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

62 AGRICULTURE AGRICULTURE 63" Spreaders of mucke and molehills are (for themost parte) women, boyes and girles, the bigger andabler sorte of which have usually 3d. a day, and thelesser sorte of them 2d. a day.'?' " Men that pullpease have 8d. women 6d. a day."'A picture of hay-harvesting in the West of Englandgiven by Celia Fiennes suggests that in other parts ofEngland to which she was accustomed, the labour,especially that of women, was not quite so heavy.All over Devon and Cornwall she says, hay is carriedon the horses' backs and the people " are forced tosupport it wth their hands, so to a horse they havetwo people, and the women leads and supports them,as well as ye men and goe through thick and thinn.. . . I wondred at their Labour in this kind, forthe men and the women themselves toiled Like theirhorse^."^There was hardly any kind of agricultural work fromwhich women were excluded. Everenden " pay;:IS. 2d. to the wife of Geo. Baker for shearing 28 sheep.In Norfolk the wages for a " woman clipper of sheepe "were assessed at 6d. per day with meat and drink, IS.without, while a man clipper was paid 7d. and ~qd.It is noteworthy that only qd. per day was allowed in thesame assessment for the diet of " women and suchimpotent persons that weed corn and other such likeLaborers " and ad. per day for their wages.= Pepyson his visit to Stonehenge "gave the shepherdwoman,for leading our horses, qd.,"' while Foulisenters, " Jan. 25, 1699 to tonie to give ye women at--L Rest, Rural Economy, p. 140.a Ibid, p. 142.S Fiennes (Celia), 'Through England on a Side-saddle, p. 225.Suss. Arch. Coll. Vol. IV., p. 24.Evercndon Account Book6 Tingye U. C. ) Eng. Hist. RN, Vol. XIII., pp. 52 j-6.Pepys, Vol. V., p. 302. (11th June, 1668).restalrig for making good wailings of strae, 4s. (Scotsmoney)."'But the wives of husbandmen were not confinedto agricultural work as is shown by many paymentsentered to them in account books :' Thus the churchwardens at Strood, in Kent, paid the widow Cable forwashing the surplices IS.^ ; and at Barnsley they gave" To Ricard Hodgaris wife for whipping dogs " (outof the Church) Z S.~ while " Eustace Lowson of Salton(a carrier of lettres and a verie forward, wickedwoman in that folly) and Isabell her daughter areincluded in a Yorkshire list of recusants.=No doubt the mother with young children broughtthem with her to the harvest field, where they playedas safely through the long summer day as if they and shehad been at home. But at other times she chose workwhich did not separate her from her children, spinningbeing her unfailing resource. It is difficule living inthe age of machinery to imagine the labour whichclothing a family by hand-spinning involved,though the hand-spun thread was durable and fashionsdid not change.In spite of the large demand the price paidwas very low, but when not obliged to spin for sale,Foulis (Sir John) Acct. Bk., p. 246."Aug. 7th. I701 to my wife, to a Bleicher wife at bonaley for blcitching1. 3. 4." (Scots)" Jan. 28th, 1703 to my good douchter jennie to give tibbie tomsome for herattendance 011 my wife the time of her sickness 5.16.0 (Scots). (Foulis (SirJohn) Acc~. Bk. p. 295, 314.)" Sep. I xth, 1676, pd. her (Mary Taylor) more for bakeing four days. MothersAcct. 8d. ( Fell, (Sarab) Housebold Accts. p. 309.)" Pd. Widow Lewis for gathering herbs two daies 6d. ( Sussex, Arch. Coll. xlviii.p. 120. Extracts from the Household Account Book of Herstmonccux Castle.)Paid to goodwife Stopinge for 2 bundles of Rushes at Whitsuntide for theChurch, iiijd. (Cburcbwarden's Account Book, Strood, p. 95, 1612.Churcbwarden's Account Book, Strood, p. 197. 1666.COX Q. C.) Churcbwarden's Accts., p. 309.Tmks. North Riding, Q. S. Rec., Vol. I,, p. 62, Jan. 8. 1606-7.