenefs of the
foil. Roots are detrimental, but ftones are
the greateft enemies, to the paring fpade.

2. Burning. If the fods be naked, and the
feafon moift, they are *^ {<^'i,'' on-edge, to dry 5
if grafly, and the weather be fine, this labor
may, with propriety, be fparcd.

Tha method of burning is, invariably, in
fmall heaps *, a rod or Icfs afundcr, according

to

* For the greater conveniency of burning the fods, as
well as of fpreading the alhes.

2S6 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

to the quantity of fod ; but the wxy o^ form-
ing the heaps is'not fixed.

The bottom is generally made, in a round
form, about a yard in diameter, with fods
fet on-edge. Some lay, on the windward
lide of this bottom, a bough of furze, or other
kindling, with the brufh end outwird, cover*
ing it above with the grafliefl and drieft bits
of fod ; and then make up the heap, in the
form of a fmall haycock ; keeping the fods,
on the infide, as hollow as may be ; but lay-
ing them flat and clofe, on the outfide, to
keep in the heat.

The heaps, made in this manner, are
kindled, with a bough of lighted furze, — or,
which is better, a link, made of tow dipped
in tar, and wound round a fmall ftake or other
flick ; — the lighter running along the rows,
from heap to heap, fetting fire to the kind-
liner.

Others, having formed the bottom, as
above deicribed, carry up the heap, with a
chi?rmey^ in the middle ; kindling it with a
fhovclfliil of live aflics, thrown down the
chimney. When kindling materials are
fcarcc, this may be the more eligible method.

When the fods are under-dry, much flvill
is reqiiifite in forming the heap. The art

lies.

YORKSHIRE. 287

lies, chiefly, in keeping it light and hollow
within; and, whether it be made with an
eye^ or a chimney ^ in having due regard to the
windward fide. A little practice, and pro-
per attention, will readily fupply the reft.

If the heaps be made too large, at firil,
their own weight crufhes them down, and
deftroys the necefTary opennefs of the inner
fide J if too fmall, the fire, not being fuffi-
ciently confined, flies outward, and fpends
itfelf, prematurely.

The heaps well on fire, frefli fods are laid
on, from time to time, until the whole are
expended ; not more than half of them,
perhaps, being ufed in forming the original
heaps.

In " beating up" the heaps, the fredi fods
are laid upon the fide, on which the fire is
the ftrongell: ; the addition being feldom
made, until the fire begin to make its ap-
pearance, on the outer fide of the heap.

When all the frefh fods are expended, the
unburnt pieces, which Aide dov/n the fides
of the heaps and lie round their fkirts, are
laid upon the top, and the whole reduced to
aihes, or at leaft expofed to the free adion of
the fire.

t The

iW SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

The burning is principally done, by
women, by the day : fometimes the paring
and burning are let together, by the acre.
The price of burning five to fix fhillings an
acre.

3. Ajl:i:s. The mofl general n>wthod, and
that which feems to be in the befi: efleem, is
to fpread the afhes, as foon as they are cool,
or perhaps while yet warm, and to plow the
land, immediately, for the crop, with 2i palloza
furr:>iDy to prevent the aflies from being
buried too deep in the foil.

Sometimes the foil is only rice balked, or
talf plowed, — not plowed clean.

Perhaps the moH eitectual method of
mixing the afhes with th^ foil, the great
thing to be defired, v/ould be, firil, to rice-
balk, ^crofs the ridges ; and, then, to gather
them up, with a clean plowing.

This fammer has afforded me an oppor^
tunity of obfcrv'ing a fingular innovation,
in the art of fodburning.

Inllead oi the fods being dried and burnt,
and the allies fpread on the pared furface, and
plowed in, under furrow, the land, in this in-
flance, was plowed, ftnmediately, as the
paring was finiflied. the fods dried and burnt,
aad the altes fpread upon i\i? plowed furf ace,

to

YORKSHIRE. 2^9

to be harrowed in with the feed, as a top-

In executing this method, the ridges of
the lands were cleared, five or fix feet wide,
by throwing back the fods upon the fides of
the lands ; and, as the ground was plowed,
the fods were returned to nearly their former
fituation ; being thrown on, rough, over the
plowed ground. One plow took about three
women, at tenpence a day, to follow it. The
extra expence half a crown to three lliillings,*-
an acre.

The advantages propofed, by this novel
practice, are thefe : firil, that of fecuring a
burning feafon, with a degree of certainty,
and witliout the expence of '* fetting" the
fods ; which being kept hollow, underneath^
by the inequalities of the plowed furface, a
free circulation of air is admitted, and the
evil efie(5t of regrowing to the ground, en-
tirely prevented ; ' and fecondly, thofe of
mixing the allies more intimately and more
evenly Vv'ith the foil, and of preventing their
being buried too deep, by the firil plowing ;
which, in this inflance, w^as necefiarily given
very deep, the foil being of a moory nature,
and in a Hate too tender and moift to be
plowed with a Ihallow furrow ; which would
Vol, I. U not

190 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

not have laid the furface iiifficiently dry, for
turneps, — the intended crop.

Therefore, in this cafe, the management
was obvioufly judicious : and whether the
advantages of FORWARDING the drying,
and of being able to ufe the afhes as a top-
dressing, may not render the pradice gene-
rally eligible, can be afcertained by expe-
rience, only.

4. 'The time of fodburning depends upon
thtfeafon and the intended crop.

It is always unadvifeable to pare in a wet
feafon. The covering moift and feeble, and
the fods fopt with wet, fall heavy and flat to
the t^round. The grafs foon rots ; and if the
feafon continue moift, the roots will, in a
little time, regain a footing in the foil.

On the contrary, fods pared in dry weather
fall light Oil the fpade, and are kept hollow,
■ underneath, by the grafs or other covering,
which, in a dry feafon, are rigid ; bearing up
the fods from the ground -, thereby admitting
a circulation of air beneath them. By this
means, the extra expence and trouble o^fcttmg
is avoided, and the procefs of cineration ren-
dered much lefs dithcult, and irkfomc.

The CROP, therefore, ought to be, in fume
meafure, fubfervient to the season.

5. ne

YORKSHIRE. 291

^. T!he crops moft in ufe, for fodburnt lands^
are wheat, rape, turneps, big, oats.
It is feldom, however, that a paring feafon
can be got, early enough in the fpring, for
either of the latter crops ; the lafl more ef-
pecially. Big, however, is frequently fown
on burnt land, the latter end of May, or the
beginning of June, with fuccefs. Rape and
TURNEPS are the moft general crops, and
upon the whole, perhaps, are the moft eli-
gible : the month of June is a leifure time,-
and generally a good burning feafon. How-
ever, WHEAT, provided the land were fal-
lowed, and the foil and afhes mixed together,
by repeated plowings and harrowings, be-
tween the burning feafon and feedtime, does
not appear to be an ineligible crop.

There have been inftances, I am told, in
which the afhes (having been fpread in the
middle of fummer) were fuffered to be grown
over with grafs ; which being turned under
in autumn, wheat has been fown on one
plowing, with good fuccefs *.

GeneralObservations.Sodburning
appears to be one of the fources of improve-

U 2 ment,

* 1796. This is, in theory, a moft eligible practice ;
and is entitled to full attention, on breaking up old rough
grafs lands.

29« SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

mcnt, vrhich, being yet imperfedly under-
(lood, require every effort of the farmer and
the philofopher, to bring them nearer to
perfe<ftion.

At prefent, the pradlice is confined to a
few DiflTi(fls : and in thofe it is applied to
particular purpofes, only : while the prin-
cipal part of the kingdom is a flranger to its

ufes.

It does not appear to be confidered, even
in this Diftria:, as a general source of
MANURE i but, merely, as being applicable
to the red-cKflion of cIJ tough fivard.

For even here, where it has long been in
common pradice among difcerning hufband-
men, there are men who Aill fee it as a bug-
bear, too terrible to become familiar with.
The-fahe, notion of "fending the foil into the
clouds," frightens fome j while the better-
founded idea of reducing it all to afhes — by
too frequent repetition of this operation— is
a Aum-biing block to others.

Whoever will attend to the quantity of
earth in the fods, and the quantity of alhes
produced from them, will lofe his fears about
tliey3/7 being kjcned hy this operation.

Suppofmg the fod to be an inch thick ;
not more than one fourth of it, ptrhaps, is

/oil'.

YORKSHIRE. 293

foll'y and this, fo far from being reduced in
bulk, to an alarming degree, is perhaps in^
creafed in fize, by the a(flion of the fire ;
which, by leaving it, in an open porous flate,
renders it more bulky, than the fame foil,
fhook from the fods and reduced to a perfeft
ftate of drynefs only, would probably have
been.

I will not contend for the increafe, nor will
I, at prefent, admit that the foil is leJJmed, by
the operation. Different foils are atfted upon
in different ways, by fire: clay burns to
hard cinders , of the nature of brick, remaining
in the foil, unaltered by titne ; while the cin^
ders of lighter foils are more perifhable.

Thefe effeds of fodburning do not appear
to have been attended to. Its ufe in reducing
tough fward ftrikes every one ; and its effe<ft,
as a manure, in the cafes in which it is ufii-
ally applied, is here clearly underflood.

But its effe<n:, in improving the con-
texture OF strong cohesive soils, has
efcaned o-eneral notice. Yet how could art

i. o

devife an ingredient more likely to give open-
nefs, and freedom, to a clcfely textured foil,
than rough, porous, unperifliable aflies ? a
material of improvement which the foil itfelf
fuppiies, free of cofh. The immediate ac-
U 3 quifition

t94 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

quilition of manure repays the expence of
the operation. The more permanent

IMPROVEMENT of thc CONTEXTURE of the

SOIL is obtained, of courfe, without expence.

Viewed in this light, sodburning, what -
ever eiFedts it may have, on hght porous foils,
is, in all human probability, a cardinal im-
provement of foils, of a CLOSE clayey»
NATURE : and it appears to me a matter
incumbent, on every pofTeflbr of fuch foils,
to try, on a fmall fcale at leaf!:, the effedt of
a FRECtpENT repetition ofthis Operation.

2. Furze grounds. It is the opinion
of one, who has paid clofe attention to the
fubjecft, that old furze grounds y off which
fuel having been repeatedly carried, are of
courfe much depauperated, may be improved
in the following manner.

Grub up ; fow grafs feeds, on the grubbed
furface, without plowing ; and let the land
remain in thib fl:ate, until it has acquired a
degree of firmnefs, the fmaller roots left in it
are decayed, and the furface has got a co-
vering. Then fodburn, lime, &c. and break
up tiie foil, for a courfe of arable crops ;
clofing with cultivated herbage. When the
furzes begin again to grow troublefome, re-
peat the fodburning.

3. Woo Do

YORKSHIRE. 295

3. Woodlands. The lame inventive
hufbandman has flruck out a limple and cer-
tain method of freeing grafs land from the
SLOETHORN, — onc of the hardied: JJjrubs
which hulbandry has to contend with.

If black thorns be grubbed up by the roots,
every fibril, left in the foil, produces a frefh
plant ; fo that, inftead of being lelTened, by
this tedious and expenfive operation, their
number is encreafed.

If they be fellcdy abovegrcund, the ftubs are
in the way of the fithe, and the bite of cattle;
and the thicket is prefently renewed.

But if they be cut off level with
THE SURFACE (or fomewhat beneath it),
the lithe has free fweep, and the young
fiioots are of courfe removed, with eafe and
certainty.

If the CTOund be mowTi for hav, the fame
ftroke, which cuts the herbage, takes off the
li2:neous fhoots.

If paftured, cattle and fheep, provided they
have no ivoodland left to brouze am.ong, will
gnaw them to the quick ; fcarcely leaving a
ftem or a ftump remaining. It is, however,
always advifeable, in this cafe, to fweep the
ground over with the lithe, in the courfe of
the fummer feafon ; to remove, effe(flually,

U 4 the

296 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

the remains which may have efcaped the
bite of the pafniring ftock.

The lecond year, the P:oots rile weak ;
and the rcQtSy thcmfelves, feldom furvive the
third year. In a very few years more, the
roots are found entirely rotten i thus be-
comiiig a fource of nutriinent to the crop,
inAead of remaining a nuifance.

If a thicket, or a border, whofe fuiard is
nearly loft, be treated in this manner, rubbifh
of every kind fhould be raked cfT, a few
GRASS SEEDS fcattcred on, and the furface
run over with a, roller, as a preparation for
the fithe.

This niode of extirpation is not applicable
to 'the SLOETHORN, only; but to the oak,
the ASH, the hawthorn, the maple, and
every other tree and flirub, to which it has
been applied, — the furze and the bramble
excepted.

Gen. Observations on Reclaiming
Forest Lands. It is, I believe, a uni-r
verfal prad:ice, when woodland is given up
to husbandry, to take up all the rcots^
large or fmall, at an expence, perhaps, equal
to half the value of the land ; which, i;i this
cafe, is fubje£ted immediately to the plo'x :
altogether, the mofl rugged operation, which
hufbandry is acquainted with.

