Sentence:  Gentlemen must have observed that many of the nurserymen's plantations were wide and extensive, some of them covering several acres; and that their <WSD>palings</WSD> and fences were for the most part low, and might be so weak and out of repair, as to afford a very insufficient security against the inroads of robbers and spoilers. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A fence made of palings.