And, in conversation with
Edward's land-steward, he got it into his head that Edward
managed his estates with a mad generosity towards his tenants. I
understand, also, that those years--the 'nineties--were very bad for
farming. Wheat was fetching only a few shillings the hundred; the
price of meat was so low that cattle hardly paid for raising; whole
English counties were ruined. And Edward allowed his tenants
very high rebates.
To do both justice Leonora has since acknowledged that she was in
the wrong at that time and that Edward was following out a more
far-seeing policy in nursing his really very good tenants over a bad
period. It was not as if the whole of his money came from the
land; a good deal of it was in rails. But old Colonel Powys had
that bee in his bonnet and, if he never directly approached Edward
himself on the subject, he preached unceasingly, whenever he had
the opportunity, to Leonora. His pet idea was that Edward ought to
sack all his own tenants and import a set of farmers from Scotland.
That was what they were doing in Essex. He was of opinion that
Edward was riding hotfoot to ruin.
That worried Leonora very much--it worried her dreadfully; she
lay awake nights; she had an anxious line round her mouth.
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