192 History of the English Landed Interest. 



or market could not be purcliased by any of tlie farm servants. 

 Every death among tlie live stock involved an official inquest 

 before the bailiff was allowed to sanction tbe flaying of the 

 dead animal. It is quite possible that he had to produce all 

 skins periodically before the seneschal, to satisfy him respecting 

 any deficiencies in the numbers of the herd or flock, and explain 

 the causes of death. Possibly, too, these skins had to be kept 

 for estimating the Church's dues from mixed tithes, as in an 

 ensuing paragraph the bailiff is warned that he should attend 

 " the annual selling and tithing of the lambs, and the tithing 

 of the wool and skin, because of fraud." 



It seems to have been customary for the bailiff to call in at 

 three stated intervals of the year the services of that person 

 who corresponds most to the modern veterinary surgeon. The 

 " disease of May," and later on when mortality from this disease 

 set in, and again after Lammas were the periods fixed. The 

 bailiffs policy was of course to dispose profitably of as much sheep 

 and cattle as possible before the winter. About August, there- 

 fore, he began to cull his weaker animals and fatten them off on 

 the best pasture available. These would be sold off as soon as 

 fat. From then till Michaelmas he was gradually selling off, 

 killing for home use, or salting as a winter meat reserve as 

 many as were not likely to survive the cold and bad feeding of 

 the ensuing six months. To help him to carry out these many 

 duties there were the provost ^ and the hay ward. The former 

 was the smartest hand in the township, and was chosen 

 annually by the community of villeins."'^ He superintended 

 the early rising and behaviour of the court servants, the 

 cultivation of the demesne lands, the proper attendance on the 

 various herds and flocks, and the quality and excellence of the 

 dairy produce. He kept accounts of the services of the boon 



* Seneschancie, pp. 97, seq. 



' The post of provost or reeve was not, however, an envied one ; and 

 notwitlistanding his partial exemption from boon service and perquisites 

 of extra land, meals, and horse keep, tlic loi'd had oftx3n to insert in the 

 Manor Rolls a clause proving the legal liability of all holders of virgates 

 or half-virgatcs to be elected to the post. — Ashley, jhkonomic History, 

 ch. i., p. 12. 



