t '9' ] 



homeftcds, for the manor was generally divided 

 into three large inclofures, called a bam, a meadow^ 

 and 2i field. In the ham all the tenants fed their 

 cattle in common during the fummer feafon, after 

 the fame manner as commons in grafs are fed at 

 prefent. For winter fodder, all the tenants, the 

 firft day after the Nativity of St. John the Baptift, 

 mowed promifcuoufly in the meadow land, com- 

 monly beginning at twelve o'clock at night, and 

 continued mowing where they pleafed according as 

 their judgment pointed them to the bed grafs; 

 but if a tenant furrounded more land than his 

 ftrength enabled him to mow in twenty-four hours, 

 any neighbouring tenant who had finillied mowing 

 the piece he had marked out in the morning, had 

 a prefcriptive right to break in upon fuch furrounded 

 land for the lad hour or two, more or lefs, and con- 

 tinue mowing till the twenty-four hours were fully 

 expired. The more wet or poor parts of the fame 

 mead might be mowed at any time, and by any 

 tenant who fuppofed his fingle day's mowing in- 

 fufEcient to fupport his cattle in the winter. 



A full day's « mowing was emphatically called a 

 Mead, and when the tenements came to be iden- 

 tified and bound-ftones fet up, they were always 

 cftimated at five acres each, I have furveyed fome 

 hundreds, perhaps thoufands of thofe meads, and 



find 



