8 The Fence Question in the South. 



In other words, modern England is not departing from the principle of 

 close fencing, and if there be any marked tendency in modern times it is to 

 make the fence and inclosures even more exclusive. An extract from a lead- 

 ing English journal, of a comparatively recent date, has an interest as bear- 

 ing upon this point, that in England to-day the fence has become a barrier 

 successfully to be maintained, even against the time honored practice of cross- 

 country riding in the fox hunt. 



Hunting men will be a little astonished at the decision of Lord, Coleridge, and Mr. Justice 

 Mellor in the case of Paul and Summerhayes, last Saturday. Till now it has been assumed 

 wrongfully as it seems that a field of horsemen following the hounds in full cry, have a right 

 to ride anywhere and everywhere. Damage to growing crops might' perhaps be recovered, but 

 the right to go anywhere, to jump hedge and ditch, to cross ploughed land and meadow, was 

 hardly ever questioned. It is now authoritatively announced that no such right exists. This 

 decision can scarcely fail to have practical results. (Pall Mall Budget, Nov. 20th., 1878.) 



From this brief review of historical facts pertaining to the fence, it will be 

 seen that it has become an important trait of English character and race his- 

 tory for many generations past. 



FIELD SYSTEMS OF OTHER NATIONS. 



The care for boundary lines indeed is found in the oldest history, sacred 

 and profane. The law of Moses, interpreted by Josephus, declares that 

 " Whosoever is capable of removing the boundaries of land, is not far from 

 a disposition to violate other laws." Solon's laws of Greece were rigid in the 

 extreme. 



" If any man makes a hedge near his neighbor's ground let him not pass his neighbor's land 

 marks. If he builds a wall, he is to leave one foot between him and his neighbor, if a house two 

 feet. Olive and fig-trees must be planted nine feet from another's ground." (Aristot. Polit. 11. 8. 



In ancient Greece much of the country was open pasture, for there was no 

 agriculture. In that period small portions of land for choice and more 

 secluded uses, were carefully enclosed, but the tilled fields were open. 



Roman law punished offences against boundaries with great severity. Indeed 

 the respect of the ancients for land-marks literally amounted to adoration, 

 for according to Ovid and Juvenal, one Roman ruler commanded oblations to 

 be made to them. 



These general features of ancient laud systems are found among modern 

 nations, where they still have relation to, or carry the traditions of the state 

 of society and government, and thus both in fact and meaning offer striking 

 contrasts to the fence system that has become one of the most common attri- 

 butes of English freedom. 



In France, Austria, and many parts of Germany, all the arable lands are 

 generally uninclosed, even where agriculture is highly advanced. Fences of 

 hedge or palings may be seen near towns and larger villages for home iu- 

 closures, but in general the whole rural country is open, and the boundaries 

 of estates are marked by stones, heaps of earth, or rows of trees. The cattle 

 are either soiled, or tended while at pasture. Under the best developements of 

 this system, guards are established throughout the country to prevent depreda- 

 tions by stray beasts. 



This system in French agriculture is much commented on and admired by 

 aesthetic letter writers, but furnishes no example Americans or Englishmen 

 would be willing to see reproduced on their soil. Says Dr. Loring, United 

 States Commissioner of Agriculture, in a recent paper on Land Holding : 



