RUTLANDSHIRE, one of the interior counties of England, is bounded on the north, north-west, west, and south-west, by Leicestershire; on the south and south-east by Northamptonshire; and on the east and north-east by Lincolnshire. It is nearly of a circular figure, and is the smallest county in England. Its su perficial contents, according to the trigonometrical survey, amount to 149 square miles, or about 95,360 acres. It is divided into five hundreds, which contain forty-nine parishes, and two market towns, Oakham and Uppingham, the former of which is the county town. It returns only two members to parliament, there being no boroughs in the county.
The general aspect of the county is extremely beau tiful, being diversified by small and gently rising hills, which are intersected by woody vallies about half a mile in width, so that in travelling fresh prospects con tinually open on the view. In the centre of the coun ty is the pleasant and fertile vale of Catmose, which if we may trust a conjecture of Camden's,, derives its name from cod ntaes, which signify in British a woody plain. To the north of this vale the ground rises; and on leaving Oakham, and ascending Burleigh hill, there is an extensive level which stretches over all the north ern district, and forms a kind of table land, looking down on the fertile plains of the surrounding counties; the eastern part of the shire is more diversified; the southern district consists of one extensive open valley, stretching into Northamptonshire; and the western parts are well wooded, and gradually sink into the plains of Leicester.
This county is considered as being well watered for agricultural purposes. chiefly by springs and ponds. The only rivers of any note are the Guash or Wash, and Welland. The former rises in Leicestershire, en ters Rutland at Greatham, and flowing in an easterly direction through the centre of the county, divides it into two equal parts, and after a course of eighteen or twenty miles, falls into the Welland a little below Stamford. The Welland also has its source in Leices tershire, and first touches upon Rutland near Caldecot, whence it flows with a winding course towards the north-east, forming for a considerable distance the boundary between Rutland and Northampton, after which it passes Stamford, where it becomes navigable, crosses the fens of Lincoln, and falls into the Wash.
The internal communication has been considerably facilitated by the Oakham canal, which was commenc ed in 1793, and completed in 1803. It begins in the vicinity of Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, enters Rutland near Teigh, and proceeds in a south-easterly direction, passing by Market Overton, Barrow, Cat mose and Burley,until it approaches Oakham, the centre of the county, on the north side, where it terminates.
The climate of Rutlandshire does not differ materi ally from the other inland counties; it is considered as mild, pleasant, and extremely healthy. According to a very accurate journal kept by Mr. Barker, the annual average quantity of rain for eight successive years was 24.61 inches. Chalybeate springs abound throughout the county, some of which are very strongly impreg nated. There is a considerable variety of soils, not only in different parts of the county, but often on the same farm. According to Mr. Parkinson, they in gen eral consist of red land, good clay, poor clay, hazel earth, white stony land, black clay, and gravelly clay. The east and south-east districts are of a shallow staple upon limestone rock, with a small mixture of cold woodland, and clay soil; the other parts consist of a strong reddish loam, except the vale of Catmose, which is composed of good clay, red loam, and a mixture of clay and red loam. The substratum of the whole county, at different depths, is a strong blue clay.
Owing to this diversity of soil, different systems of agriculture are necessary, besides the inclosed arable lands are under a different mode of husbandry from those which are uninclosed. The former, which most ly consist of the light soils of limestone bases and red loam, are under the Norfolk system of four years' ro tation, and without feeding off, except in the turnip crops; it is usual to take two crops of spring corn after breaking up the clover, then turnips, next barley with rye-grass and clover; then three or four years sheep feeding, when it is broken up again for spring corn. The uninclosed arable lands are still under the old course of two crops and a fallow. In the following seasons the dead fallows are sowed with wheat, and some of the light soils with barley; the second crops generally consist of pease, or of a mixture of beans and pease. The size of farms varies considerably in this county, but in general they are very small; a farm of £300 or £400 a-year being esteemed very large. The average rent of lands, when Mr. Parkinson made his survey, was a guinea per acre, but it has since in creased considerably. Nearly all the land is let from year to year; a very small number of farms being let on leases of 14 or 21 years. There is no breed of cattle peculiar to this county; but considerable numbers are brought from other counties, and after one summer's grazing are sent to the London market. The whole number of sheep and lambs in 1807 was 81,146, con sisting of old and new Leicesters, a few Lirrcolns, and some South Downs.