working life of women seventeenth century - School of Economics ...

AGRICULTUREFitzherbert's description of the wife's occupationprobably remained true in many districts during theseventeenth century. The dairy, poultry, gardenand orchard were then regarded as peculiarly thedomain of the mistress, but upon the larger farms shedid not herself undertake the household drudgery.Her duty was to organise and train her servants, bothmen and women.The wages assessments of the period give some ideaof the size of farmers' households, fixing wages for thewoman servant taking charge of maulting in greatfarms, every other maulster, the best mayde servantthat can brewe, bake and dresse meate, the secondmayd servant, the youngest majrd servant, a womanbeing skilful in ordering a house, dayry mayd, laundrymayd, and also for the men-servants living in thehouse, the bailiff of husbandry, the chief hinde, andthe common man servant, the shepherd, and thecarter.That some women already aspired to a life of leisureis shown in an assessment for the East Riding ofYorkshire, which provides a special rate of wages forthe woman servant " that taketh charge of brewing,baking, kitching, milk house or malting, that ishired with a gentleman or rich yeoman, whose wifedoth not take the pains and charge upon her."'In addition to the management of the dairy, etc.,the farmer's wife often undertook the financial sideof the business. Thus Josselin notes in his Diary :" This day was good wife Day with mee ; I perceiveshe is resolved to give mee my price for my farme ofMallories, and I intend to lett it goe." A few dayslater he enters " This day I surrendered Malloriesand the appurtenances to Day of Halsted and hisdaughter."%liRogers U. E. Thorold), Hist. Agric. and Prices, Vol. VI., pp. 686-9, aasesa. forYorks, East Riding, Ap. 26, 1593.' Josselin (R), Diary, p. 86, April gth, and 3oth, 1650.AGRICULTUREThe farmer's wife attended market with greatregularity, where she became thoroughly expert in theart of buying and selling. The journey to marketoften involved a long ride on horseback, not alwaysfree from adventure as is shown by information givento the Justices by Maud, wife of Thomas Collar ofWoolavington, who stated that as she was returninghome by herself from Bridgwater market on or about7th July, Adrian Towes of Marke, overtook her andcalling her ugly toad demanded her name ; he 'thenknocked her down and demanded her purse, to which,hiding her purse, she replied that she had bestowedall her money in the market. He then said, ' I thinkyou are a Quaker,' & she denied it, he compelledherto kneel down on her bare knees and swear bythe Lord's blood that she was not, which to save herlife she did. Another woman then came up andrebuked the said Towes, whereupon he struck her down' atwhart ' her saddle into one of her panniers.'Market was doubtless the occasion of much gossip,but it may also have been the opportunity for a wideinterchange of views and opinions on subjects importantto the well-being of the community. Whilemarket was frequented by all the women of theneighbourhood it must certainly have favouredthe formation of a feminine public opinion on currentevents, which prevented individual women fromrelying exclusively upon their husbands for informationand advice.The names of married women constantly appear inmoney transactions, their receipt being valid fordebts due to their husbands. Thus Sarah Fell entersin her Household Book, " Pd. Bridget Pindr in fullof her Husband's bills as appeares Lj. 17s. 6d."2 by m"pd Anthony Towers wife in p' for manner wee are to--P-Somerset Quarter Sessions Records, Vol. 111, pp. 370-1,1659. -' Fell (Swab) Hourebold Accounts, p, 3 I 7, 1676.