"The following epitaph was found among his papers, in his own hand-writing, and with this introduction : "My epitaph, on a marble flab, in the chancel of Sadington, "Sifte paulifper, Viator, Heu! fordido pulvere obrutus et commixtus ; SAMBROOK NICOLAUS RUSSELL, A. M. AMELIE ALTISSIMÆ FILIE GEORGII II. Si cultum quæras; in pueritiâ, Primò propè BASINGSTOKIAM ut effet integer vita fcelerifque purus, "His executor has attentively complied with what appears to have been his evident intention; and it is hoped, that the memory of a worthy man will be fufficiently protected from any fufpicion of vanity, in writing his own epitaph, by the frequency of the practice, the known truth of the facts recorded in the infcription, and especially by the modefty, as well as the elegance, of its conclufion. * On a flab on the floor the date of his death is thus recorded: " H. S. E. Sambrook Nicholas Russell, M. A. hujufce ecclefiæ rector. Obiit xxIx die Novembris, anno Domini MDCCXCV. ætatis fuæ LXIII,”. The The statistical remarks alfo, by Mr. Tailby, are given with much intelligent obfervation, and greatly deferve notice. "I am favoured by Mr. Tailby, whofe refidence on the spot and peculiar attention to these researches have enabled him to be minutely accurate, with what he modeftly calls a heterogeneous compofition, a fort of statistical account of Medbourne, formed by adapting his own researches and ideas to the plan fuggefted by fir John Sinclair ;' to whom, were the patriot Baronet's Statistical Remarks' to be extended over the Southern part of the Ifland, Mr. Tailby would willingly (and I am fure very ably; he an active affiftant : Medbourne is fituated at the Weft foot of a large and lofty hill, by fome writers (as I have heard) called the firft Mountain in the Eaft of England. Its fituation is healthy, though low, as the longevity of its inhabitants can teftify. A brook runs flowly through the town, formed by three inconfiderable ftreams, two of which rife in Hallaton, and the third in Slauston lordship. This brook, about half a mile below the town, empties itfelf into the river Welland, which divides the Counties of Leicester and Northampton. Number of Houfis, and State of Population. "The village at this time confils of 102 inhabited houfes (including the parish workhoufe) and five uninhabited; 461 inhabitants, (including men, women, and children), of which 228 are males, and 233 are females: of thefe, in the workhouse are 11 only, 4 males and 7 females. "It appears by the regifters, that in 5 years, beginning with 1694, there were 81 baptized, and 51 buried; for five years, beginning with 1784, there were 68 baptized, and 69 buried; and for 5 years, be ginning with 1792, there were 65 baptized, and 61 buried. Of the burials the last 5 years, 7 were from Holt, 1 from Bradley, and 1 from Blafton. I During the last month, and within two days of each other, the oldeft man and woman of Medbourne both died; the man was nearly 90 years, and the woman 83 years of age. The man has left, now living, a wife, one fon, and two daughters, whofe ages amount to 267 years. “There are at this time living in this town fix ftout men and women, aged from 80 to 83 years. "In the last 5 years are 18 marriage entries. "The houfes are in general well built, of wrought yellowish ftone, inclining to red, dug from the quarries in the hill under which the town stands, and many of them are very genteel and commodious for a country village. From being built almoft circular, except three lanes to the Ealt, there is a confiderable open fpace in the midst of the town, which is called The Green. In this open fpace, and adjoining the brook, are two or three clusters of finall though decent houfes, all of which, excepting three, are appropriated to the ufe of paupers. One of these clusters, confitting of ten houfes, is, as it were, an inland, and efpecially fo in time of Hoods, and as fuch, time immemorial, has obtained the name of Guernsey. "The "The roads here are brought to a great degree of perfection (compared with the adjacent places), owing to the attention of the farmers, and goodness of the materials, which this field produces in great plenty. Profeffions, Trades, &c. "The field is divided into 14 farms, occupied at this time by 10 refident farmers; 12 cottages, occupied by 4 labourers in hufbandry and 8 tradefmen. The number of different working-tradefmen I 2 3 Mafons Shoe-makers Tailors Shopkeepers, &c. 8 30056 6 Tammy-weavers and Alehoufe-keepers Fellmongers "Here are five malt-offices, in which upwards of a thousand quarters of malt have been annually made for fome years paft. "About the years 1781 was established a Sick Club, or Friendly Society; the members are at this time 48 in number; they are of Medbourne and the adjacent villages; but the meetings of the club are always held here. "Prefent State of Agriculture, &c. "This lordship, which confifts of about 18co acres, is open field, and confequently is interfperfed with arable, ley, meadow, and common ground. Cofmas Nevill, of Holt, efq. is the principal proprietor, The late Mr. Robert Green, of this place, and lord of the manor. and his fon Mr. Green of Leicefter, owned together nearly an equal portion with Mr. Nevill. "The arable land N. W. of the town, where the Roman coins, &c. are found, is in general a rich, deep, black foil, the plough feldom touching the clay, and is fuppofed to be the beft open field arable land in the county. The other arable land has a larger fhare of clay; but is in general productive of good crops of wheat, barley, and beans. The ley-ground is in general fruitful of herbage, both for fummer and winter food for cattle. Part of the meadows are very good; and part indifferent. "The unknown common land is weak, fterile, and cold; what herbage it produces is often prejudicial to beafts, by caufing them to ftale blood in fummer; and is difperfed amongst the gorfe, blackthorn, brier, and