But

YORKSHIRE. 297

But how much more eligible would it be,
to treat fuch land, in the manner above de-
fcribed? keeping it in a Rate of grass, un-
til the roots were decayed, and rendered obe-
dient to the fhare.

Tlie Ihms of money (one might fay the
fortunes), which have lately been expended,
in the improvement of Enfield Chace,
are too well known ; and will, it is to be
feared, throw a damp on the further improve-^
ment of the F.OYAL WASTES : a concern
of Ibme importance to thefe kingdoms.

But how eaiily, and with what certainty,
m.ight thefe waftes be improved? The wood,
upon mofl of them, is doubly fufncient to
make the neceffary improvement.

Take down the timber trees, and n\t
POLLARDS, by grub -felling, in the Norfolk
manner: remove fuch of the larger roots
as will pay amply for removing -, and fill up
the holes, with the cores of ant-hill, or other
protuberances, with which thefe wailes gene-
rally abound ; fovving grafs feeds on the
furface.

Treat the underwood, and other brush
WOOD in the manner above defcribed ; and
reduce the whole to a {late of grass ^ keep-
ing it carefully fwept with the lithe, until

the

298 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

the REMAINING ROOTS be SUFFICIENTLY
DECAYED.

Then, but not before, bring the foil under

a COUrfe of ARABLE MANAGEMENT.

The fencing, the caftration of ant-hills *,
and perhaps doing away a few other rough-
nelles, would be the only labor requifite,
which would not more than repay itfelf -f-.

The ROOTS, inllead of being a principal
caufe of EXPENCE and anxiety, would,
under this management, become a fource of
improvement of the soil ; while the
EXPENCE, of bringing the foil under a courfe
of arable management, would be in a
manner precluded, by having a free graffy
furface, fuitable to the purpofe of sod-

BURNING.

^his townlliip (part of the ancient forel't
of Pickering) affords at prefent (Augufl
1787) numberlefs inflances of the great

UTILITYof SODBURNING MAIDEN SV.'ARD.

In adjoining allotments (fee the Art. In-
closures) without a fhade of difference, as
to foil or fituation, the crop, after fodburning,
is, in fome indd^nctSyfourJoIJ that of the crop,

fown

• See NoRF. Econ. Min. 50.

f If DRAiKiNG be found rcquinte, how fuitable is die
oppc»rtunity, while land remains in grafs.

YORKSHIRE. 299

fown on one plowing of the natural Avard ;
and this notwithflanding the favorableneis
of the prefent fummer, towards the latter
procefs. Had the feafon proved di-y^ oats
fown on one plowing of the tbhiner foils ^ mufl
have periflied ; or, at beft, muft have re-
mained in a dwarfifh unharveflable flate.
There are oats, even this year, not fix inches
high ; and others, too weak and ftraggling to
ripen as a crop, have been fwept down with
the iithe, and raked together, as fodder.

It is obfervable, however, that, on the
deeper' foils, there are, this year, fome fine
crops of oats, on the natural fward.

The caufe of this difparity, between the
produce of deep and fhallow foils, is obvious.
The furface of foils which have remained,
from century to century, in a flate of sward,
is, in a manner wholly, occupied by the roots
of grades and other plants; forming a tough
mat of fibres ; reaching, in fome cafes, feveral
inches deep ; efpecially over a cold moift
fubfoil ; where the fedgy tribe are frequently
in full poiTeffion.

If the SOIL be thin, it is 'wholly occupied
by roots : the plits, or plow flices, aiFord no
loofe mold, for covering the feed ; which
either lies expo fed on the furface, or falls

through

joo SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

through the feams, uporx an infertile fabfoil,
. and among grafs, flill perhaps in a growing
ftate. The few grains, which happen to get
buried in the mold, flourlih, while their own
fubftance la/ts ; but the kernel once ex-
haufled, the rootlings look out, in vain, for
other furtenance -, the foil is already occu-
pied, by veteran roots, too powerful for the
infant fibrils to contend with.

But, if the SOIL be deeper than the
SWARD, the feeds get properly covered, and
the young plants have frefh mold to ftrike
root in ; and to fupport them, until the fward
die, decay, and afford nouriiliment to the
rifing crop.

The USES OF ^OBBURNiNG 3 t/j!c/:-/hc'arM
foilsy are thofe of effedtually killing thcjivard-,
doing away the toughnejs of the plits, and
furnifhing, in the afhes, a fupply of accept-
able/>^Z'z////w to the infant plants.

Out of this flatement of effects refult thefc
general conclufions.

Rich, deep soils, tliough covered with
old fward, may be fbwn with corn, on one

PLOV/ING.

It is reafonable, however, that this plow-
ing (hould be given, fome time before the
ic.^^ be fown ; for the double purpofe of ex-
poling

YORKSHIRE. 301

pofing the inverted plow flices to the me-
lioratino^ influence of the fun and air, from
which they may have long been eftranged ;

and of FORWARDING THE DIGESTION OF
THE SWARD.

It is likewife obfervable, that, in this cafe,
a DOUBLE PLOWING (burying the fod at the
bottom of the furrow) is obvioufly preferable
to a fingle one.

But SHALLOW, LESS FERTILE SOILS will

not bear this treatment : they require either
to be soDBURNT, or FALLOV.'ED, to rcducc
the fward and meliorate the foil.

But fallowing is expenfive, lofes, imnecef^

farilyy one year's crop, and does not change

the texture of cohesive soilj to which,

whether deep or ihallow, fodburning appears

to be lingularly well adapted.

The length of thefe reflexions will, I tniil:,
find an excufe, in the magnitude of the fub-
jeft which gives rife to them. The ROYAL
FORESTS, and numbcrlefs PAROCHUL
WASTES, afford at prcfent little benefit to
the community; but are capable of affording
great national advantage. To endeavour to
forward their improvement, by pointing out
the eaiieil method of accomplifhing it, is,
therefore, the duty of every man, whofe

experience

joa SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

experience has led him to refledions on the
fubjea.

Improvements, thus condmfled, would be
progrefiive and pkalurable -, requiring- no
cxtraordlnar)' ihare, either of attention or
capital.

IV. TILLAGE. In a country in which
Grass land is the primary object, ex-
cellency in the minutia? of the arable
PROCESSES mult not be expected : never-
thelefs, where the invention is let Ijofe, and
a fpirit of improvement prevails, we may hope
to find fome special matter worthy of
notice.

The only particulars, which appear to me
noticeable, in this place; are,

1 . Plowing with reins,

2. Laying lands acrofs flopes.

I. Plowing with Reins. In this re-
fpe6t, the hiifhandmen of the Vale excel.
Various as are their foils, they plow them,
invariably, with two horses, driven and
guided with reins ; which at once anfwer
the purpofe oi guiding and lirii'itig : thus far
exceeding the kfs handy line, aiid the hand
\vh;p of Norfolk * !

Proper

♦ Sec Norfolk-, Seclion iMrLEMENTs.

YORKSHIRE. ^-3

Proper feafom for the operation are en-
deavored to be caught \ but, even with this
advantage, it is matter of aftoniihment, how
fome of their ftrong deep foils are turned,
by a pair of light llender horfes ; which, in
a balance, would barely outweigh one of the
four (or perhaps lix) which are ufed upon
the hills of Surrey and Kent, in plowing foils
of lefs tenacitv^ !

In Norfolk, the foil i? light, and the great
merit of the Norfolk huibandmen lies in
their expedition. Here, where the cufiom
is to go only one journey y the quantity plowed,
in a day, is much lefs than in Norfolk ; but
generally more, even in the ftronger foils,
than is done by two men and four expeniive
horfes, in many other places.

It has been a generally received idea, even
among men who think liberally, and are in-
clined to think well of the pra^flice of plow-
ing with a pair of horfes, that it is only appli-
cable to light THIN SOILS. Buttheeftab-
liihed hulbandry of this country proves that
idea to be erroneous.

It ftrikes me, however, advocate as I am
for the pradice, that, in fome cafes, efpecially
where the foil is dee? and tenler, three
horfes, at len^ih, would be preferable.

But

3C4 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

Bjt the plea held out againft thi"; manage-
ment is, " We cannot afford it" ! The truth
15, land here has got up to the two-kohse-
PLOw PRICE ; and tenants feem to be aware,
that they cannot pay their rents, if they fend
more than two horfes and one man to plow.
\^'hat a flrong recommendation is this of the
pradiice.

2. Laying lands across the slopes
CF HILLS. The general practice, unlefs
where the tumwreft plow is in ufe. Is to plow
the fides of hills, up-and-do^Lvn, laying the
lands parallel with die line of defcent, not
obliquely acrofs it *.

Where the subsoil is alforberfy this is
perhaps the mofl eligible method ; the rain-
water which falls on the land being, by this
means, efie<^ually prevented from making its
efcape, off the fide of the hili. For, unlefs
rA/^rv be raifed very high, the water, in this
cafe, has no propenfity toward the furrows,
on either fide ; its tendency, when the lands
lie fiat, being down lines lying parallel be-
tween them : confequently, the rain w^tef,
which falls upon them., m.ay run from the
top to the bottom of the hill, without finding

its

♦ But \ct the West of Ekgland; — Se£^ion V/heat.

YORKSHIRE, 305

its way into the mterfurrows ; which, in this
cafe, are rendered entirely ufelefs; as sur-
face DRAINS.

This circumftance renders the commori
method of plowing the fides of hills alto-
gether ineligible, where the subsoil is cold
and retentive 'y and where the surface
WATER is of courfe required to be got rid
of, the quickeji -ssA poortefi way.

To this end, the lands are thrown across
THE SLOPE, nearly parallel with the horizon,
merely giving fufficient defcent, for water to
find its way along the interfurrows.

TJie EFFECT of laying the lands in this
dire(5tion is evident : the rain water, which
falls upon them, has never farther to run,
than the width of the bed it falls on ; (even
fuppofing it to fall on the upper edge) for fo
foon as it is caught by an interfuri-ow> the
vegetable pafture is relieved from it.

Hence, the narrower the lands, provided
the interfurrows be fufficiently deep, the
more immediate the efFedl.

The only inconvenien c y, of laying lands
acrofs the llope > is that of having the plitSy on
the lower fides of the lands, to turn againjl
the hill ; an operation which requires a good
workman to do it properly.

Vol. I. X BiJt

o

06 SOILS AND MANAGEMENT.

But there is an advantage, in this me-
thod, which more than overbalances that in-
con veniency. The PULL is always upon,
or nearly upon, level ground; whereas,
in the common direcflion of the lands, the
uphill pull is intolerable to the bealts of
draught, efpecially to horfes ; which, through
fear or impatience, draw by jerks, eager to
reach the top of the hill ; thereby fatiguing
themfelves and the plowman, unnecelTarily,
and rendering the work defedlive.

The good effe(ft of laying lands acrofs
flopes, is not only plauiible, in theor)^, but is
verified, by pradtice. I have feenan inftance,
in which land, which had heretofore been
cold and poachy, improved, merely by chang-
ing the direction of the ridges, to drv,
SOUND, PRODUCT I VE'foil, worth nearly twice
the rent, it was, before this fimple alteration
took place.

MANURE^

YORKSHIRE. 307

MANURES

AND THEIR

MANAGEMENT:

THE SPECIES OF MANURE that are
ufed in the Diftri(ft are^

1. Afhes. 3. Lime.

2. Marl. 4. Dung.

I. ASHES are ufed, chiefly, in the more-
lands, where great quantities of turf and
peat are burnt upon the hearth, for the double
purpofe of FUEL and manure ; the afhes
being confidered, as equivalent to the expence
of colledling the materials.

II. MARL. This is not found, in quan-
tity, as afojjtly either in the Vale or the More-
lands. The only marl, which has been ufed
as a manure, is a produce of petrifaSfion,
This marl, and the fountain from whence it
flows, are noticeable.

X 2 The

3o8 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

The waters of " Newton-dale-well"
have long been celebrated, for their virtues in
cold-bathing ; and, for ftrengthening the
limbs of children, they are, I believe, cele-
brated juftly. An anniverfiry, relative to
thefe waters, has been obfcrved, time imme-
morial j and is ftill obferved, by the neigh-
bouring youth, who meet at this fpring, upon
fome certain Sunday in the fummer months,
to bathe ; and — a poetic mind would add, —
to celebrate the virtues of the water.

The iilli^tion of this fpring is lingularly
wild and romantic : the country, on every
lide, mountainous and barren, excepting the
narrow dale, or cultivated chafm, near the
head of which the fpring is fituated.

At the time thefe mountains and this chafin
we're formed, the water, it is probable, gudisd
out of the face of a perpendicular rock,
which now rifes about eighty feet above
the fpring j but, through the mouldering
of the rock, and the accumulative effect of
the waters, the bafe of the precipice, out
of which they iffue, now reaches, with a fliarp
afcent, to near the mouth of the fpring.

The upper part of the flope, at leaft, has
evidently been raifed, by vegetation and
PETRIFACTION. Had not the hand of art

been

YORKSHIRE. 309

been alTiiling in removing, from time to time,
the accumulated matter, in the form of
" m^rl" and " iimeftone," and in leading the
water by a channel from the rock, the fpring
might, long lince, by overgrowing its mouth,
have been the caufe of its own extinction.

