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ACCOUNTS of this nature may perhaps be of more consequence to gentlemen, yeomen, farmers, and others, than all I have wrote before: For if a gentleman or farmer runs out and gets into a ruinous condition for want of knowledge, inspection, and careful management of his affairs both at home and abroad, he may thus be deprived of the means to live happy. And I am well assured that many gentlemen, yeomen, farmers, and others, have run out their income, merely by their servants carelessness and pilfering, and too often by the thefts of ill neighbours: Wherefore I have thought it necessary to publish the following accounts of thievery, for examples, that others may learn to avoid falling into the like misfortunes.

  How two Threshers stole much Corn from their Master.--A Man living near me, coming into the possession of a little farm of twenty pounds a year ready sowed with grain to his hand, after harvest employed two threshers to thresh out his corn, believing they would not wrong him, as he paid them well for their work, but it otherwise happened; for as the owner followed the farrier's business at four miles distance from the farm, these threshers lived at discretion, and therefore, being very great rogues, took the advantage of their master's absence, and carried several bushels of his wheat to the mill to grind for flower, besides what they conveyed away for raising ready money; for the farrier believed they stole in all forty or fifty bushels of wheat, and several of pease, and for furnishing themselves with meat they stole mutton; upon which one was taken up, and sent to Hertford gaol in January 1748-9, where he died, before the assizes, of the gaol distemper; the other confessed he stole only two bushels of the wheat, but for want of other evidence, and for the sake of his large family, that must have fell on the parish if he had been hanged or transported, he was not prosecuted. Now this farrier was brought up from his cradle in the country, was near fifty years of age, and accounted as sharp a man in his way as most is, yet proved a mere ignoramus in the management of a farm.

  How a villainous Servant of a Farmer, by a false Key he got, had free Access for a long Time to his Master's strong Beer Cellar.--This fellow was servant to Mr. Linny, a famous farmer at Beckwood, tenant to that late generous worthy gentleman Sir Thomas Seabright, Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire, where, after he had been some time, he got possession of the key of his master's strong beer cellar, long enough to take its impression in clay, and have it match'd at an ironmonger's in Dunstable; and being (as he thought) thus compleatly furnished, he put the original key in the way of being found by his dame. After this he took his opportunity of trying his new key, which was a little twisted, and every way like the old true one, except its being too short in the hollow: However, to cure this, he made use of a gimlet, and bored so long till he made it do, and then he had free access when he thought fit to fll his belly with any of the liquors he found in the cellar; for this tenant kept a good house; and thus this villain went on till he went into another farmer's service near his former master, yet was not deprived of having a belly-full of Mr. Linny's strong beer once a week, for when a new servant came into his place, he quickly got acquainted with him, telling him how he had gone on, and that if he would every Sunday give him liberty, he would give him his key. This was agreed to, and both of them every Sunday got into the cellar, and there drank at their pleasure for almost another year, till at last the master and mistress miss'd so much of their liquors, that they mistrusted a bite; upon which the mistress lock'd herself into the cellar, and by waiting catch'd the present servant, who confess'd the other, and who for fear of prosecution left the country for some time, till he heard his master would pardon him, if he would come and make an ingenious discovery of the whole matter, which he did in the manner I have related it.--Persons ought to take particular care of this piece of villainy, for it is too commonly practised: I knew two fellows in our parish that did the same, and reigned in their roguery a considerable time, by which and other misfortunes their master sold his estate of forty pounds a year, and became poor.

  How a Taylor undertook a Farm who knew nothing of it, and how he was robbed.--This man lives about four miles from Gaddesden, and wanting hay I sold him some the 8th of April, 1749, when he told me, That having marry'd a wife, and got a house and land, he was desirous to take a little farm near him: This he did, and kept, I think, four horses; but being ignorant in many branches of the farming business, among other discourse he said to a friend of his, He could not tell when a labourer had done his day's work. Oh, says his friend, they will soon make you know that, and something else. And so they did, for one he catch'd stealing his bacon, by cutting a piece off as it hung up in the kitchen. Another stole this or that thing, which he detected them in; however, by being thus bit to his loss, he took courage, look'd out sharp, and now makes a tolerable good farmer.

  A Gentleman of a considerable Estate run out by his Servants holding a Correspondence with bad Neighbours.--This gentleman coming to an estate of above a thousand a year, at a young age, left his servants to manage his domestick affairs; who managed so, that he run out considerably, though in a single life; till at last his eyes were opened, and he perceived how the loss happen'd, which was by his servants holding a correspondence with vile neighbours, for in order to please them, they pilfer'd from their master those things which brought him under great losses; but on discovering their villainy, he forbid any of his family so much as to talk with a neighbour. If they did, he or she was to be directly turn'd away. And his prohibition (as he lived in a lone house at some distance from others) had so good an effect, that he recover'd his losses, and is now a very rich gentleman, living, northward, about a hundred miles from London.

