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diff --git a/old/53312.txt b/old/53312.txt deleted file mode 100644 index bf3d97a..0000000 --- a/old/53312.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6469 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, Bygone Berkshire, by Various, Edited by P. H. -(Peter Hampson) Ditchfield - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: Bygone Berkshire - - -Author: Various - -Editor: P. H. (Peter Hampson) Ditchfield - -Release Date: October 18, 2016 [eBook #53312] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BYGONE BERKSHIRE*** - - -E-text prepared by Charlene Taylor, Graeme Mackreth, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images -generously made available by Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 53312-h.htm or 53312-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/53312/53312-h/53312-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/53312/53312-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/bygoneberkshire00ditc - - - - - -BYGONE BERKSHIRE - -Edited by - -P.H. DITCHFIELD, M.A., F.S.A., - -Editor of the "Berks, Bucks, and Oxon Archaeological Journal," -Secretary of Berkshire Archaeological Society. -Author of "Our English Villages," etc. - - - - - - - -London: -William Andrews & Co., 5, Farringdon Avenue. - -1896 - -Hull: -William Andrews and Co., The Hull Press. - - -[Illustration: WINDSOR CASTLE.] - - - - -Preface. - - -The Royal County has many charms for the Antiquary and the Historian, -and we trust that "Bygone Berkshire" will not be the least interesting -volume of the series which the publisher has so successfully -inaugurated. We have attempted to give some glimpses of bygone times -and episodes, sketches of the manners and customs of old Berkshire -folk, and a few biographical notices of our heroes and learned men. -The story of our castles and abbeys shows how many great events in the -history of England have been enacted on Berkshire soil, and Windsor, -the home of our sovereigns, sheds additional glory on the annals of our -ancient county. The editing of this volume has been a task congenial to -one who for many years has made Berkshire his home. I desire to express -my gratitude to the authors who have so kindly co-operated with me in -the preparation of this volume, and I trust that their labours will -meet with the approbation of all who reverence antiquity, and love the -traditions of the Royal County. - - P.H. DITCHFIELD. - - BARKHAM RECTORY, - _August, 1896_. - - - - -Contents. - - - PAGE - - HISTORIC BERKSHIRE. By P.H. Ditchfield, M.A., F.S.A. 1 - - WINDSOR CASTLE. By Evelyn Ingleby 21 - - WALLINGFORD CASTLE. By J.E. Field, M.A.. 47 - - CUMNOR PLACE AND AMY ROBSART. By H.J. Reid, F.S.A. 63 - - ALFRED THE GREAT. By W.H. Thompson 98 - - THE GUILDS OF BERKSHIRE. By P.H. Ditchfield, M.A., F.S.A. 115 - - THE SCOURING OF THE WHITE HORSE. By E.R. Gardiner, M.A. 137 - - THE LAST OF THE ABBOTS 153 - - SIEGE OF READING 160 - - READING ABBEY 179 - - THE FIRST BATTLE OF NEWBURY. By Edward Lamplough 193 - - THE SECOND BATTLE OF NEWBURY. By Edward Lamplough 204 - - BINFIELD AND EASTHAMPSTEAD, 1700-1716, AND THE EARLY - YEARS OF ALEXANDER POPE. By C.W. Penny, M.A. 211 - - BERKSHIRE WORDS AND PHRASES. By M.J. Bacon, M.A. 235 - - BULL-BAITING IN BERKSHIRE. By Canon Sturges, M.A. 244 - - INDEX. By William Andrews, F.R.H.S. 258 - - - - -BYGONE BERKSHIRE. - - - - -Historic Berkshire. - -BY REV. P.H. DITCHFIELD, M.A., F.S.A. - - -Berkshire has played an important part in the annals of our country, -and been the scene of many stirring events in English history. For -eight hundred years it has enjoyed the proud distinction of being the -Royal County; Windsor Castle, the ancient home of the kings and queens -of England, is within its borders, and it has shared the fortunes and -misfortunes of the Royal House. Indeed, its proud distinctive title -may be traced to a period more remote than that of the building of -the Castle by the Plantagenet Kings; Alfred the Great was born in -Berkshire, and there were royal palaces in Saxon times at Farringdon -and Old Windsor. Here the Confessor King oft resided. Here the -Conqueror hunted the tall stags whom he loved "as though he were -their father." Hence from Saxon times to the present day Berkshire has -deserved its royal title, and has been pre-eminently the county which -kings delight to honour. - -The history of Berkshire is indeed the history of England. Successive -waves of conquerors passed over our hills and vales, and have left -their traces behind them in the names of hamlets, towns, and villages, -or in barrows or earthworks. In Celtic times the greater part of -Berkshire was held by the powerful family of the Segontiaci; eastern -Berkshire was inhabited by the Bibroci; whilst on the south dwelt the -Atrebates, a tribe of the Belgae, mentioned by Caesar, who migrated into -these parts from Gaul and drove the Celts northward. Silchester, the -famous Roman city, the Pompeii of England, was their capital before it -was captured by the Roman legions; and the walls, which seem to defy -the attacks of time, were built along the Atrebatian earthworks. Very -numerous are the remains of these ancient inhabitants of Britain in -various parts of the county. There are the old roads and trackways, -the most important being the Ridgeway, running along the Ilsley Downs, -forming part of the Icknield Street, which connected the east and -west of Britain. The road is flanked by fortresses of earth at various -places along its course, and barrows mark the burial places of the -heroes of their tribes. The chief of these are Letcombe, Uffington, -Lowbury, Churn Knob, and Scutchamore Knob. The so-called "King Alfred's -Bugle Horn," near Kingston Lisle, a large stone pierced with natural -holes, is really a Celtic Memorial. Its trumpet-note can be heard for -miles, and was used by the British tribes to summon their scattered -bands together when danger threatened. And Wayland Smith's Cave, -immortalized by Sir Walter Scott, and supposed to be the burying-place -of a Danish chieftain, is probably a British cromlech. In other parts -of Berkshire, especially on the high ground between the Thames and -Kennett, there are many traces of the ancient inhabitants of our -country. - -When the tide of Roman conquest flowed over Britain the old inhabitants -of our county soon felt its force and yielded to the storm. Their lands -then formed part of the Roman province of Britannia Prima. Instead -of incessant tribal wars and rude barbaric manners, the conquerors -established peace and civilisation. Silchester became the centre -of their rule in this part of the country, and instead of the pit -dwellings and rude huts of the natives they erected their stately -villas and their forums and bacilicas, the ruins of which, after a -burial of many centuries, are now being disinterred. This city lies -just beyond the confines of Berkshire, although the Amphitheatre, -where Roman gladiators fought, and where, doubtless, as at Rome during -the Decian Persecution, Christians were doomed to death, "butchered -to make a Roman holiday," is within our borders. Silchester was the -centre of our system of Roman roads. Other Roman towns in this district -were Spinae (Speen, near Newbury), Thamesis (probably Streatley), -and Bibracte (possibly Wickam Bushes, near Easthampstead). A road -ran from Silchester to Pontes (Staines), and another from the same -place to Spinae. Romano-British remains have been found in abundance -at Wallingford, Compton, Reading, and other places; and Roman villas -discovered at Maidenhead, Hampstead Norris, Frilsham, and elsewhere. -With the Romans also came Christianity, and at Silchester have recently -been discovered the remains of what is probably the most ancient -ecclesiastical building in the country, the forerunner of the many -beautiful churches which adorn our county. - -But dark days were in store for our British ancestors, enfeebled by -Roman luxury, when the legions were withdrawn to protect the centre -of the Empire, and they were left to shift for themselves. The fierce -Saxons poured into the land, a happy hunting ground for adventurous -warriors, and with fire and sword destroyed the towns and villas which -the Romans had left. Calleva, or Silchester, soon fell a prey to the -ruthless conquerors, and was burnt to the ground.[1] This was said -to have been accomplished by tying burning tow to a swallow's tail. -The Celts were driven westward, and found a secure retreat in the -fastnesses of Wales and Cornwall, where the British church lived on and -waited the advent of better days. - -The Saxons hated walled towns, which they regarded as "graves of -freedom surrounded by nets," and loved to make clearings in the forests -and form agricultural settlements. In no part of England have they left -more enduring marks of their presence than in Berkshire. The names of -our towns and villages are nearly all Saxon, and mark the spot where -their powerful families formed their settlements. We find the Raedingas -at Reading, the Wokings at Wokingham, the Ardings at Ardington, the -sons of Offa at Uffington, the Farringas at Farringdon, and scattered -all over the county are the _fields_ and _hams_, and _steads_ and -_tons_, which denote a Saxon origin. The name of the county, too, is -decidedly Saxon, and is probably derived from _Beorce_, the birch-tree, -or from the Berroc wood, which occupied a large part of the _scire_ -or shire. It formed part of the important kingdom of Wessex, and soon -became the battlefield of opposing tribes. Offa, King of Mercia (A.D. -756-796), wrested that portion which borders on the Thames from King -Kinewulf, after the battle at Bensington. In the time of Egbert (A.D. -800), Wessex recovered its territory, and established its superiority -over the other kingdoms of the Saxon Octarchy, its ruler becoming the -first Bretwalda or monarch of England. In the time of Ethelred I., the -brother of Alfred the Great, a Berkshire hero, born at Wantage, came -the black raven of the Danes, and on the chalk hills many a fierce -fight was fought between the old and new invaders. At length, after -the Danes had captured Reading, and were moving westward to ravage -the whole country, Ethelred and his immortal brother Alfred drew up -their Saxon hosts at Aescendune (the Ash-tree Hill), slew the Danish -King Baegsceg, and put his yellow-haired warriors to flight. This great -battle checked the conquering career of the Danes, who, though they -made several incursions into the county, and set on fire Reading and -Wallingford, gained no permanent footing in its valleys. The exact -site of this victory has been vigorously disputed; it may possibly be -identified with Ashdown, near Lambourne, where the white horse cut out -on the adjoining hill is supposed to commemorate the valour of the -Saxons, but the best authorities place it at Lowbury. - -Ashmole states that when England was united under King Alfred, another -division was made, and when the office of High Sheriff, or Vice Comes, -was instituted, Berkshire and the adjoining county of Oxford were put -under the authority of the same person. - -In the war with the Danes during the reign of Ethelred II., Berkshire -was again laid waste by fire and sword, and the barbarous invaders -burnt Reading, Wallingford, and other places in 1006. They destroyed, -too, with ruthless hand the numerous churches and monasteries, which -since the conversion of the Saxons to Christianity, had been erected -in our towns and hamlets. This conversion was accomplished by the -preaching of Berin or Birinus, who, with a company of faithful monks, -arrived in Berkshire about 636 A.D. He was received by King Kynegils, -Oswald of Northumbria, his son-in-law, and other princes at Churn -Knob, and convinced his hearers of the truth of Christianity. The King -and his court were baptised at Dorchester, which became an important -centre of missionary enterprise. The earliest monastic house was the -famous abbey of Abingdon, founded by Heane, its first prior, and nephew -of Cissa, Viceroy of Kentwine, who was a great benefactor to the -monastery. Here also Heane's sister founded a nunnery dedicated to St. -Helen, which was removed to Wytham. The abbey, in spite of being burned -by the Danes, became very rich and prosperous. At Reading, Elfreda -founded a nunnery in expiation of the murder of her step-son, and -almost every village had its parish church. In the time of the Norman -Conquest there were as many as 1,700. At Sonning there was a bishop's -palace, but although Leland speaks of the Bishops of Sonning, it was -never an episcopal seat. - -Soon the peaceful hamlets of Saxon folk were rudely disturbed by -the advent of the Norman invaders, and Saxon writers lament over -the sadness of the times, when English lands were bestowed upon the -followers and favourites of the Conqueror, who reared their mighty -strongholds everywhere, "filled with devils and evil men," who -plundered the English, confined them in dungeons, and were guilty of -every kind of cruelty and crime. At Wallingford, William received -the submission of Archbishop Stigand and the principal barons before -he marched to London. There arose the strong castle, built by Robert -D'Oyly, and others were erected at Windsor, Reading, Newbury, and later -at Farringdon, Brightwell, and Donnington. The history of the castles -at Wallingford and Windsor will be recorded in this volume; Donnington -endured an exciting siege during the Civil Wars; the others were -speedily destroyed. - -The foundation of the famous Abbey of Reading was the chief event for -Berkshire in the reign of Henry I., a magnificent building, one of -the richest and most powerful in the kingdom. It was commenced in -1121. A royal charter was granted in 1125 conferring upon it important -privileges, and the great Church of the Abbey was consecrated by -Archbishop Becket in 1164. Here the embalmed body of King Henry I. -was buried, and subsequently the eldest son of Henry II. found here a -last resting-place. Here many stirring events in the annals of English -history took place; here Parliaments were held and royal festivals, and -many exciting conclaves sat to discuss the disputes of kings and barons -and papal legates. To these inviting themes we need not now refer, as -the history of the Abbey will be dealt with in a separate chapter. - -The wars between Stephen and the Empress Maud devastated the county. -As each side gained the supremacy they proceeded to take vengeance -on the supporters of the vanquished, and the land was filled with -fightings and bloodshed. Brian Fitzcount, the lord of Wallingford -Castle, espoused the cause of the Empress, and his fortress afforded -her a secure retreat when she fled from Oxford, dressed in white, -across the icebound river. Farringdon Castle was captured by Stephen, -and completely demolished. Around that Castle and the fortresses -of Windsor, Reading, Newbury and Wallingford the war raged. Poor -unfortunate prisoners for the sake of ransom were hanged by their feet, -and smoked with foul smoke. Some were hanged by their thumbs, and -knotted strings were writhed about their heads till they went into the -brain, and others were placed in foul dungeons where adders and snakes -and toads were crawling. The whole county was reduced to a howling -wilderness by this relentless and long-continued war, until at length -the country was wearied of fightings and plunderings, and peace was -declared. - -When John rebelled against his brother, Richard I., he seized -Wallingford and Windsor Castles, but they were taken by the barons and -bishops in the king's interest, and placed in the hands of the queen -dowager. The strength of these two fortresses rendered them important -as military stations in the troubles which took place during the -latter part of the reign of King John, and also during that of Henry -III. Reading was the scene of many stormy meetings of the barons and -bishops opposed to the faithless John, and it was at Loddon Bridge that -they assembled their forces, and marched on Staines; and on the Isle -of Runimede, just beyond our Berkshire borders, they compelled the -faithless king to sign the Charter of English liberties. - -In 1263 Windsor Castle was besieged and captured by Simon de Montfort; -and the battle of Radcot Bridge in the reign of Richard II., A.D. 1389, -when Vere, Earl of Oxford was defeated by Henry, then Earl of Derby, -was the only engagement which disturbed the comparatively peaceful -repose of Berkshire in that period of its history. The unhappy child -queen of Richard II., Isabella of Valois, after the dethronement of her -husband, attempted to restore his rights by force of arms. Her forces -assembled at Sunninghill, and marched to Wallingford and Abingdon; but -her efforts were in vain; the power of Henry was too strong for the -unhappy child-wife, who fell a prisoner into his hands. - -[Illustration: RUINS OF READING ABBEY. THE PARLIAMENT HALL.] - -Turning from the records of civil strife, we read of the great -rejoicings which took place at Reading on the occasion of the marriage -of John of Gaunt with Blanche of Lancaster, which were solemnized -in the great church of the Abbey. The festivities lasted fourteen -days, and tilts and tournaments were held daily. During the reign of -the Edwards, the trade of the country increased; in the west, the -farmers produced their rich fleeces, and the clothiers of Reading, -Abingdon, and Newbury plied their looms and became wealthy. Thomas -Cole is said to have flourished at Reading in the time of Edward I.; -the famous John Winchcombe (otherwise Smalwood) better known as "Jack -of Newbury," and Sir Thomas Dolman, were men of note in the sixteenth -century. - -In the fifteenth century, the plague raged frequently in London, and, -in consequence, several parliaments were held at Reading; at one -of them, in 1439, a new order of nobility, that of "viscount," was -constituted. In the reign of Henry VIII., when many changes stirred -the heart of England, we find Wolsey building his memorial chapel at -Windsor, of which he was so soon deprived; we see the King hunting -in the Forest of Windsor, and being strangely troubled in mind and -conscience with regard to the lawfulness of his first marriage with -Catharine of Arragon, when he had seen and loved the fairer Ann. Later -we see the unhappy divorced Queen taking refuge within our borders -at Easthampstead, mourning over the fickleness of men. Then were the -fiery times of trial and persecution. According to Fuller, Newbury was -one of the first places to receive the doctrines of the Reformation, -and there, in 1518, one Christopher the Shoemaker was burnt at the -stake for heresy, and later, in 1566, Julius Palmer and two others -suffered in a similar manner. In the meantime, a covetous king and -greedy courtiers had set their eyes on the rich monasteries in England; -and the noble Abbeys of Reading and Abingdon, and the lesser houses -at Bisham, Donnington, Wallingford, and other places, soon met their -doom. Hugh Farringdon, the last abbot of Reading, and two of his monks -were hung. The last abbot of Abingdon, Rowland de Penthacost, fared -better, and was allowed to retire on a pension to the manor-house of -Cumnor. The effect of the dissolution of the religious houses was very -disastrous. Agriculture languished; wheat became scarce and costly; -the cloth trade declined; the poor suffered greatly from the loss of -employment which the monasteries formerly afforded, and of the alms -which the monks freely bestowed. - -No important historical events occurred in the annals of the royal -county until the outbreak of the Civil War. The kings and queens of -England often resided at Windsor, hunted in the great forest, made -royal progresses through the chief towns, and sojourned at the Abbey -of Reading, now used as a palace. Edward VI. was received with much -state by the Mayor of Reading at Coley Cross in 1552. Queen Mary and -her worthless husband were welcomed with much ceremony in 1554, when -the mace was presented to her. Elizabeth came nine times to Reading, -and had a royal seat appointed for her in the Church of St. Lawrence. -The first of the Stuart kings honoured the town with a visit, and his -queen stayed at Caversham House, where a mask was performed for her -edification. In 1625, on account of the plague, Charles I. resided -at Reading, where the Michaelmas term was kept, and the courts of -chancery, king's bench, and common pleas were held in the abbey -buildings. - -Then followed one of the most disastrous periods of our county's -history. In 1642, the High Sheriff of Berkshire refused to obey the -king's command; the town of Reading was fortified, and King Charles -passed through the town on his way to Oxford, his headquarters. -Garrisons for the king were established at Farringdon, Abingdon, -Wallingford, Greenwell House, Reading, Newbury, Donnington, and -Hungerford. Windsor was held by the Parliamentarians. Many of the -people of Reading espoused the cause of the parliament, and left the -town because the mayor and other chief men supported the king. - -The war in Berkshire began, in 1643, with an attack on Reading by the -Roundheads under Major Vavasour. The Royalists attempted to relieve the -siege, but were beaten back at Caversham Bridge, and retired to Oxford. -The town was captured by the enemy, and the West of England became the -seat of war. Then followed the first battle of Newbury, which will be -hereafter described. The Royalists were practically beaten, and the -gallant Lord Falkland slain. Essex, the leader of the Parliamentarian -forces, marched on London, harrassed by Prince Rupert's horse near -Aldermaston. Reading was abandoned to the King, and placed under the -command of Sir Jacob Astley. In 1644, the war at first raged chiefly in -the North of England. Then Reading and Abingdon were captured by Essex, -and all Berkshire, except the castles of Donnington and Farringdon, -were in his hands. The cause of the Parliament in the West was not so -prosperous; the King's plans had been successful. The garrisons of -Donnington, Newbury, and Basing had been relieved; but then followed -the second battle of Newbury, which ended in the retreat of the -Royalists. Then several marches through the county were made, and the -royal forces, after going to Bath and Oxford, came again to Donnington, -and thence went by Lambourne to Wantage and Farringdon, and finally to -Oxford. - -The whole of Berkshire was in a deplorable condition; the necessities -of war were so great; the supplies needed for the victualling of such -large armies were so heavy, that scarcely "a sheep, hen, hog, oats, -hay, wheat, or any other thing for man to eat" were left. Soldiers -on both sides foraged for supplies, and seized with ruthless hand -everything they could find. Peaceful citizens were captured for the -sake of ransom, and no goods could be conveyed safely along the roads -without their owners paying large sums to the leaders of foraging -parties who intercepted them. Numerous skirmishes took place in the -campaign of 1645 without much advantage to either side. At last the -skill of Fairfax and Cromwell proved too strong for the Royalists, and -Bristol and Oxford fell. Donnington Castle, under the gallant Sir John -Boys, was the last fortress in Berkshire to yield, and he and his brave -soldiers marched out with all the honours of war, having earned the -admiration of both friend and foe. - -Thus ended the Civil War in Berkshire. The King, now a prisoner, was -allowed to stay at Caversham House with his children; but soon the -end came, and the fatal scaffold at Whitehall ended the career of -the unhappy monarch. The sequestrators in Berkshire did their work -thoroughly; estates of Royalists were duly confiscated; the clergy -ejected from their livings; and the Puritan rule fully established. - -Shouts of joy welcomed the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. In -Reading there were great rejoicings, and a stage was set up in the -market-place for the purpose of issuing the royal proclamation, and the -King's arms were engraved on the mace. The Revolution of 1688 caused -some commotion in Berkshire. In the cellars of Lady Place, at Hurley, -many anxious meetings were held, which resulted in the advent of the -Prince of Orange. Lord Lovelace, its owner, was one of his principal -adherents, and he and his twenty followers were the first to strike -a blow for William. It was entirely unsuccessful, and a prison cell -at Gloucester rewarded his rashness. At Hungerford, William met the -King's commissioners, and then marched on Newbury, some of his forces -being also present at Abingdon. Some fighting took place at Hungerford -between the Irish troops of King James and the soldiers of William, who -were entirely victorious. Reading also was the scene of fighting. The -Irish soldiers quartered there threatened to massacre the inhabitants, -who requested succour from William. A body of three hundred men -were sent to their relief, and a sharp engagement took place in the -market-place, in which the Prince's troops were victorious. The -anniversary of the "Reading fight" was celebrated with great rejoicings -for many years. There was some slight opposition to the progress of -William's troops at Twyford and Maidenhead, but ere long London was -reached, and William proclaimed King. There were not a few who sighed -after the exiled sovereign, and many who could not reconcile it with -their consciences to take the oath of allegiance to the new king. -Shottesbrooke Manor-house was the resort of many famous non-jurors, -amongst whom were Bishop Kenn, Robert Nelson, Francis Cherry, Dr. -Grade, and Henry Dodwell. - -From this period the course of our county's history runs smoothly on, -and is absorbed in that of England. Each ruined keep and moss-grown -pile, each village green and scattered hamlet, has a history all its -own, often buried beneath the weight of years, and little heeded by the -present race of pilgrims. - -Many of these shrines of an elder age it is now our privilege to visit, -and to recall the memories of bygone times that cluster round the -revered spots of ancient Berkshire. And as we muse upon her glorious -past, we shall hold in pious memory the valour of her sons who have -writ her name so