236 ANNIVERSARY ADDRESS 



one to three feet high, branched above with a iarge 

 crowded corymbose panicle of small yellow jBlowers and 

 pendulous brown widely-margined seed-pods. The radical 

 leaves are large, crowded, oblong-ovate, entire, gradually 

 narrowed down into a foot stalk, the stem leaves being- 

 much smaller, sessile and sagittate. The colouring matter, 

 which ultimately becomes blue by treatment, resides in 

 the root leaves chiefly, and is almost entirely wanting in 

 old leaves. At Parson Drove about ten acres are under 

 cultivation, but it alternates with other crops, coming back 

 to the same piece in the fourth year. The land requires 

 liberal treatment, some artificial as well as farm-yard 

 manure being applied. The necessity for dealing with 

 the crops in a green condition, and that they may not 

 all come on at once, entails the sowing of the fields in 

 sections, the operation taking place throughout the month 

 of April, two (rarely three) crops of leaves being obtained 

 from each section, the last crop being " spudded off"," 

 leaving the roots in the ground to be ploughed in, and 

 left to rot in the land. The drills are eight inches apart, 

 and the plants are nearly as close together in the drills 

 as corn would be. The growing crop must be kept very 

 clean, weeding being done by men and women on their 

 knees with a Woad-spud of ancient construction, of which 

 I exhibit a figure. It should be understood that the 

 leaves which show during the first year of the life of 

 the plant are lower, or root leaves, which alone are used 

 for dyeing purposes. The stem does not appear till the 

 following year, but, except flower and seed are wanted, 

 is never allowed to appear at all. Gatheiing is performed 

 in the same manner as weeding. Each handful of leaves 

 is dropped into baskets, which are emptied into a general 

 heap ready to be carted off" to the mill. As with the 

 employers, labour in the Woad industry seems to remain 

 pretty much in the same families throughout successive 

 generations. Formerly, Woad cultivators were gangs of 

 people who had been brought up to the trade, travelling 



