The Diary of Thomas Fenwick Esq. of Burrow Hall. Lancashire, and Nunriding, Northumberland

摘要

A superb, handsomely produced edition that throws much light on rural society in the age of George Ⅲ. This is a world in which the harvest, servants, relatives and neighbours bulk large and in which traditional religious issues focused on Catholicism were important, but also one affected by the spread of Enlightenment interests, notably in the shape of Thomas Fenwick' commitment to commenting on the environment and on science. Born in 1729, Thomas was not only fascinated with agrarian improvement, but also with experimentation. He was interested in recording the contents of a pigeon's crop and the stomach of a pheasant, as well as discussing the impact on a foetus of a pregnant woman smoking. The diary is full of his observations, notably of wildlife.