238 



Farming of Cnmljerland. 



what lime alone on the surface will safely effect where the soil 

 is tolerably dry. 



On most of the ancient enclosures the fences are of earth, 

 raised by repeated castings of a few inches of soil at a time, till 

 they have reached the height of 4, 5, and some 6 feet, with 

 growing wood* of various kinds on the top ; many of these are 

 crooked, and dispose the fields into awkward shapes, and render 

 them inconvenient for working. On the more recent enclosures 

 the hedges are straight, and mostly planted with white thorn. 



It is no uncommon thing to find fences on inferior soils which 

 have grown thorns pretty well for a few years after being 

 planted, yet afterwards wither at the tops and cease to grow ; this 

 is not owing altogether to the inferiority of the soil, but, in a 

 great measure, to the limited space the roots have to work in. 

 The roots cannot descend into or draw nourishment from the 

 wet clays beneath them ; their communication with the fields on 

 each side is cut off by the ditches, and the stems are bolstered 

 up to an unnatural height by the castings on the sides till the 

 thorns cannot thrive. This is not the case where even the poor 

 soils are dry enough to permit the roots to penetrate out of the 

 way of the hedger's spade ; this at once points out the necessity 

 of draining to enable the hedge-wood to grow. In the imme- 

 diate vicinity of the sea-shore, where the soil is not adhesive 

 and stones are plentiful, the sides of the hedges are breasted 

 with rov. s of stones leaning one against another, in the manner 

 of the ancient feather-form masonry of the Egremont and Bur- 

 rowwalls Castles ; the centres are filled with earth and stones. 

 These are strong and good fences when well made. 



Several of the level moss-lands of the Abbey Holme, and 

 some in other places, are divided by narrow canals or water- 

 dykes, which require scrupulous cleansing annually, and are not 

 devoid of danger to cattle when depastured there. 



Along the bases of the mountains and up their sides stone 

 walls are more common, and a rather unique and ancient kind of 

 stone fence may be seen in the vicinity of slate and other 

 laminated rocks, which is formed by placing thin flags of it up- 

 right and edge to edge. In many places, where sand predomi- 

 nates in the soil, the furze (Ulex europasus) is reared on the 

 hedges, and makes a good fence when clipped annually. A 

 considerable length of hedge near Lorton is planted v/ith larches 

 in place of thorns, and they seem to answer their purpose well 

 so far. 



Another novel kind offence, topped with growing broom (Ge- 

 nista anglica), may be seen in the parish of Millom, and, being 



* A keen spring frost, wliicli occun-ed about thirty years ago, is said to have 

 occasioned the death of nearly the whole of the sweet willow (Salix pentandra)^ 

 which was so common in meadow hedges. 



