The Hills and the Vale

Fields, village buildings and the changing countryside occupy Richard Jefferies in this collection of eighteen essays. With an introduction by Edward Thomas, The Hills and the Vale brings together writing on Wiltshire labourers, the growth of Swindon, agricultural practice and outdoor life. Its contents also turn to spring birds, Marlborough Forest, skating and reflections on nature and eternity, giving the volume a range that extends from local observation to larger questions about human experience.

Jefferies pays close attention to how land is used. In one passage he contrasts a carefully managed farm, with drained fields and labour-saving equipment, against grazing ground crowded by hedges, weeds and neglected ditches. Machinery, housing, employment and the circulation of money become part of his account of rural life. Readers interested in the English countryside can find both its visible features and the practical arguments surrounding its work and development.