  How a Yeoman's Maid-Servant pilfered her Master's Flower, Bacon, Cheese, &c. and exchanged them for Gin.--A yeoman in Hertfordshire, whose landed estate is about sixty pounds a year, kept a maid-servant that so loved gin, as to carry now and then some of her master's bacon, flower, or cheese, to an adjacent shop where they sold gin, where she would drink till somewhat intoxicated; and as her mistress was an indolent sort of woman, she perceived not the maid's wickedness, for a long time, for when she got a little tipsey, she told her mistress she was seized with a pain in her stomach, was pity'd, and thus frequently obtained leave to go to bed sooner than ordinary; till at last her wickedness appeared palpable, and she was discharged, leaving a score of five shillings at the gin-shop unpaid.--I could record many more such villainies, but my room will not allow it.

  The Character of that great Oeconomist Scroop Egerton, late Duke of Bridgewater.--This nobleman was certainly possess'd of many fine qualities, particularly that of temperance in eating and drinking, and in many other branches of living. He was (I believe) never known to be intoxicated with liquor, for he and his Duchess seldom or ever exceeded a pint or a quart bottle of wine at dinner. His breakfast was a mess of water gruel, and as he always rose betimes, while in the country, when he had eaten it he would ride or walk out till ten, and then come home to a tea-breakfast with his Duchess and daughters. His supper was tarts, hasty pudding, pancake, or other light food, in refusal of flesh; but he generally eat as hearty a dinner as any man, having extraordinary plenty of all manner of dainty provisions, and two men cooks to dress them. His exercise was walking amongst his many workmen, with whom he was so delighted, that he seemed never better pleased, than when he was giving them orders and seeing them work in the best planted park in England, in his many inclosed felds, woods and garden. And so extremely fond was this gentleman of a country life, that he would every now and then take a trip, even in winter, down to his seat at Ashridge from London; and notwithstanding the fatigue of his journey, I have seen him, the same day, walk through a great shower of rain to a considerable distance in his great coat, to view a new-made pond or other novelty. His number of cart, race, and other horses was one hundred and fifty at least; his red and fallow deer, above one thousand; his menial servants of all sorts, about sixty; and his day labourers, thirty: And although he kept a large pack of the finest fleetest hounds in the country, yet he would latterly seldom go with them; but on the contrary has been heard to say, he wish'd in his youth he had minded them less, and the improvement of his estate more. However, he pretty well redeemed his lost time, for he planted much, and seldom felled a tree, unless at a very great age indeed. His houshold and other parts of his œconomy were attended with a very close inspection, particularly that of his servants accompts; his housekeeping was exercised in plenty, yet with frugality; and there was always enough of every thing that was good; his corn-felds furnished his house with bread, malt, oatmeal, &c. and he sold much grain besides, at Hempstead market; his cows supplied milk, cream, and butter, but his cheese he bought: He was such an admirer of the Lady-finger natural grass, that grew in his meadows, that he would now and then recommend its excellent virtues to others; his oxen, sheep, lambs, and calves he generally fatted in his own grounds, and commonly killed an ox every week or fortnight, besides smaller meat, giving large quantities of it every week to the adjacent poor people, to the making of their families hearts glad. His London house he also, in winter, supplied now and then with mutton, lamb, veal, venison, bacon, pork, pigs, fowls, eggs, and flower; likewise with fruit and other garden-ware, strong beer, wood, charcoal, pond and river fish, to the furnishing his table with wholesome pleasant viands, and to the saving of much expence; for which purpose the Duke had a waggon or cart every week loaded, almost throughout the winter, with these provisions. His servants had one of the mildest masters upon earth, seldom, if ever, being in a passion with any of them, nor did he ever turn any of them off, without a very capital offence indeed; and when superannuated, they were sure of a comfortable subsistence during the remainder of their life. He delivered some of his low meadows from inundations of water, by causing Great-Gaddesden river to run round instead of passing through it, as formerly. He seldom denied a neighbour a favour, an instance of which is my own case, by his giving me leave to remove a barn of three bay from off his copyhold land, to my freehold land. He made many fine purchaces of landed estates, and yet left behind him ('tis said) a prodigious quantity of ready money, besides a most bulky yearly income. He died in January 1744-5, at his London house, greatly lamented by his relations, friends, servants, and particularly by the poor, after complaining (the day before his death) he was not well at his stomach; however, he seemed pretty well next morning, and eat his breakfast as usual; but in the afternoon lay on the bed, to take a nap, having a cord given him in his hand to ring when he waked; but lying longer than ordinary, without hearing of him, his Duchess, with another person or two, went to his bedside and found him dead, with the bell-string in his hand, and without the least ruffling of the bedcloaths; so that it is thought he went away in his sleep: However, he was directly blooded in the jugular vein, which bled pretty well; yet he was thought by the doctors to have died about an hour before, at the age of about sixty-two. He was a constant churchman, a loving husband to his excellent Duchess, a most affectionate father, and a true friend to all he profess'd himself so.