bramble fhrubs. These fhrubs, of which there are great quantities, are deemed the property of the poor, who have liberty to fetch what they please, and to ufe or fell in the town to the best customer they can get. "The land upon the hill is a light, fhallow, red foil, intermixed with fmall ftone, and is convertible land. "The common courfe of hufbandry for a few years paft, within this part of the field, has been as follows: The firft fpring it is broken up, and fowed with oats; next year winter-ploughed and fowed with oats the fecond time the fucceeding fpring; and then layed down with red and white clover and rye-grafs, and eaten with fheep for three or four four years; and then broke up again, and cropped as before. It produces large quantities of oats per acre in general; and, had they the oppor tunity of fowing it with turnips the third year inftead of clover, it would undoubtedly be more productive in barley and wheat to the farmer than in the oat-crops. This hill produces fand, good building, road, and lime ftone; of the latter there is not much burnt here either for building or manure. In the first cafe, Barrow-lime can be procured almost as cheap, and in point of use preferable; and for manure, it is never used in this field. Experiments were made laft year in Hallaton and Slaufton lordships with Medboure-lime as manure; but, as the crops are now only in an early growth, I cannot determine its utility at prefent. "The course of husbandry in the lower fields is as follows: firft year, wheat or barley; fecond, beans; third, fallow, and manured with yard-dung, or folded with fheep, and fometimes both dung and fold on the fame land; for the farmers here let not the geniality of the foil be a handle to floth or negligence; but (finding their intereft in it) its prolific earth is a fpur to their natural industry." Nothing now remains for us, but thus to inform the author and the public, that his labours on Leicestershire, great as they have already been, do but ftimulate our curiofity. We esteem it fingularly fortunate for the world of literature, that indivi duals are continually arifing among us, who, like Mr. Gough, whofe labours we noticed with the praife they merited, in the beginning of our last number, and Mr. Nichols, whofe exer tions in the cause of all that we venerate are indefatigable, are the more animated by difficulty, and strengthened by the continuity of perfeverance. We fay to them both, Ergo agite et lætum cuncti celebremus honorem, ART. II. The Rural Economy of the Weft of England; in-' cluding Devonshire, and Parts of Somerfetfhire, Dorfetfhire, and Cornwall, together with Minutes in Practice. By Mr. Marfball. In Two Volumes. 8vo. 12s. Nicol. 1796. MR [R. MARSHALL has long fince obtained, by various ufeful publications*, the character of an acute obferver, and an able and experienced judge of rural affairs. He maintains * Rural Economy of Norfolk, of Yorkshire, of Gloucefterfhire, and of the Midland Counties; and a treatife on Planting and Rural Ornament. K BRIT. ČRIT. VOL. MI, AUGUST, 1798. that that character in the volume before us; but as a writer, he is open to fome objections. Specimens from the work will exhibit confpicuously both his merits and his defects; and will fuperfede the neceflity of any trong commendation, or of much cenfure from us. The advertisement prefixed demands, however, fome previous attention. The fuggeftion of "a Board of Agriculture, or, more generally, of rural affairs," appears to have come originally from Mr. Marshall, (vol. i. p. xxvii). The establishment of this Board, and the furveys of counties which in confequence were made and publifhed, at first alarmed the author's friends and bookfeller (but not himself it feems) left the use of his own registers thould be fuperfeded (p. xxvi). He gave his affiftance, however, to the Board, by prefenting a report of the central highlands of Scotland. And in requital of this liberality, he luckily found, that "The Board's Reports might be rendered more immediately ferviceable to his work, in affifting to fill up the vacant interstices of his Regifters; and thereby to make them more worthy, than otherwise they would have been, of the title he wishes them collectively_to_deferve; namely, an Authentic Regifter of the Rural Economy of England, at the clofe of the Eighteenth Century." Vol. i, p. xxix. In the introductory remarks, fome juft objections are urged against profecuting an agricultural furvey by counties. The repetition it requires, and the fuperfluous volumes it gives rife to," are among thofe objections. Very valid ones they are, as we can atteft; and they have, probably, operated ftrongly towards producing the late determination of the Board to fufpend thofe furveys. Mr. M. is a strong advocate for the union of agriculture and manufactures. • you "It is worthy of remark, that, notwithstanding the wages of the country are low, as will hereafter appear, the parish rates are moderate In Buckland, and the contiguous parishes, the poor's rate, on a par, is not more than two fhillings in the pound, rack rent. This fact, perhaps, may be the best accounted for, in the circumftance of the wool, which the country produces, being manufactured within it: not, however, in public manufactories, by the diffolute of every age and fex, drawn together from all quarters, as if for the purpofe of promoting diffolutenefs, debility, and wretchednefs: but in private families; by men, women, and children, who, by this employment, are kept at their, own houses, are enured to habits of industry, are enabled to fupport themselves, at all feafons, and are always at hand, to affift in the works of hufbandry, whenever the production the prefervation, of the neceffaries of life requires their affiftance. "Manufactures carried on, in this rational manner, are highly beneficial to a country: while thofe which are profecuted by detached or 2 bodia's |