Thefe waters, at their fource, are remark-
ably cold, and ftrongly chalyeeate to the
talte, tinging their bed of a deep ruft co-
lor ; but, as they fall down the bafe of the
hill, they lofe, by degrees, their chalybeate
qualities i lofing them, entirely, before they
reach the foot of the Hope.

What is equally obfervable, their Petri-
F ACTIVE qtiality is, at the fource, barely per- -
ceptible, and does not acquire its full eite(ft,
until they have run fome twenty or thirty
yards down the Hope ; about which point,
they lofe, almoll entirely, their chalybeate
t^^le ; :hough they Hill continue to ti/2ge the
channel ; the color growing fainter, as the
length of channel increafes *.

Where tiie rill meets witli no vegetable
matter, to petriiy (or rather to mcruji)y it

X 3 forms

* This fpring, which is at Icall an obje»5l of curioiky,
and whofe waters may contain medical virtues which re-
quire to be pointed oat, is fituatcd about two miles from
S^ihergait-inn^ on the road between PicKERixG and
Whitby.

3IO MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

forms an incrustation, at the bottom of
its channel ; which, in time, being filled to
the brim, the waters overflow, fpread over
the flope, and incruft every thing which falls
in their way i until having found fome hol-
low channel (or perhaps in a ftate of nature
having reached the face of the rock), they
form a frefh rill ; which bein? annihilated,
in the fame manner, the waters proceed, and
return, along the face of the Hope ; thus
forming, in an undiilurbed ftate, a natural
femircon?.

Where the fjrface has been free from mofs,
or other vegetable production, the accumu-
lated matter is wholly calcareous i of
a light colour, re;cmbling the marl op
Norfolk ; except in its being difcoloured,
more or lefs, with a chalybeat tinge. Where
mofs, liverwort, and other vegetables have
been incrurted, a stoke-likz substance
is formed : the former is called " m.arl,"—
the latter " ftone."

At prefent, the face of the flope is hol-
lowed out, into great irregularity, by digging
for, and carrjnng away the marl -^ leaving
maffes of Jioney fome of them containing
many cubical feet, ftandin^ above the pre-?
fcnt furiace.

Thefc

YORKSHIRE. 311

Thefe ftones, though light, being full of
hollowneiTes within — mere bundles of mofs
and algse — have, by being long expofed on
the furface, acquired a very great degree of
hardnefs ; their fmalleft afperities being with
difficulty broken off.

By immerging the fragments in the marine
acid, weakly diluted, the calcareous incruft-
ation is leifurely diffolved ; leaving the vege-
table matter, entire, and, to appearance, as
perfect as when it was firfl incruHed -, tho'
it may have lain, locked up In that ilate, a
thoufand, or many thoufand years.

Thefe ijegetable Jiones, likewife, have been
carried away, and burnt as limestone.
The quantity of lime^ however, produced
from them could not be great; but mixed
with the ajhes of the vegetables, a valuable
manure may neverthelefs be formed.

In a iituation fo reclufe, it is no wonder
this valuable fource o{ manure fhould have
/been, in fome degree, neglected. The bot-
tom of the dale which winds below it, does
not appear to have been much benefited,
either by the waters, themfelves, or the mat-
ter which they have formed. The principal
part, of that which has been taken away, has
been carried, up a winding road, over the top

X 4 of

312 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

of the mountain, to a neighbouring dale
(Goadland) fome three or four miles diftant.
Over and above the dilTiculty and expence
of carriage, a fhilling a load has been paid, to
the ielTee of the royalty, for thefe calcareous
fubftances ; not for the purpofe of experi-
ment, but in purfuance of eftabliflied prac-
tice ; a fufficient evidence, this, of their vir-
tue as a MANURE.

III. LIME. This is, at prefcnt, a fa-
vorite Manure, in the Vale. It is ufed in-
variably, I believe, on every fpecies of foil,
and in mojl cafes with great fuccefs. It feems
to be, at prcfent, a received idea, that the
bulinefs of aration could not be carried on,
or at leaft that the prefent rents of land could
not be paid, without ihe afliftance of lime.

It is not my intention to attempt to prove,
or difprove, the truth of this opinion. Suffice
it for me to fay, in this place, that I am not
acquainted with any country, in which lime
is held in fuch high repute, nor where the
man ufacflu ring of it is fo common a pracftice
among farmers, as it is in this. Almofi:
every principal farnur, upon the margin,
burns his own lime.

There are, befides, i^reat number of " fale
kilns'' for linailer farmers, and for the centre

of

YORKSHIRE. ^ 313

of the Vale, where no materials for burning
are to be had. There is an infiarxe^of one
man occupying eight or ten kilns 5 burning
two or three thoufand chaldrons, yearly.

The LIME HUSBANDRY of thi^ Diftri£t,
therefore, merits particular notice. The
fubjedl requires the following divificn :

1 . The materials burnt.

2. The method of burning.

3. The coft, and the felling price, v

4. The foils, and the crops to which it

is applied.

5. The method of applying.

I. Materials. On the Northern
MARGIN of the Vale, lime is burnt folely
from Jiojiesy of different colours and con-
textures. The fpecies mod prevalent are—
a ftrong grey LIMESTONE GRANITE ; and a
fpecies of blue and white marble, the
blocks, whether large or fmall, being blue at
the core, and lighter-coloured toward the
outer furface.

One hundred grains of the former, taken
from a lower ftratum of Pickering-
Castle-bank, yield fortythree grains of
air, and ninetyfour grains of calcareous earth,
leaving a reiiduum of fix grains ; chiefly a
brown flit, with a few gy pfum-like fragments.

One

314 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

One hundred grains of the latter, taken
from the lower ftratum of a quarry, near
KiRBYMooRsiDE, afFord thirtvnine grains
of air, eightynx and a half grains of diflb-
luble matte" ; and thirteen and a half grains
of refiduum, fine impalpable nit.

The lime, produced from the former, is of
a dulT^y colour, and fills in rough coarfe
GRAINS * ; that, of the latter, burfls into a
white volatile flour-like powder.

The ftones of different quarries are dif-
ferent in quality, but none of them differ
widely from the fpecimens above defcribed.

On the SOUTHERN heights, the pre-
vailing material is a lingular fpecies of soft
c A L c A R E o us G R A N I T E . Its colour a dirty
white : its contexture refembling the grains
of white muftard-feed, or the roe of fifh, run
together with a cement of chalk or marl -f-.
The hardnefs of this Jlone (if it merit the
name) increafes with the depth of the quarr)'.
The lower bloc!:s are ufed in building; but
the upper ftratum, for three or four feet
below the foil, is generally a stone marl

of

* Each grain being compofcd of a ferics of eggfltiped
Ihslls, inclcfed wi'Jiin each other.

t Rsf-iribii;:^, in contexture, the lime of th: Pickerln?
ilone.

YORKSHIRE. 315

of no mean quality, but varies in different
quarries. I have not learnt, hov/ever, that
in any inftance it has been applied as a ma-
nure. On the contrary, it appears to be ,
univerfally caft, as an incumbrance, to the
bottom of the quarry *.

One hundred grains of the Malton
Stone, taken from the middle of the quarry
oppolite the Lodge at New Malton, yield
fortyfour grains of air, and ninetyfeven grains
of calcareous earth, leaving three grains of
feiiduum, chiefly a brown iilt.

But the ftones of different quarries vary
in quality. One hundred grains, taken from
a newly opened quarry, by the fide of the

road

* On this fide of the Vale, too, the limeftone rubble
which lies between the foil and the rock, is much of it of
the nature of marl, and might in many cafes be applied,
as fuch, with advantage. Its efFe^, where it has been
thrown "back from the edges of the quarries on Scallow-
moor (a light loam inclining to a black, mocry foil) above
Pickering, is ftriking. The earth of this rubble is fcrongly
calcareous, and its ftones are frequently covered with a
white efflorefcence, which is purely calcareou&v Great
quantities of it might be collected ; and where a fit foil can
jse found (by trying experiments with it on a fmail fcale)
in the neighbourh:;od of a quarry, it would, in all proba-
bility, pay amply for fetting on. For the bottoming of
farm.yards and dunghilh, the entire " coping," the foil in-
clufive^ would be found exceUe;;t,

3i6 MANURES AND xMANAGE^IENT.

road leading from Malton to Callle Howard,
yield only ninetyfour grains of dili'olublc
matter.

I mention this circumftancc, as the plot of
ground, in which this quarry is dug, was
bought, it feems, at an extravagant price, for
the purpofe of burning lime; but the lime,
it isjaidy proving of an inferior quality, a prin-
cipal part of the money will be funk. This
{hews the great ufe of analyfis, in afcertain-
ing, without hazard, a knowledge of the
qualities of limeftones*.

One hundred grains of Wold chalk, '

taken from a lime quarry near Driffield,

yield fortyfour grains of air ; three and a half

grains of a foft mucilaginous refiduum; and

iiinetyfix and a half grjiins of calcareous

matter •\.

2. Burning,

* In this cafe, however, if the fpeclmen, I happened to
take, was a fair one, the bad quality of the lime cannot be
altogether owing to the ftone ; v/hich, by this analyfis, is
far from being a bad one, though iiiferior to that of the pre-
ceding experiment.

f In tliefe experiments the quantity of calcareous
MATTER is inferred from the quantity of residuum, no
more of it being precipitated, than a fufRciency to fhcw its
(olour ; which, in every Cafe, was of pivwy "ivhitenefi ; a
principal evidence of its being a pure calcareous earth,
The quantity of air and the quanJty of residuum were,
in each rxpe: imcnt, cloielj attended, to.

YORKSHIRE. 317

2. Burning. In giving the detail of this
operation, the following fubdivifions will be
reqiiifite :

1 . Building the kiln.

2. Railing and breaking the flones.

3. Coals and their proportion.

4. Filling the kiln.

5. Drawing the kiln.

I . l^he kiln. The materials are either lime-
flone, entirely, or limeftone, lined with bricks
on the infide. Neither timber, nor mortar,
is here ufed, in building a lime kiln; the
former prefently decays, and the latter, by
alternately fwelling and flirinking, burfls the
walls; befides rendering them, in the firil
inflance, too tight to admit a proper quantity
of air : no otlier air holes, than the " eyes"
at which they are kindled, being made in the
kilns of this diftrict '^ .

T\\&form of the cavity is an irregular cone
inverted. At the botton?, are generally twu
eyes, oppolite to each other ; the cavity be-
ing here contraded to a thin point, or Jiarrov.*-
trough; the width that of the eyes. As the
walls are carried up, the cavity takes, by de-
grees,

* 1796. In fome DIftriils, where tight walls are in ufe,
fmall air holes are left to give the rcquifitc fupply. Sec
Mid. Econ. Min. 2.

3i8 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

grecs, a circular, or fometimes an oiWline;
at the fame time receiving, as it rifes, a cO'
nical form j until, having reached fomewhat
more than Iialf its intended height, the form
is changed to cylindrical -, or is fometimes
confra^edxo\H2iTAs the top. The proportion,
between the depths and the diameters of
thefe kilns, is that of the depth j being, gene-
rally, about one and a half diameter of the
top.

The /ize varies from fix to fortv chaldrons.

2. Tbejlones. Tlie art of raifing ftones
Cin only be learned by experience, in the
given quarr)^ in which they are to be raifed.
They are fometimes raifed by the day ; fome-
times by the load ; but, moil generally, the
cndre hbcr of burning is taken, together,
at fo much a chaldron of lirr.e.

The breaking, of hard ftrong floncs, is a la-
borious part of the operation of limcburning.
On the north £de of the Vale, it is done, by
men, with large iledgc hammers ; but, on the
Malton iide, where the flone is foft, women
are freq'jently employed in breaking.

The medium //2;t' is that of the two hand?;
but men, burning by the chaldron, will not,
unlefs well attended to, break them fo fmall :
flones, r.early as big as the head, are fom.e-

times.

YORKSHIRE. 319

times, but very improperly, thrown Into the
kiln; for unlefs the proportion of coals be
unnecelTarily large, the farface, only, is burnt
to lime, the core remaining a lump of un-
burnt Hone.

3. Coals. The Morelands, for the lafl fifty
years, have furniflied the north fide of the
Vale with coals, for burning lime, and for an
inferior fpecies of fuel. The feam of this
coal is thin, and the quality, in general, very
ordinary.

Before the difcover)^ of thefe coals, lime
was burnt with furze, and other brufhwood;
but notwithftanding the Morelands are, now,
nearly exhaufted of coals (unlefs feme freili
difcovery fliould be made), the Diftrid: is
relieved from the apprehenfion of returning,
again, to its ancient m.ode of burning lime.
The Derwent, befide an ample fupply of
coals for fuel, brings an inferior kind (both
of them raifed in Weft Yorklhire) for the
purpofe of limeburning. The eaftern end
of the Vale is eauallv fortunate, in this re-
fpe6t, by having the port of Scarborough in
its neighbourhood. And fee Inl.Nav. p. 15.

