Since the Middle Ages sturdy husbandmen have grumbled at the tithes which thousands of them still have to pay to the Church of England. Last week 200,000 farmers, mostly in the southern counties, startled England by announcing, "We have banded together to protect ourselves from the effects of this 16th Century graft!"
When they ventured out on their parish rounds village clergymen in the remoter parts of Kent, Essex and Sussex were hooted. Bailiffs who came to force grudging farmers to pay up were stood off with sticks and guns. Some Kentish farmers even...
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