blasts of winter should breed them greater annoyance; whereas in other
regions each one desireth to set his house aloft on the hill, not only
to be seen afar off, and cast forth his beams of stately and curious
workmanship into every quarter of the country, but also (in hot
habitations) for coldness sake of the air, sith the heat is never so
vehement on the hill-top as in the valley, because the reverberation
of the sun's beams either reacheth not so far as the highest, or else
becometh not so strong as when it is reflected upon the lower soil.

But to leave our buildings unto the purposed place (which
notwithstanding have very much increased, I mean for curiosity and
cost, in England, Wales, and Scotland, within these few years) and to
return to the soil again. Certainly it is even now in these our days
grown to be much more fruitful than it hath been in times past. The
cause is for that our countrymen are grown to be more painful,
skilful, and careful through recompense of gain, than heretofore they
have been: insomuch that my _synchroni_ or time fellows can reap at
this present great commodity in a little room; whereas of late years
a great compass hath yielded but small profit, and this only through
the idle and negligent occupation of such as daily manured and had
the same in occupying. I might set down examples of these things out
of all the parts of this island--that is to say, many of England,
more out of Scotland, but most of all out of Wales; in which two last
rehearsed, very other little food and livelihood was wont to be
looked for (beside flesh) more than the soil of itself and the cow
gave, the people in the meantime living idly, dissolutely, and by
picking and stealing one from another. All which vices are now (for
the most part) relinquished, so that each nation manureth her own
with triple commodity to that it was before time.

The pasture of this island is according to the nature and bounty of
the soil, whereby in most places it is plentiful, very fine, batable,
and such as either fatteth our cattle with speed or yieldeth great
abundance of milk and cream whereof the yellowest butter and finest
cheese are made. But where the blue clay aboundeth (which hardly
drinketh up the winter's water in long season) there the grass is
speary, rough, and very apt for bushes: by which occasion it becometh
nothing so profitable unto the owner as the other. The best pasture
ground of all England is in Wales, and of