The proportion o£ coals and ftones varies
with the quality of the coals, and likewife,
but in a lefs degree, with the quality of the

llonc :

320 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

ftone: the method of burning, too, varies
the proportion. Three chaldron: of lime front
one of coals (the meafures equal) may be con-
fidered as the mean produce. From two and
a half to three and a half for one, includes
the whole extent of produce of well burnt
lime.

4. Filling. Some kindling being ufed at
the eyes, and an extraordinary proportion of
coals at the bottom of the kiln, it is filled up
with flones and coals, in thin alternate layers ;
thofe of ftones being five or fix inches thick ;
with coals in proportion; the coals, if not
fjfficiently fmall, being previoully reduced to
a gravel-like ftate ; in order to run down,
more freely, between the interfiices of the
ftones, and thereby to mix, more evenly,
with them.

The ^materials are cafl into the kiln, with
larcre fcuttles, or (hallow balkets j which are
filled with rtones, by means of an iron-tooth-
ed rake, compofed of four teeth, about fix
inches long, of a head about a foot long, and
of a handle about four feet long.

If feveral men be employed, in filling a
kiln, it is common for eaclV man to fill and
empty hisi own fcuttle. But this is an uncer-
tain, and therefore an improper, way of pro-
ceeding.

YORKSHIRE. pt

ceeding. Much depends on the regularity
and evennefs of the layer, and the due pro-
portion of coals i and to judge of this, with
fufficient accuracy, requires fome experience^
and a (leady eye ; efpecially when the kiln is
on fire, and the cavity to be filled up is ob^
fcured by fmoke. If mofe than one perfon
be employed, in this cafe, it is highly pro-
bable the work will be impeffe<ftly done*

Among the fale kilns, about Malton^ there
is an excellent regulation, in this refpedti
The fcuttles are all filled, and brought to the
top of the kiln, by WoMfiN and boys, who
deliver them to the master, or his foreman,
jftanding there to receive them, wit/j his eye
Jixt within the kiln j by which means he is
enabled to diftribute the ftones and coals,
with the greateft accuracy*

5. Drawing, There are two fpecieS o(
kilns ; or rather one fpecies ufed in two dif-
ferent ways.

A kiln which is filled, fired, and fuffered
to burn out, before any of its contents be
drawn^ is called a " standing kiln."

If the contents be drawn out, at the bot-
tom, while the upper part is yet on fire,—
the vacancy at the top being repeatedly filled
up with flgne and coal, as the, lime is ex-
YoL. I. Y traded

jn MANURES AND MANAGEMENT,
trailed at the bottom,— the kiln is termed »

** DRAW KILN."

Since coals have been ufed in the burning
of lime, draw kilns have, until of late years,
been moft prevalent. But, at prefent, (land-
ing kilns are molt in ufe.

The reafons given, for this change of prac-
tfce, are thefe : firll, tliat the lime is burnt,
fvener, in landing than in dravi^ kilns ; in the
^rawing of which, the flones are liable to
hang, round the fides of the kiln -, thofe in
the middle running down^ in the form of a
tunnel j thereby mixing the raw with the
half-burnt ftones. The confequence is, the
outfide ftones are burnt too much, the infide
ones too little ; the ftones, too frequently,
running down to tht eye, in a half-burnt
flate; Secondly, the unevennefs of furface,
left by this method, together wi;h the obfcu-
rity caufed by the fmoke, render the filling
difficult i under-burnt ftones, or an unnecef-
fary wafle of coals, is tlite inevitable confe-^
quence^ A third argument in favor of
ftanding kilns is, that a grtaier proportion of
well burnt lime may be produced, from the
fame quantity ©f coals. It is allowed that
more kindling fuel is rcquifite ; and, at the
-bottom, a greater proportion of coals j but

the

YORKSHIRE. 323

the iire, by this means, getting a ilrong head^
a lefs proportion of coals is required, in the
body of the kjhi j and what, perhaps, is of ftill
more confequence, lefs heat is4oft at the top
of this j than of the draw kiln; which is al-
ways uncovered, and too frequently hollow
and full of cracks ; while the top of the ftand-
ing kiln, being piled up in a conical forpi,
and clofcly covered with fods or rubbifh,
cOUedtS a greater body of lire, and keeps int
the heat more effed:ually.

One circumftance, however, relative to
the landing kiln, requires to be mentioned.
The in fide fhould be lin^d with brick. For
every time a kiln, which is lined with lime-
flone, is fuftefed to go out, a fhell of lime
peels off the infide ; by which means the
tv^alls are foon imoaired.

The lime is drawn out at the " eyes,"
with a {hovel, and generally carried out in
fcuttles, or in bafket meafures, to the cart or
wa»o;on.

Of a living kiln, the drawing is generally
continued, until red afhes begin to make
their appearance. But ftanding kilns are
fuffered to burn undiflurbed, until the fire go
out ; except, perhaps, when the fire is rifin|{
toward the top, and a frefh fupply of air is
y 2 wanted.

3:4 MANURES AND MANAGEMLN'T.

wanted, a few rtiovelfulls are drawn at either
eye, by which means a degree of hollowneft
is formed, and fredi vigour given to the fire.

From thefe circumftances, it is plain, that
a regular fupply of Hme cannot be had, from
lefs than three ftanding kilns : one filling ;
one burning; one drawing. The fmaller
barners, however, have frequently only two ;
and, for a farmer, one, propoaioned to his
farm, is fufficient *.

3. Cost and Price. The ordinary wages
for the whole labor of raifing, breaking,
filiino", and drawing, is i8d. to 2cd. 2 chal-
dron.

At Maltok, the lab'cr, if taken by the
<rrofs, is about i8d. The price of " lime-

kiLi

♦ About Brotberton and Nottingley, near FerRY-
SK.IDCE, from wherxe i-nmeme quantities of lime arc irnt,
:o dlftint parts of the Vale of Yorlc j particularly toward
EafmgMTOod ; A& kilns are rerr JhilUw and v:ide ; the
core of materials p.icd above the furface, being, to .ij>-
peanuKc, equal to chc contents of the kiln. This renders
the emptying of the kiin very ealy; the lime being all
throvra from the furfcce, or through a kind of door-way in
the fide; not drawn otit o.' the eyes; T-hich are in thrs
cafe, of no other ufe than to kindle at, arid to admit a fup-
ply of air. Thofc kilns are much lefs expcnfive than the
kilas of ton Diilri^a ; and more convenient. But query,
Do they give as much heat, with the Cime quantin-' of
coils, as a taller more cylindrical kiln ?

YORKSHIRE. 315

kiln" coals, with carriage from the keels to
the kiln, about 148. a chaldron (of thirtytwo
buihels) th^ produce f better than three for one.
The whole coji about 6s. ^t felling f rice 'ys*
a chaldron.

At Pickering, the /aSor is 2cd. a chal-
dron: the price of " moor coals" and car*..
riage i6s. of ** Malton coals" and carriage,
J 8s. The produce, if fufticiently burnt, f/jree
for one. The mean cofi is therefore about
7s. 6ci the felling price 8s. a chaldron. The
building and repair of kilns ; the wear of
tools ; the value of the ilone in the quarry ;
and, in fome cafes, the carriage of it from
thence to the kiln, are drawbacks upon the
profits, which appear in the above calcula-
tions. If therefore the ftones be fufficiently
burnt, the neat profit is, in this cafe, very
fmall *.

Y 3 4. Appli..

* Nothing, perhaps, would encreaie the profits of lime-
burning, in thli place, more, than the kiln being filled by
the hand of the mafter, or fome judicious perfon, not ln«
t^refted in a wafle of coals. It is the intereft of men, who
burn by the cluUdron, to underbreak the ftones, and to
make up the deficiency of labor with an increafe of coals;
which, likewife, will make up for neglect, or want of
judgment, in filling. Let the ftones be raifed and broken
by the chaldron, or the kihn j but let the filling be done by

women

326 MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

4. Application. It has already been
bbfcrved, that lime is applied, indifcrhni-
nately, to every fpecies of soil.

On the higher drier lands, its utility is
evidenX.

At Malton, it is laid on a calcareous fitU
"i^ith fuccefs.

In a comparative experiment, fairly and
accurately j-pade, on a rcdjlonc fi'tl above
l*ickering, with three chaldron of lirhe an
acre j the value of the lime, to the firfl crop,
wheat, was not lefs than two quarters, an
acre, and the fucceeding crop qf oats, (which
flow are upon the ground, Aug. 1787.) is a
il-ill ftronger evidence of the great utility of
lime, in form cafes : in tnis cafe, the crop is at
leaft threefold.

Neverthelefs, it may be prudent in the
occupiers of the cold molfl clays y in the bottom
of the Vale, to lime v.-ith caution.

Its ufe to the loofefandy foils of the Wed

Marlhes is, I believe, fully eftablifhed ; yet,

in a comparative experiment on a black moory

foily on clay, its effed has thus far (the third

crop) been detrimental^ rather than ufeful.

It

women and bo)'S ; h-^ which means induih'y v/ill be en-
couraged, antl 'Mc flones, by palTing under the maftcr's eye,
will of courfe be rejeded, if not fufficiently broken.

YORKSHIRE. 3*7

It is not my intention to damp the fpirit of
improvement, but to endeavour to dire(ft it
to fuitable objctfts. Nothing, at preient, but
COMPARATIVE EXPERIMENTS Can deter-
mine the value of a given lime, to a giveii
foil; and no man can, with common pru-
dence, lime any land, upon a large fcale, un-
til a moral certainty of improvement has been
eflablifhed, by experience.

The prevailing crop is wheat on fallow.
It is alfo pretty generally fet on, for rape,
turneps, or othfcr crop, iSttv fodbtirning, and
fpread among the afhes. It is alfo, not un-
frequently, fet on for barley. But its effedl,
to thtjirji cropy except of wheat or rape, is, I
believe, feldom perceptible.

But beneficial as lime undoubtedly is, in
fome cafes, to corn, its benefit to grass is
ii matter in difpute, even among the farmers
of Yorkshire. Incidents are authenticated in
which, to general appearance, it has been
detrimental.

But without the afTiflance of comparifony
the judgment is at a lofs to afcertain, with
?iny degree of precilion, the effeds of Ma-
nures. Neverthelefs, general appearances,
to thofe who have a knowledge of the nature
of the foil, have their weight,

Y 4 - It

jiS MANURES AND MANAGEMENT.

It feems, however, to be a generally rc-»
eeived idea, that lime, which is laid on for
grafs, is not thrown away j for, whenever
the land is again turned up, its benefit to
corn will have full effe(St. See Nat. Herb.

5. Liming. Long as lime has been ii\
common ufe, as a manure, the proper method,
of applying it to the foil, is far from being
univerfally pradtifed.

The metkods of liming are various.

The worll is that of laying it m large
heaps, and fuftering it to run to jelly, bcferq
it be fpread upon the land.

iNcxt to this is fetting it about the land. In
fmall hijloch -, for although thefe hillocks be
fpread, before they approach the il^te of
mortar, this method is injudicious.

Lime, which falh in the open air, does not
fall to powder, but breaks into checquers, or
final] cubical malTes i which, being once
buried in the foil, may remain m it, for ages,
Without being mixt intimately with it.

As far as experience and theory have yet
reached, lime ought to be fpread in a ftate of
PERFECT POWDER, and be mingled, inti-
p-iately with the foil ; and thus, by aHlmilat-
ing the two ingredients, form with them one
Jaomogeneous, calcareous mafs.

YORKSHIRE. 329

A fmgle fioney expofed to a moift atmo-
fpliexe, falls inio fragments ^ not mio pcivder * .
The fmaller the heaps, the nearer they ap-
proach to fingle ilones ; there is a greater
proportion o^ furfacey and confequently a
greater proportion oi fragments^

It is therefore the practice, of judicious
huibandmen, to fet lime upon the land, in
;.0AD HEAPS, and fpread it over the foil out
pf carts, asfoon as it is Juffictently fallen.

There is an inftance of pra(ftice, in this
neighbourhood, and, I believe, only one,
which is flilj fuperior tq that laft mentioned.
}n this inftance, the load heaps are turned
ever, not fo much to finifli the falling, as to
gain an opportunity of burying the granulous
furface of the heaps; by w^hich means the
fragments are at kail leflened, if not reduced
^o powder.

In the MOREL ANDS, a flill better pradicc
Js faid to prevail. There, the heaps are inter^
layered, and covered ^f, with moi/l " turf^

piold**

* It is obfervable, however, that piuch depends upon the
nature of the ftrnc, from which the lime has been burnt.
$tones of a uniform texture, asmoft marbles, arelefs liable
to fall in granules, than ftones which are naturally com-
pofed of grains, or are divided by fiffures into natural frag-

J35 MANURES ANt) MAyAOEMENT.

fHofif* (the rubbish from ^2.i and turf fud\
which bringing on a rapid fall, the whole is
fet on fire, and the furface kept free from
granules, by a covering of dry afhes.

This leads to a general improvement in
the method of slaking lime: Cover up
the heaps, whether large or fmall, with soil,
either of the field they are fet in, -or that of
lanes or ditches, carted to them for the puf^
pofe ; and, if a fpeedy fall be required, thro\y
water over this covering. See Art. Cement,
page 1 12.