large in history, and strive to retain untarnished the -honour and good name of the Royal County. - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 1: So say the Chroniclers; but modern investigators seem to -think that the city did not fall a prey to fire and sword, but died a -lingering death by the slow process of gradual decay.] - - - - -Windsor Castle. - -BY EVELYN INGLEBY. - - -The word Windsor is doubtless derived from the Anglo-Saxon "windle," -a willow, probably referring to the winding course of the Thames, -and "ofer," a shore, the "Windesoveres" of Geoffrey Gaimar, the -"Winlesoren" of King Edward, the "Windesores" of Domesday, the -"Windleshore" of Henry III. - -The manor of Clewer, the site of the modern Windsor, consisting of five -hides, was the property of Harold, son of Godwin, and, together with -his other estates, fell at his death into the hands of William the -Conqueror. William granted the manor to one Ralph, the son of Seifride, -reserving, however, one-half of a hide on which were some earthworks, -which are believed to be as old as the Heptarchy, and on which he -built for himself a castle. This was styled, not Clewer Castle, but -Windsor Castle, the name of Harold's royal residence, and since then -has been intimately associated with English history, having been used -alternately by William's descendants as their palace, prison, and -burial place. - -Edward the Confessor had a "palace" at Windsor, though it is not easy -to determine the exact situation. - -William Rufus assembled a council at Windsor, and there imprisoned the -rebellious Earl of Mowbray for the remaining thirty years of his life. - -Henry I. built a chapel, probably on the site now occupied by the -Albert Memorial Chapel, formerly known as Wolsey's Tomb-House. Windsor -was a favourite summer residence of Henry, and it was here that, in -1121, he married Adelicia of Louvain, the "Fair Maid of Brabant." In -1127, Henry received at Windsor the homage of the nobles of the land, -who at the same time swore allegiance to his daughter, the Empress -Maud, or Matilda. As was usual on such solemn occasions, the coronation -ceremony was repeated. - -Windsor does not figure at all in Stephen's disturbed reign, but Henry -II. frequently resided there, and in his tenth year expended the sum of -30s. on repairing the kitchen. Fabyan, a chronicler of the time, tells -a pathetic story bearing on Henry's domestic troubles. "It is recorded -that in a chambere at Wyndsore he caused to be painted an eagle, with -four birds, whereof three of them all rased (scratched) the body of the -old eagle, and the fourth was scratching at the old eagle's eyes. When -the question was asked of him (Henry) what thing that picture should -signify? it was answered by him, 'This old eagle,' said he, 'is myself; -and these four eagles betoken my four sons, the which cease not to -pursue my death, and especially my youngest son, John, which now I love -most, shall most especially await and imagine my death.'" - -Windsor is closely connected with the granting of Magna Charta by -John. Between Old Windsor and Staines is the flat meadow of Runimede, -from which the Castle towers are visible. During the conferences which -preceded and followed the ratification of this great charter, John went -backwards and forwards to Windsor each day. He was at Windsor when he -heard of the landing of the Dauphin Louis. - -Henry III. greatly improved the Castle. The old hall in the Upper -Ward was abandoned for a new and larger one in the Lower Ward, and, -in 1272, he roofed the Keep. Part of the cloister still stands as it -was then built, and not long ago a portrait of the king, part of the -painted decoration, was discovered. On the town side three great towers -were built, and on the north was erected a tower on the same site as -now stands the Winchester Tower. All the buildings were handsomely -decorated with paintings and windows filled with glass. In one of the -new towers on the western side was possibly the dungeon connected -with a scene in Henry's career, which proved him, for all his piety, -a worthy son of his father. The Londoners, headed by their Mayor, -Fitz-Thomas, had long resisted Henry's exactions, and when, in 1265, -the King was in their power, and Earl Simon de Monfort ruled the land, -Fitz-Thomas addressed to his King words in St. Paul's which sank deep -into Henry's soul. When the Battle of Evesham delivered his enemies -into his hands, Henry summoned the Mayor and chief citizens to Windsor, -giving them a safe conduct. They were then thrown into prison, from -which it does not appear that Fitz-Thomas ever emerged, though the -others, to the number of forty, were eventually released. - -The two eldest sons of Edward I. were born at Windsor, and, though the -King himself rarely visited the Castle, Queen Eleanor seems often to -have resided here. - -In 1312 was born at Windsor one who was to do much for the castle, -Edward III. During all his long reign Windsor was the scene of many -displays of pomp and vanity, of tournaments, feasts, processions, -besides councils, chapters, and great assemblies. The Upper Ward was -entirely rebuilt, William of Wykeham--from whom the Winchester Tower -derived its name--being the architect. It is said that the words -"Hoc fecit Wykeham" were placed upon it, and that the wily prelate -translated them to Edward as meaning, not "Wykeham made this," but -"This made Wykeham." - -Another story is told which points to the want of refined manners -and delicate feeling of the Middle Ages. King Edward was conducting -his royal prisoners, King John of France and King David of Scotland, -round the Lower Ward, when one of them pointed out that the Upper Ward -lay on higher ground and commanded a finer view. The King "approved -their sayings, adding pleasantly that it should so be, and that he -would bring his castle thither, that is to say, enlarge it so far with -two other wards, the charges whereof should be borne with their two -ransoms," as afterwards happened. The story of King Arthur and the -Round Table fired Edward with the idea of founding the institution of -the Garter, and carpenters and masons were soon busy erecting the Round -Tower for the Round Table. The table, made of fifty-two oaks, seems to -have been in the shape of a horse shoe rather than a perfect circle, -so that the attendants could stand in the middle to serve the guests. -In this tower assembled the flower of English knighthood--Warwick, -celebrated in the French wars, who, when he died of the plague in 1369, -left "not behind him his equal;" the young Earl of Salisbury, whose -beautiful mother is said to have given rise to the motto of the Order, -"Honi soit qui mal y pense;" and many others besides, whose names are -well known for their prowess and valour. - -It was at Windsor that good Queen Philippa passed away, universally -lamented. Froissart touchingly describes her death:--"There fell in -England a heavy case and common, howbeit it was right piteous for the -King, his children, and all the realm. For the good Queen of England, -that so many good deeds had done in her time, and so many knights -succoured, and ladies and damsels comforted, and had so largely -departed of her goods to her people, and naturally loved always the -nation of Hainault, the country where she was born; she fell sick in -the Castle of Windsor, the which sickness continued on her so long that -there was no remedy but death. And the good lady, when she knew and -perceived that there was with her no remedy but death, she desired to -speak with the King, her husband. And when he was before her she put -out of her bed her right hand, and took the King by his right hand, who -was right sorrowful at heart. Then she said, 'Sir, we have in peace, -joy, and great prosperity used all our time together. Sir, now I pray -you, at our departing, that ye will grant me three desires.'" Her -requests related to her debts, her promises to churches, and to her -husband's "sepulture when so ever it shall please God to call you out -of this transitory life," beside her in Westminster. "Then the good -lady and Queen made on her the sign of the cross, and recommended the -King, her husband, to God, and her youngest son, Thomas, who was beside -her. And anon after, she yielded up the spirit, the which I believe -surely the holy angels received with great joy up to heaven, for in -all her life she did neither in thought or deed thing whereby to lese -her soul, as far as any creature could know." - -Many important scenes in Richard II.'s life are laid in Windsor Castle. -Two deputations waited upon him here with a list of their grievances. -In 1390 he appointed Geoffrey Chaucer, the poet, to superintend repairs -in the chapel. The great dispute between Henry Bolingbroke, the last -Knight of the Garter admitted by Edward III., and the Duke of Norfolk, -took place at Windsor Castle, where, in the courtyard, King Richard -sat on a platform, and gave judgment between the two, sentencing -Bolingbroke to ten years' exile, and banishing Norfolk for life. It -was at Windsor that Richard bade a last farewell to his child-queen, -Isabella of France, then eleven years of age. The scene is touchingly -described by a contemporary chronicler, who states that the King and -Queen walked hand in hand from the Castle to the Lower Court, and -entered the Deanery, passing thence into the chapel. After chanting a -collect, Richard took his Queen into his arms, and kissing her twelve -or thirteen times, said sorrowfully:--"Adieu, _ma chere_, until we -meet again; I commend me to you." Then the Queen began to weep, saying -to the King:--"Alas! my lord, will you leave me here?" The royal pair -then partook of comfits and wine in the Deanery, the King kissing his -Queen many times and lifting her in his arms. "And by our lady, I never -saw so great a lord," continues the chronicler, "make so much of nor -show such great affection to a lady as did King Richard to his Queen. -Great pity was it that they separated, for never saw they each other -more." - -After Richard's deposition and death, Isabella was detained by Henry -IV., who would have married her to his madcap son, Prince Hal. -Eventually, however, she married the Duc d'Orleans, this time choosing -a husband much younger than herself. - -A conspiracy against Henry IV. came to a head at Windsor, when the -Duke of Exeter seized and searched the castle. Henry, however, had had -timely warning, and had fled. "He rode to London and made him strong -to ride on his enemies," and crushed the rebellion. The Castle during -this reign held two unfortunate young prisoners, the Earl of March, -whose only fault was his descent from an elder son of Edward III., -Henry himself being descended from a younger branch; the other was one -of the most unfortunate of the hapless house of Stuart, James Stuart. -The king, his father, had sent him to France to complete his education. -Henry, however, fearful of an alliance between France and Scotland, -seized the Prince's vessel, and sent James to Windsor, declaring -jocularly that England possessed good French teachers. Henry kept his -word, and the young prince received a good education. He seems in every -respect to have been treated as suited his rank, and was allowed plenty -of freedom, sharing in all the festivities of the court. From his tower -window he beheld and fell in love with the fair Joanna Beaufort, the -king's niece, whom he eventually married. His return to Scotland marked -the beginning of a sad and gloomy reign, and he was assassinated by his -unruly nobles in 1437, to whom he had made himself odious by trying to -curb their power. - -In 1416, the Emperor Sigismund was present at the feast of St. George, -bringing as an offering the heart of St. George, which remained in the -chapel till the Reformation. - -Whilst Henry V. was besieging Meaux he heard of the birth of his -son. "But when he heard reported the places of his nativity, were it -that he, warned by some prophesie, or had some fore-knowledge, or -else judged himself of his son's fortune, he said unto the Lord Fitz -Hugh, his trusty chamberlain, these words, 'My lord, I, Henry, born -at Monmouth, shall small time reign and much get, and Henry, born at -Windsor, shall long reign and all lose; but as God will, so be it.'" -Although this unfortunate Henry of Windsor spent all his early years at -his birthplace, the Castle fell into a very neglected condition. On his -marriage with Margaret of Anjou, some necessary repairs were made for -her reception, and during his illness, in 1453, Henry lived here. - -Edward IV. was the first monarch interred at Windsor, where his little -daughter Mary and his son George of Clarence, supposed to have been -drowned in a cask of wine, had been buried before him. In 1484, the -remains of Henry VI. were removed from Chertsey Abbey, and interred -beside those of his rival. In 1789 some workmen came across the lead -coffin of Edward IV. On opening it the entire skeleton was found, -measuring 6 feet 3-1/2 inches in length. A lock of brown hair taken -from the coffin is in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford. A bone of the leg -was publicly sold by auction with the museum of a private collector a -few years ago. It was understood at the time that the dishonoured relic -was taken back to Windsor. - -The poet Earl of Surrey was much at Windsor in his early life, and was -imprisoned there in 1546. In one of his poems he gives a description of -the large green courts, the stately seats, the secret groves, the wild -forests, and other delights of the place. He was beheaded in 1547 for -denying the king's supremacy in the church. - -Queen Jane Seymour was buried at Windsor Castle with much pomp, a -life-sized figure of the deceased was upon the pall, with a rich crown -of gold upon her head, the hair all loose, a sceptre of gold in her -right hand, and adorned with finger-rings and a necklace of gold and -precious stones. In his will, Henry VIII. commanded that his body -should be laid beside that of his "true and loving wife, Queen Jane." - -Queen Elizabeth was very fond of Windsor Castle, and sometimes remained -all the autumn and over Christmas. Between 1569 and 1577, more than -L1000 a year was spent on improvements, which, remembering Elizabeth's -parsimony, is very surprising. It is said that Elizabeth desired to -see "Falstaff in love," and therefore it was that Shakespeare laid the -scene of the "Merry Wives" at Windsor. As Elizabeth was very fond of -riding, many a gay cavalcade of beautiful ladies and gallant gentlemen -must have issued from the gates of Windsor, whilst many a magnificent -pageant must have been held, and many must have been the love scenes -enacted here, during her long reign. - -There are several old descriptions of the Castle at this period still -extant, and among the Harleian MSS., is one generally attributed to -Stowe. "Upon the north syde and uttar part of whiche (describing the -Terrace) lodgings also, betwene the same and the browe or fall of the -hill which is very stepe and pitche, is an excellent walk or baye, -rennynge all along the sayd buyldyngs and the syd of the castele borne -upp and susteyned with arches and boteres of stone and tymber rayled -brest highe which is in lengthe 360 paces, and in bredthe 7, of such -and excellent grace to the beholders and passers by lyenge open to the -syght even afarre off; that the statelynes, pleasure, beautie, and the -use thereof semethe to contend one with another which of them should -have the superioritie." - -In 1642, the Parliamentary army occupied Windsor, and in the following -year fifty-five political prisoners were lodged here under the command -of Colonel Venn, who despoiled the chapel, and destroyed the deer in -the Great Park. In 1647, Charles I. was a prisoner in the palace of his -ancestors. After escaping from Hampton Court, and being confined in -Carisbrook, he was brought back to Windsor in close custody of Colonel -Whitchcott. The Governor was allowed L20 a day for his expenses. A -month later, in January, 1649, he was removed to London. After his -execution at Whitehall there ensued much discussion as to his place of -burial, Windsor finally being chosen. A hearse, driven by the King's -old coachman, and attended by four servants, conveyed the body to -Windsor. The Governor refused to allow the use of the Burial Service in -the Common Prayer-book. With much difficulty the vault of Henry VIII. -and Jane, his wife, was discovered. The Duke of Richmond scratched on -a piece of lead, "King Charles, 1648," the year being then reckoned -to end on the 25th of March. The following day the King's coffin was -brought out when "presently it began to snow, and the snow fell so fast -that by the time the corpse came to the west end of the Royal Chapel, -the black velvet pall was all white, the colour of innocency, being -thick covered with snow." The coffin was placed on two trestles in the -vault, and the velvet pall thrown in upon it. "Thus went the White -King to his grave in the 48th year of his age," without ceremony or -religious service. - -In Charles II.'s reign the State apartments were remodelled, the -architect being May, who probably only carried out the designs of Sir -Christopher Wren. Verrio painted the walls and ceilings, and Gibbons -carved the fittings. The L70,000 voted for a tomb to the memory of -Charles I., was probably spent in these new buildings. Samuel Pepys -visited Windsor in 1666, and was conducted to "where the late king is -buried, and King Henry and my Lady Seymour. This being done to the -King's house, and to observe the neatness and contrivance of the house -and gates. It is the most romantique castle that is in the world. -But Lord! the prospect that is in the balcone that is in the Queen's -lodgings, and the terrace and walk, are strange things to consider, -being the best in the world, sure; and so, giving a great deal of money -to this and that man and woman, we to our tavern and there dined." - -James II. lived much at Windsor. His daughter Anne here gave birth to a -child, baptised Anne Sophia, who, dying soon after, was buried in Henry -VIII.'s vault. James alienated his subjects by committing the fatal -error of receiving the Papal Nuncio. It was here also that the Prince -of Orange held the consultation which resulted in the flight of James. - -In 1700, the Duke of Gloucester, the longest lived of all Anne's -nineteen children, died at Windsor, to the great grief of the nation. -It was in one of the rooms now forming part of the Royal Library, -of this castle that Queen Anne was sitting with the Duchess of -Marlborough, when the news of the great victory of Blenheim arrived. - -The first and second Georges did not care for Windsor, but it was a -favourite residence of George III., but into such dilapidation was it -allowed to fall, that in 1778 it was declared uninhabitable. It was -therefore resolved to keep what was standing from falling into ruins, -but to build a new lodge on the site of the house which Queen Anne -preferred as a residence to the magnificence of the Castle. - -The new residence was a long, narrow building with battlements facing -north towards the old Castle walls. It was here that Queen Charlotte -lived when Fanny Burney, the author of "Evelina," afterwards known as -Madame d'Arblay, was her maid-of-honour. According to Miss Burney's -diary, the life at Windsor must have furnished anything but the -excitement which is supposed to be the necessary element of court life. -At eight o'clock, the king and queen attended prayers in the private -chapel. In the afternoon, the king and queen and the princesses walked -on the terrace. On this terrace, by-the-by, there is a sun-dial, -which was the cause of an interesting little incident. The King and -the Duke of York were one day walking on the terrace, when the king -leant his arms on the sun-dial. A sentry immediately came forward -and respectfully, but decidedly, informed the king that it was part -of his duty to prevent any person from touching the dial. The king -was so charmed, that he commended the soldier to his colonel, and -he was shortly afterwards promoted. Every evening there was music in -the concert-room, the king being very fond of Handel. In 1788, Miss -Burney describes one of the king's attacks. The Prince of Wales and his -brother, and several doctors and equerries sat up all night, whilst -the king raved up and down an adjoining room, and made occasional -excursions in various apartments, addressing wild accusations of -neglect to each and every of his attendants, till at length, Mr. -Fairly, one of them, led him gently but forcibly away. During the -king's illness, the Prince of Wales and Duke of York lodged in the -Castle, and even held formal dinners there, whence it may be deduced -that formerly even the royal kitchen in the Castle had fallen into -desuetude. - -Although the Queen's Lodge was now the chief royal residence, some -attention was paid to the restoration of the ancient Castle, and -in 1800, James Wyatt built a new staircase, and also restored some -apartments looking on to the north terrace, whither the old king was -removed during his last attack. On his death, he was laid under the -chapel at the east end of St. George's, in the vault which in 1810 had -been erected for his daughter Amelia. - -During the reigns of George IV. and William IV., James Wyatt's brother, -Jeffry Wyatt, whom George IV. knighted and called Wyatville, continued -the work of restoration, and gradually nearly all traces of the Castle -as it was during the latter part of the eighteenth century disappeared. -He raised the Round Tower to its present height, designed the plan for -the east and west sides of the Upper Ward, raised the level of all the -roofs, filled up the Brick Court with a grand staircase, and the Horn -Court with the Waterloo Gallery, united the stables, which were dotted -throughout the Town, on Castle Hill, and built the Brunswick Tower, -and the York and Lancaster Tower. It is to Wyatville's good taste and -fine artistic perceptions that we owe the fact that Windsor retains its -characteristics of a mediaeval fortress, and has not been converted into -a stiffly symmetrical building, then so much affected. - -George IV.'s favourite residence was a lodge near the Long Walk, but -two years before his death he removed to the Castle, and his long -illness kept him prisoner here till his death. In the same room, later -on called the Queen's Drawing-room, exactly seven years later, King -William also died. - -The chapel of St. George was made a Chapel Royal by Edward III. in -1348. The office of dean was, till the reign of Henry IV., held by a -dignitary designated by the name of "custos." John Arundel, in Henry -IV.'s reign, being the first to bear the title of "dean." At first -the chapel was dedicated to St. Edward, but gradually, owing to its -connection with the Order of the Garter, St. George superseded the -former patron saint. Later on, Henry VII. had intended to make this -chapel the tomb of his race, and the work was actually commenced when -the king turned his attention to Westminster. Henry VIII. presented the -chapel to Wolsey, and, about 1524, the Cardinal employed Benedetto of -Florence to build a sumptuous sarcophagus of black marble, decorated -with figures of copper gilt. After his disgrace, the magnificent -metalwork lay neglected till the governorships of Colonel Venn and -Colonel Whichcott, when these functionaries sold various figures -and images as old brass, and realised a very handsome sum by the -transaction. In 1805, the marble sarcophagus was removed to St. Paul's, -to mark the grave of Lord Nelson. - -In 1686 when James II. was mis-ruling the land, he expended some L700 -on repairing the chapel and in solemnizing high mass. In George III.'s -reign the chapel was made the Royal Mausoleum, and Princess Amelia -was the first to be interred in it. His wife, his sister, and six of -his children and grandchildren were buried in the vault before George -himself. There is room for forty-nine coffins, and already twenty-one -have been placed in it, the Duke of Clarence and Avondale having been -the last. Although the Prince Consort is buried at Frogmore, Wolsey's -Tomb-house was selected as the site for the magnificent memorial in his -honour. The interior of the chapel is lined with marble and mosaic, -the walls are covered with reliefs, the windows are of stained glass. -The cenotaph stands in front of the magnificent altar, and supports a -recumbent statue, a personification of the Christian soldier described -by St. Paul, of white marble, the face being a portrait of the Prince. -A hound, a portrait of the Prince's favourite dog Eos, sits at his -feet. This chapel, built by Henry III., and dedicated to St. Edward, -and later on, known as Wolsey's Tomb-House, remains now as the Albert -Memorial Chapel, one of the most splendid monuments of the age. In -the State Apartments there are many articles interesting on account -of antiquity or associations. The Malachite Vase in the Ball Room is -the best of its kind in England, the French tapestry is said to be -unequalled, the Sevres porcelain is exquisitely delicate and beautiful. -Many picture-frames, especially in the ante-room, are to be found, -the work of Grinling Gibbons. Portraits by Vandyck in his best style -abound, and there is a splendid series of portraits by Holbein. In the -Guard Chamber there is a shield presented by Francis I. to Henry VIII. -on the field of the Cloth of Gold, the work of Benvenuto Cellini. - -The Library at Windsor is remarkably large and good, William IV. having -gathered here the various collections at Kew, Hampton Court, and -Kensington, and having brought to light many antiquarian treasures. -Amongst these are the three volumes of the collection of drawings of -Leonardo de Vinci, brought to England from Holland by Sir Peter Lely, -and bought by Charles II., and the series of eighty-seven studies in -red chalk and Indian ink of the principal personages of Henry VIII.'s -Court by Hans Holbein. The illuminated manuscripts, both European and -Oriental are of much historical interest, and amongst them may be -mentioned the "Mentz Psalter," of 1457, a copy of Coverdale's Bible of -1535, and the only perfect copy now in existence of Caxton's _Aesop's -Fables_ of 1484. - -In