HIGH RENTS 345 



are rife, and there were breadths of asparagus, runner 

 beans, violets, daffodils, and, as in other districts, 

 wallflowers under the standard trees. All the land 

 showed evidence of strenuous and enterprising farming, 

 such as, indeed, is necessary in order to pay such 

 rentals. 



But a little distance back from the sea early 

 potatoes cannot be grown with success, and the 

 rent of the land falls sharply to something in the 

 neighbourhood of 4 an acre. The cartage of sea- 

 weed and sand from the shore becomes more expensive, 

 and the week or so by which the potatoes are later 

 causes the loss of the best of the market and forces 

 the crop to be sold in competition with the potatoes 

 that are then coming in quantity from St. Malo. 

 We visited an excellent example of such a farm 

 where a five or six years' rotation was followed ; 

 on the broken up ley broccoli were planted to be 

 followed by cabbage and mangolds, with breadths 

 of onions and carrots ; this was succeeded by one or 

 two years' corn wheat, or oats, in which the seeds were 

 sown and left down for three or four years. In the 

 soft, warm climate a good take of seeds and an 

 abundant pasture were always assured, and this was 

 pastured by cows, the main source of income on the 

 farm being the sale of milk. There was a considerable 

 orchard, and raspberries were found to grow excep- 

 tionally well in the equable, moist climate. The 

 land was highly farmed, the manure bill almost 

 represented a second rental, and feeding stuffs had 

 also to be purchased to keep the large head of stock 

 going. Considering that only one crop making big 

 money could be grown in a five or six years' rotation, 

 and that the rest of the revenue had to be earned by 

 ordinary farming, 4 an acre seemed a great rent 



