ITS HISTORY. 17
the exception of a small and very pretty wood by
Lambourne, belonging to Colonel Lockwood.
In the case of Epping Forest, governed, as at
Hainault, by the same narrow policy, unaccom-
panied by foresight or common sense, but possessing
here only the Crown's forestal rights, and not the
manorial rights or the soil, the Commissioners pro-
ceeded to offer these rights for sale to the various
lords of manors for about £5 an acre ; nay, almost
to compel the purchase by threats of selling them to
others, and by the inducement that their purchase
by the lords would give the absolute right to enclose.
We cannot greatly blame the latter if, after acquiring
the Crown rights under these circumstances, they
took an exaggerated view of their powers of en-
closure. They now had only the commoners to
deal with, and they believed that if each could
come to an agreement with this class in his own
manor, he would have satisfied every claim. On
the face of it, this did not seem an unreasonable
view, and though we now know that it was erron-
eous in law, all we need say, or can say, is that
they were badly advised. At the same time the
extension of railways, by enabling those who had
business in the city to reside beyond its limits,
enormously increased the demand for, and the
value of, land in the suburbs, and offered a new
temptation. Enclosures of large blocks, often of
several hundred acres in extent, followed one
another with alarming rapidity. In 1850 the
Forest comprised almost exactly 6000 acres.
During the ensuing twenty years just half this
area was surrounded by fences and partly built
upon.
While this was proceeding a new spirit arose,