Cultivation of Arable Land.—Peas. 587

it is frequently a pra€tice with the large cultivators of early green pea crops, in the neighbourhood of London, to difpofe of them, by the acre, to inferior per- fons, who procure the podders; but the fmaller farmers for the moft part pro- vide this defcription of people themfelves, who generally apply at the proper feafon for the purpofe. The bufinefs of picking or podding the peas is ufually performed by the labourers at a fixed price for the fack, of four heaped bufhels. The number of this fort of perfons is generally in the proportion of about four to the acre, the labour proceeding on the Sundays as well as other days. It is fometimes the cuftom to pick the crops over twice, after which the reft are fuffered to ftand till they become ripe for the purpofe of feed. This, however, moftly arifes from the want of pickers, as it is confidered as a lofs, from the peas being lefs profitable in their ripe ftate than when green. Befides, they are often improper for the purpofe of feed, as being the worft part of the crop. It is therefore better to have them clear picked when hands can be procured. After this they are loaded into carts, and fent off at fuitable times, according to the diftance of fituation, fo as to be delivered to the falefmen in the different markets, from about three to five o’clock in the morning*. In many cafes in other parts the early gatherings are, however, fent to the markets in half-bufhel fieves, and are frequently difpofed of at the high price of five fhillings the fieve; but at the after periods they are ufually conveyed in facks of a narrow form, made for the purpofe, which contain about three buthels each, which, in the more early parts of the feafon, often fetch twelve or fourteen fhillings the fack, but after- wards moftly decline confiderably, in fome feafons fo muchas fcarcely to repay the expences. This fort of crop affords the moft profit in fuch pea feafons as are inclined to be cool, as under fuch circumftances the peas are moft retarded in their maturation or ripening, and of courfe the markets kept from being over- abundantly fupplied.

The expence of gathering green peas is different, according to the difficulty of procuring podders, the bulk or abundance of the crops, and the kind of pea or fize of the pods. Thofe of the larger forts, fuch as the marrowfats, being in the county of Middlefex about one fhilling, and thofe of the fmaller kinds, as the Charlton, from fifteen to eighteen pence, the fack}. In Kent the ufual price is about.fourteen pence the fack for podding, one fhilling for conyeying them to the market, and three pence the fack for the falefman f.

%* Middleton’s Report of Middlefex. + Ibid. t Synopfis of Hufbandry: