Gents Mag 1766 p.582

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	Gentleman's Magazine 1766 p.582 for corn exported out of Cumberland; on the contrary, we import from the counties favoured by providence in their situation, and which are therefore taxed, many ship loads of corn every year, and it comes much cheaper than we can grow it. We also pay the same duty for malting our bigg, you do for barley, and your malt is one third stronger than ours, and therefore we find it cheapest to bring our malt from Southampton, it being near a shilling a bushel cheaper than ours, the goodness considered, notwithstanding the great charge of bringing it. I might add ale, and other things wherein we pay the same duty for a worse commodity than you have.In a country like this, you may be sure there is a great deal of land let for little money, because the cost of fencing and working it is so great, the markets few and far off, the corn neccessary to feed the horses procured at great expence of labour and manure, the hay short and late got, and very often bad weather to get both corn and hay when cut. There are about 30 lords and gentlemen, who perhaps may own a fourth of the county (most of the money remitted to them is spent at London;) some of these are lords of the manors of the greatest part of the other three-fourths of the county, fine arbitrary, which keeps the tenants poor to a proverb; the rest, to the number of about ten thousand, are land-owners, from ten to a hundred pounds a-year; there are not 40 farms in the county of 100l. a year each, mostly from 10l. to 50l. a year. These petty land owners work like slaves, they cannot afford to keep a man servant, but husband, wife, sons and daughters, all turn out to work in the fields; they wear wooden shoes, shod like a horse's foot with iron, sackcloth shirts, yarn stockings, home-spun linsey, and cloth that comes about 2s. a yard, felt hats, their diet is whey, potatoes, turnips, oatmeal bread, and oatmeal and water; theye very seldom taste meat, or wheat bread; and work very hard upon this diet; they breed many children, and this coarse fare, expanding the stomach, by the great quantity they eat to supply the nourishment necessary to the constitution, makes them grow large in bulk, and (as you may suppose) when they grow up, they post away to happier climes, and make you very good servants. Now, Sir, since notwithstanding this miserable way of living, they save nothing, you will easily see they must either starve or go naked, if they pay the tax, for they cannot either feed or dress meaner; else they must leave off breeding, for they have no trade; and as this breeding county seems necessary to the state, I hope their condition will supply the place of a better advocate, for an industrious, frugal, virtuous, and loyal people. Yours, &c. Cumberland.
	see 1778 p.161
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