rounded flints, on a pure white sand of many more feet; and at the depth of about 150 feet are springs. The surface is covered with furze, except where the ground is dug.

The summits of most of the highest hills in the county consist of sand and gravel, though frequently intermixed with loam. I observed in the old inclosures, and on Enfield-chase, in various places, that when the gravel is very near to the top, a full crop of yellow blossomed broom covers the ground, if in a state of grass; and when ploughed, an equally full crop of sorrel.

"Loamy Sand-Or dry turnip and barley land, will include all that portion of the county lying between the road leading from Hounslow to Colnbrook on the north, and the river Thames on the south, containing in depth from one foot to three (though for the most part from eighteen inches to two feet), on a gravel of small flints, six, eight, or ten feet in thickness, with a subsoil of blue tile earth.

"On the east side of the county, the whole way from Tottenham to Enfield-wash, the superstratum is of the same light nature; of from six inches to two feet in depth, on a gravel of small flints, which can only be dug for the repairing of roads to the depth of from two feet to five, owing to its then putting on the appearance of a quick sand, so filled with water as to prevent all deeper digging. There is some poor land about the extreme west end of Hounslow-heath, and doubtless in a few other places.

Sandy Loam-Will include all the land between the Colnbrook and Uxbridge roads, on the west side of Hanwell and Hounslow, of from eighteen inches to upwards of five feet in depth, on six or eight feet of the gravel of flints on a subsoil of blue tile earth.-Of this description is the south side of the parish of Harefield, and the parishes of Twickenham, Isleworth, Ealing, Chiswick, Kensington, Fulham, Brompton, and Chelsea: at the last place, this soil has been most highly enriched by cultivation and

manure.

"Strong Loam.-All the land from Riselip and Ickenham, on the west, to Greenford, Apperton and Harrow, on the east, and between Pinner on the north, and Northcote on the south, is composed of strong loam. The land about South Mims is also of this kind.

"The level between Islington, Highgate and Hornsey, is a strong but very productive loam."

FOSSILS.-P. 27. "The immediate subsoil of the county, for the most part, consists of a gravel of flints, which is also found in the beds of most or all of the rivers; and under that, for the most part, blue tile earth."

P. 26. "I have not met with any stratified-rock stone, such as freestone, limestone, slate, &c. in this county; nor are any pebbles of the like stone found in the rivers, except such as have come there fortuitously."

SUBSTRUCTURE.-N. p. 32. " At Mr. Munday's brewery at Chelsea, in this county, a well was dug about the year 1793, to the depth of 394 feet, within 20 or 30 feet of the edge of the river, mostly through a blue clay or marl. At the depth of about 50 feet a quantity of loose coal about twelve inches in thickness was discovered; and a little stratified sand and gravel was found about the same depth. The well digger usually bored about 10, 15 or 20 feet at a time lower than his work, as he went on; and on the last boaring, when the rod was about 15 feet below the bottom of the well, the man felt, as the first signal of water, a rolling motion, something like the gentle motion of a coach passing over pavement: upon his continuing to bore, the water presently pushed its way by the side of the auger with great force, scarcely allowing him time to withdraw the borer, put that and his other tools into the bucket, and be drawn up to the top of the well. The water soon rose to the height of 200 feet.-J. M."

SUBJECT THE SECOND.

POLITICAL ECONOMY.

APPROPR

PPROPRIATION. Common Pastures.-P. 98. "The commons of Middlesex are situate in the more remote parts of the county, and bear a much smaller, proportion to the whole quantity of land, than those of most other districts in the kingdom.

"The names and computed quantities, are as follows, viz.

Acres.

1. Hounslow-heath, which is said to contain } 6,300

about.

2. Sunbury-common,

3. Finchley-common,

1,400

1,240

4. Harrow-weald, and part of Bushy-heath, 1,500

commons,

Brought forward 12,650 acres.

The remains of Enfield chase, still unculti-
vated, from actual mensuration, are,
The allotment to Enfield parish,
Ditto
to Edmonton parish,
Part of the allotment to the crown,
Ditto
to Hadley parish,

1,532

1,231

...

...

1,047
190

4,000

16,650 acres,

Making together,

to which add, several smaller ones, under 100 acres each, such as Hampstead-heath, Pinner-common, Sudbury-common, Pinner-marsh, Roxhill-green, Apperton-green, Wembly-green, Kenton-green, Greenhull-green, Uxbridge-moor, Memsey-moor, Goulds-green, Peils-heath, Hanwell-common, and Wormwood-shrubs, which possibly may contain altogether 1,350 acres: then deduct for roads, ponds, and gravel-pits 1000 acres, and it will shew that the uncultivated soil of this county, capable of receiving improvement, is about 17,000 acres, or rather under one-tenth of the whole quantity."

