The Proper Way to Do It 



341 



Next Monday morning then we'll have another 

 talk. Next Monday morning they came with 

 a dififerent story. ' If you please, sir, we've 

 thought better about the rise in wages, but 

 could you let us each have a bit of ground, 

 for our gardens are very small, so that we 

 cannot keep a pig, nor grow vegetables for 

 our families.' That I will, I said, and a good 

 deal more I've got to say to you now. I've 

 been thinking of our last conversation, and 

 this is what I propose to do. 



" I. To give you all a piece of ground, be- 

 sides your present gardens, of a quarter to one- 

 third of an acre, as conveniently as I can 

 make it, for which you shall pay the same 

 rent as I do. I've settled it with my land- 

 lord, who is quite agreeable. 



•'2. To give you as much task work as 

 possible, so that you'll be able to earn two 

 shillings or three shillings a-week more. 

 Turning manure and many other things we've 

 hitherto done by day work, we'll do by piece- 

 work. 



"3. To give you all an interest in my 

 profits. You know the shepherd already gets 

 so much on each lamb : now I mean you all 

 to be able to earn something in your separate 

 departments in this way. I divide you into 

 two gangs, the men that attend chiefly to the 

 stock, cowmen, shepherds, pigmen ; and the 

 men that attend mostly to the crops, plough- 

 men, waggoners, &c. For every lamb that 

 is reared after the first fifty I shall allow six- 

 pence ; for every lamb after the first 150 I 

 shall allow one shilling. I expect about 200 

 lambs this year, so that the shepherd may get 

 about one hundred sixpences and fifty shil- 

 lings, that is ^5, if he raises 200 lambs. Then 

 for every calf born I shall allow the cowman 

 2S, 6d.3 for every litter of pigs reared, three- 

 pence a pig, and for every pig fatted some- 

 thing more. Then for the fat stock, for every 

 beast sold, I shall allow the man who looks 

 after them one shilling in the pound on the 

 profit. If I buy ten beasts for ^200, and sell 

 them for ^300, that will be exactly one 

 hundred shillings, or ;/^5, for the man who 

 looks after them. Then, as to the crops, that 

 is white crops (I don't reckon the others) my 



land on an average produces 25 bushels to 

 the acre. Now for every extra bushel whicii 

 by good cultivation, deep ploughing, or extra 

 carefulness and labour it may be made to 

 give, I shall divide one shilling per bushel 

 among the crop men. Thus, if on my 100 

 acres of wheat next year, I get 2S bushels 

 instead of 25, that will be three hundred shil- 

 lings, or ^15 to divide among those four 

 men ; and as I believe with better cultivation 

 and care it may be made to produce nearly 

 30 bushels to the acre, there would be five 

 hundred shillings, or ^25 to divide among 

 the four men, or £(i 5s. each. 



" 4. But besides these profits, which I do 

 not consider will come out of my pocket, but 

 out of your increased labour and work, I pro- 

 pose to allow to one or two of you who have 

 saved money (say /20) the run of a cow on 

 my farm at 2S. 6d. a-week, as they do in 

 Northumberland. (This was unanimously 

 received with very strong expressions of ap- 

 proval.) 



" That is my scheme : I have since made 

 one alteration in giving to the pigman every 

 year the least fat of all my bacon pigs, instead 

 of allowing him to keep one for himself ; the 

 consequence of which is tliat they are all so 

 fat, it is impossible to select the leanest. The 

 system has been going on now for three years 

 come next autumn, with the most satisfactory 

 results. I have only lost one calf in that 

 time, whereas I used formerly to think myself 

 lucky if I only lost two a-year ; lambs and 

 pigs in the same proportion. My land, th^t 

 before never produced more than 28 bushels 

 to the acre, and generally 25 or 26, last year 

 gave 31, and will, I believe, average that for 

 the future. I believe I am making money 

 twice as fast as any farmer in AVestshire ; and 

 I never knew before that it was possible for 

 farming to make such profits. My men are 

 perfectly satisfied, and do double the v/ork 

 they did before, getting in addition more than 

 half their former income. I reckon that 

 without raising wages above what I raised 

 them when I first came, namely, from eleven 

 to twelve shillings a-week (and leaving privi- 

 leges and cottage rents as they were) my or- 