the strong room are many gorgeous treasures of plate and jewels, -and a set of golden dinner plates sufficient for a hundred guests, -a wine-fountain taken from the Spanish Armada, Tippoo's jewelled -peacock and solid gold footstool, in the shape of a tiger's head, -and many other curiosities too numerous for mention. Some of the -state apartments, especially the library, contain fine mantelpieces -and panellings of great age, some going as far back as the sixteenth -century. - -After the Castle itself, the chief glory of Windsor is the Great Park, -the remnant of a tract of 180 miles in circuit, which formed the happy -hunting-ground of our mediaeval kings. It is joined to the town and -Castle by the Long Walk, the noble avenue of elms planted by Charles -II. The Park is gently undulating, and dotted here and there with -magnificent oaks and beeches, sometimes standing singly, sometimes in -thick clumps. Looking from George the Fourth's Gateway to the gilt -statue which he erected to "the best of fathers," the beauty of the -landscape thrills one with the satisfaction of perfection. The spirit -of romance seems to pervade each fairy glade and hill, and visions -of days long past arise before us, when lord and ladye fair on fiery -steeds rode through the enchanted spot, and paused in their pursuit -of the bounding deer, moved by the genius of the place, to whisper -words of love. An oak measuring 26 feet 10 inches, at the height of 5 -feet from the ground, is reckoned to be 800 years old. Three oaks in -Cranbourne Chase, the oldest of which is probably 450 years, are called -respectively, Queen Anne, Queen Charlotte, and Queen Victoria, these -names it is scarcely necessary to explain, having been given since -they evolved from their sapling stage. Herne's Oak, which Shakespeare -memorialises in _The Merry Wives_, was, according to some blown down in -a storm in 1863, and a sapling was planted to mark the spot. According -to others it was cut down in mistake with other decayed trees by order -of George III. At one corner of the Park there are some dozen oak -trees, all as old as the Norman Conquest. - -In fact, wherever one glances, be it at an old elm, or a bit of old -carving half hidden in grass, or a china cup in the drawing-room, or a -picture in the library, from the marble sarcophagus erected in memory -of the Prince Consort to a blade of grass on the terrace, one finds -endless cause for interest and deeper investigation. Such historical -associations cling to every stone or crumb of earth, such romantic -stories are whispered to one at every turn, such echoes of old-world -times are re-called at every foot-fall, that no one could weary of -visiting again and again this wondrous spot, to dream of bygone faces, -fashions, and manners. And as one gazes, one feels the same pride in -its beauty as stirred the hearts of Henry III. and Edward III., one -understands the desire of the world-satiated Henry VIII. to rest in -peace by the side of his best loved queen under those cool gray stones, -and one feels a deep thankfulness that the storm-tossed Charles is at -rest for evermore in that calm, sanctified, world-remote spot. - -And Windsor does more than turn one's thoughts down the vista of -past ages, it ennobles, it purifies. A reverence, an awe that only -the sublime can inspire, takes possession of one's heart when one -contemplates this most glorious of England's royal homes. Nor has -the hand of time dimmed its lustre. Windsor is still the home of the -illustrious Queen whom all her subjects delight to honour. It is -associated with tender memories of all the joys and many sorrows which -the Ruler of our mighty Empire has experienced during the course of her -long and glorious reign. And when we reflect on all that our Queen has -done for the welfare of our nation, and of the vast Empire over which -she rules, we can but echo the Laureate's words:-- - - "May she rule us long, - And leave us rulers of her blood - As noble till the latest day! - May children of our children say, - She wrought her people lasting good; - Her court was pure; her life serene; - God gave her peace; her land reposed; - A thousand claims to reverence closed - In her a Mother, Wife, and Queen." - -And ever mindful of her great sorrow let us say:-- - - "The love of all Thy sons encompass Thee, - The love of all Thy daughters cherish Thee, - The love of all Thy people comfort Thee, - Till God's love set Thee at His side again." - - - - -Wallingford Castle. - -BY J.E. FIELD, M.A. - - -The Castle, to which Wallingford owes its importance through six -centuries of our annals, may have had its origin in a primitive -fortress belonging to the original settlement upon the river-bank. But -its actual history begins in the reign of Edward the Confessor, who, -according to Domesday, had fifteen acres here, where a body of his -huscarles or military retainers lived; these acres being the same that -Milo Crispin, the Norman lord of the Castle, was occupying at the time -of the Survey. - -Whatever fortress existed in Edward's day was held by Wigod, the -kinsman and cupbearer to the King; and the fact that Wigod favoured -the cause of the Norman Duke, coupled with the circumstance of an -advantageous position on an important ford of the river, caused -Wallingford and its Castle to become what they were in history. - -Hither, in consequence of the welcome offered by the English Thane, -William came after the Battle of Hastings, when London was fortified -against him; and here he received the homage of Archbishop Stigand -and the English nobles. Before moving back towards London he made -the Norman influence secure at Wallingford by the marriage of his -favourite chieftain, Robert D'Oilgi, with Wigod's daughter, who -became eventually, if she was not already, heiress of the castle; for -her only brother fell in battle, fighting by William's side against -his son Robert. The King remained to take part in the festivities -of the marriage, and ordered D'Oilgi to build a castle upon his new -inheritance. In five years the castle was completed. D'Oilgi had an -only daughter, Maud, who was married to another Norman chieftain, Milo -Crispin, and after his death she became the wife of Brien Fitz-Count. - -Tradition and history point to each of these lords in turn as having -made additions to the castle which their father-in-law erected; for -Crispin is said to have been the founder of the Collegiate Church -in the southern precinct, and Fitz-Count is recorded as the builder -of the famous dungeon called Cloere Brien, or Brien's Close, in the -north-western precinct. Further additions and renovations were made -in later times; but under these Norman owners the Castle must have -extended itself to the dimensions which it retained to the last, and of -which we can still trace the relics. - -[Illustration: RUINS, WALLINGFORD CASTLE.] - -From the river bank a few yards above the bridge it is easy to form an -idea of what the great Norman fortress was. The lofty mound upon which -the Keep was built, perhaps a prehistoric tumulus in its origin, is -still the most prominent object, though all vestiges of the tower and -its outworks have now disappeared, giving place to a luxuriant growth -of forest trees. Close beside this mound, traces of the southern moat -are to be seen, opening out upon the ditch which still separates the -castle grounds from the meadow beside the river. The broken ground -rising within the ditch shows the line of the eastern front of the -castle with its projecting bastions overlooking the river, though all -that now remains is an ivy-covered ruin with the opening of a large -window, known as the Queen's Tower. In the background, and more to the -right, is another fragmentary ruin, forming a central portion of the -north wall; while a modern boat-house marks the outflow of the moat at -its north-eastern angle. From this point along the northern front a -triple entrenchment is clearly shown by the undulations of the ground; -the innermost ditch, close beneath the wall, being the moat of the -Castle itself, while the second is the moat of the Castle precincts -enclosing a space of intermediate ground on the west and south, and the -outermost is the moat which enclosed the whole town; the three being -brought close together in parallel lines along this side of the Castle. -It must have been from this point of view, that Leland, in Henry the -Eighth's reign, described the Castle as having "three dikes, large, -deep, and well watered; about each of the two first dikes are embattled -walls, sore in ruin and for the most part defaced; all the goodly -buildings, with the towers and dungeon, be within the three dikes." -Camden, who tells that "the size and magnificence of the Castle used -to strike me with amazement when I came hither, a lad, from Oxford," -describes it more accurately as "environed with a double wall and a -double ditch." - -South of the great mound and its protecting moat is the ruined -tower and south wall of the Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas, now -surmounted by a modern turret; and adjoining it are some fragments -of the other buildings of the college, with a good doorway and some -windows of perpendicular character. Beyond these ruins a large portion -of the second moat is to be seen. The south-western angle of the -precincts, with the banks of the moat well preserved before it and -behind it, is occupied by the modern dwelling-house. Lastly, near the -north-western angle, where this outer precinct ends, the site of Brien -Fitzcount's dungeon is shown; and the remains of it, with massive rings -fixed to the stonework, existed here within the present century. - -If the Norman Conqueror himself gained no direct advantage from the -castle which he required D'Oilgi to build, his policy certainly bore -its fruit in the days of his grandchildren. In the civil wars of -Stephen's reign Brien Fitzcount was a leading supporter of Maud, the -daughter of Henry Beauclerk and widow of the Emperor Henry IV. of -Germany. The escape of the Empress from Oxford Castle, her flight in -white garments through snow and ice by night to Abingdon, and her -safe arrival at Wallingford Castle, are a familiar tale, perhaps -embellished through the ages, but well grounded in history. Stephen -set up opposing forts across the river at Crowmarsh, and traces of them -may still be seen on either side of the road near the eastern end of -the bridge, while the meadow on the north is still called the Barbican. - -Terrible stories are told of the sufferings endured by followers -of Stephen who had the misfortune to become prisoners here under -Fitzcount's custody; and for one influential prisoner, William Martel, -the new dungeon of Brien's Close was made, from which he was only -released on condition of delivering up the Castle of Shirburn and its -adjacent lands as a ransom. Throughout the war Wallingford Castle under -its indomitable lord was the most powerful of all the strongholds of -the empress; and it was here, in a meadow beneath the walls, that the -war was ended, through the treaty proposed by the Earl of Arundel, -granting the kingdom to Stephen for his life and the succession to the -Empress's son, Henry Plantagenet. - -Brien Fitzcount took the cross and died in the Holy Land; his wife -spent the rest of her life in a convent; their two sons were lepers; -and the Castle of Wallingford passed to the new King, Henry II. The -part which it had taken in the cause of the Empress and her son had its -reward in the high position which it occupied under the Plantagenet -Kings. Henry favoured the town with special privileges, apparently -exceeding any that were granted elsewhere; and here, at Easter 1155, -he held his first Parliament. At Henry's death, Richard Coeur de Lion, -before starting for the Holy Land, gave to his brother John the Honour -of Wallingford; and one of John's first acts of rebellion was to gain -possession of the Castle also, which the King had left in charge of -the Archbishop of Rouen. When the barons under the Earl of Leicester -recovered it for the King, the Queen Dowager, Eleanor of Poitou, became -its custodian; and it is probably from her that the ruined fragment of -the east front bore the name of the Queen's Tower, and from her also, -we must presume, the meadow in front of it was called the Queen's -Arbour. The value which John set upon the place still continued when -he became King, as we may infer from his frequent visits to it, and -the additions which he made to its garrison. His younger son, Richard, -Earl of Cornwall and afterwards King of the Romans, was made Constable -at the close of John's reign; and the Castle and Honour was eventually -bestowed upon him by his brother Henry III. - -Earl Richard probably did more both for the castle and the town than -any other of its lords. He lived here in great state, enriching -the townsmen by the liberal expenditure of his wealth and by the -hospitality with which he entertained the court and the nobles of the -realm. Two years after he came into possession he built the great hall -of the Castle, and though this has disappeared, some of the arches of -the bridge survive, vaulted with massive ribs, which certainly belong -to this period and are probably Richard's work. Here too he brought -his second bride, Senchia of Provence, in 1242, when the King and his -court took part in sumptuous festivities to welcome her. He was elected -King of the Romans in 1256, but the subsequent coronation at Rome, -which would have made him German Emperor, never took place. Afterwards, -when he was absent in Germany, the barons under Simon de Montfort, -Earl of Leicester, were rebelling against the King, and Wallingford -Castle fell into their hands. The Countess of Leicester was residing -here in 1262, when the Earl visited her and a hundred and sixty-two -horses were picketed within the Castle walls. The next year Richard -was again in possession, and repelled successfully an assault of the -barons; but after the disastrous battle of Lewes in 1264, it fell -into Leicester's hands once more, and both Richard and the King, as -well as Prince Henry, the son of Richard, were prisoners in it. The -two Kings were removed to Kenilworth; but the next year, when Prince -Edward, the King's son, defeated the barons at Evesham, King Henry was -restored to his throne and Richard returned to his Castle. He died in -the spring of 1272, and Wallingford Castle, together with the earldom -of Cornwall, passed to his son Edmund. The new earl maintained the -magnificence of his father. At the close of the year he introduced his -bride, Margaret de Clare, sister of the Earl of Gloucester, with a -splendid entertainment; he frequently received as a guest his cousin, -King Edward I.; and he so largely augmented the Collegiate Church of -St. Nicholas in the Castle that he is often called its founder. When -he died, in 1299, Wallingford fell to the King. Immediately upon the -accession of Edward II., the Earldom of Cornwall, with the lordship -of Wallingford, was bestowed upon his unworthy favourite, Piers de -Gaveston, who married Earl Edmund's widow; but his insolent career was -cut short by the Earl of Warwick, under whose custody he was beheaded -at Blacklow Hill. Another of the King's favourites, Hugh Despencer -the younger, held the Castle and Honour for a time, until, in 1326, -he fell a victim to the vengeance of Queen Isabella, who was now in -open rebellion against her husband. She had already become possessed -of the Castle, and eventually bestowed it upon her paramour, Roger -Mortimer. Then followed the horrible murder of Edward II. at Berkeley; -then Mortimer paid the penalty of his crimes at Tyburn, and Isabella -became a prisoner at Castle Rising. Edward III. erected the earldom -of Cornwall into a dukedom, and Parliament settled it in perpetuity -upon the sovereign's eldest son, the Castle and Honour of Wallingford -being one of the possessions by which the princely dignity was to be -supported. Thus the Black Prince became its lord for forty years. -After his marriage with Joan, the Fair Maid of Kent, in 1361, this -was their most frequent place of residence. Here also the princess -remained during the nine years of her widowhood, and here she died, -and probably was buried, in 1385. Meanwhile the Black Death had visited -the town in 1343; the population had been greatly diminished; several -of the fourteen churches had been closed, never to be re-opened; the -prosperity and attractiveness of the place was gone, and the Castle -was no longer chosen as a favourite residence of royalty. But when it -reverted to the crown at the death of the Princess, it was kept up as -a military fortress of the first rank, under a constable appointed -by the king, and its prominence in history was scarcely lessened. -John Beaufort, the son of John of Gaunt, became constable in 1397, -and two years later Thomas Chaucer was appointed. He was the reputed -son, probably the step-son, of Geoffrey Chaucer the poet, and was -almost certainly, like his predecessor, of royal but illegitimate -parentage. Under his custody, the youthful Queen Isabella of Valois, -the affianced bride of Richard II., was protected at the time of -Bolingbroke's invasion, until Richard became a prisoner and the Castle -surrendered to the usurper, when the child-queen was carried from one -place to another, and at last, in her fourteenth year, returned as -a widow to her home in France. A letter of the new King, Henry IV., -to his council, relating to Queen Isabella's departure, is dated from -Wallingford in 1402. Chaucer was still the constable when the Castle -and Honour were settled by King Henry V. upon his bride, Katherine of -Valois, at their marriage in 1420. Two years later, the infant King -Henry VI. succeeded to his throne, and in 1428, when he was taken from -his mother's care, the Castle of Wallingford was assigned to him as -one of his summer residences, under the guardianship of the Earl of -Warwick. Chaucer died in 1434, and William de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk, -his son-in-law, appears to have succeeded him as constable of the -Castle. Here Suffolk had under his charge an important captive, Owen -Tudor, an esquire of the body to the king, as he had been previously -to Henry V. with whom he had fought at Agincourt; and here in his -dungeon a secret marriage is said to have taken place between Tudor and -the Dowager Queen Katherine, who had long been attached to him, the -ceremony being performed by a priest who was his fellow-prisoner, while -a servant who attended him was the only witness. Suffolk, now raised -to a dukedom, was accused by the populace of betraying his country to -the French and preparing to fortify Wallingford on their behalf; and -while the King befriended him, he was barbarously beheaded at sea; but -his widow Alice, Chaucer's daughter, was made custodian of the Castle -in his place. The House of Lancaster had raised Alice de la Pole to her -dignities and honours; yet when the commencement of the Wars of the -Roses favoured the rival house, she at once transferred her support -to the Yorkists. In 1461, Edward of York became King, and the reward -of Alice's faithlessness was the marriage of the young Duke, her son, -with the lady Elizabeth, the King's sister, while she herself retained -her Castle. There the heartless duchess and her son received under -their custody the ex-Queen Margaret of Anjou, who had been the friend -and patroness of her youth, but who now remained for five years her -prisoner, until in 1476 her ransom was paid, and she returned to France. - -In the events of the succeeding years there is little of immediate -connection with Wallingford. Lord Lovell, who had been a ward of the -Duke of Suffolk, was made constable by Richard III., but he fled to -Flanders when his master fell at Bosworth. Henry VII. reinstated -Suffolk in the office, which he held for life, in spite of the -rebellion of his son, Lord Lincoln, whom Edward IV., his uncle, had -designated as his heir. After him the office was held for a time by -Arthur, Prince of Wales. On one occasion at least, in 1518, Henry VIII. -and his Court appear to have been residing here. Some twelve years -later he entirely renovated the College of St. Nicholas; to which -shortly afterwards "a fair steeple of stone," as Leland describes it, -was added by Dr. Underhill, the Dean. No new appointment to the office -of constable appears until 1535, when it was granted to Henry Norris, a -nephew of the Lord Lovell who had held it fifty years before; but after -six months he fell a victim to the King's displeasure and died upon the -scaffold. In 1540 an Act of Parliament separated the Castle and Honour -from the Duchy of Cornwall and annexed it to the Crown. - -Edward VI. dissolved the College, and its buildings were shortly -afterwards dismantled, together with those of the Castle-Keep and -the Gatehouse. In the next reigns the lead and stones were conveyed -in large quantities to Windsor Castle to be used in repairs and in -building the Poor Knights' lodgings. Yet the main fabric of the Castle -remained, and was used for the imprisonment of heretics in the early -years of Elizabeth. During all this time Sir Francis Knollys was -constable, having been appointed to the office by Edward VI. in 1551. -In the latter part of Elizabeth's reign he was succeeded by his son, -Sir William, who became Viscount Wallingford under James I., and Earl -of Banbury under Charles I. - -We come now to the closing scene. The Castle was strongly fortified by -King Charles at the commencement of the Civil War, and Colonel Blagge, -an officer of distinguished courage in the King's army, was placed -in charge of it, the King coming for a day and night to inspect the -fortifications in 1643. Three years later, when every other castle -had been captured except Raglan on the Welsh border and Pendennis in -Cornwall, Wallingford still held out for the King's cause. The town -was closely surrounded by the troops of the Parliament; but as long -as there was any possibility of resistance the Governor refused to -yield. For sixty-five days the resistance lasted, and only five of -the garrison had fallen. At last, when all supplies were exhausted, -Colonel Blagge consented to make terms with Fairfax; and on July -29th, 1646, he was permitted to lead out his officers and men with -flying colours and martial music as if they had been the victors. The -Castle was a state prison during the remainder of the war, but the old -sentiment seems to have lingered about the place to the last. In 1652 a -conspiracy was detected for delivering it up to King Charles II., for -which a soldier of the garrison was condemned to death, and an order -was issued for the demolition of the building. - -The last of the line of constables was Edmund Dunch, appointed by his -cousin Oliver Cromwell, who also created him Baron Burnell of East -Wittenham in 1658; but Dunch became a strong supporter of the King's -restoration. The demolition had then been effected, and part of the -materials were used in building the tower of St. Mary's Church. During -the eighteenth century the estate was let on lease, and afterwards -sold to private owners by the Commissioners of the Crown; while the -broken fragments which are left of the Castle tell the story of the -completeness of its ruin, and serve as a memorial of its ancient -greatness. - - - - -Cumnor Place and Amy Robsart. - -BY H.J. REID, F.S.A. - - -A Benedictine abbey was founded as is well known at Abingdon, in the -seventh century, and to this rich and powerful monastery, Cumnor -appears from the very first to have belonged. Its earliest mention is -found in the "Chronicles of the Monastery of Abingdon," in which "the -book," probably a register or cartulary is repeatedly referred to. - -Cumnor according to Dugdale is derived from Cumanus, second abbot of -Abingdon, who died _circa_ 784, but Dr. Buckler, author of "Stemmata -Chicheleana," and keeper of the Archives of Oxford University, who was -vicar of Cumnor for twenty-five years, suggests St. Coleman or Cuman, -an Irish or Scottish saint, who lived in the sixth and seventh century. -As early as the year 689, Colmonora is mentioned in a Latin deed in the -Abingdon Chronicle, twenty hides of land there being conferred upon the -Abbey by a Charter of Ceadwalla, and again in a similar deed, being a -Charter of Kenulph, dated 851, in which is an illuminated portrait of -that King. An Anglo-Saxon boundary attached to Eadred's confirmation -Charter to Abingdon in 955, mentions Cumnor, as does also a subsequent -charter of Edgar, 968, which also has a carefully defined boundary -attached to it, and the biography of St. Ethelwold, who refounded the -Abbey after its destruction by the Danes, 240 years after the original -foundation of Abbot Heane. It is very improbable that these documents -are authentic. They may possibly be copies, but are more probably -forgeries, made for various purposes in later years, based in many -instances doubtless upon the fabulous history of Geoffrey of Monmouth, -who died about 1154, leaving what was professedly the translation of a -work in the British tongue made at the request of Walter, Archdeacon of -Oxford. It contains perhaps a modicum of fact, but is not dependable; -it has been largely drawn upon by later so called historians and -romancers. Nevertheless there is every reason to believe that Cumnor -from the very earliest times belonged to Abingdon Abbey, its name in -early documents being written Cumenoran, and the Church is known to -have been one out of but three spared by the Danes, when they ravished -the district around and destroyed Abingdon in the reign of Alfred the -Great. - -The Norman Conquest has left us more certain and dependable records. -From the survey of Domesday we ascertain that Comenore in 1086 -contained thirty hides of land, having been rated _tempore Regis -Edwardi_, at fifty hides. It will be remembered the early English -Charters gave twenty hides as its extent, so that the Manor had by -this time been either added to, or the hidation varied, possibly -both. The Manor maintained sixty villani, sixty-nine bordarii or -freemen, with four servi or bondsmen; the Church is mentioned, as also -two fisheries of the value of forty shillings yearly. Sevacoord, or -Seacourt, and