104 THE ISLE OF AXHOLME 



manure, but by no means naturally rich. It was 

 everywhere carrying on the strips very fair crops, 

 though there was nothing exceptionally heavy, and 

 the potatoes and corn would yield less per acre than 

 the same crops on the great fields on the warpland 

 only a few miles away. Still the land looked clean 

 and soundly cultivated ; the greater number of the 

 strips carried the usual crops of the farm, a few bore 

 carrots and celery, but the only other exceptional crop 

 we saw was the opium poppy. This was a surprising 

 and a beautiful sight, for the glaucous grey plants 

 stood up four feet or more, and at that time were lit 

 with a profusion of broad white flowers. The poppy 

 was formerly pretty generally grown throughout the 

 Fen country, having probably been introduced by the 

 Dutch drainage adventurers, while its cultivation was 

 maintained by the habit of taking opium and laudanum 

 which existed as long as the agues hung about the 

 marshes. Nowadays the demand is small for the 

 dried poppy heads, which are still to be seen in the 

 old-fashioned country shops. The harvest takes place 

 towards the end of August, at the same time, in fact, 

 as the corn harvest, when the seed heads are turning 

 white but have not yet opened to liberate the torrent 

 of seeds that pour out when ripe. The heads are 

 broken off with a trifle of stalk and laid on a floor to 

 the depth of six inches or so ; then they are turned 

 repeatedly until they are dry, in which state, if of 

 good quality, they are marketable at about los. per 

 thousand. 



The size and shape of the strips prevents any stock 

 being kept on them, but each of the little farmers has 

 a small homestead in the village to which he carries 

 his corn, the clover hay he makes, and such roots as 

 he grows in order to fatten a few beasts in the " crew- 



