190 



R FADINGS IN RURAL ECONOMICS 



the three districts is the northern end of the county, rising from 

 Banbury \\vst\vard to the spurs of the Cotswolds. It is the divide 

 between the valleys of the Thames, the Severn, and the Ouse 

 the very heart of England. Before the days of canals and rail- 

 ways its communication with the outer world must have been 

 slow if not difficult. Yet the soil is the best in the county, a 

 much-praised red loam. Before the Civil War the region was a 

 Puritan stronghold, while today certain parishes are peopled 

 largely by Quakers. Perhaps these characteristics have made for 

 the vigor of yeoman farming. 



To this survey of the status of the independent farmer in 1785 

 a glance at his fate for the next two generations is the natural 

 sequence. It is the period of the Napoleonic wars and their 

 aftermath. Though the year 1832 is a political rather than an 

 economic landmark, it is here chosen, since at that date the 

 reaction from the war period had had time to make itself felt. 

 Returns for 1804 show the state of affairs during the crisis. The 

 number of occupying owners and their assessment at each of 

 the three dates is indicated in the following table : 



While in 1785 occupying owners paid 9.05 per cent of the total 

 assessment of the county, their contribution in 1804 had become 

 11.3 per cent and in 1832, 11.9 per cent. A very marked 

 increase appears in the amount of land cultivated by owners dur- 

 ing the early years of the French wars ; and this is true for each 

 group of townships. The total amount even continued to increase 



