INTRODUCTION xvii 



life for the despoiled tillers of the soil whose just cause 

 he championed. 



The prowess shown in the frequent agrarian strug- 

 gles and on-falls is worthy of being called to mind. 

 In none of the renowned battlefields of those times 

 were the qualities of dogged courage, patient endur- 

 ance, and defiance of odds, more often shown than 

 in those so-called rebellions. These qualities, which 

 from the earliest times belonged to the yeomanry 

 and peasantry of this country, became imprinted on 

 the English race. How long they will remain unim- 

 paired among the people after these classes have dis- 

 appeared, and whether or not they will tarry for long 

 in town populations made up largely, as medical men 

 tell us, of "stunted men and anaemic women," are moot 

 questions. 



In dealing with the agricultural labourer I have 

 based my statements on my own experience, on the 

 lore and traditions of the cottage, on Parliamentary 

 papers, as well as other authorities. 



It is necessary to bear in mind that the "agri- 

 cultural labourer" of modern times is in a position 

 quite different from that of the " agricultural labourer" 

 of former years. In former times the agricultural 

 labourer (always called the "poor" and the "labouring 

 poor") was a man who generally possessed land and 

 almost invariably had rights of common in connec- 

 tion with the curtilage of his cottage. This enabled 

 him to keep stock of various kinds and of more or 

 less value, the proceeds of which, added to his earn- 

 ings as a labourer, placed him in a fairly prosperous 

 condition. 



The modern agricultural labourer is a mere wage- 



