590 General Notices. 



house; the " byre bauks" are most frequently chosen, where they are in 

 the way should any of the cattle be taken ill, &c, should there not be a loft 

 adapted to the purpose. Their food consists of oatmeal, in " crowdy," or 

 " porridge," broth, and butcher's meat ; skim milk, cheese, and potatoes. 

 The bread used is made of barley and peas, in the proportion of three to one ; 

 it is, in fact, the Scotch " bannocks of barley meal," and is said to be very 

 wholesome, and is far from unpalatable to those accustomed to it. The 

 girls, in addition, are generally allowed Cobbett's abomination, tea, once a 

 day. The wages appear higher than in the southern counties, being, for 

 men, from 51. to 12/. ; and even where an active industrious young man is em- 

 ployed to act as steward or head man, he will still expect 15/. or 16/., if not 

 more. Ploughmen are hired at from five to eight guineas ; and it appears 

 not likely there will be any fall in their wages this year. The reason will 

 appear when I detail the conditions of the married servant, or hind : these 

 have, for the year, a cottage-house, coals, bed, a small garth, to set a few 

 early potatoes and cabbage, a cow's grass with straw, and two loads (nearly 

 two tons) of hay for wintering, 3/. or 4/. in cash, and about twelve or thir- 

 teen Berwick bolls of corn (6 imp. bushels) : the proportions vary in dif- 

 ferent districts ; but say, one of wheat, two of peas, four of barley, and five 

 of oats ,• more oats, and less wheat, are given in Tweed side, and the con- 

 trary near the Tyne. They have also thirty bushels of potatoes, or, what is 

 more general, have the produce of the' setting of two bushels, or 1000 yards 

 of drills; they find the seed and hoe during summer, the master finding the 

 draught-work. * As they are allowed to keep a pig at their own expense, 

 they always contrive to have one bacon pig, if not two, in the year, of 

 which the most careful sell the hams, and consume the bacon at home. 

 When there is a son or father who lives in the same house, this is called a 

 double hind ; and the second is hired at proportional wages, either in money 

 or corn, as may be bargained for : they are also required to find for each 

 house a woman, or sufficient lad, for bafn-work, turnips, hay, &c, at 8d. a 

 day, and in harvest at Is. This is provincially called a " bondager," a name 

 certainly objectionable, yet, to those who will look closely into the custom, 

 it may not appear so bad as at first sight : the fact is, that there are plenty 

 of men who will most thankfully accept of a place under these conditions, 

 rather than run the risk of taking a house in a town or village, and depend- 

 ing on their livelihood for the year upon occasional jobs and piecework. 

 These last are the hands in this country who suffer most in bad times for 

 want of work, and make frequent attempts to throw themselves upon the 

 parish. This winter subscriptions were entered into to employ these per- 

 sons in the levelling of roads, improvements of footpaths, &c, to prevent 

 such demoralising an effect ; and, I am happy to say, were well supported, 

 particularly at Alnwick, as well as a soup kitchen, and ladies' clothing 

 society. The shepherds are also paid in kind : the payment for a man is 

 the keep of two cows and forty sheep. These go with the master's " hir- 

 sel " of different ages : where the master herd has to find a man or two, he 

 hires them, and is allowed stock in proportion ; so that he has nearly as 

 much interest in the stock as his master, and, his all being at stake, he is as 



* I find the practice of setting potatoes by the acre is also used in 

 Scotland : a manufacturer from Galashiels tells me he has known it there 

 for several years back. The price charged at Alnwick is 61. without 

 manure, and 10/. or 11/. with it: it requires from ten to twelve bolls per 

 acre for seed, and the produce may average about twenty bolls for one of 

 seed ; the taker therefore calculates upon having his potatoes at about 9d. 

 or Is. per boll (of two heaped imperial bushels), exclusive of hoeing, which 

 is done at spare times, and does not cost much. 



