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to be, not to prevent entirely the baker from availing bimself rfhis exclusive privilege, but merely to keep his extortions withincertain bounds. This, however, is equally guarded against, bya check requiring no trouble nor interference r For the monopolyof bikers does not appear to be so completely hedged about, atleast in Scottish towns, but that it still receives considerable checkof competition ; for, though none may bake, or keep shop withinthe royalty, but fieemen of the corporation, bread may still bebaked, and sold in the suburbs; and there is nothing to preventbakers, without the royalty, from sending bread to those wholive within its precincts. And this competition, limited as it is,forms, probably, a protection to the inhabitants, equally as goodas that afforded to them by an assize. Hutcheson, in his Justicet>f Pence, observes on this head, that in some, parts assize hadbeen discontinued, and that, on comparing the prices with thosewhere assize was fixed, it did not appear but that the public in-terest might be safely entrusted to this operation of private com-petition.
Fiars, or the average price of the grain of the crop in correctconsumption, have, from time immemorial, been in use to be fix-ed (technically struck ) by the Sheriffs of counties, to ascertainthe conversion money-price of grain rents, or other annual pay-ments in grain. The Sheriffs ’ mode of procedure is regulated byan act of sederunt of our Court of Session in 1723. By this act,it is ordered, that they shall be struck in every county, betwixtthe 4-th and 20th of February each year, for the crop of the pre-ceding season ; that, to this effect, the Sheriff shall summon acompetent number of persons of skill, out of whom he shallchoose a jury of fifteen, of whom eight at least shall be men oflanded property; that, before these, in open court, evidence mustbe produced of the prices of that crop, from the November pre-ceding ; any person present being entitled to offer information,as to the evidence that is produced, or that might be produced;and if it appear to the Sheriff or the jury, that the evidence pro-duced is defective, they shall adjourn. Afterwards, the jury »to be sworn, and the evidence to be produced, when the juryare to be enclosed, and to return their verdict; according towhich, the Sheriff must determine and record the fiars’ prices bythe 1st of March, and the clerk be in readiness to furnish etctracts.
The fiars may afford a commercial facility to inexperienced far*mers, in selling try them, either exactly, or a little higher oflower, according to the quality of the grain.
The Agricultural Reporter of East Lothian very justly remarks,that the period of the year of which the prices are ordained tobe taken in proof, cannot afford a just average of the prices ofthe crop. At the commencement of the season, the worst go*grain, which is in most risk of not keeping; and the least valst'