6. Time, 6cc. OF SPREADING. If lime be
ufed OTi fallow for wheat, it is generally fpread
on, in July ; good farmers making a point of
harrowing it in, as fajl as it is fpread, and
plowing it under, with a fhallow furrow, as
foon as^ convenient.

7. The ufiial quantity fet on is three to
four chaldrons an acre.

IV. DUNG. Nothing fufficiently notice-
able, refpecfting this fpecies of manure, has
occurred to me; excepting fome incidents
relating to the manuring of grafs land, which
xviil appear under the head Natural
Herbage; and excepting a general deiici-r
ency in Farm-yard Economy, for which iee
^A?l^l-YARD Management.

SEiMINATION.

YORKSHIRE, 331

10.

SEMINATION.

THE SPIRIT OF IMPROVEMENT
may have led fome gentlemen^ but, I believe,
pot one yeonian, or regular-bred farmer, to
make experiments in the drill husban-
dry ; .^t leall:, not of late years. In the day
of Mr. Tull, fome trials v/ere made of it \
but the refults were not fufficiently favorable
to eilablifli it as a pra(Ctice.

A fingularity in the method of fowing
BROADCAST is noticeable ; though not pecu-
liarly excellent. The common way is to go
tiL'ice over the ground, fov/ing half the feed
one way, and (returning on the fame land)
half the other j the feedfman, in this cafe,
filling his hand at one Hep, and making his
caft at the next. But, in the method under
notice, he cafts at e'lery Jlep, and fows the
whole of the feed, at once going* over. This
^nethod is more expeditious, than the com-
mon way J but it requires a fteady eye, and
an expert hand, to feed the ground evenly.

WEEDS,

:j2 weeds and vermin.

1 1.

WEEDS and V E R M I N.

1. SPECIES OF WEEDS. There are,
in this Diltri(ft, men who have been fin^u-
larly oblers-ant, with refpe<ft to the nature of
WEEDS; marking their CONTINUANCE, and
defcribing their methods of propagation and
rvctirgy with m:.re than botanical accuracy.

What I principally propofe, under the
prefent head, is, to enumerate the species
^¥ WEEDS moil noxious to the arable
LAND of this neighbourhood, and to note
what appears to be worthy of notice, refpec^-
ing the diiterent ipecics.

It may be proper to fay, that in arranging
the fpecies I have fndcavourrJ to place them
according totheircEGREES or noxiousness;
whether it arife from their refpedtive qua-
lities, or from the quantity which prevails, in
tbt neighbourhood cfPickfrin^. The grasses
and thcy-fr::^/are purpofely kept feparate, to

fhew,

YORKSHIRE. 333

fliew, with greater perfpicuity, their fevera]
degrees of hurtfulnefs, to the arable lands of
the Di{l:ri(:^ under obfervation.

Provincial names. Linnean names. Eng'ijh names.

Common thiflle. — -ferratuhi * arvenjis^ —
corn thiflle.

Docken, — rumex crifpus, — curled dock.

Nettle, — urtica dioica, — common nettle.

Swine t\\\{i\t,—fonchus oleraceus, — com-
mon fow thiflle.

Wild oat, — avenafatua, — wild oat.

Runfli, — 'Jinapis arvenjisy — wild muftard.

B^un^hj—raphamis raphanijiru?}i, — wild ra-
diili.

Runfh, — hrajjica ?iapi{Sy — wild rape.

Dea-nettle,— ^{^^/fo^j- tetra/jif, —wild hemp.

Hairough, — galium aparine, — cleavers.

G round [ilf^fcnccio 'vulgaris , — groundfel .

Chicken-

* Let no voluminous writer lay claim to perfect accu-
racy. Linneus, whjfe fyftcm is a wonderful exeriion of
the human mind, W'ith refpecl to accuracy of arrangement,
appears to have made an evident miftakc, in the c'.allifica-
tion of this common plant. How he could be induced to
tear it from its natural family carduUs, and force it into
that oiferratula^ may now be difficult to be afcertained. I
retain the name, — but protcll againft the propriety of ic.
The Linnean NnWES are now gene forth, throughout
all nations; and whoever changes th .m is fpeakiag a Lm-
gu:ige unknown to universal sotany,

334- WEEDS AND VERl^IlN*.

P r: v: '.i.jL L irznean. E^^i'Jh.

Chicken-weed, — aljme media y—cmzV^wtt^..
Dog -finkle, anthcTzis cotula, maithe

weed.
Dog*fink!e,-^r77tf/r/rjr:i/ cbum^^mllla ?— corn

camomile.
Cup-rofe,— ^ j/'^'y t'r rZ-iriZ/,— round (mooth-

headed poppy.
Cup-rofe,— /J/J^i-'cT Juh'umy—long (mooth-

headed poppy.
Bur thillle, — ccrduus lanceolatus, — {pear-

thillle.
Red thiA:le, — carduus pahfirb^ — marfh-

thilile.
Swine 'Cii'S!(\e,y—foncbus arvenjsy — corn fow-

thilTle.
Crowfooty — ra7m?2 cuius rrpcjis, — creeping

crowfoot.
Foal foot, — titjfihgo farfara, — coltsfoot .

p'jt(ntilt4> anferinay — SI verwe ed.
Fat hsn, — chciopodium aibufr*^ — ccinmon-

^oofefoot.

o

Fat hen, — chcnypodiitm "jtridf, — rcdjoint-ed

goafefoot.
Popple, — agroficmma gk/jago, — cockle.
Btoney-hard, — /itlw'pennum ariienfc, — corii

gromwefl.

Ccrn \>\T\i^,— polygonum cjfTVohuIus,~c]lmb'

Ir.z b-jckwced.

Sour-

YORKSHIRE. 335

Provincial. Linnean. Engli/b.

Sour-docken, — rumex acetofa, — ^ common

Torre 1.

Sour-docken,-w*r///;;fA' acetofellat — ilieep's

forrel.

Great horfeknobs, — centmireafcabiofa^ —

corn knobweed.

Great blue-caps,— yZ^^^^/T? aruenjis^ — corn

fcabious.

Cuifhia, — berackum fpbondyilujn , — cow-

parlnep.

chrjJa?itbemumfegefum,-'Com marigold.

Yer-nuts,— biinium bulbjcajlariumf — earth

nuts, or pig nuts.

daucus caret ay — wild carrot*

centaurea cyanus, — bluebonnet.

t7'ifoUiim melilotus -officinalis, — melilot.

trifolium alpejlre, — alpine trefoil.

Docke n, — 7'umex obtufifolius, - - broadleave d

dock.

Dpcken, — rumexJar;guif.^euSj-*-hlcody dock.

carduiis nutajis^ — sodding thii^le.

carduus eriopborus, WQOilyhc-aded

thillie.

tblafpi cafHpeJire, — common mithridate.

lapfajia communis^ — nipplewort.

polyganum perficaria^ — common perfi-

caria.

poly.

3s6 WEEDS AND V E R M I iV.

Provincial, Linnean. Er.glijh,

polyganum crciculare^ — hogweed.

mentha arvenjisy — corn mint.

cbryfa?2thcmum kucanthemumy — oxeyC

daifey.

ranunculus arvenjls, — -corn crowfoot.

ranunculus acris^ — common crowfoot.

cucubalus behcn^ — bladder campion.

Cornbind, - — convolvulus arvenjisy — corn

convolvulus*

act tile a in illefo Hum , — m i 1 fo 1 1 .

Saxifrage, — peucedanumjilaus, — meadow

faflafras.

lycopfis arvenJiSy — corn buglos.

Bur-docken, — ar^ium lappa ^-^vlx^oq^/l,

antirrhinum I'maria^ — common fnap*

dragon.

*valeriana locnjl a, -^com valerian.

refeda luteola,—^M'e\d,

Breckens, — pten's a^uillna, — fern.

Crake -needle, — fca?zdix peSleti-Vcnerisy —

lliepherd's needle.

veronica hcderifolia, — ivyleaved fpeed-

well.
cerajlium vul^atuin, -^common mouft-

ear.

fumaria officinalis^ — common fumitory*

euphorbia hcliifcopiay — fun fpurge.

ana-

YORKSHIRE. jj;

Provincial. Lir.nean. Englijh.

anagallis arvenfis^ — pimpernel.
Jilago ge?-??7anicay — common cudweed.
eiiphrajia odontites^ — red eyebright.

^//5r/6^r/j-;W/r^/^,~longrootedhawk*

weed.
myojGtis fcorpioides, -— fcorpion moufe*

ear.
ijiola fncolor,-^coxn\rLon panlie*
prunella vulgaris^ — felfheal.
Quicks, — trificum repens^ — couchgrafs.

jeftuca duriiifciday — hard fefcue.
White grafs, — holcus mollis, — couchy fofl
grafs.
avena elatiory — tall oatgrafs.
agroftis alba, — creeping bentgrafs,
alopecuriis agrejlis, — field foxtail.
Droke , — lolium temulenfum j—ddirnel .
dadiylis glomeratay — orchardgra {.^ *
White grafs, — holcus lanatus, — meadow

foftgrafs.
Aih,-—fraxlnus excelfior^ — afjh.
Afpen, — populus tremula, — trembling po-
plar.
White thorn, — cratagus oxyacantha, -^

hawthorn.
Black (hoxnt-^prunus fphiofa, — floethorn.
Vol. I. Z Briax,

33S WEEDS AND VERMIN.

Prcv'mcial. Llnnean. EngliJJj.

"Bi'iSLT,— rubtu f rut icofus,— common bram-
ble.
rubus ccefius, — dwarf bramble.
Cat whiuy—rG/a JpinoJIJ/ima, —hurn&t rofe.
Ku(ihuTn,—cnonisar'venJisfpino/ay— thorny

re fth arrow.
Ruftburn, — ononis repens, — trailing red-
harrow.
II. THE MEANS OF EXTIRPA-
TION. There are two ways of extirpating
weeds from arable land: hy falhiving,
and by weeding,

I. By the term fallowing, is meant
repeated plowings, harrowings, 6rc. between
the erops ; whether thefe plowings, &:c. be
<Tiven in two, in twelve, or in eighteen

months.

There are feveral ipecies of weeds, which
tannot be wholly overcome, without fallow-
ing. Weeds, which propagate their fpecies,
by SUCKERS FROM THE ROOT^ are invigorat-
ed, hy ^frngk plo'iving^, which, by giving i,
frelh fupply of air and opennefs to the foil,
gives freedom to the fuckers; and, by de-
ftroying the feed wTeds in the operation, the
fuckers arc left in pofTelTion of the foil \ and
whoever attempts to overcome root weeds

wi

ith

YORKSHIRE. 339

with the boe^ may be faid to be unacquainted
with the practice of huibandiy.

The CONTINUANCE of a tallow, and the
number of plowings requilite, depend on the
i^2S.0T\i and on the number and the nature of
the weeds, to be deltroyed. If the fpring
feafon be found inlufficient to eftedtuate the
purgation, — take the fummer, and even the
autumn, the winter, and the enfuing fpring,
rather than crop an under-ivorksd fallovi^
which is but little fuperior to a lingle plow-
ing. One ftirring, towards the clofe, is fre-
quently more valuable, than two or three
plowings at the outfet. To begin a fallow,
witliQut continuing it, until its intention be
fully accomplijhedy is throwing away labor,
unprofitably.

2. By WEEDING, is meant the adl of de-
ftroying or checking v.eeds, while the crop
is growing, to prevent their preying upon
the foil, and propagating their fpecies by
feeding ; whether the operation be perform-
ed with the hoe, xh^fpadle, the hooky or the
hand 2\onQ.

Next to the plow and harrow, the hoz is

the moft deilrucftive to feed ii-eeds ; but the

hoe ought not, in any cafe, to be relied on :

the HAND, alone, ought to give the fnrjJ: to

Z 2 weeding :

340 WEEDS AND VERMIN.

weeding : and the later this i5 given, fo that
the crop be not iTiateriaily injured by the
operation, the more valuable \^'ill b© its
eitecl.

The cJzfe of this operation is fimilar to that
of the fallow. One additional weeding is
given at a fmall expence ; and v.ithout it,
perhaps, thofe which preceded were of little
benefit. One weed left to fpread its feed?,
this year, may be the caufe of a hundred, the
next.

III. VERMIN. The different fpecies of
' vermin, which have more particularly excited
notice, in this Diftri<ft, are,

1. Mice.

2. Rats.

3. Dogs.

I , Mice. The moufe rivals the fparrow,
in mifchievoufnefs toward the farmer. In
the field, the barn, and the dairy, mice are
equally troublefcme and deftrudive. In the
field, the quantity of deilruciion is not eafil/
to be afcertained ; but it is probably much
greater, than the unobfervant are aware of.
At feed time, aiid at haneft, they not only
feed freely upon corn, but fill their granaries
with it, as a refourcc in lefs plentifiil feafons *.

Much

• See Mid. Ecom. Miscti: 26. fo: a rccoarjtibk: m-
ftJTXC of t' lis.