Winteham probably Wytham, were a portion of Cumnor which -is the first manor mentioned in Domesday Book, belonging to the Abbey -of Abingdon, and in evidence of ancient right it is expressly written -there:--"Semper fuit de Abbatia." Cumnor Church is again alluded to in -a Papal Bull dated 1152, but there are now no visible traces of this -edifice. The present church which underwent thorough restoration some -forty years ago, having previously suffered by injudicious alterations -at various times, is of the Transition period, the most ancient portion -being the tower, according to the dicta of ecclesiastical architects, -not erected before the year 1250. Many objects of great interest to -the Archaeologist are yet preserved in and about the church, despite -the more recent restorations. Among others, are two stone coffins, -enclosing the remains of former Abbots of Abingdon, two piscinae, and -of yet more recent date the tomb of Anthony Forster, of whom I shall -have something to say presently. Some of the stone carvings within -the church, are of great delicacy, being remarkably fine examples of -fourteenth century work, in the shape of two corbels, the capitals of -three columns, a window, and the portion of an arch. - -In the chancel are some poppy heads, carved upon both sides; on -one is the sacred monogram I.H. S. upon a shield, upon another the -five stigmata, _i.e._, the pierced feet, the hands, and heart of -the Saviour, also a cross; upon the reverses are also carved the -crucifixial emblems,--the ladder, spear, and reed or staff, to which -is affixed a sponge; there are also the hammer, pincers, and three -nails. Upon the upper shield are the Vestments, the crown of thorns, -and bag of money. - -[Illustration: CUMNOR CHURCH.] - -A letter referring to Cumnor Church during the Civil Wars, written -by a member of the Pecock or Peacock family is printed in Mercurius -Academicus. This family held the Manor at that period, Richard Pecock -compounding for his estate by paying the considerable sum of L140. Many -of the family lie buried in Cumnor Church, and the school is mainly -supported by the legacy of a Mrs. Peacock. - -The letter refers principally to the conduct of certain soldiers, who, -finding nothing worth removing, took down the weathercock, "that might -have been left alone to turn round," and did much other damage. The -letter is dated Thursday, February 26th, 1644, and is as follows:--"To -present you with as honest men as those of Evesham and honeste you will -not deeme them to be when you heare they came from Abingdon, to a place -called Cumner in no smaller a number than 500; where the chieftains -view the church, goe up into the steeple and overlook the country as -if they meant to garrison there, but finding it not answerable to -their hopes and desires they descend, but are loathe to depart without -leaving a mark of their iniquitie and impiety behind them. Some they -employ to take down the weather cock (that might have been left alone -to turn round), others take down a cross from off an isle of the church -(and this you must not blame them for they are enemies to the cross), -others to plunder the countrymens' houses of bread, beare, and bacon, -and whatsoever else was fit for sustentation." - -There is also copied in a late seventeenth century MS. volume in the -British Museum, (Harl. 6365, 53 b.), an epitaph, which, I believe, may -yet be seen in the church, and is rather quaint and curious. - -From the same MS.,[2] I copied a description of Anthony Forsters -monument. "In ye chancell against ye north wall, a great marble -monument with pillars of marble. On a plate of brass faced to it ye -picture of a man in armour, kneeling before a table upon a book. At the -foot thereof, his helmett, at ye sides his gauntletts, over against -him his wife kneeling, as her husband. Behind her three children, -between them this coat; 3 Bugles, Q, 3 phoeons, points upwards, with -mantling and crest, which is a stag, lodged, and regardant. Gu. charged -on ye shoulder, with a martlett, or, and pierced thro' ye neck with an -arrow, ar. Behind the man this coat; 3 Bugles, Q., 3 phoeons, points -upwards, impaling 2 organ pipes in saltere between 4 crosses, paty. -Then follow the quarterings. Behind ye woman is this coat: Williams. -Az. 2 organ pipes in saltere between 4 crosses, paty. Quarterings as -before described. Under them both a great brass plate, on ye part of -it under him the following verses--." These need not now be recorded; -they will be found in Ashmole, and also translated in most editions of -Scott's Kenilworth. They record his many accomplishments and virtues, -and relate he was wise, eloquent, just, charitable, learned in the -classics, in literature, music, architecture, and in botany. The date -of his death is not mentioned, his burial however is recorded as taking -place Nov. 10th, 1572, by the parish register, which cannot err. - -[Illustration: CHAINED BIBLE, CUMNOR CHURCH.] - -He is therein mentioned as A.F., gentleman, the last word being written -over an erasure, and it has been thought by some, that an epithet -not so complimentary had previously been placed there, but erased, -and "gentleman" substituted. I see no reason for such a suggestion; -possibly some latin term may originally have been written, _e.g._, -"miles," and the English word "gentleman" was thought more appropriate. -At any rate, Anthony Forster was buried at Cumnor, Nov. 10th, 1572. -Cumnor Place, Forster's residence, was an early fourteenth century -house, used as a residence by the Abbots of Abingdon, and also as a -place of removal or sanitorium by the monks, particularly during the -plague, or black death, which decimated England under Edward III. At -this period, it served both as rectory and manse house, where tithe -and rents were paid, and Manorial Courts held, and where tenants -were bound to attend to do suit and service for their lands to their -superior lords. Such was Cumnor Place, until the dissolution of the -monasteries by Henry VIII. In 1538, it was granted for life by the -Crown to Thomas Pentecost or Rowland, last Abbot of Abingdon, in -consideration of his having willingly surrendered the Abbey and its -possessions to the King. Rowland either died the following year or -ceded Cumnor Place to the King, who seems to have retained possession -for seven years, when, by patent, dated Windsor, Oct. 8th, 1546, the -Lordship, Manor, and rectorial tithes of Cumnor, with all its rights -and appurtenances, particularly the Capital Messuage, Cumnor Place, and -the close adjoining, called the Park, and three closes called Saffron -Plottye, etc., were granted to George Owen, Esq., the King's physician, -and to John Bridges, doctor in physic, in consideration of two closes -in St. Thomas' parish, Oxford, the site of Rowley Abbey, and the sum -of L310 12s. 9d., cash. William Owen, son of Dr. Owen, married, April -24th, 1558, Ursula, daughter of Alexander Fettiplace, the estate being -then settled upon him. Shortly afterwards, Cumnor Place was leased -to Anthony Forster, and it was in his occupation when occurred the -tragic incident which forms the concluding scene in Sir Walter Scott's -Kenilworth, the death of Amy Robsart, wife of Sir Robert Dudley, -afterwards Earl of Leicester. - -In the following year, Anthony Forster purchased the property from -Owen, and seems to have greatly enlarged and otherwise improved the -mansion. Dying in November, 1572, he devised the estate to Dudley, -subject to a payment of L1,200 to Forster's heirs. These conditions, -its seems the Earl accepted, but retained possession for a single year -only, as is proved by a document among the Longleat papers purporting -to be a record of the sale of Cumnor by the Earl of Leicester, to Harry -le Norris, ancestor of the Earls of Abingdon, which bears date 15th -February, 16th Elizabeth, 1575. - -From this time Cumnor seems to have gradually fallen into decay. -Possibly the sad end of Lady Dudley may have contributed to this; at -all events, rumours were spread among the villagers that her ghost -haunted the locality, and a tradition is even yet received by them that -her spirit was so unquiet that it required nine parsons from Oxford to -lay the ghost, which they at last effectually did, in a pond hard by, -the water in which does not freeze it is said, even in the most severe -winter. This pond is still shown by the villagers, although they are -quite unable to assign any reason for the peculiar conduct of the ghost. - -Neglected for nearly a hundred years, a portion of the ruined mansion -was then converted into a malthouse, afterwards into labourer's -dwellings, and finally demolished in 1810, for the purpose of -rebuilding Wytham Church. Among other mementoes of its former owner -was an arch bearing upon the label the inscription "_Janua Vitae -Verbum Domini. Anthonius Forster, 1575._" This, with some handsome -tracery windows, was removed to Wytham, the arch being built into the -entrance wall of the churchyard. The date and name were for some reason -destroyed, possibly to evade an apparent anachronism, for Anthony -Forster had been dead two years in 1575. These windows and other -objects of interest were engraved in the _Gentleman's Magazine_ for -1821. - -It is said and I believe truly, that so great interest was excited in -Cumnor Place, by Sir W. Scott's novel, that the Earl of Abingdon was -induced to drive some visitors from Wytham to see the ruins, forgetting -that some years previously he had given order for their demolition. -The disappointment of the party on arriving upon the ground was -great, as may be imagined, and not less so that of the Earl, who too -late realized his mistake. The disappointment was felt by everybody, -for it is said all the world hastened to the site of the tragedy so -graphically described by Scott, only to find they were too late. The -public was not then aware that its sympathies had been aroused by the -vivid imagination and marvellous genius of the novelist, and that -while there was just a substratum of fact the greater portion of this -historical novel had no foundation other than the great constructive -power of the Author. While thousands deplored the untimely fate of Amy -Robsart, their sympathies were in truth tributes to the dramatic powers -of the novelist, not to the unfortunate heroine; the novel may be said -to bristle with chronological inaccuracies, and utter disregard for -historic fact. - -It has been repeatedly reasoned that novelists should be permitted a -certain licence, and in actual fiction this may possibly be; but if -the subject and characters chosen are both historical, misconceptions -may easily arise, and erroneous statements be indelibly impressed upon -the mind of the reader. Let us recall to our memories the outline of -Kenilworth, and then notice some of Scott's most glaring historical -inaccuracies and anachronisms, and while I have no intention of -attempting a defence for Robert Dudley and his followers, for the crime -here alleged to have been committed, I believe I shall be able to show -that he was, in this instance at any rate, greatly maligned. - -The plot in brief is as follows:--Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, -son of the Duke of Northumberland, who had been executed for -endeavouring to place Lady Jane Grey upon the throne, having secretly -married Amy Robsart, desires to be free, and confides his wishes to -his retainers, Richard Varney and Anthony Forster. The Countess, who -was living in retirement at Cumnor Place, hearing of the festivities -given by her husband at Kenilworth, goes secretly there, and has a most -affecting interview with Queen Elizabeth, in the course of which the -Queen bitterly reproaches Leicester. At length, by specious promises, -he prevails upon Amy to return to Cumnor, arranging to come to her as -soon as liberated from his attendance upon the Queen. She complies, -and is assigned by Forster a portion of the building approached only -by a drawbridge in which is concealed a trap-door. At night Varney, -riding hastily into the courtyard, gives the Earl's private signal--a -peculiar whistle--on hearing which Amy rushes out to meet her husband; -but Forster having meanwhile withdrawn the bolts, she falls through the -trap. "A faint groan and all is over." Immediate punishment overtakes -the criminals. Varney is arrested, but poisons himself in his cell, -while Forster, in his hasty endeavour to escape, closes behind him a -secret door, and dies a lingering death. - -Scott tells us in later editions of Kenilworth (the first was published -in 1821), that he based his story upon a beautiful ballad by W.J. -Mickle, the translator of Camoens Lusiad, which had deeply impressed -him; and Ashmole's Antiquities of Berkshire is cited at length by -him as the principal authority upon which the novel was based. But -Ashmole was in this instance only a copyist, and his antiquities -were not published until 1717, nearly 160 years after Lady Dudley's -death. He copied almost verbatim from a most scurrillous work called -"Leicester's Commonwealth," published in 1584 for political purposes, -known subsequently as "Father Parson's Green Coat," from the colour of -the wrapper in which it was introduced from abroad by its author the -celebrated Jesuit, Robert Parsons, although the authorship has been -attributed to Cecil, Lord Burleigh. It was issued at first in MSS., and -eight MS. copies are preserved in the British Museum, and two in the -Bodleian. Sir Philip Sidney immediately issued a hasty answer to these -charges against his relative, but this was not actually printed until -1746, and had but little effect at the time. - -"Leicester's Commonwealth" was no sooner in circulation than the -attention of Government was directed to it, and it was stigmatised by -the Queen and Privy Council as "most malicious, false, and scandalous, -and such as none but an incarnate devil could dream to be true." -Without attempting a defence of Leicester, the character of his defamer -may assist in forming a judgement how far any of his statements may be -received, bearing in mind that both in religion and politics he was -antagonistic to the Earl. - -Of obscure, if not questionable birth, Parsons was educated in the -reformed religion at Balliol College, Oxford, at the expense of his -putative father. There he quickly rose to the position of dean and -bursar, but was compelled to resign these appointments in order to -avoid expulsion for incontinence and embezzlement of college funds. -Quitting England for Rome, he then adopted the Romish faith and became -a member of the Society of Jesus. Next, visiting Spain, he was most -active in urging the Spanish King to despatch the Invincible Armada, -and, after its destruction, used all his influence to promote a second -invasion. A bold, clever, intriguing, and unscrupulous traitor, he is -known to have even contemplated the assassination of Queen Elizabeth, -and by his writings to have supported the claims of the Spanish Infanta -against King James to the English throne. Such was the man, who did not -hesitate to hurl broadcast accusations of the most atrocious character -against his opponents, sheltering himself meanwhile abroad from the -prosecution his many infamies deserved. To this man principally are -traced the calumnies upon Leicester, Varney, and Forster, which have -been so unfortunately perpetuated in "Kenilworth." - -Much of the interest in the novel centres in the alleged secret -marriage of Amy Robsart (who is described as daughter of Sir Hugh -Robsart of Devonshire), and Dudley. Amy is made to say, "I am but a -disguised Countess, and will not take dignity on me until authorised -by him whom I derive it from." Again she is described as "the Countess -Amy, for to that rank she was exalted by her private but solemn union -with England's proudest Earl," Leicester, as I must here call him, -further on saying "She is as surely Countess of Leicester as I am -belted Earl." - -Now for the facts. Amy was only daughter of Sir John Robsart, a Knight -of ancient lineage, belonging to Norfolk, born at Stansfield Hall -in that County, afterwards notorious as the scene of the murder of -Mr. Isaac Jermy and his son by Rush. She had an illegitimate brother -named Arthur, and an elder half-brother by her mother's previous -marriage named Appleyard. Among the Longleat papers is a settlement -on the husband's side, dated 24th May, 1550, in contemplation of the -marriage. On the lady's part a deed executed by her father, Sir John -Robsart, is preserved in P.R.O., London, and dated 15th May, 1520. The -marriage itself could scarcely have been more public than it was. It -must certainly have been well known to the Queen, who not improbably -may have been present; her brother, Edward VI., certainly was. I had -occasion to examine an autograph diary of this youthful King, now -preserved in the British Museum (Cott MS. New Edit. 10), usually -described as a "little diary." As a matter of fact the diary is of -full quarto size; its first page having the Royal Arms and monogram -E.R. in gold and colours. Each leaf has now been placed separately -between folio pages for preservation. Bound up with it are many -letters from the King, carefully written and principally in latin. In -one writing from Hatfield he explains in most affectionate terms that -he had delayed writing "Non negligentia sed studium." In this diary -is recorded in King Edward's own handwriting that the Court being at -Sheen, the old name for Richmond, upon June 4th, 1550. - - "S. Robert dudeley, third sonne to th erle of warwic maried S. Jon. - Robsartes daughter after wich mariage ther were certain Gentlemen - that did strive to who shuld first take away a goses heade wich was - hanged alive on tow crose postes. Ther was tilting and tourney on - foot on the 5th, and on the 6th he removed to Greenwich." - -Canon Jackson found at Longleat many documents dated after the -marriage, one a grant of the Manor of Hemsby, Norfolk, by John, then -Duke of Northumberland, to his son Lord Robert Dudley, and the lady -Amye his wife, 7th Edward VI., 1553; another 30th Jan., 3 & 4 Philip -and Mary, 1557, dated Sydisterne, after Sir John Robsart's death; there -is also a license of alienation to Sir Robert Dudley and Amye his wife, -24th March, 4 & 5 Philip and Mary, 1558. The marriage therefore was -very generally known, and there was neither abduction nor secrecy. I -will now show that Amye was never Countess of Leicester, nor was she -ever at Kenilworth, and for this reason. Kenilworth was not granted -to Sir Robert, otherwise called Lord Robert Dudley, until June 20th, -1563, and he was not created Earl of Leicester until the 29th September -following, three years after Amy Dudley's death. Queen Elizabeth did -not pay her celebrated visit to Kenilworth until 1575, or fifteen years -after Amy's death. It is therefore an absolute impossibility for the -latter to have ever known the title of Countess of Leicester, to have -been present at Kenilworth during the Queen's visit, or to have had -the interview with her described with so much pathos. Endeavours to -correct these and similar historical errors have been frequently made, -but the attempt appears hopeless. Not long ago, the most influential -of our London newspapers reiterated the statement that Amy Dudley was -"the wife of Lord Leicester;" but not content with this, the writer -further blundered by describing Lucy Robsart, wife of Mr. Edward -Walpole, of Houghton Hall, as her elder sister. It is almost needless -to say Amy Robsart had no sister, and but one brother, Arthur, who was -illegitimate. Lucy Robsart was her aunt, daughter of Sir Terry, or -Theodoric Robsart. - -Canon Jackson appears to have satisfactorily identified the villain -Varney, and rescued him from the unmerited opprobrium cast upon -him. Longleat documents point him out as Richard Verney, of Compton -Verney, Warwickshire, ancestor of the Lords Willoughby de Broke. This -Varney was a knight anterior to 1559, and then apparently a stranger -to Lord Dudley; for in that year, Sir Ambrose Cave writes to Dudley, -recommending Sir Richard Verney as a fitting person to hold certain -office in Warwickshire. In 1561, a year after Amy Dudley's death, he -was High-Sheriff of his county, and he did not die until seven years -_after_, viz., 1567, and eight years _before_ Elizabeth's visit to -Kenilworth. An anonymous writer in Macmillan, some two years ago, -brought forward another Verney. He said, the Willoughbys and Verneys -of Compton Merdac, not Compton Verney, did not intermarry till the -next century; and co-temporary with the Richard Verney above mentioned -was another Richard, belonging to a Buckinghamshire family, connected -with the Dudleys both by marriage and misfortunes. Sir Ralph Verney -had three sons, Edmund, Francis, and Richard. Edmund and Richard were -implicated in the Conspiracy of Lady Jane Grey. Francis had been -Elizabeth's servant when in confinement at Woodstock, and had been -charged with tampering with a letter, and, we are told, had about as -bad a name as any young gentleman of his day. Of Richard nothing is -known with certainty, but in 1572, that is five years after the death -of Canon Jackson's Knight, a Richard Varney was appointed to the -Marshalship of the Bench for life, dying three years after, and on Nov. -15th, the same year, Leicester wrote begging Lord Shrewsbury not to -fill up the place vacant by the death of Mr. Varney. - -We have remarked that Anthony Forster's epitaph was most eulogistic. -This may perhaps be exaggerated, as is undoubtedly Scott's description -of him. He makes him out to be the son of the Abbot of Abingdon's -Reeve, a widower with one child, Janet; a miserly curmudgeon, bordering -on deformity, with no redeeming point save affection for this child. -Michael Lamborne speaks to him thus familiarly:-- - -"Here, you Tony Fire-the-Fagot, papist, puritan, hypocrite, miser, -profligate, devil, compounded of all men's sins, bow down and -reverence him who has brought into thy house the very mammon thou -worshippest." - -The Forster of fact, was a totally different person. He was of an -ancient Shropshire family, and had married Ann, niece of Lord Williams -of Thame, Lord Chamberlain under Philip and Mary. His three children, -represented on his memorial brass, predeceased him. He was, towards the -close of his life, Member of Parliament for the borough of Abingdon, -and chosen, upon at least one occasion, by the University of Oxford to -settle a noisy controversy. He was a personal friend of Lord Dudley, -and controller of his enormous expenditure. All Dudley's accounts -passed through Forster's hands. All payments had to be sanctioned by -him. Bundles of such accounts showing careful examination are now at -Longleat, filed, says Canon Jackson, as left by Anthony Forster. They -all bear his signature or initials, and the date 1566, six years after -Tony Foster had been starved to death in his secret chamber. - -I would now mention some of the minor circumstances and persons -mentioned in the novel, respecting whom chronological errors are -noticeable. - -We have seen that Varney, to whatever family he belonged, died before -the great Kenilworth festivities in honour of the Royal Visit, and -that Amy had died fifteen years before that event. Sir W. Raleigh, -who in the novel is introduced strewing his cloak before the Queen -and subsequently knighted by her with Varney at Kenilworth, was not -knighted until 1584, nine years after her visit, twenty-four years -after Amy's death; and as he was born in 1552, was actually eight years -old when that occurred. - -On her journey from Cumnor Place to Kenilworth, accompanied by -Wayland Smith, Amy passes through Donnington. They overtake the Hock -Tide revellers from this village, also upon the road to Kenilworth. -Donnington Castle is also mentioned earlier in the story. To pass -through this hamlet, _en route_ for Kenilworth, would be equivalent to -travelling from say Reading to Birmingham in order to reach London. -It is probable Sir Walter intended to write Deddington, which is in -Oxfordshire, and on the direct road Amy would have had to travel, but -it is strange the error has never been corrected. The revellers really -came from Coventry, an entirely opposite route to that Lady Dudley -would have had to pursue. - -I have only given a few of the most evident anachronisms which permeate -the novel, and many others might be mentioned. Many extracts from -the story might be quoted, which show the carelessness of the great -novelist as regards chronology; yet dates ought to have met with every -consideration from him: he was professedly, at any rate, an antiquary, -professionally a writer to the Signet or lawyer, where accuracy is all -in all. - -I have little reason to believe that an inn existed at Cumnor, in -Elizabeth's time, and although it is curious Scott should have selected -as the name of its landlord, Giles Gosling, it should be remembered -he had access assuredly to Ashmole, wherein are many Berkshire names, -both of persons and places, and Gosling is certainly a Berkshire name. -We have also in Berkshire places named Lamborne and Thatcham, both -characters in the novel; the former, indeed, was represented at Cumnor -a few years ago, and may be now, and there is in the parish register -in 1562, record of the burial of one Gosling. But I am of opinion -the selection of these names is purely accidental. As regards the -alehouse, Inns as a rule increase in number, and but rarely, if ever, -disappear, and the sole inn at Cumnor would be likely to thrive. It so -happened that in 1636, John Taylor, the water poet, travelled through -England, and made a list of inns for the use of his customers, for he -was a tavern keeper also, and he gave the names of all the inns in -Berkshire to the number of forty. At Abingdon, he says, was one kept -by John Prince, who at his pleasure might keep three, but there is -no mention whatever of the Jolly Black Bear or other inns at Cumnor. -Bearing this in mind, and taking into consideration the total ignorance -of Scott as to the site of Cumnor, its situation in the county, and -even of the plan of the Hall itself, I think it most improbable that -the Wizard of the North ever visited the village he has made for ever -famous, despite his many anachronisms. - -It