GG9 
On  the  Farming  of  Somerset. 
to  improvement  in  various  ways.  It  is  now  fast  coming;  to 
an  end.  In  the  mean  time,  in  certain  cases,  the  landlord  has 
mitigated  the  evil  by  becoming  the  tenant  of  his  lessee  for  the 
remainder  of  the  term,  in  order  to  commence  the  repair  of  the 
premises  before  they  are  given  up  in  a hopeless  state  oi  dilapi- 
dation. This  plan,  however,  can  rarely  be  adopted,  except  in 
cases  where  the  lessee  is  not  himself  resident.  When  the  arrange- 
ment can  be  effected,  the  owner  in  fee  regains  the  power  of 
removing  a hopelessly  bad  tenant,  or  of  giving  encouragement 
and  confidence  to  a good  one.  To  avoid  being  called  upon  for 
dilapidations,  the  lessee  will  accept  less  than  the  full  rent  which 
the  tenant  will  gladly  pay  for  improved  buildings.* 
The  estates  of  the  Hill  Country  may  be  ranged  in  three 
classes: — 1.  Farms  rented  at  from  507.  to  707.  a year,  with  a 
small  quantity  of  water-meadow  (from  10  to  15  acres),  about. 
GO  or  70  arable,  and  perhaps  100  acres  of  rough  old  pasture,  and 
a right  of  common.  2.  Farms  rented  above  1007.  and  under 
2007.  a year,  with  about  30  acres  of  meadow,  120  acres  of  arable, 
and  the  same  of  pasture,  with  common  rights.  3.  Farms  with 
rents  ranging  from  2007.  to  3007.  (not  many  in  number),  contain- 
ing fron  30  to  60  acres  of  water-meadow,  150  to  200  arable,  and 
a considerable  extent  of  pasture,  and  common  rights.  The 
quantity  and  quality  of  the  water-meadow  is  the  object  of  prime 
consideration  in  fixing  the  rent. 
In  this  classification,  and  in  the  remarks  which  will  follow  on 
the  husbandry  of  the  Hills,  it  will  be  understood  that  the  old 
Hill  Country  estates  are  alone  referred  to,  and  that  the  recently 
enclosed  farms  of  Exmoor  are  not  included,  unless  specially- 
named. 
The  tenants  of  the  smaller  farms  are  not  generally  men  of 
much  capital,  and  their  fare  is  as  simple  as  that  of  labourers; 
" The  life-lease  system  is  expiring,  but  is  manifesting  all  the  evils  of  the  end  that 
can  have  been  foretold.  Ruin  to  the  laud  and  to  the  buildings  is  everywhere  per- 
mitted ; the  payments  for  dilapidations  generally  evaded  ; whole  districts  appear  to  the 
traveller  disgraceful  to  the  owner  and  occupier; — but  the  remedy  is  so  expensive,  that 
it  must  require  years  to  drain,  cleanse,  and  build  enough  to  renovate  the  lands  that  are 
in  process  of  exhaustion.  The  evil  is  aggravated  by  the  way  in  which  the  fields  of 
one  lessee  are  intermixed  with  those  of  another  — so  mixed  probably  to  give  each 
lessee  a share  of  the  good  and  the  bad,  of  the  arable  and  of  the  pasture,  of  the  meadow 
and  of  the  orchard,  of  the  wet  and  of  the  dry.  The  course  which  I have  found  to 
answer  best  is,  to  fix  the  spot  where  the  future  farmer  should  reside,  to  build  thereon 
as  soon  as  it  is  out  of  lease,  and  to  let  all  the  land  within  a given  boundary  to  a tenant 
who  will  occupy  each  field  as  it  ceases  to  be  held  on  lives.  It  is  his  interest  to  aid  me 
to  prevent  dilapidation ; and  he  often  is  able  to  become  the  tenant  of  the  lessee  before 
the  premises  are  worthless.  There  are  some  lessees  who  are  exceptions  to  this  general 
censure,  but  they  are  rare.  In  some  cases,  when  the  lessee  is  taking  care  of  the  estate, 
or  might  be  induced  to  do  so  with  abetter  tenure,  it  is  desirable  to  convert  the  life 
term  into  a term  certain,  making  him  the  occupier  of  a district  instead  of  a new 
tenant,  as  it  is  expedient,  as  much  as  possible,  to  continue  the  attachments  that  exist. — 
PORTMAN, 
VOL.  XI. 
9 
X 
