an English maritime county, bounded on the Bound. east by Kent, on the north by that county and Surrey, on the west by Hampshire, and on the south by the British Channel. It is of an oblong shape, being about seventy extent miles in length from east to west, and nowhere more than twenty-six miles in breadth from north to south. Its area is 1463 square miles, or 936,320 statute acres. It is divided into six portions, provincially called rapes, which are again divided into sixty-five hundreds, and contain 318 parishes. The greater part of the county is within the diocese of Chichester; but the deaneries of Pagham and South Malling, and All-Saints in Chichester, form a part of the peculiar of the archbishop of Canterbury.

The population of this county at the four decennial periods of enumeration amounted, in 1801 to 159,311; in 1811 to 150,083; in 1821 to 233,019; and in 1831 to 272,800.

At the last period the distribution of the inhabitants was,

Occupiers of land employing labourers..................3,160 Occupiers not employing labourers........................1,330 Labourers employed in agriculture......................25,125 Labourers employed in manufactures....................109 Labourers in retail trade and handicraft..............19,208 Capitalists, bankers, &c..................................3,094 Labourers not agricultural...............................8,151 Males at and above twenty years of age ........................................... 4,094 Male servants .................................................................................. 1,531 Female servants ................................................................................ 13,866

In the same year the number of families chiefly employed in agriculture amounted to 29,450; of those chiefly employed in trade, manufactures, and handicraft, to 17,439; and of those not comprised in either of the preceding classes, to 12,777. The number of inhabited houses was 45,505, occupied by 52,712 families; of the uninhabited, 1859; and of those building, 620.

The amount of the annual value of the real property of the county, as assessed for the purposes of the property-tax in 1813, was L915,348.

The towns and villages within this county, whose inhabitants exceed 2000, are, with their population in 1831, as follows, viz:

| Towns and villages | Population | |--------------------|------------| | Brighton or Bright- | 40,634 | | helstone .......... | Battle ..... | 2,909 | | Hastings ........... | Arundel .... | 2,803 | | Hastings ........... | Mayfield ... | 2,738 | | Lewes .............. | East Bourne | 2,728 | | Chichester (city) .. | Cuckfield .. | 2,586 | | Horsham ............ | Ticehurst .. | 2,314 | | Rye ................ | Wadhurst ... | 2,256 | | East Grinstead ..... | Salehurst ... | 2,204 | | Petworth ........... | Bersted ..... | 2,190 | | Rotherfield ......... | ............ | 3,097 |

The northern part of the county was formerly a complete forest, and still is very thickly covered with wood, and adorned with the finest oak trees in the kingdom. The soil is generally of so tenacious a clay, and so deep, that, until within a few years, in which roads have been made, and the navigation of the river Arun improved, the timber scarcely paid the expense of carriage to districts where it was needed. A range of chalk-hills, known as the South Downs, runs through the county parallel to the coast, and in some points terminating in the sea. On these, vast flocks of sheep are fed; and in the small valleys intervening, the heaviest crops of wheat and other grain are raised. In the south-west part of the county, there is a tract of arable land of most singular fecundity. On some parts of the coast, where the chalk-hills recede from the shore, there are rich level plains, which feed some of the best oxen that supply the markets of the metropolis.

The size of the estates varies much, but there are no very great proprietors. The farms in the weald or eastern vales are generally small, those on the South Downs as generally large. The average rent of the land, according to the returns under the late property-tax, was 3s. 9d. per acre. More than 100,000 acres are not estimated at above 1s. 6d. per acre, 70,000 acres of down land are estimated at 6s. per acre, and 170,000 of woodland at 8s. per acre. The arable and woodland in the weald, amounting to about 420,000, are estimated at 12s. The marsh land and the arable land in the south-west have been let as high as 50s. per acre. In the weald about one third is arable, one third pasture, and one third wood and waste land. On the south side of the Downs, the arable exceeds the pasture in the proportion of thirty acres to one.

