washing-day, as they often do. It must be also mentioned that
cleanliness is uniformly found throughout these flourishing villages,
and, in most, hot and cold public baths. Dirt is rare--I might almost
say unknown--also rags, neither of which as yet we have seen throughout
our long walks and drives, except in the case of a company of tramps we
encountered one day. Drunkenness is also comparatively absent, in some
places we might say absolutely.

As we make further acquaintance with these favoured regions, we might
suppose that here, at least, the dreams of Utopians had come true, and
that poverty, squalor, and wretchedness were banished for ever. The
abundant crops around us are apportioned out to all, and the soil,
which, if roughly cultivated according to English notions, yet bears
marvellously, is not the heritage of one or two, but of the people. The
poorest has his bit of land, to which he adds from time to time by the
fruit of his industry, and though tenant-farming is carried on largely,
owing to the wealth and enterprize of the agricultural population, the
tenant-farmers almost always possess land of their own, and they hire
more in order to save money for future purchases. Of course they could
only make tenant-farming pay by means of excessive economy and
laboriousness, as the rents are high, but in these respects they are not
wanting.

The fertility of the soil is not more astonishing than the variety of
produce we find here, though pasturage and cheese-making are their chief
occupations, and fruit crops are produced in other parts. We find, as
has been before mentioned, fruit-trees everywhere, corn, fruit, and
vegetables all growing with unimaginable luxuriance. The pastures are
also very fine, but we see no cattle out to graze; the harvest work
requires all hands, and, as there are no fences between field and