THE DOMESDAY SURVEY 



was ' waste ' ; (6) the total accounted for ; (7) the nominal total on the 

 roll.' 



It is probable that this most important record was compiled in con- 

 sequence of the changes of assessment which in turn, probably, were due 

 to the large extent of land lying waste in the county at the time. The 

 total of the land returned as 'waste' is represented by 886 hides (which 

 should perhaps be 901), that is, one-third of the county. But how did 

 the assessment of the county stand at the time when this roll was com- 

 piled .? It is the view of Professor Maitland that at the time of this roll, 

 which belongs to the earlier half of the Conqueror's reign, the assessment 

 was still as high as 2,664 hides, but that 'between 1075 and 1086 the 



* The whole document is printed in Ellis, Introduction to Domesday, I. 1 84-1 87. This 

 text was collated by me (for Feudal England) with the original MS., which, however, is itself 

 corrupt in places. 



^ Wrongly given by Ellis as 'xviii.' 



' Wrongly given by Ellis as 'viii. and xx.' 



* The text here is evidently corrupt. 



* There are clearly some words omitted here in the Peterborough transcript. We 

 must read : 'and thereof is "gewered" [? 26 hide and] five and twenty hides inland,' 



2.59 



