Great Britain -- Description and travel; Great Britain -- Rural conditions
Went from Bergh Apton to Norwich in the morning, and from Norwich to
London during the day, carrying with me great admiration of and respect
for this county of _excellent farmers_, and hearty, open and spirited
men. The Norfolk people are quick and smart in their motions and in
their speaking. Very neat and _trim_ in all their farming concerns, and
very skilful. Their land is good, their roads are level, and the bottom
of their soil is dry, to be sure; and these are great advantages; but
they are diligent, and make the most of everything. Their management of
all sorts of stock is most judicious; they are careful about manure;
their teams move quickly; and, in short, it is a county of most
excellent cultivators.--The churches in Norfolk are generally large and
the towers lofty. They have all been well built at first. Many of them
are of the Saxon architecture. They are, almost all (I do not remember
an exception), placed on the _highest_ spots to be found near where they
stand; and, it is curious enough, that the contrary practice should have
prevailed in _hilly_ countries, where they are generally found in
valleys and in low, sheltered dells, even in those valleys! These
churches prove that the people of Norfolk and Suffolk were always a
superior people in point of wealth, while the size of them proves that
the country parts were, at one time, a great deal more populous than
they now are. The great drawbacks on the beauty of these counties are,
their flatness and their want of fine woods; but, to those who can
dispense with these, Norfolk, under a wise and just government, can have
nothing to ask more than Providence and the industry of man have given.
LANDLORD DISTRESS MEETINGS.
For, in fact, it is not the _farmer_, but the _Landlord_ and _Parson_,
who wants relief from the "_Collective_." The tenant's remedy is,
quitting his farm or bringing down his rent to what he can afford to
give, wheat being 3 or 4 shillings a bushel. This is his remedy. What
should _he_ want high prices for? They can do _him_ no good; and this I
proved to the farmers last year. The fact is, the Landlords and Parsons
are urging the farmers on to get _something done_ to give them high
rents and high tithes.
At _Hertford_ there has been a meeting at which _some_ sense was
discovered, at any rate. The parties talked about the _fund-holder_, the
_Debt_, the _taxes_, and so on, and seemed to be in a very warm temper.
Pray, keep yourselves _cool_, gentlemen; for you have a great deal to
endure yet. I deeply regret that I have not room to insert the
resolutions of this meeting.
There is to be a meeting at _Battle_ (East Sussex) on the 3rd instant,
at which _I mean to be_. I want to _see_ my friends on the _South
Downs_. To see how they _look_ now.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account