viii Synopsis of Chapters, 



PAGE 



miners at the beginning of the seventeenth century — A similar 

 contest between popular and seignorial rights demonstrated 

 from the early historj" of iron-mining in the Dean Forest — 

 The Miners' Court, with its constable, steward, gaveller, and 

 jury — The adjustment of seignorial and pojDular rights in the 

 mines of the royal forest of Mendip — The gold, silver, and lead 

 mines of Scotland, and their early acquisition by the Crown — A 

 short history of English and Scotch coal-mining — Seignorial 

 powers over coal-mining as instanced by the disputes between 

 the Bishop of Durham and different lessees — Evidence of the 

 Manorial Court Rolls regarding the rights of the landlords — 

 Description of the coal-mining economy practised two hundred 

 years ago — Dangers of the industry to life and limb — Freight- 

 age charges on the marketable coal — Improvements in the 

 appliances for Derbyshire lead-smelting .... 16-36 



CHAPTER III. 



STORY OF THE NATIONAL WOODLANDS. 



The separation of popular from seignorial rights on the wooded 

 portion of the Folcland — Legislation of the ancients about trees, 

 and our national statutes on the subject — Customs and laws of 

 the mediaeval forest — The tithe laws regarding timber and 

 underwood — Weston's views on the condition of our woods and 

 forests in the seventeenth century — Confirmed by the writings 

 of Evelyn— The latter's wide experience of landscape gardening, 

 and efforts to prove arboriculture as useful as it is ornamental 

 — Tree planting demanded bj- State interests — The information 

 on the subject of scientific woodcraft to be derived from cla.s- 

 sical works — The demands of the nav3' on our supply of stout, 

 seasoned timber — Attention of the State drawn b}' Plot to the 

 subject — The Staffordshire method of felling timber advocated 

 — Evelyn's veneration of the tree, and tlie enormous importance 

 he attached to its scientific culture — The practices adopted in 

 his times bj- foreign countries relieve him from all imputation 

 of exaggerated views in this direction — His familiaritj' with 

 the nature and uses of, as well as the superstitions regarding, 

 various trees — His efforts to bring all the forces of public and 

 private intei-ests to bear on the encouragement of woodcraft — 

 Results of his work on the national woodlands — Increase of 

 arboriculture in England and Scotland — Introduction of fresh 

 specimens on northern estates — Spread of public nurseries, and 

 cheap prices of all common tree-plants — Alarm of the Govern- 

 ment regarding the dearth of native timber for the navy — 

 Fresh legislation and encouragement ai-ouses the public spirit 

 — Ignorance of the science eventually damps the national 

 ardour— Revival sets in under scientific principles— Prospects 

 of the modern sylviculturist 37-67 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE NEW STATE OF ENGLAND. 



The difficulty to discover a justification of the title to this chapter, 

 which is borrowed from a treatise of the period — Agriculture 



