130 
On Measure Work. 
day and night; in consequence of this, men will not do this 
work unless they are able to earn a good deal above day-wages ; 
the usual price is from 25s. to 30s. per acre. Cutting furze, 
should any grow on the land, is an extra charge : some men are 
able to pare a quarter of an acre in a day ; but there is a great 
difference in the quantity done in a given time. 
1 1 . Ploughing and other Labour done by the aid of Horses or 
Oxen. — In some places this description of work is paid for by the 
acre, more particularly where oxen are used. In Norfolk the 
ploughing is sometimes done at the rate of 14rf. or \bd. per acre: 
the ploughman works two pairs of oxen ; by keeping at it all day 
he is able to get over nearly 2 acres. However, I think the paying 
for ploughing, harrowing, or any other team-work with the 
farmer's own cattle, is inferior to the usual practice of hiring 
ploughmen by the year, or paying them by the dav ; for in ge- 
neral the greater number of labourers who work with the teams 
are young men who, if they were employed by the piece, would 
have too much inducement to slight their labour and overwork 
their cattle. Besides which, the labour of the teams is constantly 
changing from one kind of work to another ; this arises from the 
uncertainty of the weather, as well as from other causes, and 
there would consequently be much difficulty in keeping a correct 
account of the labour. Ploughing is occasionally done by the 
jobbing farmer at from 7s. to Ss. an acre ; this includes a pair of 
horses, plough, and man. 
Drill-workers are men who gain a living by letting out drills 
to the farmers, at a certain price per acre, or by the day's work ; 
the charge for a corn-drill, with man to follow, is from \'2d. to 
\bd- an acre; for a corn-drill or seed and manure drill ISJ. an 
acre are the usual charge. 
12. Digging and Trenching. — Dijxging one spit deep (from 9 
to 12 inches) usually costs 'Id. or 'J^d. the square rod ; the quan- 
tity dug will vary with the nature of the soil from 8 to 12 rods in 
a day. In 1835, when day-wages were but I6d., it took four 
men eight days to dig, in a workmanlike manner, 2 acres of a 
clayey loam — each man's work averaged 10 rods a day; they 
were paid '2d. a rod. 
Trenching two spits, or 1 8 inches deep, and loosening the bottom 
of the trench, costs about Gd. the rod ; a man will, on an average, 
trench 4 rods in a day. 
Digging in seed turnips; for small roots the ground does not 
require digging very deep ; for laying in and covering the roots 
we have usually paid 3d. a square rod. To make myself gene- 
rally understood 1 shall describe the operation : — The turnips 
are laid in a straight trench formed by the spade ; two diggings 
across them intervene between tiie first and next row of plants. 
