By T. H. Baker. 



259 



Mere is a small Market Town 

 situate immediately under the N. W. 

 Point of Wiltshire Downs, Part of 

 the Lands extending South into 

 Gilliugham Vale and part Northward 

 (or N. E.) towards Maiden Bradley 

 and Kingston Deverill, some way on 

 the Downs. 



Application of Land and Method 

 The four comon fields of Mere are 



cropt thus : — 

 Wheat, 

 Barley. 



Clover mowed and usually seeded. 

 Clover fed. 



Most of the Landholders keep 

 separate Flocks and feed the Fields in 

 Districts settled among themselves. 

 The little farmers feed a certain Dis- 

 trict with a Comon flock. 



They have chiefly some Grass In- 

 clcsures on the South of the Town to 

 each farm on which they mow Hay 

 and some of them lett Dairies. 



They feed the Downs in Common. 



The Common fields and Comon are 

 reckoned dangerous for Sheep in Wet 

 Seasons for want of Draining. Having 

 no Water Meadows, they generally 

 keep their Ewes and Lambs on Hay 

 and Water — and having no Turnips 

 and few inclosed Pastures they usually 

 winter their Lambs out. 

 Stock kept & Remabks thereon. 



Sheep. Wiltshire long horned and 

 in the present uninclosed state of the 

 fields cannot be improved. 



No. about 3200. 

 Cows. A Mixture of all kinds but 

 chiefly Long homed. 



Working beasts. Chiefly Horses. 

 Seldom any Oxen kept. 



the Meadow inclosed, the Arable not 

 inclosed. 



Mere Down farm is several, but 

 Arable not inclosed. 



of Management and Manures used. 



In the LowLands there is a Stratum 

 of clayey Loam — next a. Stratum of 

 Flint—and then Blue Marie or rather 

 Clay, which runs South-west and in 

 the next Parish [Knoyle] becomes 

 pure Marie. 



This Clay or Marie is reckoned here 

 a good Manure, but they have so little 

 inclosed Meadow that very little of 

 it is used. 



Chalk is used as a Manure on the 

 Sands of Mere in Zeals Tything. 



The Commonable Lands of this 

 Parish would improve much by an 

 Inclosure. The Chalk from the Hills 

 and the Clay (or Marie) in the Yalley 

 might then be used to great advantage 

 on what is now the Comon Meads and 

 Comon s. 



The Comon fields are manured at 

 present (but in a very bad way) with 

 the Sheep fold. 



General Remarks. 



Mr. Grove's Tenant takes up the 

 greatest part of the Corn and Hay. 

 Tythes in kind. He letts his own 

 Farms (viz., Zeals) Tythe free. 



The Vicar takes Tythes of Clover 

 Seed, of which a considerable quantity 

 is raised in this parish, even in the 

 Comon fields. He has a modus of 

 2d. a Cow and 4id. a Calf. 



Sir Rcl. Hoare has a good Wood at 

 Chaddenwych, but little Timber in it, 

 and Mr. Grove a good Wood at Zeales 

 with a considerable quantity of Oak 

 Timber in it. 



Timber in the Hedges chiefly Elm 

 and very good. 