is not for me to defend Dudley against the suggestions of being -privy to the assassination of his wife, any more than to defend him -from the accusation of having been the cause of the deaths of many -others as charged against him in "Leicester's Commonwealth." Here, -among others, Sir Nicholas Throgmorton, Lord Sheffield, and Walter -Devereux, Earl of Essex, are said to have been poisoned by him; but -rumours of poisoning were at that time prevalent, and it was suggested -he had endeavoured to make away by poison with his wife Amy, in -order to be free to marry Queen Elizabeth; one writer has within the -last few years gone so far as to charge Elizabeth with complicity. -She was certainly of a jealous disposition, for when Leicester -eventually married the widow of the Earl of Essex, he narrowly escaped -imprisonment in the tower, and was actually banished from the court; -similarly when Raleigh dared to marry, he being forty and Elizabeth -fifty-nine, he was sent to the tower to cool his ardour. Mr. Rye, who -is confident Amy Robsart was murdered, and Elizabeth privy to the -fact, says, "By some, Anne Boleyn is made out to be an innocent woman, -who, with her brother, was judicially murdered by her husband, to make -room for Jane Seymour, whom he married the day after her execution. If -this view is right, Elizabeth was daughter of an atrocious murderer. -But if as Mr. Froude believes, Anne Boleyn was guilty of the crimes -attributed to her, then Elizabeth was the daughter of the vilest and -most abandoned woman of her age. There is no third course. Elizabeth -must have been, on one side or the other, the daughter of an abominable -parent, male or female as you please, and the inheritor of as bad blood -as might be. But I contend it is impossible to avoid the conclusion -that Elizabeth knew that her rival's murder was being contemplated, and -did not desire to prevent it, in which case she was an accessary before -the fact, or that she must after the event have guessed, for she was -no fool, that murder had been done to facilitate Leicester's plans, in -which case she was in effect, an accessary after the fact." - -One reason assigned for Dudley's desire to be free, is said to have -been ambition, and again that his married life was by no means a happy -one, and that he was practically divorced, living apart from Amy; she -in the country, he at Court. Where they lived when first married is not -known, but in 1553, Dudley was imprisoned in the tower for six months -on suspicion of complicity in the attempt of his father to place Lady -Jane Grey on the throne. The name of Amye, Lady Dudley, is mentioned -as visiting him there, so in the fourth year of their marriage she was -in London, and there was no estrangement. Being released, his wife's -and his own estates were restored him, and out of gratitude to Queen -Mary's Consort, Philip, he offered his services to the King, who sent -him to fight the French. Here the separation was compulsory, for Amy -could scarcely follow her husband serving in a foreign army upon the -continent. We hear nothing of either for the space of three years, and -an extant letter proves that Amye and Sir Robert were still upon a -familiar and friendly, if not affectionate footing. She is found to be -entrusted with full power and authority to sell and dispose of profits -of the lands so that creditors need no longer wait for their money. The -terms of the letter evidently prove she had sanction for her actions, -and that there was no estrangement, and this letter, referring as it -does to Sydistene, must have been written in 1557 at the earliest, as -the property did not come to their hands before that year. It is dated -from Mr. Hydes, a connection of Dudleys, who lived at Denchworth, a few -miles from Cumnor; and while Amy was visiting here she was at perfect -freedom to go where she would, and had full control of money which she -seemingly availed herself of, as the Longleat papers fully prove. She -was certainly under no restraint, having no less than twelve horses at -her service. She amused herself journeying in Suffolk, Hampshire, and -Lincolnshire; she also went to London and Dudley being at Windsor, she -also visited Camberwell, and her charges for Mr. Hydes to that place is -entered at L10. - -Many of her accounts are at Longleat, and inside one bill was found a -letter written at Cumnor, but undated; it is probably one of the last -she ever wrote, being written 24th August. This bill was not paid for -some years after her death, for which reason "nothing was abated." -Among the items charged were:-- - - "For making a Spanish gowne of Russet Damask, 16s. For 6 ounces of - Lace at 4s 8d. an ounce, 28s. 8s. for making a loose gown of Rosse - Taffata (alluded to in the letter)," - -and many other items which show that this freedom of expenditure must -have existed to the very last. There is charged in the same bill an -article supplied after her death, viz., a mantle of cloth for the chief -mourner. - -In such manner then was Amy occupied at Cumnor, where not improbably -the gossip about Dudley's intimacy with the queen was repeated to her. -Whether she believed it or not it is impossible to say, but we may be -sure that if all the rumours then floating about did reach her, the -effect must have been terrible, especially if the suggestion that she -was suffering from cancer, and that Dudley anxiously awaited her death -to marry the queen became known to her. But these rumours would have -been far more likely to act as a preventative to actual crime than as -an incentive. A sudden, and in especial a violent death, would have -been the last thing that Dudley would have wished to happen to her, and -when it did happen, as most inopportunely it did for him, he appears -to have used every endeavour to ascertain the actual truth, and if a -crime had been committed to bring the guilty to justice. Documents in -the Pepsyan Library at Cambridge tell us that on Monday, 9th September, -Lord Robert Dudley was at Windsor, and hearing that something was amiss -at Cumnor, sent thither on horseback Sir Thomas Blount, a confidential -friend and retainer. On his road Blount meets a messenger named Bowes, -riding post haste to Windsor with the intelligence that the previous -evening Lady Dudley had been found lying in the hall at Cumnor Place at -the foot of the stairs, dead, but without outward marks of violence. -He further relates that the Sunday being Abingdon fair, Lady Dudley, -contrary to the remembrance of Mrs. Hyde and Mrs. Odingsell, Mr. Hyde's -sister, had insisted upon all her servants going to the fair. They went -accordingly, leaving apparently no one excepting the three females -in the house, for no account makes mention of any man in or about -the home. Each rider now pursues his journey, and Blount arrives at -Abingdon and proceeds to question the landlord as to local events, and -hears the death of Lady Dudley confirmed. After a little pressure the -landlord expresses his opinion, that it must be a "misfortune" _i.e._ -accident, because it happened in that honest gentleman's home, Master -Forster. "His honesty doth much curb the evil thoughts of the people." -The following day he interviews the lady's maid, who admits she had -heard Lady Dudley frequently pray for delivery from desparation, but -when Blount seems willing to take this as indicating suicide, she says, -"No good, Mr. Blount, do not so judge of my words. If you should so -gather I should be sorry I said so much." - -Blount writes all these particulars to Dudley, and suggests that from -what he has heard Lady Dudley's mind might have been disordered, and -that a Coroner's inquest was sitting. Dudley sent for Appleyard and -Arthur Robsart to this inquest, and eventually the jury say, "After the -most searching enquiry they could make, they could find no presumption -of evil dealing." Lord Robsart then devises a second jury, to whom he -sends a message "to deal earnestly, carefully, and truly, and to find -as they see it fall out," and to finish the question to the fullest. -Unfortunately the records of the Coroner's enquiry have not survived. -The late A.D. Bartlett, Coroner for Abingdon, endeavoured to find them, -but abandoned his search in despair. - -In 1566, seven years after Amy's death, Dudley's marriage with the -queen was debated by the Privy Council, when it was reported to them -that Appleyard, had in a moment of irritation against Leicester, said -he had not been satisfied with the verdict, but for the sake of Dudley -had covered the murder of his sister. Appleyard was cited to appear and -explain his words to the Privy Council, which he did by saying that -he did not hold Dudley guilty, but thought it would not be difficult -to find out the guilty parties. Here says Mr. Froude, if Appleyard -spoke the truth, there is no more to be said: the conclusion seems -inevitable, that though Dudley was innocent of direct influence, the -unhappy lady was sacrificed to his ambition and made away with by -persons who hoped to profit by Dudley's elevation to the throne. "If -Appleyard spoke the truth," says Mr. Froude--I will however quote from -a letter found by Canon Jackson at Longleat. It is from a Berkshire -gentleman to Mr. John Thynne of Longleat, dated June 9th, 1567. After -mentioning other matters, he continues, "On Friday in the Star-Chamber, -was Appleyard brought forth, who shewed himself a malytyous beast, for -he dyd confesse the accused my Lord of Leicester only of malyes, and he -hath byn about it these three years, and now, because he could not go -through with his business to promote, he fell into this rage against -my lord and would have accused him of three things. 1st, of kyllyng -his wyf. 2nd, of sending the Lord Derby to Scotland. 3rd, for letting -the queen of marriage. He craved pardon for all these things. My Lord -Keeper answered in King Henry VII. days there was one lost his ears -for slandering the Chief Justice; so as I think his ende will be the -pillory." - -Mr. Froude therefore is answered by this letter. Appleyard did not -speak truth, but as early as 1567, and even three years earlier, the -libel is traced to have originated with him from personal motives -of disappointment and revenge. He acknowledged himself a liar, but -whether this retraction was from fear of the Star Chamber cannot be -ascertained; at any rate the private opinion of Sir Henry Neville was -that he merited the pillory. He must have been a contemptible rascal -in any case, for even if the libel was true and fear caused him to -retract, this was no excuse for his conduct on the occasion of his -sister's funeral. This he attended, and in the procession bore a banner -of arms. Sir Henry Neville must have judged and described him correctly. -Taking the evidence into consideration, I must certainly express my -own impression is that whatever may have been Leicester's faults, and -they were many, or whatever crimes may be charged against him, he was -at any rate guiltless of any intent to make away with his wife Amy. -Even if Dudley were shielded in his evil doings by his court influence, -would this have also affected public opinion in the country? I am of -opinion that at that time his court popularity would have militated -rather unfavourably than otherwise for him. Yet what do we find is the -case? Within four years of his wife's death, he is elected Chancellor -of the University of Oxford, and Steward of the Boroughs of Abingdon, -Wallingford, and Reading, all within easy distance of Cumnor Place, -where his wife Amye was found dead at the foot of the stair, as some -said foully murdered. Had he a hand, direct or indirect, in such a -crime, or had suspicion then attached to him, I venture to affirm -neither Oxford University nor the electors of these Boroughs would -have so honoured him. The nominations must have been practically a -declaration of confidence in his innocence. Poor Amy Robsart's death -was indeed a sad one, but at least we may conclude that it was not -hastened by neglect nor accomplished by violence on the part of her -husband. In spite of all attempts to assert this truth, the story of -her romance will live, and continue to add a pathetic interest to the -quiet Berkshire village which preserves her memory. - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 2: Harl. 6395, Plut. xlix, g.] - - - - -Alfred the Great. - -BY W.H. THOMPSON. - - "You are a writer and I am a fighter, but here is a fellow - Who could both write and fight, and in both was equally skilful!" - --_Longfellow._ - - -This terse, but sincere and enthusiastic eulogium, on the memory of -Julius Caesar by that stout Puritan, Captain Miles Standish, comes -instinctively to the mind, as one contemplates the life of good King -Alfred. It is not given to many to be alike famous as sovereign, -warrior, lawgiver, and author; but such was Alfred, the first of -England's great monarchs. If it is the "cunning," the knowing, or able -man, as Carlyle tells us, who is the "king" by Divine right; here was -the Saxon king _par excellence_. His lineage was of the most ancient -and illustrious; his father Ethelwulf traced his descent from the most -renowned of the Saxon heroes, and his mother Osburga was descended -from famous Gothic progenitors. Born at the royal manor of Vanathing -(Wantage) in the year 849, the youngest of Ethelwulf's four legitimate -sons, he was his father's darling, the fairest and most promising of -all his boys. This is doubtless the explanation of the fact that, -whilst yet a mere child, he accompanied his sire on a pilgrim journey -to Rome. How far this pilgrimage and the impressions which he received -from his sojourn in what was still the greatest and most civilized -city in Europe, may have influenced his after-life and character it is -impossible to say; but the earliest story related of Alfred treats of -his aptitude for learning and his love for poetry and books. He learned -to read before his elder brothers, and even before he could read he had -learned by heart many Anglo-Saxon poems, by hearing the minstrels and -gleemen recite them in his father's hall. And his passionate love for -letters never forsook him. - -[Illustration: KING ALFRED THE GREAT.] - -Much, however, as he might have preferred it, there was another life -than that of the mere student and scholar laid up in store for this -noble Saxon. One after another his three elder brothers, Ethelbald, -Ethelbert, and Ethelred, occupied the throne, and it was on the death -of the last named, in 871, in the twenty-second year of his age, that -reluctantly Alfred had to shut up his books, and take up the sceptre -and the sword. He now comes before us as - -(1). The warrior king. - -Never did English monarch ascend the throne in darker days. Recently, -it is true, the Saxons had come off victors against the Norsemen in one -bloody field--the battle of Ashdune, near Reading,--but this dearly -bought victory had in turn been succeeded by a series of discomfitures -and defeats, the pagan armies having received fresh and continued -re-inforcements. It was in one of these sanguinary conflicts that -Ethelred received the wound which, though not immediately fatal, was -yet the cause of his death. It was a period of prolonged devastation, -misery, and rapine. Nine pitched battles were fought in the course -of one short year, and the minor skirmishes were innumerable; the -internecine conflict being conducted with the most savage ferocity. -Prisoners were never spared, unless it was to extort a heavy ransom; -and the countryside was everywhere given up to fire and sword. It is -not surprising that Alfred, although already distinguished for his -military valour, had not sought the crown. Kingship in those times was -no sinecure. - -Dark, however, as were the clouds when Alfred came to the throne, -still gloomier days were in store. The Norsemen, already masters of -all Northumbria, had also practically reduced the kingdom of Mercia; -and they were now especially directing their attention to Wessex, the -country of the West Saxons. With varying success Alfred confronted the -enemy during the opening years of his reign; but he soon discovered -that, though he might make treaties with his perfidious foes, they -never dreamed of permanently abiding by them; and if he succeeded -in withstanding them one year, like fresh clouds of locusts, new -re-inforcements appeared on the scene, every spring and summer, from -Scandinavia. In the depth of winter (A.D. 878), when it was not -anticipated that they would pursue their military operations, the -Danes made a sudden irruption into Wiltshire and the adjoining shires, -and so utterly discomforted the Saxons, that Alfred, almost wholly -deprived of his authority, was driven with a small but trusty band of -followers, and his old mother Osburga, into Athelney, a secluded spot -at the confluence of the Thone and the Parrett, surrounded by moors -and marshes, which served at once for his concealment and his defence. -Great were the hardships which Alfred here endured; his life was that -of an outlaw. For daily sustenance he largely depended upon chance -and accident, hunting the wild-deer, and even seizing by force the -stores of the enemy. It is of this period of terrible privation that -the oft-told tale of the good-wife's cakes is related. Yet all his -misfortunes neither damped his courage, nor subdued his energy. - -[Illustration: ALFRED'S JEWEL.] - -A most curious and interesting momento of this time has come down to -us. The king wore an ornament, probably fastened to a necklace, made of -gold and enamel, which being lost by him at Athelney, was found there -entire and undefaced in the seventeenth century. It is now preserved -at Oxford in the Ashmolean Museum. The inscription which surrounds the -ornament: "ALFRED HET MEH GEWIRCAN" (Alfred caused me to be worked) -affords the most authentic testimony of its origin. - -But meanwhile the men of Wessex had gained a signal victory. -Bjorn-Ironside and Hubba, who attempted to land in Devonshire, were -killed with many of their followers; and the news reaching Alfred -in his seclusion at Athelney, he forthwith determined upon bolder -operations. Disguising himself as a glee-man or minstrel, he stole -into the camp of the Danes, and was gladly received by the rude viking -chiefs as one who increased their mirth and jollity. And so skillfully -did Alfred maintain his disguise, that none suspected that he was -merely playing a part. He was enabled to learn what he desired, the -strength and position of the Norsemen; and having ascertained this, he -returned to Athelney, unscathed and unharmed. - -He now began to gather an army around him, and it was not long before -he felt himself strong enough to confront the foe. Sallying forth, -he met the Danes at a spot called Ethandune (probably Eddindon, -near Westbury), and, after a murderous conflict, the English were -left masters of the field. Though victorious, however, Alfred could -not altogether expel the Danes. He was obliged to cede an extensive -territory to the invaders and to Guthrun, their leader; viz., from -the mouth of the Lea to its source, thence to Bedford, and along the -Ouse to Watling Street, or the ancient Roman road; and this territory, -together with Northumbria, became henceforth known by the name of the -Danelagh, or Danelaw. - -In East Anglia, and in the portions of Essex and Mercia thus ceded, -the Danes settled and established themselves, not as enemies, but as -vassals to Alfred. They appear to have become tired of their life of -barbarism. Guthrun also embraced Christianity, and the treaty which he -made with the English he maintained with integrity. In Northumbria, -whilst the English had been induced to accept the Danish Guthred as -their sovereign, Guthred, in turn, acknowledged the suzerainty of -Alfred as his superior lord. He also continued true and faithful. - -Thus Alfred, although he did not succeed in totally subjugating the -Danes, by following up the signal advantage he gained at the battle -of Ethandune, accomplished great things. In the course of seven years -after his restoration, he was acknowledged as paramount monarch of -Britain south of the Humber; Mercia was virtually under his dominion, -and Wessex, the wealthiest and best favoured portion of the island, -entirely, as well as in name, was under his royal sway. - -Yet, whilst he had made peace with the Norse who had settled in -England, Alfred had by no means come to the end of his troubles. The -Saxon Chronicle records a series of constantly recurring attacks from -the sea-roving Danes, who continued to harass the coasts. Into the -details of these it is unnecessary to enter. But having once become the -master of England, Alfred never relaxed his vigilance; he had London -strongly fortified, and constructed a navy. One of the greatest feats -of his later life was his victory over the famous Hasting, ablest of -all the sea-kings; whose rout was so complete that he was pleased to -escape from England with his life. The campaign against Hasting was the -last great military achievement of our Saxon hero. - -(2). The poet and scholar. - -Not only was Alfred the first warrior, but he was also the foremost -scholar in his dominions. This may be easily gathered from Asser's -interesting memoirs. The King was an elegant poet, and wrote numbers -of Saxon ballads, which were sung or recited in all parts of the -country. In his original poems, the extent of his knowledge is not -more surprising than the purity of his taste, and the simple yet -classical beauty of his style. It is highly probable that Alfred -diligently studied the Latin tongue between his twelfth and eighteenth -years, and that he had a few Latin books with him during his Athelney -seclusion. He was accustomed to say that he regretted the imperfect -education of his youth, and the want of proper teachers, which barred -his intellectual progress. But whatever the difficulties he may have -had to surmount (and it is almost impossible to exaggerate them), the -fact remains that his literary works shew a proficiency in the classic -tongue, which appears almost miraculous in a prince in that dark age. -It was probably shortly after making peace with Guthrun, that he -invited Asser, the learned monk of St. David's, to his court, to assist -him in his studies. Asser was a scholar after Alfred's own heart. The -monk tells us that the King's first attempt at translation was made -upon the Bible, a book which no man ever held in greater reverence than -did the princely student. Asser and the King were engaged in pleasant -conversation, and it so chanced that the monk quoted a passage from the -Bible with which Alfred was much struck. At Asser's request the King -called for a clean skin of parchment, and this being folded into fours, -in the shape of a little book, the passage from the Scriptures was -written upon it in Latin, together with other good texts. The monarch, -setting to work upon these passages, translated them into the Saxon -speech. This was the beginning of his translation of the Bible. - -Nothing is more astonishing in the story of the the great Englishman -than that he could find time for literary occupations; but he was -steady and persevering, and rigidly systematic. When not in the field -against the Norsemen, his rule was, eight hours for sleep, eight for -the affairs of state, eight for study and devotion. His mind was ever -open to receive fresh information. He took a continued delight in -obtaining the details and particulars of strange and foreign lands. -Before Alfred, nothing was practically known of the greater outside -world by the Anglo-Saxons. But the King drew around him a number of -bold and adventurous spirits, men, who had travelled far, and he -revelled in the stories which they recited of their own experiences, -and the information which they had gleaned of still more remote lands, -which they themselves had not seen. One of these was Othere, who had -been far north into the Arctic circle, another was Wulfstan, who took -a voyage round the Baltic, and gathered many strange and interesting -facts concerning those climes. All the information which he collected, -the King committed to writing in the plain mother tongue, and in -enlarging the text of the Spanish chronicler, Orosius, whose work he -translated, he introduced the voyages of Othere and Wulfstan. - -Having heard stories of the east, possibly from Johannes Scotus, who -came to his court, and who had been in the far and distant Orient; and -learning that there were colonies of Christians settled on the coasts -of Malabar and Coromandel, Alfred decided to send out his trusted -friend, Swithelm, Bishop of Sherburn, to India. Probably his motives -were mixed feelings of devotion for Christianity, and a desire for -increased geographical knowledge. Anyhow the stout-hearted churchman -set out on this, what in those days must have been a tremendous -journey; one which then had probably never been made by any other -Englishman before. What is more, he succeeded in reaching India and -returning safely back again, bringing with him presents of spices and -gems. Thus was Alfred's fame increased, and the existence of England -made known, probably for the first time, in that empire where to-day -the Saxon holds sovereign sway. - -No Englishman of the Saxon period, except the venerable Bede, can be -compared with Alfred for the extent and excellence of his writings. -His works may be classified into two divisions; translations from -the Latin, and original works in the mother tongue. Of the first the -chief were, (1) Orosius' History; (2) St. Gregory's Pastorals; (3) St. -Gregory's Dialogues; (4) Bede's History; (5) Boethiv's Consolations -of Philosophy; (6) Laws of the Mercians; (7) Asser's Sentences; (8) -The Psalms of David. Of the second, (1) An Abridgement of Laws of the -Trojans, the Greek, the Britons, the Saxons, and the Danes; (2) Laws of -the West Saxons; (3) Institutes; (4) A book against unjust Judges; (5) -Sayings of the Wise; (6) A book on the fortunes of Kings; (7) Parables -and Jokes; (8) Acts of Magistrates; (9) Collection of Chronicles; (10) -Manual of Meditations. - -(3). The Law-giver. - -Great as he truly was as a warrior, it was in the arts of peace that -Alfred pre-eminently excelled. In every interval of repose allowed -by his Norsemen foes, he