YORKSHIRE. 34t

Much care is beftovved on the deftrudion of
moles ; and it might be worth while to en-
deavour to lellen the number of field mice,
which, I am of opinion, are in their nature
more injurious to the farmer than moles are.

In the rick yard, the barn, the dwelling
houfe, the garden, and the nurfery ground,
their mifchievoufnefs is too obvious to be
overlooked , and the utility of lelTening their
number, in thefe places, is too wjell known
to require an enumeration of facVs to prove it.

The method of deftroying mice is a fub»
je(fl, not unworthy of the attention of any
man, who is interefled in rural affairs. If
feme art, or fome natural enemies, were not
employed, in lefTening their number, the en-
tire fjpply of human food would not be fuf-
ficient to fapport them. Even in their pre-
fent ftate, I have heard it intimated, by a man
whoTe obfervations are frequently juft, that
it is a diiputable point, whether the moufe or
the tithe man is a greater enemy to the
farmer *\

Z 3 The

* This idea, however, is more applicable, in a grafs land
country, where corn, being lefs in quantity, is niore liable
to be deftroyed by mice, than it is, in an arable country,

where

Si2 WEEDS AND VERMIN.

The barn and the ftackyard are ufually put
under the care of the cat : to fet a moufetrap,
in a barn full of corn, has generally beea
confidercd as a thing- fo unlikely to be ef-
fe(!^ive, that it has feldom perhaps been tried :
I have never met with an inftance of it ; ex-
cepting one in this Dillrict ; in which its
fuccefs has been extraordinary. A barn,
which for many years had been remarkably
infefted with mice (notwithllanding a nu-
merous guard of cats), has, by a proper ufe
of traps, been kept m a manner free from
them.

It having been obfer^'ed, during long ex-
perience, that thefe mifchievous animals, un-
contented with their definition among the
corn, — attacked leather, greafe, or other
animal food, which happened to be left in
the barn, — traps were fet in their runs, and
hiding places, and baited witli thefe fub-.
fiances. The fuccefs was ever>* thing to be
defired j for although a total extirpation has
not taken place, an annual faving of fome
quarters of corn has been the confequerce.

Under

where the proportion of corn is greater j — where the bam
is oftcner errpued, — and where piUar ftack-fraiKes, ar.^
piJar granaries, are generallj more in uie.

YORKSHIRE. 34j

Under an idea, that it was a change of
FOOD which, in the barn, conftituted the^^/V,
the fame principle was applied, in the cheefe
chamber, and with the fame fuccefs. Here,
ti'aps, baited with corn, were taken with
avidity.

In the garden, it was obferved, that much
depended on the feafon of the year : there-
fore, here, natural hiding places were fought
for 5 and if convenient ones could not be
found, artificial ones were made, in different
parts of the garden ; with logs, ftones fet up
hollow, on-edge, boards, &c. In thefe hiding
places, a vajiety of foods are laid, for feveral
days, whenever mice become troublefome ;
and whatever food is preferred, with that
traps are baited.

By thefe means, the entire premifes have
been kept almoft wholly free from mice.

While the number is great, various kinds
of traps may be ufed, provided they be pro-
perly baited : for taking a remaining artful
few, the common fteel trap, adapted to the
iize of the moufe, has been found to be the
moil effedlual.

2. Rats. This animal, equally artful and
ijiifcliievous, is difficult to be taken by flra-

Z 4 tagem:

344 WEEDS AND VERMIN.

tagem : in farm homefteads, fituated near
water, it is become almofl: impofiible to keep
dewn their numbers. In every country,
they are a growing evil ; not only in Rural
Economy, but in manufa<^ure, and in do-
jneftic life. Should their numbers continue
toincreafe, with the' fame rapidity they have
done fince the prefent breed got footing in
the ifland, they will, in no great length of
time, become a ferious calamity. They are,
perhaps at prefent, an objed: of public at-
tention.

3. Dogs. It is not through an antipathy
to dogs, that I clafs them here among
vermin. I am led to it, by fadis, which,
though not extraordinary, ought to be gene-,
rally known.

A few years ago, the whole country was
alarmed, with the apprehenfion of canine
MADNESS. A confidcrable proportion of the
dogs, kept in it, were adually mad. Much
live Hock, and feveral perfons, were bitten.
Fortunately, however, thus far, none of thefe
have been attacked, by that horrid diforder i
but they flill live under the dreadful appre-
henfion of their l)eing, every day, liable to be

feizedj

YORKSHIRE. 345

feized, by the greateft calamity human nature
is liable to *.

In the courle of laft winter (1786-7) the
value of SHEEP worried by dogs, in this
townihip alone, was calculated ai near one
hundred pounds. A fmall farmer, whofe
entire ftock did not amount to more than
forty, had thirteen llieep, and eleven lambs,
worried in one night.

Thefe

* Since writing the above, no lefs than fc- en peiTons
were, in this place, bitten by one dog ! Much li^'e flccic
has alfo lately been bitten. In a neighbouring village a
calf, which had been bitten, was feized witn madnefs, and
bit the perfon who had the care of it.

What aggra\'ates the firii-mentioned inftance is, that
the perfon, to whom the dog belonged, knew that he had
been bitten, a few weeks before, yet fufFered hiai to go
loofe, though urged to the contrary. Surely, on culprits
like this, fome fe\ ere penalty, or fome fevere punilhnnent,
ought to be inflic^able. A general law againft every man,
whole dog is fufFered to jiray^ in a ilate of madncfi, might
have a good effect.

If the prrik^ice of vcormlng be really efTevSlual, in pre-
venting the mifchiefs of canine madnefs, a fevere penalty
is due from every owner of a dogj which has not under-
gone fo falutary an operation.

Several inftances are related of perfons, to whom canine
maducfs has proved fatal, in this neighbourhood. And the
inftances of live ftock, which have fuffered by the fame
means, are innumerable,

2\S WEEDS AND VERMIN.

Thefe are not mentioned as fingular fadts :
every Diilriifl, and almoft every year, afford
inftances of a iimflar nature ; nor do I men-
tion them to excite a momentary indignation,
in the breaii of the reader j but in hopes
that they may be inftrumcntal, in roufing
the humanity, of thofc, who have it in their
power, to mitigate the danger, and leiTen the
quantity of evil.

The quantity of human food, which b
annually wafled on ufelefs dogs, is itfelf an
object cf national attention. When the
horrors of canuie madnefs, the wanton tor-
ture of innocence, and the wanton deftruc-
tion of one of the firft neceffaries of life are
added, the object becomes of the firft con-
cern to the nation. Who, even in thefe
days of Public Economy, would think ten
thoufand pounds a year ill beftov/ed, in doing
away fuch an accumuktion ot public evil ?
Yet who does not know that, in doing it .
away, ten times ten thoufand a year might
be drawn into the national treafury ! Let
not the patriotifm of Princes, the ability of
Minifters, or the wifdcm of Parliament, be
fpoken of, in this countr)', until a national
ABSURDITY, fo glaringly obvious, be re-^.
moved.

There

YORKSHIRE. 3^7

There are men whom frlcndjlnp IncHnes .
to the caufe of the dop^. Far be it from me
to damp the flame of fiiendiliip. But is not
the lamb equally, at leafl", entitled to our
friend fliip ? Who fees the little innocent
dragged to the flaughter without regret ;
and who, without remorfe, could fee one
lying mangled in the field, half alive, half
eaten up, by the mercilefs, yet befriended
(dog?

But the operation of a tax upon dogs would,
probably, be different to whfit is generally
conceived. I am of opinion, that, were fiich
a tax to be laid on judicioiiily, the imme-
diate deftrucftion of dogs would be incon-
fiderable. The tie of affe<5tion muft be weak
which a fliilling, a year, would dilfolve : even
the poor man's dog would die a natural death,
under thofe eafy circumitances. — But what
poor man would think of paying, even a
fliilling a year, for a dirty troublefome puppy,
for which he had not yet conceived any par-
ticular affedtion? Thus the number of dogs
would, annually, and imperceptibly, de-
creafe.

In fix or feven years, the tax would require
an advance : its produdlivenefs would be
Jcfiened, and the rearing of another clafs of

dogs

348 HARVESTING.

dogs would require prevention. In a few
years more, it might receive its final advance.
The produ^tivenels of the tax ought not
to be confidered, as the primary objei5t of a
tax upon dogs. The removal of the public
evils, which have been enumerated, iliould
be at leafl jointly confidered. Five fhillings
a head would reduce the number of dogs ;
and would, perhaps, be found, on experience,
to be more productive than a lower tax.

12.

HARVESTING.

NO DEPARTMENT of Rural Economy
difiinguiflies the northern, from the mid-
land, and SOUTHERN parts of the Illand,
io much, as the method hi Harvefling.
And, perhaps, no Northern Diftridl is more
flrongly marked, v/ith this diftinguilhing
charadterillic, than that which is now under
furvey.

1 . Cutting corn with the fickle.

2. Cutting cora with the lithe.

I. THE

YORKSHIRE. 349

I. THE SICKLE. It is probable that nine
tenths of the corn, \^hich is cut with the
fickle, in this kingdom, is cut by mefi. In
Surrey and Kent, a woman may fometimes be
fcen with a fickle in her hand. In Norfolk,
it is a fight which is feldom or ever feen.
Here, it is almoft equally rare to fee a fickle
in the hand of a man ; reaping — provincially,
*' Shearing, " — being almofl entirely done by

WOMEN.

Three women and one man make a fett ;
who, of a middling crop, do an acre, a day.
If corn be thin, a man will bind after four
women ; if very thick upon the ground, he
requires a boy to make bands for him.

Sometimes, the bands are laid for the
wom^en to throw their handfuls into j but, in
general, they lay the corn in ** reaps," of
about half a fheaf each ; the binder gathering
it up carefully, againft his legs, in the man-
ner wheat flraw is nfually gathered on the
thrafhing floor. This is much the beft- way
(though fomewhat more troublefome) ; tJw:
corn being, by this means, bound up tight
and even, and the flieaves made of an equal
fize. • * -

The day wages of a woman, in harvefl:, h
lod, of a man 2S. Thus wheat, which in

Surrey

35» H A R V E S T I N G.

Surrey would cod los. to 12s. and which; in
any country I have obi'epvtd in, would coft
7s. or 8s. is here cut for 4s. 6d. an acre.

But the faving of fo much, an acre, is far
from being the only advantage, ariling from
the practice of employing women in the work
cf harveft. The number of hands is in-
creafed ; the poor man's income is raifed ;
the paxiih rates are in confequence lefTencd ;
and the community at large are benefited, by
an increafe of induftry, and an acquilition of
health. How conducive to ibis are the em-
ployments of hufbandry, compared with thofe
cf manufiii^ure ! And the work of Harveft,
fo far from being thought a hardihip, l>, by
women who have been bred to it, ccnfidered
as a relaxation to domeflic confinement, and
iefs agreeable employments.

Wheat and rye are (tx. up in /hucks,**—
provincially " fiooks,'* — of twelve or ten
iheaves caeh j two of which are invariably
ufed as ** hocd-iheaves"; for hooding, cap-
ping, or covering the heads cf the reii*
Twelve iLeaves are termed a " Aook /' in
V, hich wheat, formerly, was generally itt up j
but unkiS the ftr::w be long, two fTieaves arc
lie: equal to the fafe covcrmg of ten. It is
therefore, now, the more general pra<ft.ce, to

fet

YORKSHIRE. 351

fet them up in " tens ;" by which means
they are much more effedlually covered.

In the Ibuth of England, the covering of
wheat is never pradtifed ; here, wheat is
never left, a day, uncovered. Both pradlices
are wrong. In fine weather, the ears of corn
cannot be too much expofed to the fun and
dews ; if the grain be thin, even a flight
fhower is of great benefit to it. In a rainy
feafon, they cannot be covered too clofely..
Therefore, in the covering of wheat, as in
other departments of hufbandry, the farmer
ought to be dire(!^ed by the feafon ; not by
any bigot cuftom of the country he happens
to farm in.

II. SITHE. In the fouthern and midland
provinces, corn is invariably mo'ivn outward^
and dried mfivath. Here, it is as invariably
moiun again ft the J} an ding corn, and dried in
Jheaf.

The method of fheaf^ng varies. Upon
the Wolds, the prevailing method is to bind
the (heaves, in the ufual banding place, and
to fet them up, in " flocks." . This is termed
*' binding ;" — a practice which appears to be
encrealing in the Vale.

But formerly, the invariable practice was,
and the prevailing pra«5tice ftill is, here, to tie

them

352 H A R V E S T I N G.

them near the top, and fet them up in fingU
jbeaves, — provinciallv, ** gaits." This is
called " gaiting ;" which, if the corn be
v/eedv, or full of cultivated grafs at the
bottom, is a moll admirable pradlice.

