The Survey of Cornwall. Richard Carew
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in it Siluer.
The Cornish Tynners hold a strong imagination, that in the withdrawing of Noahs floud to the Sea, the same tooke his course from East to West, violently breaking vp, and forcibly carrying with it, the earth, trees, and Rocks, which lay any thing loosely, neere the vpper face of the ground. To confirme the likelihood of which supposed truth, they doe many times digge vp whole and huge Timber trees, which they conceiue at that deluge to haue beene ouerturned and whelmed: but whether then, or sithence, probable it is, that some such cause produced this effect. Hence it commeth, that albeit the Tynne lay couched at first in certaine strakes amongst the Rockes, like a tree, or the veines in a mans bodie, from the depth whereof the maine Load spreadeth out his branches, vntill they approach the open ayre: yet they haue now two kinds of Tynne workes, Stream, and Load: for (say they) the foremencioned floud, carried together with the moued Rockes and earth, so much of the Load as was inclosed therein, and at the asswaging, left the same scattered here and there in the vallies and ryuers, where it passed; which being sought and digged, is called Streamworke: under this title, they comprise also the Moore workes, growing from the like occasion. They maintaine these workes, to haue beene verie auncient, and first wrought by the Iewes with Pickaxes of Holme, Boxe, and Harts horne: they prooue this by the name of those places yet enduring, to wit, Attall Sarazin, in English, the Iewes offcast, and by those tooles daily found amongst the rubble of such workes. And it may well be, that as Akornes made good bread, before Ceres taught the vse of Corne; and sharpe Stones serued the Indians for Kniues, vntill the Spaniards brought them Iron: so in the infancie of knowledge, these poore instruments for want of better did supplie a turne. There are also taken vp in such works, certaine little tooles heads of Brasse, which some terme Thunder-axes, but they make small shew of any profitable vse. Neither were the Romanes ignorant of this trade, as may appeare by a brasse Coyne of Domitian's, found in one of these workes, and fallen into my hands: and perhaps vnder one of those Flauians, the Iewish workmen made here their first arriuall.
[9] They discouer these workes, by certaine Tynne-stones,lying on the face of the ground, which they terme Shoad, as shed from the maine Load, and made somwhat smooth and round, by the waters washing & wearing. Where the finding of these affordeth a tempting likelihood, the Tynners goe to worke, casting vp trenches before them, in depth 5, or 6. foote more or lesse, as the loose ground went, & three or foure in breadth, gathering vp such Shoad, as this turning of the earth doth offer to their sight. If any ryuer thwart them, and that they resolve to search his bed, hee is trained by a new channell from his former course. This yeeldeth a speedie and gaineful recompence to the aduenturers of the search, but I hold it little beneficiall to the owners of the soyle. For those low grounds, beforetime fruitfull, hauing herethrough their wrong side turned outwards, accuse the Tynners iniurie by their succeeding barrennesse.
To find the Load-workes, their first labour is also imployed in seeking this Shoad, which either lieth open on the grasse, or but shallowly couered. Hauing found any such, they coniecture by the sight of the ground, which way the floud came that brought it thither, and so giue a gesse at the place whence it was broken off. There they sincke a Shaft, or pit of five or six foote in length, two or three foote in breadth, and seuen or eight foote in depth, to proue whether they may so meete with the Load. By this Shaft, they also discerne which was the quicke ground (as they call it) that mooued with the floud, and which the firme, wherein no such Shoad doth lie. If they misse the Load in one place, they sincke a like Shaft in another beyond that, commonly farther vp towards the hill, and so a third and fourth, vntill they light at last vpon it. But you may not conceiue, that euerie likelyhood doth euer proue a certaintie: for diuers haue beene hindered, through bestowing charges in seeking, and not finding, and many vndone in finding and not speeding, whiles a faire show, tempting them to mvch cost, hath, in the end, fayled in substance, and made the aduenturers Banckrupt of their hope and purse.
