MEMOIR OF THOMAS BEWICK. 193 



aristocratic pomposity ; they forgot what their 

 demeanour and good, kind, behaviour used to be 

 to those in inferior stations of life ; and seemed 

 now far too often to look upon them like dirt. 

 The character of the richer class, of farmers was 

 also changed. They acted the gentleman very 

 aw r kwardly, and many of them could not, in these 

 times, drink anything but wine, and even that 

 was called "humble port." When these upstart 

 gentlemen left the market, they were ready to ride 

 over all they met or overtook on the way ; but 

 this was as nothing compared to the pride and 

 folly which took possession of their empty or fume- 

 charged heads, when they got dressed in scarlet. 

 They were then fitted for any purpose, and were 

 called "yeomanry cavalry." Pride and folly then 

 became personified. When peace came, it brought 

 with it a sudden fall in the price of corn ; but the 

 taxes continuing the same to them, and rents still 

 keeping high, they, with few exceptions, suddenly 

 experienced a woful change. I cannot say, after 

 seeing so much of their folly, that I was sorry for 

 them ; for they mostly deserved this reverse of 

 fortune. Not so with the industrious labourer. His 

 privations were great, and he was undeservedly 

 doomed to suffer for want of employment, and 

 often to waste away and die of hunger aad want. 

 During the greater portion of the war, the land- 

 owners may be said to have paid little or nothing 

 to support it ; for the extra rents paid almost all 

 their taxes ; but at length the evils brought on by 

 so long a war fell also heavily upon numbers of 

 them, who, on account of tithes and taxes with 

 which the land was loaded, could hardly get any 



rent at all. 



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