The agriculture of the county is as various as the differences of the soil. In the stiff lands of the weald, the practice of fallowing is generally prevalent; but to the south of the Downs it is rarely resorted to. The growing of turnips, potatoes, peas, or beans, is commonly found sufficient to prepare the land for corn. Hops are very extensively cultivated in the eastern part of the county; and as nearly the whole manure of the farms is applied to that plant, the crops of wheat and other grain are usually scanty.

The cattle of Sussex are celebrated throughout the whole kingdom. The cows are of a deep-red colour, with small heads, and horns thin and transparent, which run out horizontally, and turn up towards the tips. The quality of their milk is not equal to that of some other breeds; hence there are few dairies, and the cattle are chiefly reared for the sale of the meat, which is excellent. As much of the ploughing is performed by oxen, they usually labour in harness three or four years before they are fattened. They are but lightly worked, that their growth may not be impeded; and it is not unusual to see eight and sometimes even ten oxen to a plough. The sheep of Sussex have spread gradually over most parts of the island. The sheep known by the name of South Downs have no horns, and their faces and legs are black or dark coloured. The flesh is surpassed by none in England. Their wool is as fine as that of Herefordshire, and they require less food for their support than sheep of any other breed.

There are no manufactures in the county. The making Employments of iron formerly gave employment to many persons in the weald; but the invention of making it with coke instead of charcoal has removed it to those districts where mines of iron and of coal are to be found. The only branch of industry which gives any employment to the population, besides that of agriculture, is the fishery, which, in the summer, especially when the mackerel appear, is extensive. The prosperity of many places on the coast has arisen from the crowds of visitors who frequent them for the pleasures of sea air and bathing. Among those places, Brighton, as the favourite residence of our two last monarchs, as well as of our youthful queen, is the most prominent. Much company is annually collected at Hastings, East Bourne, Rotteendeen, Worthing, and Bognor.

The rivers of Sussex are all streams of short course. Rivers. The Lavant and Arun are navigable but a few miles from their mouths. The other rivers are the Adur, which, joining with the Ouse, runs by Lewes to Newhaven; and the Rother, which forms an estuary near Rye. The only canal is one that connects the towns of Petworth and Midhurst with the river Arun.

There are several remains of Roman camps in different Antiqui- parts of the county; and the Stane Street Road may still be traced between Chichester and Dorking. The Saxon remains are very numerous, among which the most remarkable are Pevensey Castle and Battle Abbey. Arundel Castle is a most splendid modernized edifice, upon the site of the ancient structure of that name. Besides these, Bayham Abbey, Eridge Castle, Bodiam Castle, and the buildings at Winchelsea, are worthy the attention of the antiquary.

The titles derived from this county are those of duke of Peers and Sussex, earls of Winchelsea, Ashburnham, Chichester, and representatives Sheffield, and Barons Arundel, Gage, and Selsey. For election purposes the county has been formed into two divisions. The eastern election is held at Lewes; and the other polling places are East Grinstead, Battle, and Mayfield. The western election place is Chichester; and the other polling places are Steyning, Petworth, Horsham, and Arundel. By the reform bill the boroughs of Bramber, East Grinstead, and Steyning, have been disfranchised, and Midhurst, Rye, and Arundel, return one member each instead of two. Brighton has been constituted a borough with two members; and Chichester, Hastings, and Lewes, continue, as before, to elect two.

The most remarkable seats are, the Pavilion at Brighton; Goodwood, the duke of Richmond; Petworth, Colonel Wyndham; Arundel Castle, duke of Norfolk; Sheffield Place, earl of Sheffield; Eridge Castle, earl of Abergavenny; Ashburnham House, earl of Ashburnham; Stanstead, Reverend Lewis Way; Parham, Sir Cecil Bishop; Kidbrooke, Lord Colchester; Marisfield Park, Sir John Shelly; Firle, Lord Gage; Sumner Park, earl of Chichester; Ovingdean, Nathaniel Kemp, Esq.; Earleham, the widow of the Right Honourable William Huskisson; Weshidean House, Lord Selsey.

See Young's Agricultural Survey of Sussex; Russell's