36 



28. How to shear barley or oats. 



Rest kind of 

 tLatching. 



eares, and bynde it in sheues, and call it rede : and 

 therwith they thacke theyr houses. And if it be a 

 newe house, they thacke it vnder theyr fote : the 

 24 whiche is the beste and the surest thacking that can 

 be of strawe, for crowes and douues shall neuer hurte it. 



Mow barley 

 and uats. 



[Fol. 22.] 



Rake after- 

 wards. 



28. grf- To mowe or shere barley and otes. 



Barley and otes be moste commonly mowen, and a 

 man or woman folowythe the mower with a hande-rake 

 halfe a yarde longe, with .vii. or .viii. tethe, in the 



4 lyfte hande, and a syckle in the ryghte hande, and 

 with the rake he gethereth as moche as wyll make a 

 shefe. And thanne he taketh the barley or otes by the 

 toppes, and pulleth out as moche as wil make a band, 



8 and casteth the band from him on the land, and with his 

 rake and his syckle taketh vp the barley or otes, & 

 layeth them vppon the bande, and so the barley lyeth 

 vnbounden ,iii. or .iiii. dayes, if it be fayre wether, 

 12 and than to bynde it. And whan the barley is ledde 

 away, the landes muste be raked, or els there wyll be 

 moche corne loste, and if the barley or otes lye, they 

 muste nedes be shorne. 



Reap or 

 mow peas 

 and beans. 



Bind them 

 together. 



Cut beans 

 low. 



29. ^ To repe or mowe pees and beanes. 



Pees and benes be moste commonly laste reped or 

 mowen, of diuers maners, some with sickles, some 

 with hokes, and some with staffe-hokes. And in some 



4 places they lay them on repes, and whan they be dry, 

 they laye them to-gether on heapes, lyke hey-cockes, 

 and neuer bynde them. But the beste way is, whan 

 the repes be dry, to bynde them, and to set theym on 



8 the rydge of the landes three sheues to-gether; and 

 loke that your sherers, repers, or mowers geld not 

 your beanes, that is to saye, to cutte the beanes so hye, 



