FITZHERBERT 85 



to see that the hair stare not, and that the beast lacks no teeth, 

 has a broad rib, a thick hide, and be loose skinned, for if it 

 stick hard to his ribs he will not feed l ; it should be handled 

 to see if it be soft on the forecrop, behind the shoulder, on the 

 hindermost rib upon the huck bone, and at the nache by the tail. 

 Among other diseases of cattle he mentions the gout, ' com- 

 monly in the hinder feet ' ; but he never knew a man who could 

 find a remedy. He was a great advocate of enclosures ; for it 

 was much better to have several closes and pastures to put his 

 cattle in, which should be well quick-setted, ditched, and 

 hedged, so as to divide those of different ages, as this was 

 more profitable than to have his cattle go before the herds- 

 man (in the common field). 



It will be seen from the above that Fitzherbert made no idle 

 boast in saying he wrote of what he knew, and much of his advice 

 is applicable to-day, though the time is past for the farmer's 

 wife to ' wynowe all manner of cornes, to make malte, to shere 

 corne, and in time of nede to helpe her husbande to fyll the 

 mucke wayne or dounge carte, dryve the plough, lode heye, 

 corne, and such other' ; though she may go or ride to the market 

 ' to sel butter, cheese, milke, eggs, chekyns, hennes, and geese.' 2 

 It appears that the horses of England at this time had consider- 

 ably deteriorated, for the statute 27 Hen. VIII, c. 6, mentions 

 the great decay of the breed, the cause it is stated being that 

 1 in most places of this Realme little horsis and naggis of small 

 stature and valeu be suffered to depasture and also to covour 

 marys and felys of very small stature ' ; therefore owners and 

 farmers of deer parks shall keep in every such park two brood 

 mares of 13 'hand fulles' (hands) at least. Another statute, 

 32 Hen. VIII, c. 13, strove to remedy this evil by enacting 

 that no entire horse under 15 hands was to feed on any forest, 

 chase, waste, or common land. 



1 Booke oj Husbandry (ed. 1568), fol. xxix. 



2 Fitzherbert adds pigs and all manner of cornes, so altogether the 

 farmer's wife seems to have done as much as the farmer. 



