202 Remarks in an Excursion into 
lific. Many of the cottagers keep bees, which, 
from the abundance of heath blossom on the 
neighbouring hills, afford the choicest honey. 
Stall or pen feeding is not here much prac- 
tised : the sheep are brought up by browsing 
upon the young heath of the mountains, and 
are fed off chiefly by the sweet herbage of 
their sheltered pasturage; hence the decided 
superiority of the Cumberland mutton. Hav- 
ing understood that the fine flavour of their 
bacon arose from its being chiefly fed on peas, 
we were surprized to see so few grown in the 
country. On enquiry, we found that barley 
and oats were as much used here in feeding as 
elsewhere, we had therefore reason to believe 
that this acknowledged excellence arises 
chiefly from the pigs being much less con- 
fined. From their birth they are suffered to 
go at large in the woods, and if the season 
be favourable, they make themselves half fat 
with acorns. 
The clipped or plashed hedge-row is not 
often seen near the lakes, and the trees which 
grow in the fences are seldom pruned. This 
neglect certainly softens the landscape to the 
eye of the painter, but cannot be justified 
to the prudent farmer. 
The road from Keswick to Ambleside, 
affords a continual variety of the most inter- 
