State Agricultural Society. 519 



of it. The length of this south bluff is three or four miles. The re- 

 mainder of the southern shore, and a large part of the eastern, lie but 

 little above the level of the sea. From the north and the west the land 

 descends gradually, being divided by frequent valleys, with rills and 

 brooks, quite to the southern coast, so that the general exposure is a 

 little east of south, and well sheltered by high bluffs on the northwest 

 and southwest coasts from violent winds, aiding materially in the modi- 

 fication of the climate. 



The whole island is of about the same size with Staten Island, near 

 New York. It is divided into twelve parishes, each under its own local 

 government, the whole being ruled by a Legislature which, for local 

 government, is comparatively independent of the British Parliament. 

 Of course, in so small a country, there must be considerable uniformity 

 of habits, customs, and language, throughout all its parts; and the local 

 differences which exist, although they affect even the language of the 

 people, need hardly be considered in this description. 



the farming. 



About twenty-five thousand acres of the island are under cultivation, 

 or are used for pasturing. The population is about fifty-six thousand, or 

 more than two persons for each acre of available land. The farms are 

 generally very small, and the local law of succession tends to their still 

 further division, although beyond a certain point this tendency is checked 

 by purchase. There are not more than six or eight farms in the island 

 of over fifty acres; the usual size is from fifteen to twenty acres, but a 

 very large part of the population occupy very much less land, often only 

 two or three acres. Even the smallest farmers, occupying less than two 

 acres of land, keep a cow, swine, and some poultry. One result of this 

 minute subdivision has been the cutting up of the whole island into very 

 small fields, many of them orchards, and nearly all surrounded with 

 earth fences, on the top of which grow the trees that supply a consider- 

 able part of the fuel used. 



Even these small farmers are widely distinguished from the poorer 

 peasantry of other parts of Europe; indeed, they are called "gentry," 

 and they hold their little estates by descent from very old families. 

 Being gentry, they have some of the characteristics of wealthier 

 gentlefolks, and attach much importance to comfortable and respectable 

 living. This ambition is made easy to gratify by the fertility of the 

 soil, the abundant sea-manure, an almost perfect climate, and the fact 

 that the best market in the world (London) is practically at their very 

 doors, to say nothing of the Town of St. Heliers, where more than one 

 half the population resides, and which depends largely upon the island 

 itself for its supply of food. 



The popularity of their cattle in foreign countries during the past 

 few years has added much to the prosperity of Jersey farmers. 



It would be difficult to find anywhere else such a universal adoption 

 of what may be called "high farming" on a small scale. A very good 

 idea of the agriculture of the island may be obtained from the follow- 

 ing account, given by Mr. Le Cornu in his prize essay, published in the 

 Journal of the Eoyal Agricultural Society of England. He says: 



"A farm of twenty acres will, with few exceptions (where meadow 

 land or orchards predominate), be distributed as follows: 



