10 



Small Holdings in Surrey. 



[APRIL, 



the small holder. To the north of the Weald is a belt of sandy 

 loam, narrow towards the east, and widening as it approaches 

 the western border of the county. It is of great depth, and 

 speaking generally, the western portion (except round 

 Godalming, where the stone locally called Bargate comes near 

 to the surface) is loose sand, covered with heath, and of little 

 use for agricultural purposes. This belt is separated from 

 the chalk downs by a very narrow strip of dark bluish clay 

 called Malm, Gault, or Black land, which is considered to 

 rank among the finest in the country, but its area is very 

 limited. The chalk hills, known as the North Downs, run 

 through the middle of the county, and where there are 

 deposits of gravel, loam and clay, there are some good farms, 

 but where the chalk comes to the surface, as at Epsom and 

 Banstead Downs, the land is uncultivated. Round Bagshot 

 and Bisley are wide stretches of sandy and hungry soils,, 

 covered with heath or lying waste, which, whilst useless to 

 the farmer, form the broad and picturesque common land for 

 which Surrey is noted, and which, by their dry and healthy 

 climate, as well as by their natural wild beauty, attract to 

 their neighbourhood the well-to-do, who in their turn create 

 markets for the produce of the small dairy farmers and 

 gardeners, who locate themselves in the small patches of land 

 that are capable of cultivation, but which are too small and 

 scattered to form large farms. 



The beauty of the scenery and its healthy climate make 

 Surrey a resort for holiday-makers during the summer 

 months. These visitors often find accommodation in cottages 

 or farm-houses belonging to small holders, and thus help 

 both to pay the rent and consume the produce. They often 

 become regular purchasers of eggs, poultry and fruit, which 

 are forwarded to them by rail or post. 



Probably no other county of its size has more towns and 

 localities of a residential character than Surrey, and these 

 form centres for the sale of dairy, market garden, and other 

 produce of the soil. On the other hand, the rapid growth 

 of the residential areas increases the value of the land for 

 building purposes, and where it is not immediately covered 

 with bricks and mortar, it is placed beyond the means of the 

 small holder by its increased value, and, pending its develop- 