occupied his mind in devising means for the -improvement of the moral and physical condition of the people. He -introduced the use of stone for building purposes and taught them -how to erect houses such as he had seen in Rome and Milan. He never -rebuilt a town without giving it a good capacious school, and he was -also a great founder and restorer of churches and monasteries. It is -not surprising, therefore, to find that he occupied himself largely -with matters pertaining to legislation. Whenever he re-edified a town, -he gave the people rules for re-modelling their municipal institutions, -thus training them for self-government. As will be perceived from -the list given above, his original writings were largely made up of -abridgements of laws and the like. Of course there had been legal codes -in existence in England before the days of Alfred. Ethelbert, King -of Kent; Ina, King of Wessex; Offa, King of Mercia; besides other, -had promulgated codes of law, or dooms; but all law and order had -been destroyed during the dark times of the Danish inroads. Alfred -collected the codes of his predecessors, and without apparently adding -much of his own, compiled a very intelligible and consistent system -of laws, which he submitted to the Witenagemot for sanction. Alfred -was not a great advocate of innovation; as he states, he thought it -better to allow an old law to stand in force, even if it were somewhat -defective, rather than endanger the respect for constituted authority. -His ideal was simplicity of construction, combined with impartiality of -administration. According to Asser, he exercised vigilant supervision -over the judges; the courts were improved, and a general legal reform -took place all round. With that religiousness characteristic of the -man, and recognising that if all the divine laws were duly observed, -there would be but little necessity for those of human origin, he -opened his code with the ten commandments, a selection from the Mosaic -precepts, and clauses of the first apostolic councils. "Do these," he -said, "and no other doom-book will be needed." - -In summing up Alfred's character it would not be fair to seek to -hide his faults. His was not that ideal perfection which some of his -panegyrists would have us believe. He had his faults and failings, some -of which adhered to him during the whole of his life. He continued, -for instance, more fond of warfare than was consistent with the duty -of a Christian monarch. Still, he possessed within him the only germs -of real improvement, a consciousness of his own imperfections and -insufficiency. And when we compare him with his contemporaries, after -making all allowance for his shortcomings, still the true greatness of -his character remains untouched. His achievements stand out all the -more markedly, when it is considered that all his bodily and mental -activities were carried on under the depressing influences of constant -ill-health and physical pain. About the age of twenty, he was affected -with an inward malady, the nature of which was beyond the knowledge of -the physicians of the times. This disease never quitted him, it haunted -him life long. - -Whatever his minor faults may have been, no monarch who has had the -title of "Great" attached to his name, has ever been more worthy of -it. All historians combine in representing him as one of the noblest -sovereigns that ever wore a crown. The shepherd of his people, "the -darling of the English;" whose praises the Laureate has lately sung, -the industrious prince, expired in the month of November, 901, on the -festival of S.S. Simon and Jude, in the fifty-third year of his age, -and was buried at Winchester, in a monastery he himself had founded. -His memory is still preserved at his native place, Wantage. The site -of the royal palace of the Wessex kings is pointed out in the High -Garden, and a magnificent statue of "England's darling," executed by -Count Gleichen in Sicilian marble has been presented to the town by -Lord Wantage, and erected in the Market Place. Alfred's laurels will -not fail while England lasts. - - - - -The Guilds of Berkshire. - -BY THE REV. P.H. DITCHFIELD. M.A., F.S.A. - - -In studying the history of our progress and civilization, we find -no subject more interesting than the nature and constitution of -certain associations which have played no small part in the making -of England--the ancient guilds. At one time they exercised almost -universal sway, and in small country villages, as well as in the towns -and cities, there were few who did not belong to some guild. We find in -them the origin of many of the privileges and institutions which we now -enjoy; from them arose the municipal corporations of our towns; and by -them were our trade and commerce protected in times of lawlessness and -oppression. - -The whole subject of the early history of guilds is shrouded in -obscurity. What was the origin of the early religious guilds; how the -frith guilds came into existence; the relation of the merchant guilds -to the craft guilds; how far the government of the town was placed in -the hands of the former; and when the merchant guild became the sole -governing body, the forerunner of the municipal corporation--all these -are questions, the answers to which can only be conjectured. - -The word guild is probably derived from the Saxon word _geldan_ or -_gildan_, which means "to pay," and signifies that the members of the -association were required to contribute something towards the support -of the brotherhood to which they belonged. The early guilds were of -the nature of clubs, and consisted of bodies of men united together -under oath for their mutual benefit, and for a common purpose. The -character and nature of these clubs differed widely, and I will state -as briefly as possible the various kinds of guilds which have existed -in our country. In Roman times there were the _collegia opificum_ -which were firmly established in this country during the period of -the Roman occupation. These colleges were corporations which could -hold property, had regular constitutions, presidents and senators, -treasurers and sub-treasurers, priests and temples. Each had its -_curia_, or senate house, its common _arca_, or chest, its archives -and banners. It constituted a kind of "Sick and Burial Club" for its -members, and on two special days--_dies violarum_ and _dies rosae_--the -sodales met at the sepulchre of departed brethren to commemorate their -loss, and to deck their tombs with violets and roses, an offering -pleasing to the spirit of the _manes_, at Silchester, when it was a -large and flourishing city, there would certainly be such a college or -corporation. - -During the Anglo Saxon period guilds certainly flourished in this -country, and since Reading was, as Asser states, a royal city, and an -important centre of the West Saxon kingdom, there was, doubtless, an -Anglo Saxon guild here;[3] but few traces of Saxon Reading remain, -as the place was completely destroyed by the Danes. When we examine -the rules and regulations of the Saxon guilds, we are astonished at -the high state of civilisation which they disclose. They resembled in -some respects our modern friendly societies, and provided a scheme of -mutual assurance for the members. I will take the Exeter guild for -an example, which, as in the case of all these early guilds, was of a -religious type. At a meeting held in the city of Exeter "for the sake -of God and our souls, that we may make such ordinances as tend to our -welfare and security, as well in this life as in that future state -which we wish to enjoy in the presence of God, our Judge, therefore, -here assembled, we have decreed:-- - -"That three stated meetings shall be held every year. 1st, on Festival -of St. Michael the Archangel; 2nd, on Feast of St. Mary, next following -winter solstice; and 3rd, on Feast of All Saints', which is celebrated -after Easter. - -"That at every meeting every member shall contribute two sextaria of -barley meal, and every knight, one, together with his quota of honey. - -"That at each meeting a priest shall sing two masses; one for living, -the other for the dead. Every lay brother shall sing two psalms: one -for living, and other for departed members. Everyone shall moreover -in his turn procure six masses and six psalms, to be sung at his own -proper expense. - -"That when any member is about to go abroad, each of his fellow members -shall contribute 5d.: and if any member's house shall have been -burned, one penny." - -Fines were inflicted for non-attendance, for abusive conduct, and -"finally we beseech every member, for God's sake, to observe these -things which are ordained in this society, in everything, as we have -ordained them, and may God help us to observe them." - -Mr. Toulmin Smith writes thus concerning these old Saxon guilds:--"The -early English guild was an institution of local self-help, which, -before Poor-laws were invented, took the place, in old times, of the -modern friendly societies, but with a higher aim; while it joined all -classes together in a care for the needy, and for objects of common -welfare, it did not neglect the form and practice of religion, justice, -and morality." - -One of the objects of the London guild (tenth century) was the recovery -of stolen stock and slaves, and if these could not be recovered the -brethren subscribed to make up the loss to the owner. A horse was -valued at 1/2 pound, a cow at 20d., a hog at 10d., a sheep at 1s., -a slave at 1/2 pound. If the slave _has stolen himself_ he shall be -stoned, and every brother shall subscribe 1d. or 1/2d. to make good -the loss. Whether there was ever a Danish guild in Reading it is -impossible to determine. There was a noted one at Abbotsbury (Dorset), -founded by Orcy, a friend of King Canute, 1030 A.D. The guild ordinance -is quoted in Kemble's "Saxons in England," p. 511. - -The brethren were required to contribute wax, bread, wheat, and wood. -The wax was for the maintainance of lights in the Minster. Members were -required to contribute to the comforts of the dying, and to attend the -burial and pray for the souls of departed members. - -We have a picture of later Saxon Reading recorded in the pages of -Doomsday Book. It contained only thirty homesteads, with two better -class of houses, two mills, and two fisheries. The Danes had attacked -it a second time in 1006, and it had not recovered from that disaster; -so in such a small community, although a guild at this period existed, -it must have been a very small company indeed. - -But after the Conquest guilds began to multiply, and were established -for the purpose of promoting religion, charity, and trade. There -were the frith guilds, formed for the promotion of peace, and the -establishment of law and order: the religious guilds, which used to -hold a festival on the day of the patron saint of the guild, attend -church, and perform a miracle play. In the _Liber Niger_, or _Black -Book_, of the Corporation of London, there is a description of the -anniversary feast of the guild of the Holy Cross at Abingdon. "The -fraternity hold their feast on May 3rd, the invention of the Holy -Cross; and then they used to have 12 priests to sing a _Dirge_, for -which they paid 4d. apiece; thay had also 12 minstrels, who had 2s. -3d. besides their dyet and horse meat. In 1445 they had 6 calves at -2s. 2d. each, 16 lambs at 12d., 80 capons at 3d., 80 geese at 2d., 800 -eggs which cost 5d. the hundred, and many marrow bones, cream, and -flour; and pageants, plays, and May games to captivate the senses of -the beholders." This was a strong and powerful guild, formed in 1389, -and incorporated in 1442, being endowed with lands for the purpose -of keeping in order the roads between Abingdon and Dorchester, and -building an almshouse. In 1539 they erected an aisle in St. Helen's -Church, Abingdon, and also a market cross of freestone, pronounced by -Leland "to be not inferior in workmanship to many in England." The -hospital of the brotherhood of the Holy Cross still remains. It was -founded in the middle of the fourteenth century, a very interesting low -brick and timber house, containing several good paintings. - -Then there were the guilds of the Kalendars, which were principally -composed of the clergy, and one of their duties was to keep a public -record of events, to superintend and regulate a library open to all -citizens, and to explain to those who required such assistance, any -difficulties that may arise in these matters. They, too, did not forget -the periodical feasts. Then there were social guilds, composed chiefly -of laymen, for objects of good fellowship, benevolence, and thrift. - -And now we come to a very important class, the Merchant guilds. These -existed in Saxon times, and were formed for promoting the interests -of particular trades, for the regulation of industry, for buying -and selling; and very strict were the laws which they enforced, and -merciless the restrictions which they placed upon all strangers who -presumed to sell goods, and who did not belong to the guild. We shall -notice some particular instances of these harsh rules which were in -force in the town of Reading. - -I find in the Report of the Historical Manuscripts Commission that -there were five companies of the guild Mercatory at Reading. Originally -these companies were separate institutions, which managed their own -concerns, and were not concerned with the Municipal Government of the -town. There were five wards, each ward having a trade guild attached to -it. In course of time the guilds united for common purposes and formed -the guild Mercatory, which asked and received charters from various -kings, gradually acquired powers, privileges, lands, and property, and -ultimately managed the whole municipal business, as well as their own -trade concerns. - -In regard to these guilds the first was the mercers' and drapers' -company, which included the mercers, drapers, haberdashers, potuaries -(or dealers in earthenware), chapmen, tailors, and cloth-drawers. - -Of course no one was allowed to engage in any of these trades until he -became a member of the guild; and to become a member he had to pay. The -fines for admission varied from L4 for a mercer or draper, to L2 for a -tailor. Very minute were the regulations of each guild. For example -in this case, no "foreigner," not a member of the guild, was allowed -to retail cloth in the town; for each offence he was required to pay -10s. One tradesman might not trespass on the privileges of another -tradesman, for no mercer or tailor might retail cloth or woven hose, -under penalty of 3s. 4d. each time, for that would interfere with the -cloth-makers and haberdashers. No tailor might employ a journeyman -to work except he gave him meat, drink, wages, and lodgings in his -own house. Here is a curious regulation--no haberdasher, not being -a freeman, was allowed to sell caps or hats (except straw hats) on -forfeiture of 12d. - -The second company was the cutlers and bell-founders company, which -included seventeen other trades; besides cutlers and bell-founders, -there were braziers, pewterers, smiths, pinners, barbers, carpenters, -joiners, fletchers (arrow-makers), wheelers, basket-makers, coopers, -sawyers, bricklayers, card-makers (_i.e._, wool combers' cards), -turners, plumbers, painters, and glaziers. The barbers were subject -to special regulations. No barber who was a stranger was allowed to -draw teeth in any part of the town except in a barber's shop; and any -barber shaving, trimming, dressing, or cutting any person on Sunday, -except on the four fair days, should forfeit for each time, 12d. - -The following curious bye-law was made by the Corporation in 1443, -at the commencement of the dispute between the rival Houses of York -and Lancaster, and was probably intended to prevent unlawful meetings -taking place under the mask of a barber's shop. "The Mayor and -burgesses of Reading, grant and ordain that from this time forward, -no barber of Reading open any shop nor shave any man after ten of the -clock at night, between Easter and Michaelmas, nor after nine of the -clock at night, from Michaelmas to Easter, but if (_i.e._, except) it -be any stranger or worthy man (_i.e._, gentleman) of this town, he -shall pay 300 tiles to the Guildhall of Reading, as often times he is -found faulty, to be received by the cofferers for the time being." - -Perhaps some of my readers may be astonished at the peculiar form of -this fine. It is not usual to pay fines in this form of _tiles_! But -it may be accounted for by the fact that thatch was beginning to be -superseded by tile roofs. The public buildings were roofed with lead, -but almost all private houses were thatched. Hence there was much -danger from fire, and the Corporation wisely determined to encourage -the employment of a safer material for the roofing of Reading houses. -The poor barbers had to pay their fines in tiles, and very soon we find -that one John Bristol was fined 2,100 tiles for shaving seven persons -contrary to the order, but the number of tiles was reduced to 1,200 on -account of his poverty. - -The fine for disobedience or ill-behaviour was often enforced in this -curious medium. One John Bristow, in the reign of Henry VI., was fined -4,000 tiles for disobedience to the Mayor, but the fine was reduced -to 1,000, with a sufficient quantity of lime. Any person who should -quarrel was ordered to pay to the Church of St. Giles, six pounds of -wax, and to the Guildhall, 500 tiles. - -The third company was the tanners and leather sellers' company, -including also the shoemakers, curriers, glewers, saddlers, jerking -sellers, bottle-makers, collar-makers, and cobblers. - -In the rules of this company we find certain regulations which show -that while the guild afforded protection to the tradesmen, it also -acted the part of a somewhat severe tyrant. Here is a very severe -enactment which might seem somewhat opposed to the freedom of our -times. No shoemaker was allowed to make any boots or shoes in any part -of the town, but only in Shoemakers' Row, that is to say on the east -side of the street, from the Forbury Gate to the Hallowed Brook, under -pain of forfeiting 3s. 4d. each time. No one was allowed to go and -work where he pleased, but only in the part of the town prescribed by -the guild. This company seem to have been the chief promoters of bull -baiting and bear baiting, since there is a rule forbidding these sports -to be held on the Sabbath day during service, on pain of 12d., to be -paid by each householder where the baiting is. - -The fourth company was that of the clothiers, an important industry -in old Reading; and this included the dyers, weavers, sheermen, -shuttle-makers, and ash-burners. - -No clothier was allowed to use more than two looms, but Mr. Aldworth, -who was a privileged person, might have four. No clothier might weave -cloth for another clothier. There are sundry other regulations, which -show the severity of the company's laws. - -The victuallers' company embraced the vintners, innholders, bakers, -brewers, butchers, fishmongers, chandlers, maltmakers, flax-dressers, -salters, and wood mongers. - -The rules of this company do not, I believe, appear in the Corporation -documents, but from other sources we find that the members of the guild -were strictly enjoined to observe Lent, and were forbidden to kill -or dress meat in that season without a license from the Abbot. Also -to prevent imposition on the part of the publicans, two ale tasters -were appointed to set the price of beer. The Corporation in former -days performed a duty from which the present members of the municipal -council would doubtless shrink. It assumed the power of regulating the -price of such articles as beer and bread. In the time of Edward VI. a -quart of best beer could be obtained for 1d. - -These, then, were the five companies which formed the old guild -Mercatory of Reading. They did not form (as Mr. Man says in his History -of the town) "a society of mechanics and merchants without pretending -to interfere in the government of the borough." In fact the guild was -rather aristocratic in its tendency, and later on we find that the -lower class of tradesfolk formed craft guilds in order to protect the -interests of the artizans and smaller tradesmen. Of these the higher -guild was very jealous, and frequently exerted its power to oppress the -craftsmen and their guild. In the history of nearly every borough we -find instances of contention and jealousies between the two bodies. One -instance of this occurred in the year 1662, "when the cobblers petition -to the Corporation against the shoemakers for mending and repairing old -ware in violation of the ancient orders of the borough." - -It seems strange to us to think of the time when a man could not sell -what he liked, or live where he liked, or work at any trade he pleased; -but such freedom was impossible under the old guilds. No one could ply -his trade in a town unless he was a freeman of the company; _e.g._, -"in July, 1545, one Robert Hooper, a barber, being a foreigner, was -this day ordered to be gone out of the town at his peril, with his wife -and children," and the town sergeants were ordered to shut up his shop -and see poor Robert Hooper and his wife beyond the borough boundaries. -And the distinction between the various trades, between the carpenters -and joiners, between the joiners and sawyers, and as we have seen -between cobblers and shoemakers, and the privileges of each class were -jealously guarded. Absurd as these restrictions were, the early guilds -contributed greatly to the making of England. Green thus writes of -them:--"In the silent growth and elevation of the English people the -borough led the way. The rights of self-government, of free speech -in free meeting, of equal justice by one's equals, were brought safe -across the ages of Norman tyranny by the traders and shopkeepers of the -towns. In the quiet, quaintly-named streets, in town mead, and market -place, in the Lord's mill besides the stream, in the bell that sounded -out its summons to the borough moot, in the jealousies of craftsmen and -guilds, lay the real life of Englishmen, the life of their home and -trade, their ceaseless sober struggle with oppression, their steady -unwearied battle for self-government." - -Again, speaking of the policy of Edward I., who built up the power of -the towns in view of checking the lawless tendencies of the barons, he -says:-- - -"The bell which swung out from the town tower gathered the burgesses -to a common meeting, where they could exercise their rights of free -speech and free deliberation on their own affairs. Their merchants' -guild, over its ale-feast, regulated trade, distributed the sums due -from the different burgesses, looked to the repair of the gate and -wall, and acted in fact pretty much the same part as a Town Council -of to-day. Not only were all these rights secured by custom from the -first, but they were constantly widening as time went on. Whenever we -get a glimpse of the inner history of an English town, we find the same -peaceful revolution in progress, services disappearing through disuse -or omission, while privileges and immunities were being purchased -in hard cash. The lord of the town, whether he were king, abbot, or -baron, was commonly thriftless or poor, and the capture of a noble, -or the campaign of a sovereign, or the building of some new minster -by a prior, brought about an appeal to the thrifty burghers, who were -ready to fill again their master's treasury, at the price of a strip -of parchment, which gave them freedom of trade, of justice, and of -government. For the most part the liberties of our towns were bought in -this way by sheer hard bargaining." - -We have observed the numerous charters granted to Reading. The charter -of Henry III., to which his successor refers, is the earliest known -one, and in that we find the words:-- - -"Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, etc., to all archbishops, -bishops, abbots, earls, barons, etc., greeting. Know ye that we -will, and command for ourself and our heirs, that all the burgesses -of Reading _who belong to the guild Merchant in Reading_ may be for -ever free from all shires and hundred courts, and from all pleas, -complaints, tolls, passages, ways, carriage ways, and that they may -buy and sell wheresoever they will throughout all England, without -paying toll, and no one may disturb them under forfeiture of 10 marks." -This was confirmed by Edward I., and by successive kings. These -charters were granted to the guild, the immediate predecessor of the -corporation, the "warden" of the guild ultimately being called the -"mayor." - -But there was a great opponent to the rights and freedom of the good -citizens of Reading in the person of the high and mighty Lord Abbot. -Referring to the original charter of the abbey granted by Henry I., -we see what extensive sway was placed in the hands of the abbot. He -ruled Reading with a powerful hand, and when a former mayor of this -town, in the time of Henry VI., thought he would like to have a mace -carried before him as a badge of office, the abbot objected. The mayor -appealed to the Crown, but he was told it was contrary to the franchise -and liberties of our church and monastery, that he was only a keeper of -the guild at Reading, admitted by the abbot, and might only have "two -tipped staffs" carried before him as a badge of office. - -The extensive powers given to the abbot produced constant struggles -for power between the guild and the ecclesiastical rulers. Sometimes -they even came to blows, and the townsmen often assaulted the abbot's -bailiffs in the execution of their duty. The men of Reading were cited -in the reign of Henry III., 1243, to show what warrant they had for any -privileges which they claimed as members of the guild. The sheriff of -Berks received a strict injunction to prevent the men of Reading from -interfering with the abbot's lawful rights. Two years later "a final -and endly concord" was established between the contending parties, but -in 1351, the dispute revived; quarrels arose about the election of a -constable for the town, and the contention was not settled for 200 -years. In 1430, abbot Henley seized from the guild the out-butchery, or -shambles, used by butchers not living in the town, which was another -bone of contention. - -The abbot received part of the fines paid by those who wished to become -freemen of the guild. He received a fine of 5d., called chepin-gravel -yearly from every member. He exercised criminal jurisdiction, tried -prisoners, admitted and selected the warden or mayor, and in many ways -held powerful sway over the good folk of this ancient borough. - -But the day came when his power ceased, and the abbey was dissolved. -By degrees the guild obtained more power, but the Reformation shook -the fabrics of the old guilds of England, and they found that they -had only exchanged masters, and that the new master was rather more -masterful than the old, requiring inventories of guild plate, lands, -and revenues, and appropriating much of their superfluous wealth to his -own exchequer.