PREFACE. vii 



coming over the old sunshine of labour, and show 

 how it was that the mass of the people was about 

 to exchange a condition of comparative opulence and 

 comfort for penury and misery, unhappily prolonged 

 for centuries. From the Reformation till the Revo- 

 lution the condition of English labour grew darker 

 and darker. From the Revolution to the outbreak 

 of the war of American Independence this lot was 

 a little lightened, but only by the plenty of the seasons 

 and the warmth of the sun. From the war of American 

 Independence to the Repeal of the Corn Laws it was at its 

 very worst, and it still suffers from the effects of the 

 two great wars waged with the Colonies and France. 



The economical annals of the larger part of the 

 period comprised in these volumes present a picture 

 of steady progressive opulence. Labour was well paid, 

 provisions were cheap, and wealth was accumulated. 

 There is reason to believe that elementary education 

 was by no means rare. No progress was made in the 

 arts of agriculture, except perhaps in the selection of 

 sheep and the profitable development of breeds, or per- 

 haps in a practical study of the conditions under which 

 the best wool could be grown ; for exceptional know- 

 ledge was under the ban of what was called religion. 

 There was some improvement in manufactures, for 

 they added to the wealth of those who had land and 

 power, and the age was marked by the capital inven- 

 tion of printing, by the revival of the old learning, 

 which unfortunately became only the luxury of the 

 few, and by great geographical discoveries. 



