WOLD FARMING 121 



mates to the Noah's Ark style of a square-sided box 

 perched up on four legs, and the neat little ringlets or 

 purls of closely curled wool which characterize the 

 breed only add to their toy appearance. The main 

 object of the sheep breeding on the Wolds is to sell 

 lambs fat off the turnips at about a year old ; our host, 

 who had a flock of considerable repute, also sold a 

 number of ram lambs for stud purposes. In addition 

 to the sheep, bullocks were brought into this county 

 to be fattened during the winter, half of the swedes 

 being drawn off the land for this purpose. 



The farming is thus somewhat restricted in type, 

 following in the strictest and most conservative fashion 

 the traditional practices, but it was being extraordin- 

 arily well done. The land was kept most scrupul- 

 ously clean, like the land on the Lincoln Wolds, and 

 the even, regular stand shown everywhere by the crops 

 spoke of sound and careful management. Farms ran 

 large, from eight to twelve hundred acres ; there are 

 practically no small holdings in the Wolds, and rents, 

 we were told, varied from 153. to 2Os. an acre. At 

 this price there was a good demand and no farms were 

 then on the market. Labour was to be obtained in 

 quite sufficient quantity ; this is a district of yearly 

 hirings, and the young, unmarried men all live with 

 the bailiff or foreman, who receives an allowance on 

 which to " meat " them. 



The only labour difficulty appears to be the drinking 

 bouts of these young men, who periodically go off for 

 a few days and get rid of all their accumulated savings. 

 It is a pity that a better outlet cannot be found for 

 these sturdy Yorkshiremen of the effervescences ; it is 

 the monotony and want of relief in their occupation 

 which cause the outbursts. Every farm labourer has 

 to work long hours and content himself with a small 