[4] - -In the time of Queen Elizabeth, the guild merchant, the chrysalis, -broke its shell, and became the full-winged corporation of mayor -and burgesses, although its place of meeting was still called the -_Guildhall_, and was situated somewhere near the Hallowed Brook, where -the worthy brethren were often disturbed in their deliberations by the -Laundry women "beating their battledores," which was the approved style -of washing clothes in those days. Subsequently the old Church of Grey -Friars became the Guildhall until the old building was erected, from -whose ashes the modern Town Hall phoenix-like arose. - -The old burgesses, or members of the guild, were very provident. -In time of Queen Mary it was ordered that every burgess should pay -20s. over and above his accustomed fine, as a fund for the relief of -burgesses in old age or want. - -Berkshire has not been remarkable for its guilds. The guild of the -brotherhood of the Holy Cross at Abingdon has been already mentioned. -At Maidenhead we find a guild incorporated in 1351, probably for the -purpose of keeping in repair the bridge over the Thames, one of the -most ancient in the county. This corporation was called "the Fraternity -or Guild of the Brothers and Sisters of Maidenhythe." Of minor guilds -there would be examples in almost every village and town, but no -records of them remain. The guilds of Reading are the only ones of -real importance; and I have attempted to point out the chief points -of interest in connection with their growth and development, and to -describe briefly the origin of these institutions which played so -important a part in the making of England. - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 3: Mr. Coates says that the Society of Guild Merchants of -Reading was undoubtedly very ancient, existing before the foundation of -the Abbey, and claiming a charter or grant of privileges from Edward -the Confessor. - -This is proved by a statement made by the Mayor and commonalty in -time of Richard II., before the king's justices of peace at Reading, -in opposition to some of the claims of the Abbot, with whom the -authorities of the town were always quarrelling.] - -[Footnote 4: 1545--By Statute 37 Henry VIII., An Act for dissolution of -colleges, it was recited that divers colleges, free chapels, chantries, -hospitals, fraternities, brotherhoods, guilds, and stipendary priests, -"having perpetuity for ever," had misapplied the possessions thereof in -various ways; and it was then enacted that all the same be dissolved -and the proceeds applied for supporting the king's expenses in wars, -etc., and for the maintenance of the crown, etc. - -The advisers of Edward VI. promptly availed themselves of this as a -pretext for plunder.] - - - - -The Scouring of the White Horse. - -BY E.R. GARDINER, M.A. - - -The story of our village feasts, and of the way in which the rude -forefathers of the hamlet were wont to enjoy themselves, forms a -chapter in our manners and customs which cannot but have considerable -interest to the student of bygone times. One of the most interesting -relics of this kind pertains to the County of Berks. Upon White Horse -Hill in that county, there used to be celebrated at stated intervals a -feast known throughout the countryside as "The Scouring of the White -Horse." This has been so admirably and exhaustively treated by Judge -Hughes, Q.C. (Tom Brown) in his well-known book on the subject that it -is almost hopeless for anyone writing on the same topic to do otherwise -than follow in his wake. - -[Illustration: SKETCH GROUND PLAN OF THE WHITE HORSE.] - -A few words on the history of the White Horse of Berkshire seem -necessary as an introduction to the subject, although its origin, -like that of the old historic earldom of Mar, seems to be lost in -the mists of antiquity. White Horse Hill is the highest point of the -range of chalk hills which the traveller by rail sees on his left -hand as he journeys down the Great Western Railway between Didcot and -Swindon, and is plainly seen as he approaches Uffington Station. Its -summit reaches the height of 856 feet, and commands an extensive view -over what is known as the Vale of White Horse, no less than eleven -counties being, so it is said, visible therefrom. It derives its name -from the rude figure of a horse cut out in the chalk on the north-west -side of the hill, some 374 feet long, and with its outline marked by -trenches ten feet wide, cut two or three feet deep in the turf to -the white subsoil. A very common tradition ascribes its formation to -King Alfred, in memory of his decisive victory over the Danes at the -battle of Aecesdun, something over a thousand years ago. The tradition -has no doubt arisen from the fact that the Saxon standard was a White -Horse, the well-known names of Hengist and Horsa being probably mere -forms of this ensign. If this were the only turf carving of a similar -character to be found in England, there might be a good deal to say -in favour of this tradition. But such figures are not rare, and -some of them have, for cogent reasons into which we have not space to -enter, been attributed to times far more remote than those of Saxon -and Dane. With regard to this particular turf-carving, although we may -allow the horse to have been the Saxon standard, and that King Alfred, -in setting up "his banner for a token," would only have been following -ancient practice, yet, plausible as this may sound, it would have been -far more in accordance with what we might have expected had he set up -a cross to commemorate his victory. In fact, not so very far away, in -the hamlet of Monks Risborough in the Chiltern Hills, there is a hill -figure of a cross, nearly a hundred feet in height, which, with quite -as good if not better reason, is conjectured to be a memorial set up -by Alfred, to record a victory over the Danes at Bledlow. And further, -the figure of a horse as a badge or device is far older than Saxon -times, for on a coin of Cunobelin (the Cymbeline of Shakespeare), who -reigned in Britain, A.D. 40, the figure of a horse on its reverse is -very similar to the turf-carving with which we are dealing. Indeed, -there is much more in favour of these hill-side figures being of a -date far anterior to Saxon or Roman times. For to the right below White -Horse Hill is a high mound known as the Dragon Hill upon a piece of -ground at the top of which grass does not grow. Here was ample scope -for a tradition, which, coupled with the name of the Hill, developed -into the story that this was the identical spot on which St. George (or -"King Gaarge," according to the rustics) slew the Dragon, and that no -verdure ever grew on the place over which its poisonous blood flowed. -But unfortunately this derivation collapses when it is found that the -name of the Hill should be Pend-ragon, which, in Celtic, signifies -"Chief of Kings," and was, as Mr. Wise points out in his letter to -Dr. Mead, written in 1736, the common appellation of a British King -constituted such by vote in times of public distress. Thus, as we learn -from Caesar's Commentaries Cassibelan was chosen Pendragon by the allies -at the time of Julius Caesar's invasion. So much then for the history -and traditions of the White Horse. - -The festival called the "Scouring," about which we are more immediately -concerned, is, comparatively speaking, a manageable subject, although -the aforementioned Mr. Wise, writing 150 years ago, speaks of it as -a ceremony, which, "_from time immemorial_ has been solemnized by a -numerous concourse of people from all the villages round about." The -importance which he attaches to it seems to us at this time of day a -trifle exaggerated, for, after appealing to all persons who have a -regard for ancient customs whether such a solemnity would not deserve -the countenance of the nobility and gentry, a sentiment in which many -will heartily join, he goes on to suggest that if the festival were -solemnized at regular intervals, say of four years, the common people -would use it as a mode of reckoning their time, which would then very -properly be done by speaking of the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year of the -Scouring of the Horse: and not only this, but the worthy author goes -on to say he should not despair of its creating a new era in English -history, viz., THE RESTORATION OF THE SAXON OLYMPICS. Here surely we -have enthusiasm gone mad. - -The first Scouring, according to Judge Hughes, Q.C. (who is really -_the_ authority _par excellence_ on the subject), about which there -is any authentic information, was held in 1755, and the sports then -appeared to be pretty much the same as those held about a century -later. The chief prize for backsword play, or cudgel play, as it was -sometimes called, was won by a stranger, who appeared in the garb of -a gentleman, and who held his own against all the old "gamesters," -as the backsword players who had won or shared a first prize at any -revel, were then called. As soon as he had won the prize, he jumped -on his horse, and rode off. There was some speculation as to who he -might be, and presently it was whispered about that he was Tim Gibbons, -of Lambourn, who had not been seen for some years, and about whom -some strange stories had been afloat. A descendant of his, a native -of Wodstone, a village which nestles at the foot of the White Horse, -gave the following account of his ancestor:--"Timothy Gibbons, my -great-grandvather, you see, sir, foller'd blacksmithing at Lambourn, -till he took to highway robbin', but I can't give 'ee no account o' -when or wher'. Arter he'd been out, maybe dree or vour year, he and two -companions cum to Baydon; and whilst hiding theirselves and waiting -their hopes in a barn, the constables got ropes round the barn-yard -and lined 'em in. Then all dree drawed cuts[5] who was to go out fust -and face the constables. It fell to Tim's two companions to go fust, -but their hearts failed 'em, and they wouldn't go. So Tim cried out as -'he'd show 'em what a Englishman could do,' and mounted his hos and -drawed his cutlash, and cut their lines a-two, and galloped off clean -away; but I understood as t'other two was took. Arter that, maybe a -year or two, he cum down to a pastime on White Hoss Hill, and won the -prize at backswording; and when he took his money, fearing lest he -should be knowed, he jumped on his hoss under the stage, and galloped -right off, and I don't know as he ever cum again to these parts. Then -I've understood as things thrve wi' 'un as 'um will at times, sir, wi' -they sort o' chaps, and he and his companions built the inn called 'The -Magpies' on Hounslow Heath; but I dwon't know as ever he kep' the house -hisself, except it med ha' been for a short while. Howsomever, at last -he was took drinking at a public house somewheres up Hounslow way, wi' -a companion, who played a crop wi' 'un, and I b'liev' a' was hanged at -Newgate. But I never understood as he killed anybody, sir, and a'd used -to gie some o' the money as he took to the poor, if he know'd they was -in want." - -The next Scouring, of which there seems to be any record, took -place in 1776, concerning which the following printed handbill was -published:-- - - "WHITE HORSE HILL, BERKS, 1776. - - The scowering and cleansing of the White Horse is fixed for Monday, - the 27th day of May; on which day a Silver Cup will be run for near - White Horse Hill, by any horse, &c., that never run for anything, - carrying 11 stone, the best of 3 two-mile heats, to start at 10 - o'clock. - - Between the heats will be run for by poneys a Saddle Bridle and - Whip; the best of 3 two-mile heats, the winner of 2 heats will be - entitled to the saddle, the second best the Bridle, and the third - the Whip. - - The same time a Thill Harness will be run for by cart horses, &c., - in their harness and bells, the carters to ride in smock frocks - without saddles, crossing and jostling, but no whipping allowed. - - A Flitch of Bacon to be run for by asses. - - A good Hat to be run for by men in sacks, every man to bring his - own sack. - - A Waistcoat, 10s. 6d. value, to be given to the person who shall - take a bullet out of a tub of flour with his mouth in the shortest - time. - - A cheese to be run for down the White Horse Manger. - - Smocks to be run for by ladies, the second best of each prize to be - entitled to a Silk Hat. - - _Cudgel playing_ for a _gold-laced Hat_ and a pair of buckskin - Breeches, and _Wrestling_ for a pair of silver Buckles and a pair - of Pumps. - - The horses to be on the White Horse Hill by nine o'clock. - - No less than four horses, &c., or asses to start for any of the - above prizes." - -Then came a Scouring on Whit Monday, May 15th, 1780, and of the -doings on that occasion there is the following notice in the _Reading -Mercury_, of May 22nd, 1780:--"The ceremony of scowering and cleansing -that noble monument of Saxon antiquity, the White Horse, was celebrated -on Whit Monday, with great joyous festivity. Besides the customary -diversions of horse racing, foot races, etc., many uncommon rural -diversions and feats of activity were exhibited to a greater number -of spectators than ever assembled on any former occasion. Upwards of -thirty thousand persons were present, and amongst them most of the -nobility and gentry of this and the neighbouring counties; and the -whole was concluded without any material accident. The origin of this -remarkable piece of antiquity is variously related; but most authors -describe it as a monument to perpetuate some signal victory, gained -near the spot, by some of our most ancient Saxon princes. The space -occupied by this figure is more than an acre of ground." - -There was also a list of the games, which was the same as that in -1776, excepting that in addition there was "a jingling-match by eleven -blind-folded men, and one unmasked and hung with bells, for a pair of -buckskin breeches." - -An old man, William Townsend by name, whose father, one Warman -Townsend, had run down the manger after the fore-wheel of a waggon, and -won the cheese at this scouring, told the story, as his father had told -it to him, how that "eleven on 'em started, and amongst 'em a sweep -chimley and a millurd; and the millurd tripped up the sweep chimley and -made the soot flee a good 'un;" and how "the wheel ran pretty nigh down -to the springs that time." - -[Illustration: WHITE HORSE HILL.] - -The next Scouring seems to have been held in 1785, concerning which -one William Ayres of Uffington, aged about 84 years, in 1857 made -the following statements:--"When I were a buoy about ten years old -I remembers I went up White Hoss Hill wi' my vather to a pastime. -Vather'd brewed a barrel o' beer to sell on the Hill--a deal better -times than now--Augh! bless 'ee, a man medn't brew and sell his own -beer now: and oftentimes he can't get nothin' fit to drink at thaay -little beer-houses as is licensed, nor at some of the public-houses too -for that matter. But 'twur not only for that as the times wur better -then--But I be gandering shure enough,--well now, there wur Varmer -Mifflin's mare run for and won a new cart-saddle and thill-tugs--the -mare's name wur _Duke_. As many as a dozen or moor horses run, and -they started from Idle's bush, which were a vine owld tharnin'-tree in -thay days--a very nice bush. They started from Idle's bush, as I tell -'ee, and raced up to the Rudge-waay; and Varmer Mifflin's mare had it -all one way, and beeat all the t'other on 'um holler. The pastime then -wur a good 'un a wonderful sight o' folk of all sorts, rich and poor. -John Morse of Uffington, a queerish sort of a man, grinned agin another -chap droo' hos collars, but John got beeat--a fine bit o' spwoort to -be shure, and meead the volks laaf. Another geeam wur to bowl a cheese -down the Mainger, and the first as could catch 'un had 'un. The cheese -was a tough 'un and held together, a did I assure 'ee, but thaay as -tasted 'un said a warn't very capital arter all. Then were running for -a peg too, and they as could ketch 'un and hang 'un up by the tayl -had 'un. The girls, too run races for smocks--a deal of pastime to be -sure. Then wur climmin' a grasy pole for a leg of mutton, too: and -backsoordin', and wrastlin', and all that, ye knows. A man by the name -of Blackford, from the low countries, Zummersetshire, or that waay -someweres, he won the prize, and wur counted the best hand for years -arter, and no man couldn't break his yead; but at last, nigh on about -twenty years arter, I'll warn 'twer--at Shrin'um Revel, Harry Stanley, -the landlord o' the Blawin Stwun, broke his yead, and the low-country -men seemed afeard o' Harry round about here for long arter that. Varmer -Smallbwones, of Sparsholt, a mazin' stout man, and one as scarce no -one, go where 'a would, could drow down, beeat all the low-country -chaps at wrastlin', and none could stan' agean 'un. And so he got the -neam o' Varmer Great-Bwones. 'Twur only when he got a drap o' beer a -leetle too zoon, as he were drowed at wrastlin', but they never drowed -'un twice, and he had the best men come agean 'un for miles. This wur -the first pastime as I well remembers, but there med ha' been some -afore, for all as I knows. I ha' got a good memorandum, and minds -things well when I wur a buoy, that I does. I ha' helped to dress the -White Hoss myself, and a deal o' work 'tis to do 't, as should be, I -can assure 'ee. About Claay Hill, 'twixt Fairford and Ziziter, I've -many a time looked back at 'un, and a' looks as nat'ral as a pictur'." - -Between 1785 and 1803 there were probably at least two Scourings about -which no reliable information seems to have been obtained. - -At the Scouring of 1803 Beckingham of Baydon won the prize at -wrestling; Flowers and Ellis from Somersetshire won the prize at -backsword play; the waiter at the Bell Inn, Faringdon, won the cheese -race and at jumping in sacks; and Thomas Street of Niton won the -prize for grinning through horse-collars, but it was said "a man from -Woodlands would ha' beeat, only he'd got no teeth. This geaam made the -congregation laaf 'mazingly." - -Then came a Scouring in 1808, at which the Hanney men came down in a -strong body and made sure of winning the prize for wrestling. But all -the other gamesters leagued against them, and at last their champion, -Belcher, was thrown by Fowler of Baydon. Two men, "with very shiny -top-boots, quite gentlemen, from London," won the prize for backsword -play, one of which gentlemen was Shaw, the Lifeguardsman, said to be a -Wiltshire man himself, who afterwards died at Waterloo. A new prize was -given at this pastime, viz., a gallon of gin or half-a-guinea for the -woman who would smoke most tobacco in an hour. Only two gipsy-women -entered, and it seems to have been a very blackguardly business, but it -is the only instance of the sort on record. - -There seems to be some doubt as to the date of the next Scouring, -which was either in 1812 or 1813, but Judge Hughes thinks it was most -probably in the latter year, because the clerk of Kingston Lisle, an -old Peninsula man, told him that he was at home on leave in that year, -and that there was to be a Scouring, and all the people were talking -about it when he had to go back to the wars. At this Scouring there -was a prize of a loaf, made out of a bushel of flour, for running up -the Manger, which was won by Philip New, of Kingston-in-the-Hole, who -cut the great loaf into pieces at the top, and sold the pieces for a -penny a piece. The low-country men won the first backsword prize, and -one Ford, of Ashbury, the second; and the Baydon men won the prize -for wrestling. One Henry Giles had wrestled for the prize, but it is -supposed took too much beer afterwards; at any rate he fell into the -canal on his way home, and was drowned. - -The next Scouring, about which any record is found, did not take place -till 1825, and it seems to have been the largest gathering there has -ever been. The games were held at the Seven Barrows, which are distant -two miles in a south-easterly direction from the White Horse, instead -of in Uffington Castle, for some reason which does not appear. These -seven barrows are popularly supposed to be the burial places of the -principal men who were killed at Ashdown. - -After this there was no Scouring till 1838, when, on the 19th and 20th -of September, the old custom was revived under the patronage of Lord -Craven. The _Reading Mercury_ says that no more auspicious year could -have been chosen for the revival "than that in which our youthful and -beloved Queen first wore the British Crown, and in which an heir was -born to the ancient and noble house of Craven, whom God preserve." - -The next took place in September, 1843, about which it is recorded that -the Berkshire and Wiltshire men, under Joe Giles, of Shrivenham, got -the better of the Somersetshire men led by Simon Stone at backsword -play; and then were two men who came down from London, who won the -wrestling prize away from the countrymen. There seems to have been -some difficulty in getting the elephant's caravan up the Hill, -for Wombwell's menagerie came down for the Scouring, and, though -four-and-twenty horses were put to, it stuck fast four or five times. -It does not seem to have struck the Berkshire folk that it would have -been simpler to turn the elephant out and make him pull his own caravan -up. - -In September, 1857, was celebrated the festival so admirably described -by Judge Hughes in his book, "The Scouring of the White Horse," to -which we would refer our readers. - -Of subsequent Scourings there is little or no record, village festivals -having fallen gradually into disuse through the advent of railways and -other means of communication with the outer world. The last took place -in 1892, and was undertaken at the sole expense of Lady Craven, of -Ashdown Park, the Horse having become so obliterated by neglect that -its outline could scarcely be traced even at a few miles distance. It -was unaccompanied by any festivities whatever. - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 5: Drew lots.] - - - - -The Last of the Abbots. - - -There are few sadder stories than that of Hugh Farringdon, 31st mitred -abbot of the great Abbey of Reading. One of the foremost ecclesiastics -in the kingdom at the time of his terrible death, even in Henry VIII.'s -reign of terror, few men fell so far, so suddenly, and so fatally. - -An Abbot of Reading was a member of the House of Lords. He had a -revenue with his abbey, amounting to well nigh L20,000 per annum at the -present day; one of the most charming country residences conceivable -at Pangbourne, Bere Place, which still retains some few relics of its -abbot owners; and, in the abbey itself; an abode whose magnificence, -even amidst those grand ruins, we very feebly realise. The abbey -precincts were at least thirty acres, in the midst of which the great -church arose in size and grandeur not far short of that of Canterbury -Cathedral itself. - -The earlier portion of his abbacy seems to have been tranquil and -happy. We read of no such grave disputes as in the case of Abbot -Thorne. That 28th abbot seems to have carried fully out his name and -crest. He was a thorn in many sides. We read of bitter complaints -how he seized on the revenues of the Hospital for Poor Widows, and -appropriated them to the uses of the Almoner of the abbey, and not -content with this, laid hands also on St. Edmond's Chapel, which then -stood at the end of Friar Street, which he made into a barn. - -The 31st abbot was a very different man from the 28th. He had more of -Mary than of Martha in him, as an old chronicler remarks somewhere of -somebody else. There is reason to believe that he was a most amiable -character. Mr. Kelly in his History of St. Lawrence has discovered -the following interesting record of him amongst the receipts for pew -rents:-- - - "1520. Setis--Item of my lord abbot for his moder's sete iiij d." - - "A touching entry," says Mr. Kelly; "Hugh Faringdon, on his - promotion to the abbey, though a man of humble extraction, did not - forget to provide for the comfort of his poor aged mother." - -It is true Leland speaks of him as an "illiterate monk." "Hugh Cook -was a stubborn monk, absolutely without learning." Of course he was -a monk, that goes without saying. With regard to his "stubbornness," -there may be two opinions. As for being "absolutely without learning," -he appears to have been one of those admirable in every age, who have -raised themselves from a low rank to a high one by sheer force of -character. A poor boy may still become Lord Chancellor or Archbishop of -Canterbury. - -He appears not to have had educational advantages. He deplores this -in a letter of much dignified modesty. He had occasion to correspond -with the University of Oxford. The Oxford authorities seem to have been -in need of some stone from a quarry of the abbey, and had addressed -a polite request to him. He "returns thanks to the University for -considering him in the number of those learned persons who had been -members of that learned body," but speaks of himself as one who had -not the least pretences to that character. He styles himself a man of -no erudition; laments that the fates had denied him the advantages of -instruction in his youth, and states that he is still anxious to become -a member of the University, and apply himself to that course of study -which would suit his capacity, now become dull and feeble by length of -years. - -He was