Farming of Leicestershire. 295 



ings may be found wholly devoid of farm-buildings, yet this 

 description of farm is much sought after, and commands very 

 high rents. Three pounds per acre is freely paid for those of 

 good quality : such will graze and fatten a bullock weighing 

 when fat from 50 to 60 imperial stones, and one sheep over 

 20 lbs, per quarter per acre during the summer months, and in 

 winter will keep from 1 to 1^ sheep per acre. 



The majority of these holdings have little and many have no 

 land in arable culture, and unquestionably their freedom from 

 the complexity and harassing cares incidental to arable cultiva- 

 tion is one great source of their attractiveness. 



But although the details of management are simple, and the 

 manual labour required little, yet skill and acquirements of a 

 high order are essential to ensure successful results. 



Much attention is required to properly graze and make the 

 most of those pastures ; for, although cattle do best on rather 

 3"Oung grass, at least before midsummer, yet bare pastures and 

 rapid fattening are incompatible ; on the other hand, satisfactory 

 grazing is rarely accomplished where the bite gets too long, and 

 hence watchful attention and prompt action is required to hit 

 and maintain the golden mean. To meet the extra flush of 

 grass induced by a more than ordinary growing season, extra 

 cattle, at whatever cost, must be purchased ; while sales, perhaps 

 at a disadvantage, or a liberal use of cake, must supplement the 

 scarcity that results from a dry, ungenial season. 



It is considered a very important point to keep the pastures 

 well in hand until midsummer ; where this is not attended to a 

 certain waste and deterioration of quality takes place, for, until 

 starved to it, all cattle refuse to graze the rough grass grown 

 before this date. 



Once a year, at least, all graziers with any pretence to a know- 

 ledge of their business consider it indispensable to graze their 

 pastures bare. Rank, rough, coarse patches of grass Avill more 

 or less invariably be found at the end of the season in the fatten- 

 ing pastures ; and a few years ago the scythe was much used 

 during the summer to keep these smooth ; and hence the old 

 saying, " You cannot graze without the scythe." By a few 

 graziers this is yet occasionally done, but the more general prac- 

 tice now is to crop them off during the winter months with Scotch 

 or Welsh runts, termed " gnawers." 



The success of this gnawing process, like many others con- 

 nected with grazing, depends much on judicious attention. A 

 novice in the trade will crowd his cattle and keep them in one 

 field until they shave it bare ; and this is certainly the primary 

 object in view ; but loss of condition in his cattle is the certain 

 result : while the knowing hand, by judiciously and frequently 



