The Htisbandry of the Period. 249 



in the other) on the turnip land. The carriage of turnips to 

 and manure from the sheep-yard would be avoided, and 

 the coming barley ground would be mechanically improved 

 by the pressure of the sheep's feet in the confined space of a 

 fold. When the lambs begin to arrive, a warm yard, still on 

 the turnip land, would be far healthier than the unsanitary 

 arrangement of a permanent yard at the homestead. The 

 folding of the sheep on old pasture would encourage foot-rot ; 

 and it is very doubtful if young sheep should ever be allowed 

 on grass at all, save that of the sheep-walk or young clover 

 root. 



It must, however, be borne in mind that up to Young's time 

 it had been more customary to " cot " the flock than to stall 

 the herd. This time-honoured practice may have created a 

 hereditary want amidst sheep for some kind of artificial 

 warmth at nights, such as the fold. Young, however, has 

 always an eye on his favourite wheat cultivation, and is here 

 looking after the good management of its manure quite as 

 much as that of the sheep. 



In stormy periods our author recommended hay, and adds : 

 " It is an excellent method to allow them (sheep) in their racks 

 a small quantity of hay daily while on turnips, let the weather 

 be good or bad; hut it is not absolutely necessary.'^ To this 

 qualifying clause few Norfolk farmers of the present day would 

 care to subscribe. They have learned by bitter experience in 

 the lambing-yard the bad effects of keeping their ewe flock 

 entirely on such cold and watery food as the turnip. Better 

 by far had the writer urged as a general practice the few 

 exceptional instances which he cites of farmers who supple- 

 mented the winter's bite of hay with oats and bran, disposed 

 in troughs amongst the sheep folded on the turnip ground. 



The great difficulty in Young's day seems to have been for 

 the shepherd to find suitable food during the month of April 

 and early days in May. " A turnip," he says, " should never 

 be seen on the ground after March." It was bad husbandry, 

 he declared, to keep sheep far on into the spring on turnips, 

 for it damaged the prospects of the forthcoming barley crop, 

 both in robbing the land of what might contribute to its 



