On  the  Farming  of  Somerset. 
G93 
same  time  the  two  great  desiderata  for  success,  namely,  planta- 
tions and  the  reasonable  encouragement  of  an  industrious  popu- 
lation. On  the  page  following  that  from  which  the  above  quota- 
tion is  extracted  he  savs  : — 
“ Excepting  a few  willows  and  thorns  by  the  sides  of  the  rivulets,  not 
a tree  or  a bush  out  of  Simonsbath  estate  is  to  be  seen  on  the  whole 
forest,  but.  plantations  of  most  kinds  need  no  more  shelter  nor  better 
soil  than  is  met  with  here.  . . . Let  there  be  a small  town 
or  village  erected  near  the  middle,  suppose  by  Simonsbath,  which  should 
form  proper  residences  for  artificers  and  husbandmen  employed  in 
building  farm-houses  and  enclosing  many  a comfortable  estate  around 
them.” — pp.  287-289. 
The  difficulty  of  providing  for  the  moral  well-being  of  such 
a population,  usually  attendant  upon  new  settlements  before  land 
has  begun  to  yield  a profitable  return,  is  removed  in  this  case  by 
a provision  in  the  Act  of  Parliament  (under  which  the  moor  was 
enclosed)  for  the  building  and  endowment  of  a church  when  it 
shall  be  required. 
There  are  doubtless  many  difficulties  in  this,  as  in  all  great 
undertakings,  and  more  than  lookers-on  are  willing  to  allow. 
The  present  proprietor  is  in  a position  not  of  his  own  choosing, 
but  he  wants  neither  the  energy  nor  the  will  to  do  his  duty  in  it, 
and  to  bring  the  forest  into  a condition  which  an  English  gentle- 
man may  look  upon  with  well-grounded  satisfaction. 
The  Quantock  Hills. — This  range  being  in  a more  civilized 
part  of  the  world  than  the  other  groups  which  have  been  referred 
to,  approximates  in  the  character  of  its  cultivation  to  that  of  the 
Taunton  and  Bridgewater  district,  with  which,  in  respect  to 
markets  and  ordinary  business,  it  is  closely  connected.  The  steep 
escarpment  on  its  western  face  is  in  great  part  occupied  by  woods, 
plantations,  and  gentlemen's  residences.  The  eastern  slope  is 
more  gradual,  intersected  by  the  beautiful  valleys  of  the  Seven 
Wells,  and  Hunter’s  Combe,  the  classic  ground  of  Wordsworth 
and  Coleridge,  in  the  early  days  which  they  spent  at  Stowey  and 
A 1 fox  ton. 
The  farms  on  this  hill  are  generally  larger  than  those  which 
we  find  in  the  extreme  west;  and  some  are  very  well  managed. 
There  is  one  which  presents  especial  points  of  interest.  The 
farm  of  H unstile,  skirting  the  woods  of  Halswell,  the  seat  of 
Colonel  Tynte,  on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  hill,  has  been  in  the 
occupation  of  Mr.  Danger  or  his  family  for  upwards  of  a century. 
It  would  puzzle  a Norfolk  farmer  to  cultivate  a farm,  in  riding 
over  which  one  must  needs  dismount  to  keep  the  saddle  in 
its  place,  so  steep  are  the  sides  of  the  combes ; and  yet  there 
is  farming  here,  of  which,  for  neatness  and  practical  efficiency, 
the  men  of  the  eastern  counties  would  not  be  ashamed.  The 
secret  lies  in  this — the  occupier  likes  his  land,  as  well  as  his  horse. 
