266 BURNHAM BEECHES. 
widow survived fur many long years to a very advanced 
age. : 
There is a most interesting account given of the 
parish of Kast Burnham, in her collected papers, by 
Mrs. Grote,* the widow of George Grote, the historian, 
and herself a woman of powerful intellect and inde- 
pendent judgment. The Grotes lived in the Manor 
for twenty years. Mrs. Grote gives a most graphic 
account of the neglected state of the parish, and of the 
evils brought about by the concentration of property 
in a single owner, when that owner is unwilling or 
unable to perform any of the duties pertaining to such 
a position. 
The cottages were neglected and allowed to fall 
into dilapidation. Several of them were pulled down, to 
such an extent that the accommodation was insufficient, 
and great hardship was inflicted on some of the 
labourers, employed in the parish, by their having to 
walk long distances to their work. The highest rents 
were screwed out of the cottagers, increased by the fact 
that residents in the parish were entitled to the benefit of 
certain charities. The two public-houses were leased to 
brewers, who endeavoured to make up their high rents 
by selling deleterious mixtures to their customers. 
The Game Laws were enforced with the utmost 
severity. The owner never came near the hamlet. 
The agent lived in Cornwall and was seldom visible. 
‘‘The current impression in the place,” says Mrs. Grote, 
* “ Collected Papers of Mrs. Grote,” John Murray, 1862. 
