1 - General Views

Summary

Three general views of the life of the farm worker in nineteenth century Bedfordshire provide a background for the other sections.

The first is taken from the account, published in 1808, of the county’s agriculture written by Thomas Batchelor, the Lidlington farmer and author. It is one of a series edited by Arthur Young, then secretary of the Board of Agriculture.

Batchelor 1808

Chapter XIV. Rural Economy: Labour, Servants, etc.

The greatest part of the business of husbandry is performed by day-labourers in every part of the county. It is common, however, on most farms of considerable size, to retain annual servants in the capacity of horse-keeper, cowman, shepherd, and kitchen-maid, though the great advance in the price of provisions has apparently contributed to diminish the number of domestic servants of every description.

It seems generally agreed, that the horse-keeper ought to attend his horses at four o’clock in the morning, to allow them a sufficient time to feed, and get them properly geared for their work before he takes his breakfast. The team is taken to work as soon as it is light in the winter; at six-o’clock, or the time when the day-labourers come, in the spring; and about five, or as soon as convenient, in harvest. About ten o’clock, an interval of a quarter of an hour, or more, is allowed for the servants to feed. This is called beaver time; but when the business of ploughing is performed by day-labourers, who have no mess in the house with the servants, they sometimes delay their breakfast till nine, which generally occupies half an hour.

It is common to finish ploughing from one to two o’clock. The horsekeeper attends his horses in the afternoons, and frequently does not entirely leave them for the night till eight o’clock.

I find the prices stated under the names of horse-keeper, head ploughman, second ploughman, &c. from ten to seven guineas per annum, and it is presumed an able man would for the former price undertake the management of six horses, and with the assistance of a boy, two or three more; but there is great variety in this species of management.