P. 103. "On estimating the value of the commons in this county, including every advantage that can be derived from them, in pasturage, locality of situation, and the barbarous custom of turbary, it appears that they do not produce to the community, in their present state, more than four shillings per acre! On the other hand, they are, in many instances, of real injury to the public; by holding out a lure to the poor man-I mean of materials wherewith to build his cottage, and ground to erect it upon; together with firing, and the run of his poultry and pigs for nothing. This is, of course, temptation sufficient to induce a great number of poor persons to settle upon the borders of such commons. But the mischief does not end here; for having gained these trifling advantages, through the neglect or connivance of the lord of the manor, it unfortunately gives their minds an improper bias, and inculcates a desire to live, from that time forward, without labour, or at least with as little as possible."

"Another very serious evil which the public suffers from these commons, is, that they are the constant rendezvous of gypseys, strollers, and other loose persons, living under tents which they carry with them from place to place, according to their conveniency. Most of these persons have asses, many of them horses, nay, some of them have even covered carts, which answers the double purpose of a caravan for concealing and carrying off the property they have stolen, and also of a house for sleeping in at night. They

usually

usually stay a week or two at a place; and the cattle which they keep, serve to transport their few articles of furniture from one common to another. These, during the stay of their owners, are turned adrift to procure what food they can find in the neighbourhood of their tents, any the deficiency is made up from the adjacent hay-stacks, barns and granaries. They are known never to buy any hay or corn, and yet their cattle are supplied with these articles, of good quality. The women and children beg and pilfer, and the men commit greater acts of dishonesty in short, the commons of this county are well known to be the constant resort of footpads and highwaymen, and are literally and proverbally a public nuisance."

Common Fields.-P. 114. "The common arable fields of this county contain about 20,000 acres."

66

Nearly half the foregoing quantity consists of a good turnip and barley soil; the other half of a bean soil."

P. 138. (Section "Tillage") "The arable land of this county is, for the most part, confined to common fields. The rest consists of such parts of the said fields, as have lately been inclosed, under separate acts of parliament, as at Stanwell and Enfield-chase; and of a field or two here and there, seldom of more than ten or twenty acres together, in other parts of the county.

All the inclosed arable land is supposed to be under.............

I have before stated the quantity of commonfield arable land at about

3,000 acres

20,000 acres

making together 23,000 acres." PROVISIONS.-P. 387. "Bread throughout the county of Middlesex, is at the same price as in the city of London. In the vicinity of the metropolis, every kind of butcher's meat is equally dear, or rather more so, than in the London markets. In the more remote parts of the county, and in the market-towns of Uxbridge and Brentford, pork, poultry, eggs, vegetables, and milk, are to be had something under the London market price."

FUEL.-P. 391. "Coals are in general use for the fires of this county. The exceptions are only on the north side of it, in cottages and small farm-houses, where the expence of coals, and the carriage of them, induces the use of wood fires."

POOR RATES.-P. 63. "The rates are from 6d. to 7s.perhaps 3s. 6d. would average the county.

Mr. Middleton's "Observations" on the present mode of meliorating the condition of the indigent, are of some length. Most of them are too general for a provincial Re

port. Nevertheless, some of them are so pertinent that it would be wrong to overlook them.

P. 64. "Agriculture occasions very few poor; on the contrary, it provides them almost constant labour. It is only the blind, the extreme old, the very young children, and idiots, which become chargeable in a parish purely agricultural.

"A labourer in agriculture, is more likely to support his family without assistance from the parish, at twelve shillings a week, than is a journeyman in any large manufactory, though his earnings should be a guinea, or a guinea and an half.

"In the parish of Merton, in which is my country residence, we have several large manufactories of calicoes, and, as a necessary consequence, many pattern-drawers, &c. whose earnings are from one guinea to one guinea and a half per week; but these are never assessed to the poorrates; the fear of their families becoming chargeable to the parish, prevails over the vestry so much, as always to prevent persons of that description from being rated.-J. M."

P. 65. "All the really necessitous, and who only want a part of their support, should be assisted in their own houses, where five shillings will frequently go as far as twenty would do in the work-house."

P. 67. "The funds raised for supporting the idle poor of this county are so numerous, efficient and comfortable, as to operate against the general industry of the labouring poor.

"Lodging and diet in the work-houses, in every instance, are superior to what the industrious labourer can provide for his family. It is obvious that this must have an influence over their minds, and become most injurious to the interests of society. It holds out encouragement to prefer the work-house to labour; and, by filling the poor-houses with improper inhabitants, it reduces the amount of industry.

"In those parishes with which I am acquainted, the annual expence of each pauper is about fifteen guineas; a stout healthy labourer in husbandry, with a wife and three children, earns only thirty for the support of five persons.

"The earnings of the inhabitants of work-houses, on an average of the whole of this county, does not amount to eight shillings per head per annum; which taken from the former sum, leaves fifteen pounds seven shillings, or near six shillings a week, as the expence of supporting each pauper."

P. 69. "Every institution which tends to make the poor depend on any other support than their own industry, does them great disservice, and is highly injurious to society."

TITHES.