348 State Board of Agriculture, &c. 



tivation of the soil by keeping large tracts of country 

 as preserves for game ; the forest laws were very severe, 

 the punishment for killing a deer being death — the same as 

 that for killing a man. The peasantry were slaves them- 

 selves, their children and goods all belonged to the lord of 

 the soil, and most of the lands were granted to the nobles or 

 the church. 



During the latter part of the dark ages, as they were 

 called, (from the eleventh to the lifteenth century,) but lit- 

 tle is known of British husbandry. Printing was not 

 brought into use until about the year of 1435, audit was not 

 until nearly a century after that any book of note was printed 

 on agriculture. In was about the time of the reign of Henry 

 YIII. that the cabbage, carrot, turnip, artichoke and some 

 other vegetables were brought into England. It was during 

 the reign of Elizabeth that the potato was introduced into 

 Europe by Sir Walter Raleigli. Nearly a century had passed 

 before it could be said that it was generally cultivated in 

 England. 



England at that time was very backwai-d in agriculture. 

 Now she is famed for the excellence of her clover and tur- 

 nips, which were introduced in the sixteenth century. This 

 is the time from which England dates her prosperity as an 

 agricultural nation ; and, however proficient she might 

 have believed herself at that time in raisins; the trains and 

 grasses, she no doubt looks back to those days with won- 

 der and astonishment, and realizes how rude and imperfect 

 were her ways of farming at that time. 



After the introduction from Flanders of the clover and 

 turnip, it was many long, weary years of experiment before 



