TITIIES. 
55 
to tithes. It has been argued oh behalf of the clergy, 
that, by giving them land, you secularize them, and 
force them into worldly concerns, which is said not to 
be the case with landed produce ready prepared to 
their hands ; but this is mere affectation ; few, even of 
that order, are so abstracted from the world as to be 
incapable of attending to the common concerns of life, 
and should that be, in any particular instance, the case, 
a landed estate is as easily managed by an agent as the 
collection of tithes. Many clergymen are practical 
farmers beyond their glebe, of which I do not disap¬ 
prove, and some are even stewards to noblemen and 
gentlemen of large fortune; and from their education 
and connections, they are certainly more likely to in¬ 
troduce improvements than an illiterate farmer; and 
may find time enough over and above such avocations 
for the necessary attention to their professional duties. 
Dr. Nash, very much to his honour as a church digni¬ 
tary, expressed to me his approbation of commuting 
tithes for land, and thus removing the bickerings ill 
will, and uneasiness, which often arises between the 
rector, or titheman, and the farmer, upon the latter 
being obliged to relinquish a part of that produce of 
the land raised by his labour and industry. The prac¬ 
tice of giving an allotment of land in lieu of tithes, 
ought to be general in all acts of enclosure, and it would 
be still better if the commissioners were directed to 
make an allotment of land in lieu of tithes in the old en¬ 
closures. Dr. Nash says, “ the getting rid of tithes, is 
a thing much to be wished by all, generally advanta¬ 
geous to the occupier, and though not always profit¬ 
able to the rector, yet certainly for his ease and hap¬ 
piness. 5 ' 
I understand that the tithe of hops is more com¬ 
plained 
\ 
