Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 17.djvu/582

Rh 536 NORFOLK Surface and Geology. The surface is principally an undulating plain with rising grounds skirting the river valleys and low chalk downs in the north and north-west. On the west along the Cambridgeshire border there is a stretch of fen land extending from Welney and Hilgay fen to the Wash. The watershed is nearly in the centre of the county. The principal rivers are the Yare, in the east, with its tributaries, the Bure, the Wensum, and the Waveney ; and the Ouse, in the west, with its tributaries, the Little Ouse, the Wissey, and the Nar. The Yare and its tributaries frequently expand near the sea into broads or meres, covered for the most part by sedges and bulrushes, which afford shelter for a great variety of water -fowl, including the water-hen, wild duck, heron, bittern, king fisher, mallard, snipe, and teal. The Yare is navigable for small vessels as far as Norwich, the Waveney to Beccles, and the Bure to Aylsham. The Ouse is tidal to Denver, and its tributaries are all to some extent navigable. Nearly the whole of Norfolk is occupied by chalk, but on account of drift deposits it forms a comparatively small proportion of its surface. It exists in three forms : chalk marl, which forms part of Hunstanton cliff ; lower or hard chalk, much used in west Norfolk for the construction of cottages ; and upper chalk, or chalk with flint, which con stitutes the bulk of the formation. The other members of the Cretaceous system in Norfolk are gault and lower greensand, which crop out beneath the chalk to the west of the county, and are succeeded by the Kimmeridge clay of oolitic age, which stretches along the coast of the Wash from Hunstanton to King s Lynn, and south nearly to Downham. The Tertiary formation is represented by bands of sand, clay, and shingle in the neighbourhood of Norwich, which contain a fine series of fossils. The drift deposits include the lower glacial beds in the north-east, stretching south to the Yare and Wensum, the middle glacial beds in the neighbourhood of Yarmouth, and the upper glacial beds, consisting of boulder clay, occupying the centre, south, and south-west of the county. A considerable extent of surface is covered by valley gravels. In west Norfolk they occupy sometimes the old beds of rivers which flowed nearly at right angles to those of the present day. In these gravels many flint implements have been found. The fen beds in the south-west were at one time nearly all under water, but this has been carried off by a system of drainage first begun in the reign of Charles I. The county is not rich in minerals. It is supposed that beds of coal may probably exist at a depth of 1500 feet. Lime and chalk for building are plentiful. Potter s clay and good brick earth are obtained. In the fen dis trict there is still a supply of peat. Marl is found in the valley of the Bure, and sand suitable for the manufacture of glass in the neighbourhood of Snettisham. Climate and Agriculture. On account of the exposed position of the coast to east and north-east winds, the climate, especially in winter and early spring, is much colder than in the adjacent counties. The air is, however, generally dry, and unhealthy fogs are not common, except in the marshy districts. Norfolk contains a greater variety of soil than any other county in England. In the north and west the soil is generally chalky ; towards the south east it is a light sand, assuming occasionally the form of blowing sand, but elsewhere capable of cultivation and of average fertility. In the centre and east the prevailing soil is loam of a very varying quality, chiefly light and work able, but sometimes composed of stiff chalky boulder clay. Alluvial clays and loams occur on the borders of Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire, and stretch along the river valleys. The marsh lands along the coast are so subject to inunda tion as to make cultivation difficult ; they afford, however, capital pasturage for stock. Notwithstanding the natural defects of soil, farming is in a very advanced condition, and, by means of draining, subsoil ploughing, skilful rotation, and the liberal use of artificial manures and feeding stuffs, excellent crops are raised in many districts of the county. The farms are for the most part large and the farm buildings superior. The prevailing system of tenure in west Norfolk is by leases ranging from seven to twenty-one years ; in other parts of the county yearly agreements mostly prevail. Accord ing to the agricultural returns of 1883, the area of cultiva tion was 1,087,270 acres, a percentage of about 80 of the total area. Corn crops occupied 438,273 acres, green crops 202,060, rotation grasses 166,891, permanent pasture 264,938, and fallow 15,051. About seven-eighths of the area under corn crops is occupied by wheat and barley, the areas of the two being pretty nearly equal, 179,270 acres and 196,483 acres respectively in 1883, while oats occupied only 32,307 acres. As much attention is paid to the graz ing of cattle and to the rearing and fattening of sheep, turnips and swedes are extensively grown occupying 135,116 acres in 1883 while mangolds occupied 46,442 acres, and vetches 11,868 acres, but potatoes only 5269 acres. The number of horses in 1883 was 62,613, of which 44,232 were used solely for agricultural purposes. Cattle in the same year numbered 117,497, of which 29,040 were cows and heifers in milk or in calf. Large numbers of lean cattle, principally Irish shorthorns, are brought into the county mainly for winter grazing. The old Norfolk polled stock has been recently revived and is now recog nized as a distinct breed. Good pasture lands are found in many districts of the county, especially along the river beds and in the neighbourhood of the fens. Sheep in 1883 numbered 559,146, and pigs 111,349. According to the latest return the total number of proprietors in the county was 26,648, possessing 1,234,884 acres, yielding an annual rental of 2,403,795. The estimated extent of common or waste lands possessed by no owner was 12,870 acres. Of the owners 16,552, or about 60 per cent., possessed less than one acre. Eleven proprietors possessed upwards of 10,000 acres viz., earl of Leices ter, 43,025 ; Marquis Townshend, 18,130 ; marquis ot Cholmondeley, 16,995; Rev. H. Lombe, 13,832 ; Lord Hastings, 12,738; earl of Orford, 12,341; Lord Walsingham, 11,983; Lord Suffield, 11,829; Sir Thomas Hare, 11,033; earl of Kimberley, 10,801; Anthony Hamond, 10,039. Manufactures. At an early period Norfolk was one of the princi pal seats of the cloth trade in England, worsted deriving its name from having been first manufactured at Worstead. The weaving of silk and wool is still carried on at Norwich and also shawl weaving, although the staple trade of the town is now boots and shoes. Silk is also manufactured at Yarmouth, Wymondham, and North Walsham. Flour-mills are numerous all over the county, and there are agricultural implement works at Norwich, Lynn, Thetford, East Harling, North Walsham, Walsingham, and East Dereham. Lime - burning, brick - making, tanning, malting, and brewing are carried on in various districts. The extensive mustard and starch works of Colman & Co. are at Norwich. One of the chief hindrances to the commercial progress of the county is the dangerous nature of the sea -coast, and its unsuitability for the formation of harbours. A large trade is carried on, however, at Yarmouth, which is the outlet for the produce of a very extensive district. The other principal port is Lynn, and there is a small trade at Burnham, Cromer, and Wells. The exports are chiefly agri cultural produce, fish, and manufactured goods, and the imports timber, oil-cake, and provisions. Yarmouth possesses one of the most important herring-fisheries in England. Railways. The county is intersected in all directions by lines of the Great Eastern Railway, and more recently by the Eastern and Midland Railway. Ad/ministration and Population. Norfolk comprises 33 hundreds, the city of Norwich (87,842), the municipal borough of King s Lynn (18,539), the principal part (37,151) of Great Yarmouth (46,159), and the principal part (3228) of Thetford (4032), both of which extend into Suffolk. There are also seven urban sanitary districts Diss (3846), Downham Market (2633), East Dereham (5640), North Walsham (3234), Swaffham (3643), Thetford (4032), and Wells (2645). The county has one court of quarter -sessions and is divided into twenty -five petty and special sessional divisions.