Some have found Tynne-workes of great vallew, through meanes no lesse strange, then extraordinarie, to wit, by dreames. As in Edward the sixts time, a Gentlewoman, heire to one Tresculierd, and wife to Lanine, dreamed, that a man of seemely personage told her, how in such a Tenement of her Land, shee should find so great store of Tynne, as would serue to inrich both her selfe and her posteritie. This shee reuealed to her husband: and hee, putting the same in triall, found a worke, which in foure yeeres, was worth him welneere so many thousand pounds. Moreouer, one Taprel lately liuing, & dwelling in the Parish of the hundred of West, call'd S. Niot, by a like dreame of his daughter (see the lucke of women) made the like assay, met with the effect, farmed the worke of the vnwitting Lord of the soyle, and grew thereby to good state of wealth. The same report passeth as currant, touching sundrie others; but I will not bind any mans credite, though, that of the Authors haue herein swayed mine: and yet he that will afford his eare to Astrologers and naturall Philosophers, shall haue it filled with many discourses, of the constellation of the heauens, and the constitution of mens bodies, fitting to this purpose.
[10] There are, that leauing these trades of new searching, doe take in hand such old Stream and Loadworks, as by the former aduenturers haue beene giuen ouer, and oftentimes they find good store of Tynne, both in the rubble cast vp before, as also in veines which the first workmen followed not. From hence there groweth a diuersitie in opinion, amongst such Gentlemen, as by, iudgement and experience, can looke into these matters; some of them supposing that the Tynne groweth; and others, that it onely separateth from the consumed offall. But whosoeuer readeth that which Francis Leandro hath written touching the yron mynerals, in the Ile of Elba, will cleaue perhaps to a third conceite: for hee auoucheth, that the trenches, out of which the Owre there is digged, within twentie or thirtie yeeres, become alike ful againe of the same mettall, as at first, & he confirmeth it by sutable examples, borrowed from Clearchus, of Marble, in Paros Iland, and of Salt, in India, deducing thence this reason, that the ayre and water replenishiing the voide roome, through the power of the vniuersall agent, and some peculiar celestiall influence, are turned into the selfe substance; and so by consequence, neither the Owre groweth, nor the earth consumeth away: and this opinion, Munster in his Cosmographie, doth seeme to vnderprop, affirming, that neere the Citie of Apolonia in Dalmatia, the veines whence Brasse is digged, are filled in like maner. So doth he report, that neere Ptolomais, there lieth a round valley, out of which glassie Sand being taken, the winds fill the pit againe, from the upper part of the adioyning mountaines; which matter is conuerted into the former substance and that euen Mettals throwne Into this place, doe vndergoe the like Metamorphosis.
The colour both of the Shoad and Load, resembleth his bed, as the Sea sand doth the Cliffes, and is so diuersified to reddish, blackish, duskie, and such other earthy colours.
If the Load wherein the Tynne lieth, carrieth a foote and halfe in breadth, and be not ouerbarren, it is accompted a verie rich worke: but commonly the same exceedeth not a foote, vnlesse many Loads runne together.
When the new found worke intiseth with probabilitie of profit, the discouerer doth commonly associate himselfe with some more partners, because the charge amounteth mostly verie high for any one mans purse, except lined beyond ordinarie, to reach vnto: and if the worke doe faile, many shoulders will more easily support the burthen. These partners consist either of such Tinners as worke to their owne behoofe, or of such aduenturers as put in hired labourers. The hirelings stand at a certaine wages, either by the day, which may be about eight pence, or for the yeere, being betweene foure and sixe pound, as their deseruing can driue the bargaine: at both which rates they must find themselues.
If the worke carrie some importance, and require the trauaile of many hands, that hath his name, and they their Ouerseer, whome they terme their Captaine: such are the Pel, Whilancleuth, in English, The worke of the Ditches: Pulstean, that is, The myrie head: Crueg braaz, The great Borough: Saint Margets, and many surnamed Balls, which betoken the Vales where the works are set on foote.
[11] The Captaines office bindeth him to sort ech workman his taske, to see them applie their labour, to make timely prouision, for binding the worke with frames of Timber, if need exact it, to place Pumpes for drawing of water, and to giue such other directions. In most places, their toyle is so extreame, as they cannot endure it aboue foure houres in a day, but are succeeded by spels: the residue of the time, they weare out at Coytes, Kayles, or like idle exercises. Their Kalender also alloweth them more Holy-dayes, then are warranted by the Church, our lawes, or their owne profit.