OF SCOTLAND.

389

throughout the harvest, in name of supper barley. Reckon-ing the harvest at twenty-eight days, and the value of thehugbel at four shillings and eightpence, this supper barley"ill amount to a bushel and a half, worth 7 s. for the wholeharvest, or 3d. for each supper, which used to be computednt 2 d. a lew years ago *. Breakfast cannot well cost less mo-ney; and the dinner articles already mentioned have of lateyears cost sixpence, or even higher. The whole victuals perflay, therefore, may be averaged at one shilling, and the to-tal at twenty-eight shillings for an ordinary harvest. Themoney wages of a man for the twenty-eight days will amountto L. 3 : 14 : 8, and of a woman to L. 3, 10 s.

Reapers who come from a distance must be supplied withall their victuals, whether working or not, even upon Sun-days, and must have the means of sleeping provided for them;but they are paid only for the days or fractions of dayson which they actually work. Besides the breakfast anddinner already mentioned, these have porridge and milk forsupper, similar to the breakfast allowance, or potatoes andmilk. For sleeping, each person is furnished with a cleanblanket, and abundance of dry straw, in a barn or hay loft.Some of the reapers engaged from distant parts, are hired ata fixed sum of money, instead of daily wages, for the wholeharvest, be it long or short.

These minute circumstances respecting harvest manage-ment in Scotland , have been the more particularly noticed,because seldom touched upon in books of husbandry, and be-cause they diifer essentially from the plan so common duringharvest time, in some parts of England, where the style of

* In many cases these reapers are also allowed barley for Sunday’s victuals.The measure is more commonly regulated by the firlot than the bushel. InRoxburghshire they have 1J firlot for suppers and Sundays. Instead of one•dulling a-day, the cost has been of late fully one shilling and sixpence. It isseldom in that county that the harvest for reaping, (shearing), lasts 28 days,eonnnonly 24 days, and even less,