THE
October, 19 19
LANDS\VOMAN
Farm Work in the Middle Ages
HAVE bef'n roadmg Jatl'ly an intcre~;ting old
document dnf•'d 1647, \\ hi<'h ~cts forth vt•ry
clearly Anti m cardul df•ta.Jl the duhes of farm hands
of that po:'I10d. TLe '' ork of a farm "eom'l to hn ""~
~rn divined m much the same "ay HI those dn.p
a.s now, 1ntl tJu,.. old book, ,fluch shon~ how a.
model mnnor hould bo run, has cxphc1t in!ltruchons
for every farm labourer, from tho La.thff to tho
dat rymal(l.
Wo do not bo111t nowadays such a glord1<·<1
offi01al aa tho old S(·nf'schn.l. He camo b( fol"l' th(l
loa1h ff. nnd thosfl of us who remember Shnk<'Sp<'llt'(''R
portrn1t of thia important personng<', Oli\in 'f(
st nnl!rhnl, tho conccitod ~[aholio, \Oil not forgl't
th ~t ho was very often a pompous and bombnsttc
ltttlo lnrrl (1n h1s own account. ThiR man SCt'mS
to have had control of all his maM.er·~ fnrm::~, and
u as n ~P'•ll Jl•lo not only for the outstd~ managP·
menL but also for the k<'r>pmg of his lord's hou"choltl
and t*nonnl nccounta. HHl work would pro hn hly
noua1!ays ])(, ilivided beh.<'cn a land ngcmt and 11
prtvntc (lCrc tary.
Xcxt tn rank camo the bl\1ldJ, \\ ho~e dutiE'!I
Jccm to ha\O been !IIO ohnous that v~ry little spa<'e
IS dfnotod to ectting them out.
He 18, however,
parttculo.rJy reminded to "arise botlm<'8 in tho
mornin~, le t he ~~~Ctm hut lukcwnrm and renusa."
A not her farm hnnvc
~u tr, spend most of }us t1mo kf't'ping nn t'yo on l11Ei
ma•tcr·s g•H><.ll'l and eccmg tba.t notlung wa<~ &fol<'n.
Hta instruction" M·o eo amu!!ing and explic:tt that
I quot,, thf'lm in full.
" l.A't lum thnrdoro not bo elothful or sleopy, but
16t hnn t•fTt•' tnalJy and uncNlsin~Jy stri..-~ for his
IM11'1 profit. When the dung is to l1e cnrri~d to
tho fi1 ld!ll, lot tht• Roe\'<.' ab1do all dav
with tho
•
carter , that t hl'\y may labour aut! timsh thr>ir
day'a \\ ork \\ ithout subt~rf\lgt>. Let tho Rctn·e
r.auso th" hcn!ltt• and bo.n•'s to bt' daily fed b}
dnylight in his own or tho Hay'\\·ard's pN'soncC', by
daylight, I l!ny, I< t under cov<'r of nt~ht thl't r
kt:!cpcrt~atPAI thflir provennf'r.
Mol"l O'\"l'r 1 t prt>fitf·t h
at tint<'~ to wash tht' hl'a~h and romb th<'m \\hnn
th"V art• dry; it ia good al<~o to rub (lown tho oxt•n
tWH'fl rlntly with a \\t8p of straw, that thr>y may
mor(: lot'.-n~/11 lick them~dt·u."
l::\'t•n Lttnrls'"om"n must hl\.ve bct-n a bad Jot m
thot~e (lays. for tho old manu·•cr1pt ~04'1\ on to 11av:
" J.llt th<' thN·IIIhcT'I and winno,Hng womE-n bu
do,.rly ep1cd upon, lt>et th!\y lltt'al corn in t}w~r
~thN•4, ~lovf!l'l, waJiott~, scrips, bags orj u.tch()Je
hiddf'ln n,.u the barn."
r hav, oft,.n thou~ht how delightful it would bo
on " hot August on.y if the hed~('S along tho dry,
du ly fVl&rls '\\Nt! mode o{ ehl'rry tr('NI: tho •utrno
H.lf a ll'fW18 tn havt s(rtJ~'k th1s old wrtlt!r, {or ho
I
z:u
•
emphatically, " kt no hcdp;<.'s be mnu1• o{
appl<.'s, pears, ch<'rrtrs or plums, but of \Hllow or
whitcthorn." The R<'t.•\.e's instntrhonq in1 ludt' tho
pre<'Mthons to be taken agphN'tl is the nt•xt pt'~On of 1mportanct>,
and tho "ritN takes the trouhl<' to pmnt out to tho
lord hitn!~<'lf how It" profitoth hun t~l hn.vt' d1scrert
l:>hi'}JhN'tlA, watchful and ki ndly, so that tho shr<' p
be not tormt'nted by tbf'ir \vra.th, but crop thc1r
pasture m poaco and joyfulneea; for 1t IS n tok('n
of the shepherd's kmdlin<'SS if the she(lp ho not
,cattcred abroad, but browse around him '10 a
company.' Let him provide himself \\ith a.
good barkablo dog, and Jic nightly '' itb his flock
Lot him not suffer tht\m to feed in miry plnc<'s or
ma.t'l'lws or !~loughs or bogs, nor to browse unwholo-
~omo horbs, leet by such ncglcdt they rot and perish,
for which he will be held to aceount and penalty."
When one remembers some of th<' horrors of th<'
Spameh Inquisition and other cruelties of tht'
Mtddle Agrs,Ittsinterestingto notice how ropcatedly
th<- farm hands are urged to be kind a nd Joymg to
the animals m their oa.re.
We have seen how tho ploughman is o\·en to Rpcnd
hu1 night.8, ns well as hie days, in the scrvir<' of hill
b<'asta-tho shepherd, also, is "not t o bo wrathful,''
snd no\v the Carter is entr<'at('d to "love his horse!'!,
not ovorbuT(lt'ning thoro. ,,
Thr> IMt farm hand to rec<'i vo instrurftons 18
the datrymn1d, and they a.ro bri('f and to the point,
and might Ferve just as well for the L.A.A.S. of
to-da.v : "Th(l Dairvmaid shoulrl b<' ch!ll>te and
hon('st, fatthful and ·laborious in her dmry work,
1\Jto and nl'at-bnndf'd, not lavish, but of a. aa\'l ng
fl'mpt'r; fors he shall suffer n('ithcr man nor womnn
to IOtnl' to her dairy and bear aught away which
tmght