I. In MOWING corn for flieafing, a cradle
of three points (fimilar to that of two points
ufed in Kent, and in mowing com into fwath)
is generally placed over the lithe, to colIe<f^
the corn, and afiift in fetting it up ftraight,
but fomewhat leaning, againft the flanding
com. If corn ftand fair, a man who knows
how to fet his cradle, and ufe his fithe, will
fet it up with great evennefs and regularity.
Jf corn be fomewhat difordered, yetmowibie>
a bow (ilmilar to that ufed in moiT: countries
for mowmg corn outward) is aftixt to the
Cthe, for the fame purpofe.

The mov.er is followed by a woman, who
makes bar.as, and " lays out" the corn into
iLeaf. This ilie does, eithtrr with the hands
alone, or with a (hort-headed, long-toothed
wooden rake : gathering the corn with the
rake ; and, when a iheaf is collevTted, throw-
ing it dcxtroufly into the band, with her foot ;
witliout touching it with her hands ; and,
confenuentiv, without ih^ inconveniencv of

ftooping.

YORKSHIRE 353

/looping. If the crop be large, the worhan
has generally a boy to make bands for her.

A man, or a flout boy, follows to tie and
fet up the (heaves -, or, if the crop be thin*
one man binds after two fithes.

2. SETTING UP SINGLETS* To do this

properly, and expeditioully, there is an art
and dexterity requilite, which can only be
learnt from practice. The band being loofely
tied, at about the fame diftance from the
head of the fheaf, as it ufually is from the
butts, — the binder lays hold of the ears, with
both hands, immediately above the band,
and ilrikes the ilieaf down pretty hard upon its
butts j in order to give it a flat even bafe.
One hand (the right for inftance) is then
loofened, and inferted edge-way into the
middle of the butts. The body, with the
arms in that poflure, is thrown forward, and
brought round with a fweep to the right ;
thereby fpreading the butts of the right-hand
fide of the fheaf. The fituation of the hands
is then changed : the right is placed upon
the ears, the left within the fheaf, bringing
them round with a fweep to the left, leaving
the fheaf a hollow cone.

If the face, in this operation, be turned
toward the north, and, in the lafl fweep, an

Vol. I. A a opening

354 HARVESTING.

opening or breach be left toward thefouth,the
rays of the fun will have admifTion, to keep
the ground dry within, and alTift the wind in
drying the inner fide of the flicaf.

Thefe particulars may, on paper, appear
tedious i but, in practice, an expert hand
will go through them in a few feconds of
time.

There is, however, a much readier way
of fetting up fingle (heaves ; namely, by
lifting them as high as the arms will con-
veniently reach ; and bringing them fmartly
to the ground, with a jerking motion. This
fpreads the butts ; but does not give the de-
firable holhivnefs ; nor the firmnefs, which is
requifite in windy weather.

When the finglets are dry enough, for
carrying, they are " bound," in the ufual
banding place.

3. In BINDING SINGLETS, the band is laid
upon x}^t. ground, about a foot from the ikirts
of the fmglet ; which is pulled over upon it,
and bound in the common manner. The
original band of the firft fheaf is pulled off
for the fecond ; fo that, without an accident,
the rinl band, only, is required to be made, at
the time of binding. This renders the ope-
ration lefs tedious than theory may fuggeft. .

The

Y O R K S H I R E. •■* 355

The /heaves, when bound, are collected
into heaps, and carried on the day of binding;
or are fet up in {bucks, as accidents or conve-
niency mav require *.

4. If the corn be *' bound," at the
TIME of mowing, it is fet up in shucks t
in which it ftands until it be fit for carrying.

This is lefs tronblefome, than firft " gait-
ing" and afterwards " binding" it. And if
the corn be ripe, and the bottom be tolerably
free from weeds, it is, perhaps, the more
eligible method, for corn which is cut with
the siTHE.

But, for under-ripe, or weedy corn, though
cut with the fithe ; and for all oats and barley
which are cut with the sickle ; " ^aitin^" is

' o o

here conlidered> as effentiallynecelTary; Corn
A a 2 cut

* Gaiting. This praflice is probably cf Scottifli
extraflion. In the dialecl ef the Englilh language^ now
ufed in the Highlands of Scotland, where this practice is
much in ufe, " gait" is the ordinary name, (or the efta-
blifhed pronunciation,) of the goat. In the dialect of the
Celtic language, likewifi in ufe there, fingle fheaves fet up,
as in this piaflice, are called gouracs \ — from gour^ a
goat^ — gourac, a little goat; — the diminutive oi gour.

Hence, there feems to be little doubt of the name having
been taken from the animal. But whether the Saxon Scots
borrowed the practice, and the name, from the Celts, or the
Cskic Scots from the Saxons, may, now, be ifficult to
trace.

356 "H A R V E S T I N G.

cut with the fickle lies firaighter, and clofcr,
in the band, than mown corn ; which, being
more or lefs ruffled, with the fithe or the rake,
does not bed fo clofely in the band ; the air
thereby gaining a more free admifiion, into
the center of the fheaf.

li barley be fhort upon tlie ground, free
from weeds, and well headed (efpecially the
four-rowed barley or** big"), it is difficult
to be " gaited ," the heads of the iheaves
being too bulky, and the butts not fufficiently
fo, to form a bails broad 'enough to funport
them. Its flippery nature, ahb, renders it
difficult to be kept in a loofcly tied band.
Barley, therefore, is more commonly bound
after the iithe, than oats are. But when it
runs much to ftraw, and is weedy, or full of
graffes at the bottom, gaiting becomes ellen-
tially necefi'ar)^ to accurate management . Bar-
ley is more liable, than any other grain, to take
damage in the field ; and every means of
forwarding its drying, thereby fhcrtening the
length of time between the cutting and the
carn-ing, ought to be employed.

Shucks of oats arid barley, bound after the
fithe, are generally left uncovered, until the
time of carr)'ing. If, however, the feafon
be unfettled, and the heads be pretty well

weachered.

YORKSHIRE. 357

weathered, while the butts are yet under dry,
it is well to put on hood Iheaves, and thereby
guard the grain from too great an expofure
to the weather.

General Observations on Harvest-
ing Barley and Oats.

The comparative advantages of
harvefting barley and oats, in flieaf, are nu-
merous. The wafte. throughout, is lefs ;
the corn, efpecially in gaits, is, at once, got
out of the way of the weather; the labor of
carrying, houfeing, or ftacking, is much lef-
fened ; much barn room is faved ; the labor
of thrashing is lefs ; the flraw, if the harvefl
prove wet, makes much better fodder ; and,
under this circumftance, the corn preferves
its color, in Iheaf, incomparably better, than
it does in fwath.

The apparent inconveniency of Harvefling
corn in flieaf (I mean that which muft ftrike
every one who has not duly confidered the
fubjed:, and compared the nature and the
quantity of labor, feparaiely, requifite to
each of the two methods of Harvefting) is
the increafe of labor, at the outfet. Bat if
the laying out, arid the binding, be done by
A a 3 women

358 HARVESTING.

"ivomen and boys, or by men who cannot
mow (which is almofl invariably the cafe)
the bufinefs of mowing goes on the fame
pace, or nearly the fame pace, as it would
have done, had the corn been mown into
fwaths. Befides, the repeated turnings,
which frequently are requifite, and the cock-
ing, which always is neceiTary, are entirely
excluded, by binding.

Upon the whole. It is evident, that the
quantity of men's labor is diminiihed, cot
increafed, by the prad:ice of Harvefling in
fheaf. If, to this advantage be added, the
(cafe and expedition, in the bufmefs of parry-
ing (the moll: important bufinefs of harvell:,
and that which requires the quickeft dif-
pitch), we may fairly conclude, that, by
Harvefling in fheaf, the labor, the anxiety,
and the hazard of harveft are leiTened ; while
the quality, and confequently the value, of
the produce is increafed.

My own pracftice having been in Diftri(fls,
where Harvcfting, in fvvath, is the univerfal
cuftom, I had ponceived, that the practice of
Harvefting, in fheaf, was only adapted to ^
CGuntry thin of corn ; and that it was alto-
gether impra<:i:icable, in what is called a corn
COUNTRY. But the WOLDS of tliis Diflrivll

leave

YORKSHIRE.' 359

leave no room for fuch a conje<flure. The
Yorkfliire Wolds are not only a corn countr)^,
but the farms are niany of them of extraor-
dinary fize : neverthelefs, it is the invariable
pradlice of that Diftrift to harveft bcirley
and oats, in fheaf. One man, a few years
ago, grew between three and four thoufand
quarters of oats and barley, — every bufliel of
which was harvefted in fheaf.

I am too well aware of the difficulty of
changing the cuftom of a country, to recom-
mend to any man, who farms in a fouthern
Diflrict, to attempt to harveft all his corn, in
fiieaf, without regard to the weather, or the
ftate of the feafon. But I will not hefitate
to recommend, to every man, who has barley
or oats to cut, in a wet feafon, or in a late
harveft, to harveft them in ftieaf.

In Surrey, and other counties, where mown
corn is laid ftraight in fwath, there would be
jio difficulty in harvefting it, in ffieaf. The
corn might be mown outward, in the ufual
manner, and {heaved out of fwath -, which
is, perhaps, upon the whole, a better method
of fheafing, than that which has been de-
fcribed, as ihe prad:ice of this Diftridl:.

The great art of laying corn ftraight with

the fithe, whether it be mown inward or

A a 4 outward.

369 HARVESTING.

outward. Is to keep the face fomewhat in-
clined toward the ilanding corn : thus, in
mowing outward, the left hand and the left
foot ought to go fomewhat foremoft : on the
contrary, in mowing inward, the right fide
ought to precede. Much depends upon
fetting the cradle, or the bow ; which fhould
be fo fet, as to take the whole of the corn, cut
at each flroke, without interfering with the
{landing corn. The fithe, in mowing, ought
to be brought well round to the left, as if
for the intention of throwmg the corn be^
hind the mower. To allow for this length
of fweep, the fwath ihould not be taken too
wide ; nor, in ravelled corn, {hould the fithe
be too long.

By a little pradlice, young men, who can
handle their iithes, and whofe difpolltions
incline them to oblige, might, in any country,
foon be rendered fufficiently perfedl, in the
art of laying corn flraight, in fwath ; or of
fetting it up flraight, and evenly, againfl: the
flanding corn. In exercifing thefe, young
women might, at the fame time, be taught
to lay out the corn into fheaves, and flout lads
to fet them up fmgly. A Icifure opportunity
fhould be embraced. The outfet fhould be
confidered as a matter of amufement. A

few

YORKSHIRE. 36;

few acres, this year, might be an inducement
to extend the practice to a greater number,
the next. The art once acquired, it would
be ready to be applied, on a large fcale, when-
ever a wet feafon, or a backward harvefl,
ihould happen.

13-

FARMYARD MANAGEMENT.

I. BARN xMANAGEMENT. The fub-
divifions of this fubjedt, which are noticeable
Jiere, are,

1 . Binding the flraw.

2. Winnowing the corn.

J. Binding Straw. Straw, of every
liind, is bound upon the thrafhing floor.
This, when flraw is not ufed at the time of
thrafhing, would, in any country, be good
economy. Straw in trufles is much better
to move, lies in lefs room, and retains its fla-
vor longer, than loofe flraw does. In a
country where cattle, in winter, are univer-
fally kept in the houfe, and foddered at
(lated mealtimes, the binding of llraw be-
comes

36a FARMYARD MANAGEMENT.

Comes efTential to good management. Each
trur?-*-provincially, "fold" — contains an arm*
fill (that is, as much as the arms can conveni*
entlyJiM) ; and this is the ufual meal for a
pair of cattle. Thus the bufinefs of " fod*
dering" is faciHtated, and a wade of A.raw
avoided.

2. Winnowing. Under the article
Implements, the prefent praAice of v/in-
nowing, with the ** machine-fan," was men-
tioned. All that remains to be dene, here,
is to endeavour to ^ive fome general rule, for
the method of ufing it.

Pradlice, only, can teach the minutiae of
the art, which, though here fo prevalent, is
far from being well underllood. The corn-*
plexnefs of the machine is fuch, that laborers,
in e-neral, are ignorant of the means of ad-
juiling it i and let its conftrudion be ever fo
perfecl:, much depends en regulating it, pro-
perly, for different kmds of grain ; as well as
in fetting it, with truth, for any particular
fpecies.

The outlines of the art lie, in adapting the
ftreniTth cf the wind, to a due and reo^ular
lupply of the given contents of the hopper 3
and in adjufting the feveral regulators, in fuch
manner, as to feparate the chaff, the capes,

and

YORKSHIRE. 36J

and the grain, with the greateft pofTible ex-
a^nefs.

Wheat is generally run twice through the
machine or mill -, but, with a good machine,
properly regulated, and deliberately fed, it
may he made marketable, by running it once
through. Barley and oats are feldom put
through, more than once. And beans ov peas
may be cleaned, as fail as a man can fupply
the hopper with them.

