THE ESSEX HUNT COUNTRY. 23 



the soil of the RoothinQS, Easters and Lavers, and of much 

 of the country north of Dunmow, as " a strong, wet, heavy, 

 reddish or brown loam upon a whitish clay marl bottom ; 

 poaching with rain ; adhesive ; yields very little without 

 hollow draining, and good crops not without manure and 

 careful management." He describes the poorest land in 

 the district as a thin wet loam of a rather lig;ht brown colour 

 locally known as red land. 



No one who has ridden over the Roothings in wet 

 weather will dispute the description of the land as " heavy." 

 Ordinary wet weather makes the ploughs very deep ; but 

 after a long continued downpour they appear to become 

 firmer, though there is plenty of surface water and mud. 

 Little can be grown in this district but vvheat, and this 

 crop often fails to meet the cost of cultivation and transport 

 to distant railway stations along the ill-kept roads. The 

 greater prosperity and population of these parishes in 

 former days is shown by the size of the ancient churches, 

 whose massive towers dignify the landscape. Many of 

 these Roothing churches are of sufficient size to contain 

 the whole present population of their respective parishes. 

 Provision for their maintenance is a matter of great diffi- 

 culty, on which account the assistance of hunting men is 

 from time to time invited. The fields, usually of great size, 



