A HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX 



Farm buildings were well constructed and in good repair on the 

 whole, as they would naturally be in a county where agriculture 

 produced good returns. The only defect pointed out here by Foot is 

 the fact that they were in inaccessible situations, especially on the 

 common arable lands. 28 Round Harrow, Hendon, and Finchley there 

 were large hay barns, holding from 50 to 100 loads of hay each. 29 



The report of the agricultural instruments M is not so satisfactory; 

 evidently improvements in implements were not readily adopted by the 

 farmers. The common wooden swing-plough was the one in general 

 use ; the Hertfordshire wheel-plough being used for summer fallowing. 

 The harrows varied in weight from one-horse to four-horse carriage ; 

 they had rollers of wood and iron of equal capacity. Carts with iron 

 arms were more used than wagons. The improved plough and cultivator 

 invented by the Rev. James Coke had been tried by few. 



The subject of dairy-farming was one of growing importance, and 

 the number of cows was very large, compared with that in neighbouring 

 counties. Foot gives the numbers as follows : 



Tothill Fields and Knightsbridge 



Edgeware Road . 



Paddington, Tottenham Court Road, Battle Bridge 



Gray's Inn Lane, Bagnigge Wells, Islington 

 Hoxton 

 Mile End 

 Ratcliff 

 Limehouse 

 Poplar 

 Hackney 

 Bow . 



Bethnal Green 

 Bromley 



Shoreditch and Kingsland 

 These, with 224 odd cows, made a total of 7,20O. n 



205 

 550 



3.950 

 150 



406 

 205 

 1 80 

 70 

 600 



IOO 



2OO 



160 



2OO 



The best milch cows, kept for supplying London with milk, were 

 bred in Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Staffordshire. They were bought at 

 three years old, costing from eight guineas to 14 each. They either 

 came straight to the purchasers from the northern counties, or 

 were bought at the fairs and markets of Barnet, Islington, and other 

 places. The food and shelter of these cows was a matter of systematic 

 routine, in which apparently an absolutely uniform method was fol- 

 lowed. 38 Foot summarizes their productiveness as follows : Each cow 

 on an average gave eight quarts a day, for 365 days, i.e. 2,920 quarts, 

 which at if</. per quart comes to 21 $s. This represents the price 

 given by retailers. Consumers paid ^d. per quart, and the retailers got 

 the difference, as profit. He adds that this may over-rate profit as 

 ' When the families leave London, the cow-keepers do not find a ready 

 sale for all their milk ; and in this case they generally set the unsold 

 milk for cream, of which they make fresh butter for the London markets, 



* Peter Foot, Gen. V'uw of Agrlc. of MM. 79. 



* Ibid. 75 et seq. " Ibid. 80. 



212 



"Ibid. 57. 

 Ibid. 82. 