Superior advantages, of this fpecies of fan,
are difpatch, the faving of the labor of one
man, and the prefervation of the health of
thofe who are employed. The fail fan, — the
common winnowing fan of the kingdom at
large, — requires one perfon to turn, one to
riddle or " heave," and one to fill the riddle
or fcuttles ; and, for this |ett, feven or eight
quarters of wheat is a hard day's work. Two
perfons, with a machine fan, properly fet,
and properly fupplied, will winnow the fame
quantity, in half a day. The fan, itfelf, lup-

•plies the place of the perfon v.ho riddles;
and all the labor, which i^ neceflarily be-
{towed, on the difficult work of feparating
the one continuous heap, into corn, chaff,

^and "capes," and running the intermingled
parts down, again and again, to reduce them

to

364 FARMYARD MANAGEMENT.

to one or other of thofe articles, is entirely
faved.

11. YARD MANAGEMENT requires
to be fubdivided, in this cafe, into

1. Expenditure of ilraw.

2. Railing yard manure.

I. Expenditure of Straw. In the
VAcy and the Morelands, cattle are, almoft
univerfaliy, kept tied up in houfe s or hovels,
or under {heds,which, if the afpecft be good and
the ends properly iheltered, are preferable to
clofe houfes. Warmth and dr\mefs are doubt-
lefs of great advantage to cattle, in winter ;
eipecially to lean flraw-fed cattle ; which
cannot bear the feverity of weather, fo well
as cattle whofe keep is higher. Rut, in this,
as in moil things, there is a medium to be
obferved. The hair of cattle, kept in a clofe
warm houfe, naturally grows thin, and peels
off, prematurely ; expoling the cattle, when
turned out to grafs in the fpring, to a degree
of unneceffar)" hardship, which, in its effedl,
is perhaps frequently worfe, than expofmg
them in an open yard, in the winter months.

The warmth of the cattle, however, ap-
pears to be, here, only a fecondarj^ objed: ;
the SAVING OF FODDER feems to be the
principal motive, for tying up cattle cf every

kind.

YORKSHIRE. 365

kind, in winter; by which means, almoft
every ftraw is eaten -, the cattle frequently
lying without litter, upon the bare floors of
their flails. Twenty or thirty head of cattle
are kept, here, on the fame quantity of ftraw,
which, in moft corn countries, is allowed to
be picked over, by eight or ten.

The dung drops into a fquare trench,
which is cleaned every day, while the cattle
are out at water, or in the fields at grafs.

Stalled cattle are ufually foddered, four
times a day: in the morning-; again in the
forenoon; a, third time when they are taken-
up from watering ; and, finally, in the even-
ing. The heft of the ftraw is given to the
young ftock, the inferior fort to oxen. Cows
are chiefly kept on hay, even when they are
dry of milk : an evident impropriety ; efpe-
cially when applied to the fliort-horned breed
of cows, which generally calve with diffi-
culty.

On a general view, it is evident, that the
expenditure of ftraw, in this country, is
adapted to its climature, and to its ftate of
hufbandry. Where grafs land abounds, cat-
tle of courfe are numerous, and flraw propor-
tionally fcarce. On the contrary, in a corn-
land country, flraw is more plentiful than

flock;

366 FARMYARD MANAGEMENT.

ftock ; and all that is thought of, there, is to
get it trodden into manure.

2. Raising Yard Manure. It would
be foreign, to the prejent work, to canvafs
the propriety oi treading ftraw into manure.
This country has generally flock enough to
eat every ll:raw it produces ; therefore to tread
it to manure, and to ivnjie it, are, here, fy-
nonymou^ expreflions. It is all wanted as
fodder, and- it would be an evident abfurdity
to litter the yard with it. All I propofe, at
prefent, on this fubjeft, is, to recommend to
my countrymen a more provident manage-
■rtient of the little yard manure they make, —
let its quality be what it may.

The general pra(ftice, at prefent, is to pile
it on the higheft part of the yard ; or, which
is Hill lefs judicious, to let it lie fcattered
about, on the fide of a flope; as it were for
the purpofc of dillipating its virtues.

The urine, which does not mix with the
dung, is almofl invariably led off, the neareft
way, to the common fhore; as if it were
thought a nuif^nce to the premifes. That
which mixes with the dung: is, of courfe,
carried to the ** njidden," and afTifls in the
general difTipation.

A yard

YORKSHIRE. 367

A yard of dungy nine tenths of which ib
flravv, will difcharge even in dry weather,
feme of its more fluid partick'S j and, in rainy
weather, is, notwithftanding the ftraw, liable
to be wailied away, if expofed on a rifing
ground.

But how much more liable to wafte is a
mixture of dung and urine, with barely a
futiiciency of ftraw to keep it together, in a
body ? In dry weather, the natural oozing is
confiderable ; and, in a wet feafon, every
ihower of rain wafhes it away, in quantity.
It may be a moot point whether, in fome
cafes, half the effential virtues of the dung,
as a manure, may not be loft by improper
management. Certain it is, that, in all cafes,
much too great a proportion is loft ; and it
behoves the huft)andmen of this Diftrict, and
of every Diftrict where the houfmg of cattle
in winter is pradtifed, to pay particular atten-
tion to the management of Farmyard aaa-
nure.

If a fmall proportion of the expcnce and
attention, which has of late years been fo
well beftowed on the making of Drinking
POOLS, were to be applied to the forming of
DuNQ YARDS, the profits, great as they are

in

368 FARMYARD MANAGEMENT.

in one cafe. Would, I am perfuaded, be found
llill greater in the other.

The Norfolk method of bottoming the
dung yard, with mold, is here indifpenfably
neceffary, to common good management.
There is no better manure, for g r ass land,
than mold faturated with the oozings of a
dunghill : it gets down quicker among the
grafs, and has generally a more viiible efFe<^,
than the dung itfelf. To negle(fl: fo valuable
a fource of manure, is negledling a mine of
gold and filver, which may be worked at
will. Under this management, the arable
land would have the felf-fame dung, it now
has ; while the grafs land would have an
annual fupply of riches, which now run waRc
in the " flrands" and rivulets.

But, before a dung yard can, with pro-
priety, be bottomed witli mold, the bottom
of the yard, itfelf, ought to be properly
FORMED. A part of it, fituated convenient -
ly for carriages to come at, and low enough
to receive the entire drainao-e of the itable,
cattle ftalls, arid hog flics, fliould be hollow-ed
out, in the manner of an artificial Drinking
pool, with a rim fomcwhat rifing, and with
covered drains laid into it, from the various
fources of liquid manure.

During

Y O H K 5 H T R E. 3S9

During the fiimmer months, at leifare
times, and embracing opportunities of hack-
carriage, cover the bottom of the b.ifon, a
foot cr more thick, with mold, — fuch as the
fcowerings of ditches, the fhovehngs of roads,
the maiden earth of lanes and wafte corners,
the coping of ftone quarries, or the foil of
fallow ground, — leaving the farface difliing ;
and, within the difh, fet the dung pile:
equally preventing the admiilion of extrane-
ous water into the refervoir, and the efcape
#f that which falls within its area.

14.

MARKETS and PAPER MONEY.

MARKETS. Cattle and Sheep are
mollly fold in the market tov/ns of the
Vale. Whitby and Scarborough take
the fjrplus of fuch as are fit for the butcher;
and thofe which are lean. Tire bought ud bv
the south-country Covers. Malton
is the principal market for h'^rfrs^ rcr,?, butter^

Vol, I. Eb and

y/0 MARKETS AND PAPER MONEY.

and bacon, OatSy crrdinary butter, and baccm^
find a market in the manufa<fluring Diftrid:
of West Yorkshire : prime butter, ana
fbme bacon, travel, by way of Hull, to the
Metropolis. Horfes are divided betweca
the LoxNDON and foreign Markets.

PAPER MONEY. An evil, which has
been long growing in the markets of this
kingdom, has here got to a height that en-
titles it to notice.

Gold can no longer be coniidered as the
medium of property. Let a man fell hi*
whole flock, at market, and it were mere
chance, if he brouorht home with him more
than a few guineas. The bulk of the value rc-»
ceived is invariably paper : — not bank notes,
— but paper of nb ether value, than that
which is given it by the engraver, and the
name, perhaps,- of fome fliopkeeper, or other
petty banker, wholly unknown to the far-
mer ; who, probably, is entirely ignorant, as
to whether the name, or names, be real or nc-
titious.

One accident has already happened, in this
neighbourhood ; and it is matter of aftoniih-
ment, that more do not follow : a circum-
ftance, which can only be accounted for, by

the

Y Q R K S H I R ?:. 371

the proJtfSy which this fpecips of coinage
affords *.

An arch cobler of Ncwcallle upon Tync
has piade a fortune, by coining penny an^i
twopenny notes -f-, which are highly embel-
lifhed, and rendered valuable, by a long lift
pf refpediable names ; his friend Crijfin at
the head of them. They are alfo payable
in London, at a houfe of names ^ equally ref«.
pe6table and refponfibie : the £neft burlefquc
upon modern banking, which can polTibly
be conceived. The fellow is faid to hava
pocketed, already, a thoufand pounds by Ui€
thought.

The <:onvemcncy of paper money fev/ men
will deny \ efpecially, now, wht^^n the weigh-
ing of gold is become, in fome degree, ne-
celTary : a bufinefs which is extremely
aukward, in a jnarket. Ail the yi7r;;?^rwants.
\%ficiirity.

On the cthtT hand, the profit ablencfs of
paper money, to thofe who coin it, is ftill
B b 2 lefs

* Not cnly by the intereft of the Amount of bills in
circulation ; but by dfi'ti' notes ; that i«, bills loft and dc*
f^roypd by accident; the amount of which is clear gain.

f Circulated among the coliier?, kechr.ea, and lailors ;
every one beir^ proi^d to ha\T a " bank note*' in his
l^pcket.

372 ».L\RfC£TS AND PAPER MONEY.

Jeis dilput;ible. £ut why ihail indniduals bo
fun^ered to barren on the public, by the pro»
fits of COINAGE ? Why ihall cnc rran ba
dragged to the gallows, for coining a fe^
ihilUngs, while others are luneped to amafs
fortunes* by coining five and <en pound
pieces r If pcpcr money be political, the
ii'ATiON, nvt i/iuiziduals, ought to have the
pronts ariiing froi;i it.

. But the inlegufity of paper cncney, and
the crime gf qpming it, fgrm only part of the
evil, which is here meant to be held up to
yie\^. I pretend not to the profound in po-
litical arithmetic j but 1 have alwaj-s under -
ilood, that tiie prices of commodities, at mar-
ket, bear a proportica to the quantity of
money, m circulation. If this be m truth the
cafe, the evil, here fpoken of, has the moll
p-rniciou«^ tendency.

In \h€ prcfcnt Jiate of Europe, this country

. can preferve its pre-emiiiince, as a nation, by

maiiufacjures and commerce, alone. The

j demand for the mar.ufa6iires of a given

I country will ever bear a proportion to their

I ccmparatirje price. The price of manufadhires

depends upon thcf^ of materials and labor ;

and this on the p r i c e of n.v i n g . If by a,

3c'.v of caih u: circuktion (no matter whe-

ther

YORKSHIRE. 373

ther of gold, filver, copper, or paper) the
prices of living, labor, and materials be fuf-
fered to advance, the demand for manufac-
tures w^ill of courfe decline, and with it the
profperity of the nation.

I wifh not to intermeddle, officioufly, m
concerns of Government ; but the fubjedt,
under notice, feems to be fufficiently con-
nected with RURAL ECONOMICS, to Warrant
its being mentioned, in this place.

1796. Thefe private coinages, fince
they were here firfl: held up to public notice,
have engaged the attention of Goveirnment.
To fupprefs or check them ? No. To give
them countenance, and literally to ftamp
their baleful eifufions with public avowal.

\

FND OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

THE

HOral economy

O F

& N 6 L A N D.

*f He foUawing Publications, on this
Subjedt, and on the Plan of thefe Volumes,
may be had of Mr. NieoL, Pall Mall;
MeiTrs. Robinson, Paternofter Row; aad
Mr. Debrett, Piccadilly :

(In Two Volumes O^avo,)
THE RURAL ECONOMY

O F

NORFOLK;

COmprlfing theMANAGEMENTofLANDfiDESTitTES^

and the present practice cn Husiandry, in
that County.

(In Two Volumes OSfavoy)
THE RURAL ECONOMY

O F

GLOCESTERSHIRE ;

including its Dairy : together with the Dairy
Management of North Wiltshire j and the
Management of Orchards and Frvxt LiQiTQA in

H£R£F0RDSHIR£|

(In Two Volumes Ocfave,)
THE RURAL ECONOMY

OF

THE MIDLAND COUNTIES j '

incluVing the Management of Livestock, in
Leicestershire, and its Environs ; together
with Minutes on Agriculture and Planting,
in the Diftrift of the Midland Station.

(IfiTwo Volumes C^avo,)
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O F

THE WEST OF ENGLAND ^

including Devonshire, and Parts of Somerfct*-
(hire, Dorfctfhire, and Cornwall: together with
Minutes in Practice, in West Devonshire.

^ The/e Four tVorks, ivitb that ivhich is
here offered to the Public, and ivith the
Rural Economy of the Southern
Counties, now preparing for the Prejs,
ivill complete Mr. M.'s Plan, fofar as re^^
lates to his own Survey of the Rural Prnc*
tices of Profefjional Men in'E'^Q-L^'ii-Q,