evidently a patron of learned men. Leonard Cox, Master of the -Reading School, which, thanks to Henry VII., had been established in -St. Lawrence's Hospice rescued from Abbot Thorne, dedicates his "Art of -Rhetorick," 1539, to this last of the abbots. - -He seems also to have been a good administrator, and an active -magistrate, and we read of him as taking his place at the Bench at -"Okingham," on 11th July, 1534, as one of the Justices of the Peace -for the county. More than this he was a religious man. He took care -that the Bible was read daily in the abbey. Dr. London, one of the -commissionaries for dissolving the Monastery and Friary, reports to his -superior, Lord Cromwell:-- - - "They have a gudde lecture in scripture daily redde in the chapter - house, both in Inglishe and Latin, to the which is gudde resort, - and the abbot is at it himself." - -When the commissioners arrived, he does not seem to have opposed them, -or held back anything. Dr. London at first reports favourably:-- - - "I have requested of my lord abbot the relics of his house, which - he seledeted unto me with gudde will. I have taken an inventory - of them, and have locked them up beside the high altar, and have - the key in my keeping, and they be ready at your lordship's - commandment." - -Abbot Hugh made no resistance, and it might have been supposed the -abbey would have escaped at least as well as the Friary; the Grayfriars -having nothing to lose, were simply turned out into the street with a -scanty pension, and their church given to the town for a town hall. How -was it, then, that such a cruel fate overtook the principal monks here, -for two others died with Hugh Faringdon on the same charge of high -treason? Stowe says it was for denying the King's supremacy. - - "The Act of Suppression passed in May, 1539, and in November - following he was drawn, hanged, and quartered with two of his - monks. The same day the Abbot of Glastonbury was executed, and - shortly after the Abbot of Colchester." - -It is here we get a clue, I think, to this extreme severity; these -three leading Churchmen had all got involved in a treason plot. The -Pilgrimage of Grace had very recently been suppressed. It had been -assisted with money by various monasteries, and it would seem that -these three great houses were specially compromised. Froude states this -distinctly, speaking in the first instance of the Abbot of Glastonbury -(History of England, Vol. III., ch. 16, p. 240):-- - - "An order went out for enquiry into his conduct, which was to be - executed by three of the visitors, Layton, Pollard, and Moyle. On - 16 September (1539) they were at Reading, on the 22nd they had - arrived at Glastonbury ... the Abbot was placed in charge of a - guard, and sent to London, to the Tower, to be examined by Cromwell - himself, when it was discovered that both he and the Abbot of - Reading had supplied the northern insurgent with moneys." - -For this there could be no pardon. The insurrection had been too -nearly successful. The principal leaders had suffered, and now their -three supporters followed. Hugh Faringdon had not allowed the King's -supremacy, but this might have been overlooked; he had been very -favourably reported by London to Cromwell. But now the law took its -course, that horrible and terrible death assigned to high treason. - -Froude describes the aged Abbot of Colchester drawn through the town -that dismal November morning; dragged to the top of Glastonbury Torre, -there hanged, drawn, and quartered. It cannot be doubted that an -equally ghastly scene was enacted at Reading. As accomplices in both -instances, two monks were executed along with their principal. - -The execution is supposed to have taken place here in front of the -inner gateway, which still survives, and is a place of resort for the -Berkshire Archaeological Society. It may equally well have been at -Gallows Common beyond Christ Church which was for long the ordinary -place for executions. It would appear from St. Mary's registers that -even in the eighteenth century twice in the year batches of prisoners -were sent off there to the gallows: if so, the long and sad procession, -as at Glastonbury, would traverse the whole length of the town. It was -a most awful reverse of fortune. Both in 1532, and in 1535, we read of -his receiving a gilt cup from the king as a New Year's present. He had -even been on the commission for investigating how a manifesto from the -leader of the insurrection in Yorkshire had got into circulation at -Reading; but that fatal gift of money, which Cromwell had traced home -to the Abbot of Glastonbury, and also to Abbot Hugh, was an act beyond -pardon. He had been the king's favourite abbot, but was now convicted -of high treason, and the sentence took its course. - - "He leaves a name which long time will avail - To point a moral, and adorn a tale." - - - - -Siege of Reading. - - "Full soon the curse of Civil War - Came all our harmless sports to mar: - When law and order ceased to reign, - And knaves did eat up honest men; - When brother against brother stood - And all the land was drenched in blood." - - --"_Donnington Castle._" - -[Illustration: THE INNER GATEWAY, READING.] - - -"What a glorious thing must be a victory Sir!" an enthusiastic young -lady once exclaimed to the Iron Duke. "The greatest tragedy in the -world," he replied, "Madam, except a defeat!" A siege is bad enough: -an interesting thing to read and tell of, but, though it only lasted -ten days, an event burned deep into the memories of Reading; replete -with all but ruin to very many of her citizens; and entirely destroying -for all time that town's once famous cloth-trade. As the tide of war -ebbed and flowed along the Thames valley, now one side was uppermost, -and now the other, and, in either case, it was "woe to the vanquished." -One time there were the king's demands, then presently those of the -Parliamentary party; fines followed levied unmercifully on recusants -as also loans wrung from, at length, unwilling supporters. A letter, -still in the town archives, gives a vivid picture of the position of -very many in those days in Berkshire and in Oxfordshire. It is a letter -from G. Varney to the Town Clerk of Reading, not dated except from the -prison into which the soldiers had cast him:-- - - "Going," says Varney, "to market with a load of corn, the Earl of - Manchester's soldiers met with my men, and took away my whole team - of horses, letting my cart stand in the field four miles from home; - and I never had them more. When the king's soldiers come to us they - call me Roundheaded rogue, and say I pay rent to the Parliament - garrison, and they will take it away from me; and likewise the - Parliament soldiers, they vapour with me, and tell me that I pay - rent to Worcester and Winchester, therefore the Parliament say they - will have the rent." - -Still more pathetic is the petition to Parliament that presently -was made: "That, since the time the two armies came into the town, -your petitioners have had their sufferings multiplied upon them; the -soldiers going to that height of insolence that they break down our -houses and burn them, take away our goods and sell them, rob our -markets and spoil them, threaten our magistrates and beat them; so -that, without a speedy redress, we shall be constrained, though to our -utter undoing, yet for the preservation of our lives, to forsake our -goods and habitations, and leave the town to the will of the soldiers; -who cry out they have no pay, have no beds, have no fire; and they must -and will have it by force, or they will burn down all the houses in the -town whatever become of them." - -Such was the state of things which the mayor, with his twelve aldermen -and twelve councillors of that day, had to grapple with: and a very -difficult matter, as we shall see, he found it. Things were coming -to a crisis here in 1643, in the April of which the ten-days' siege -occurred; but they had long been leading up to this. - -In 1636 the town was deeply stirred on the subject of ship-money; one -party carried a resolution: "They who deny payment of ship-money to -be proceeded against as the council of the corporation shall direct;" -a little later another party seems to have got the uppermost, and the -entry in 1641: "Agreed that those persons within the town which were -distressed for ship-money shall have their moneys repaid them." - -At first the Parliamentary Party were in the ascendency; then 1642 -came. Edgehill was fought 23rd October, then the king took Banbury, -and then marched upon Reading. Henry Martin, M.P., afterwards the -regicide, had been appointed by the Parliament governor of Reading; -but, upon the royal advance, at once withdrew with his small garrison -and fled to London. The king arrived here on November 4th, from which -time matters certainly became sufficiently exciting. - - "The game of Civil War will not allow - Bays to the victor's brow. - At such a game what fool would venture in, - Where one must lose, yet neither side can win?" - - --_Cowley._ - -Yet every day saw the game played more and more in earnest. Charles -reached Reading, 4th November, 1642, having sent on the following -missive on the previous day: "Whereas I have received information that -the bridge on the river Thames at Causham was lately broke down, our -Will and express Command is that ye immediately upon sight hereof cause -the said bridge to be rebuilt, and made strong and fit for the passage -of our army by time 8 of the clock in the morning as the bearer shall -direct; of this you may not fail at your utmost peril." - -The mayor at this time was a firm royalist. One of the Diurnals of -the other side thus records his endeavours: "At the king's coming to -Reddinge a speech was made unto him by the mayor of the town, wherein -after he had in the best words he could devise bid him welcome thither, -for want of more matter he concluded very abruptly." This is malicious -enough, but nothing to the story that follows: "Not long after he -invited Prince Robert (_sic_) to dine, providing for him all the -dainties that he could get, but especially a woodcock, which he brought -in himself. Prince Robert gave him many thanks for his good cheer, -and asked him whose was all that plate that stood upon the cupboard? -The mayor, who had set out all his plate to make a show, and besides -had borrowed a great deal of his neighbours to grace himself withal, -replied, 'And please your Highness the plate is mine!' 'No!' quoth the -prince, 'this plate is mine,' and so accordingly he took it all away; -bidding him be of good cheer, for he took it, as the Parliament took -it, upon the public faith." - -Lord Saye and Sele, just before, however, had carried off two large -baskets, full of the Christ Church plate, at Oxford, for parliamentry -purposes. - -Now almost every day has its event, and dates must be regarded. - -November 8th.--The town is startled by a peremptory order to impress -all the tailors in Reading, and within six miles round, to make clothes -for the garrison, with which they are to be honoured; Sir Arthur Ashton -is appointed governor, with a salary from the town of L7 per week; he -is soon able to lend the poor corporation L100. At once he begins to -fortify; all are forced to assist; those who do not come to work being -fined 7d. per day; forts and chains are placed at the end of every -street, and the Oracle, or cloth factory at once is utilized as a -barrack. - -It is an interesting fact, that through the pious care of a wealthy -citizen, Reading still possesses the old gates of the Oracle. There -they are in honourable retirement at the top of St. Mary's Hill; the -Kenrich crest in one place, the initials, J.K., of the founder of this -factory for poor clothiers, in another; the date 1526 still in another -part; all being in very fair state of preservation. How few of the busy -many that pass those gates every day think of the scenes that these -have witnessed, and could tell of, if walls had voices as well as ears! - - "When Puritan and Cavelier - With shout and psalm contended! - And Rupert's oath, and Cromwell's prayer, - With sound of battle blended!"--_Whittier._ - -And now the corporation wait upon King Charles and assure him they -will "assist him with counsel, and their purses, to the best of their -ability." He probably preferred the latter, for-- - -November 9th.--We have notice of a consultation had "about the -execution of the king's warrants," and on - -November 17th.--"A tax is levied to pay those great charges which are -now layed upon the borough concerning cloth, apparell, victualls, and -other things for his Majestie's army." Then on - -November 28th.--The king goes off to Oxford, and henceforth they are -left to Sir Arthur's tender mercies: about this time we find a pathetic -entry: "A noate of all such charges as have been disembursed, since -the King's Majestie came first to Reading, for provisions, clothes -for the soldiers, and for the king's own use;" being L6697, truly a -prodigious sum for those times; but it is speedily followed by fresh -requisitions. As the year opens it appears probable that Reading will -be attacked, and so on 3rd March, 1543, a letter arrives from the -king, ordering Sir Arthur to provision Reading for three months, to -provision Greenlands a fortified country house just below Henley, to -send out scouting parties to watch the enemy, and to prevent carriage -of supplies to London. This rouses the Parliament. Essex is ordered to -march on Oxford, taking Reading in his way; but the governor now is all -ready for him. Mapledurham House and Cawsham have now been made into -fortified out-posts, and, on the arrival of Essex's "trumpet," Colonel -Codrington in his diary tells us the governor returned the stubborn -answer that "he would either keep the town or die inside it!" There can -be no doubt he would have made a resolute resistance; he was a brave -and capable soldier, but, being wounded in the head by a tile dislodged -by a cannon ball, on the third day of the siege, his place was taken -by a Colonel R. Fielding, as next in seniority. The sad history of the -gallant soldier is worth following further. At the capitulation he went -to Oxford; there he managed to lose a leg, and presently turns up in -Ireland, unluckily for him, at Drogheda. Cromwell storms, determined, -after the inhuman massacres of Protestants, on making a harsh example -of the Irish garrison, and Sir Arthur, now in command there, strange -to say, has his brains knocked out with his own wooden leg, which -the soldiers imagined was filled with gold pieces--they did find two -hundred about his person--the very thing which Hood imagined long after -of his unhappy heroine. - - "Gold, still gold! hard, yellow, and cold, - For gold she had lived, and she died for gold, - For a golden weapon had killed her! - And the jury, its forman a gilder, - They brought it in a Felo di Se - Because her own leg had killed her! - - Price of many a crime untold, - Good or bad, a thousand fold, - How widely gold's agencies vary! - To save, to curse, to ruin, to bless, - As even its minted coins express, - Now stamped with the image of Good Queen Bess, - And now of a bloody Mary!" - -There is a portrait of Sir A. Aston at the Reading Public Library, -a middle aged man with a large square chin and most determined -expression. Sir Jacob Astley, after governor here, and made Baron -Reading, is also in the Library, a pleasant looking old gentleman. - -The town was very strongly and securely fortified, I quote from the -diary of Sir Samuel Luke, Scout Master for the parliament after the -surrender, when he had just been over it: "They had only three ways -out of the town, where they had built three sconces, one at Forbury, -one at Harrison's Barn, and another at the end of Pangbourn lane; -the Forts were very well wrought, and strong both with trenches and -pallisades; the town entrenched round so that if any man of the -Parliamentary side should have delivered up a place as this town, he -would have deserved a halter." - -"It would appear," writes Mr. Childs, "that earth works were thrown up -in a rude square, extending from Grey Friars Church and the present -prison on the north, to midway in Kendrick Road, and to Katesgrove Hill -on the south; and from about the line of Kendrick Road on the east to -Castle Hill on the west. Redoubts were thrown up at intervals, and on -the top of Whitley Hill a strong fort known as 'Harrison's Barn.'" - -This Sir Samuel appears to have been a stout and able soldier, but, -unfortunately for him, he had the misfortune to fall into the hands of -Butler, who has pilloried him as the well-known Hudibras. Dr. Johnson -says, writing of Butler, "The necessitudes of his condition placed -him in the family of Sir S. Luke, one of Cromwell's officers, and a -Presbyterian magistrate. Here he observed much of the character of the -sectaries." Certainly he did, and recorded much; and though very much -is gross caricature, still it is thus that Sir Samuel must be content -to come down to us. - - "When civil dudgeon first grew high, - And men fell out they knew not why: - Then did Sir Knight abandon dwelling, - And out he rode a colonelling. - He was in logic a great critic, - Profoundly skilled in analytic; - He could distinguish and divide - A hair 'twixt south and south-west tide: - On either side he would dispute, - Confute, change hands, and still confute. - For his religion it was fit - To match his learning and his wit. - 'Twas Presbyterian true blue, - For he was of the stubborn crew - Such as do build their faith upon - The holy text of pike and gun: - And prove their doctrine or the dox - By apostolic blows and knocks. - Still so perverse and opposite, - As if they worshipped God for spite. - Quarrel with mince-pies, and disparage - Their best and dearest friend plum-porridge. - Fat pig and goose itself oppose, - And blaspheme custard through the nose." - -On Sir Arthur's refusal to surrender, the town was at once assailed, -the Royalist out-posts at Caversham being easily driven in, the -bridge broken down, and batteries planted there commanding the town. -This was April 15th. The Earl of Essex had at this time some 16,000 -foot, and 300 horse, a force which in the course of a week was nearly -doubled. His headquarters were at Southcote, leaving Colonel Skippon -in charge of the siege works in the meadows at the N.W. of the town, -on the old Battel Abbey estate, where was most of the fighting; -whilst Lord Gray of Warwick sat down before the town, on the S.E. -parts, with 7,000 horse and foot. Codrington tells us the Earl held a -council of war, at which it was debated whether to storm or not. The -cavalry were for attempting it, the infantry against, and this latter -opinion prevailed, the garrison being supposed to be stronger than it -really was. We read in the "Perfect Diurnal" of February 10th, "They -are 4,000 strong in the town; some works are cast up as high as the -houses; they have made use of all the clothier's wool in the town, and -made wool-packs thereof." "There is nothing like leather," as is well -known; but it may be doubted whether bales of cloth are benefited by -a week's cannonading. No wonder the cloth-trade languished after that -involuntary employment of the stock-in-trade. - -And now we will come to dates, making use of our two friends' diaries. -It is a pity we have not also a Royalist record to check them by. -But first we will take a look at the army investing. They are most -of them young troops, and with officers at present unversed in siege -operations: but some have already fought at Edgehill, notably the Saye -and Sele "Blue Coats;" Colonel Nathanael and Colonel John Fiennes -commanding them, would both be there, and perhaps his lordship. -Hampden's "Green Coats" would also add to the variety, with the London -train bands "Red Coats;" this red was a colour that Cromwell afterwards -adopted for the whole of the British army, and which, it need hardly be -remarked, is now "the thin red line which never wavers," and which more -than once has confronted both cavalry and artillery successfully. - -April 17th. Writes Sir Samuel:--"Our lines got within musket shot of -the town." - -April 18th.--"The enemy appeared on Cawsham hills under General Ruven, -went to Sonning, and put down (up?) the river in boats 600 musketeers, -with several waggon loads of ammunition; which we could not hinder -because we had broken down Cawsham bridge." - -This was very cleverly managed, as the town had at first only twenty -barrels of gunpowder altogether. Now their artillery would be well -supplied; and the barges ran up by the Kennet in perfect safety into -the very heart of the town. Immediately after this a battery was -planted on the Thames bank by Essex, that effectually 'shut the door' -north of the Kennet; but, by this time, 'the horse was stolen,' or, at -least, the powder safe housed! On this day a cannon burst, killing four -men and wounding half-a-dozen more of the besiegers; but what was much -more serious for the King's party on this day, the Governor got a hurt -that at once totally incapacitated him, and a mere seniority officer, a -Col. Richard Fielding, took the command. - -On the 19th there was a brisk sally, but repulses of the garrison. -"On that night His Excellency advanced his batteries and placed his -ordinance within less than pistol shot of Harrison's Fort." Stout old -Skippon is here: and is in deadly earnest, like Cromwell, however -unwilling Essex and Manchester may be to go to extremities. - -April 20th. Says our Chronicler:--"Lord Gray pushes closer up." - -April 21st is an eventful day. "Battered the town," says the diary, -"got up within pistol shot of one of their choicest bulwarks in a place -called the Gallows Field." On this day it is that St. Giles steeple -comes to grief; now we will copy Codrington. "They planted ordinance -on a steeple, but our cannons were levelled against it with such -dexterity, that both cannoniers and cannon were soon buried under the -ruins." - -April 22nd.--"Flower, sent by the King to say he was coming to raise -the siege, swam in with despatches, but is caught going back, and so -the plan frustrated." Essex reversed his batteries, and so was ready to -give the approaching Royalists a hot reception. - -April 23rd.--An unlucky spy is seized, who had volunteered the perilous -work of blowing up the siege ammunition train; he is hung in sight of -the rampart, which is retaliated on the next day. - -April 24th.--"A sudden sally; they got into our trenches, and killed -four men; but were driven back with loss of twelve, but we could not -get out the bodies of our men. Lord Gray got within pistol shot of -Harrison's Barn." - -This seems to have frightened Col. Fielding, who evidently was not the -stuff that heroes are made of. - - Hark! Hark! like the roar of the billows on the shore, - The cry of battle rises along the charging lines: - 'For Love!' 'For the Cause!' 'For the Church!' 'For the Law!' - For Charles, King of England, and Rupert of the Rhine! - -25th April, 9 a.m.--The town hung out a white flag, and sent "a drum -to beat a parley, which His Excellency gave way to." If Fielding had -but held out another day, and had co-operated with the King's forces, -the town might have been relieved, and Essex driven away; for a few -hours after, Charles makes a determined attack in force upon Caversham -Bridge, which is only repulsed after heavy fighting, and through Essex -being able to give his undivided attention. "The fight began," says -Codrington, "about Cawsham Bridge, and on both sides great valour and -resolution was expressed. After less than half-an-hour's fight, the -enemy began to give ground, leaving about 300 arms, and many of their -men behind them; their Horse also, which came down the hill to assist -the Fort, were gallantly repulsed; about a hundred were slain upon the -spot, among whom Sergt. Major Smith, in whose pocket was found good -store of gold." - -This settled the matter. Charles retired unmolested to Caversham House, -where Fielding was allowed to go to him on April 26th. He obtained -leave to surrender, the picked troops of the garrison being urgently -required for service elsewhere. This permission, of course, did not -clear Fielding, who was tried afterwards by court martial and sentenced -to be beheaded, but the King did not allow the sentence to be carried -out. - -April 27th.--The surrender takes place. "He was pardoned," says -Clarendon, "without much grace; his regiment was given to another, and -he resolved as a volunteer; in this capacity he fought desperately -through the war when danger was most rife, but in vain. So difficult -a thing it is to play an after game of reputation in that nice and -jealous profession of arms." "As they march out at Friar's Corner," -says Sir Samuel, "at the same place when, as is recorded further, the -soldiers plundered the houses of four Grand Malignants who had given -information to the Governor of such persons as were inclined to the -cause of the Parliament, and had therefore paid a double tax to the -weekly contribution." This, perhaps, was as little as could be expected -from a victorious cause; and Sir Samuel again concludes all very -characteristically and satisfactorily too, as regards the God-fearing -soldiers of the Commonwealth. - -April 30th, "being the Sunday, was spent in preaching and hearing God's -word, the churches being extraordinarily filled, and soldiers and all -men carrying themselves very civilly all the day long." - -Sickness appears to have broken out amongst Essex's young soldiers -encamped on the marshy meadows on the N.W. of the town, which may -have had something to do with the easy terms granted. The Mercurius -Aulicus, the Court Journal, has a story that "a soldier said that -Essex caused five great pits to be dug at a distance from his camp, -into which he cast the slain to conceal their number." The Earl stayed -here until July, and ordered a heavy contribution for the pay of the -soldiers. The Corporation, however, waited upon him to represent "they -had been so impoverished by the late siege, and the exactions of His -Majesty, as to be utterly unable to raise any more money amongst them." -And this excuse seems to have been graciously accepted. Charles' -"little finger," in money matters, was of necessity "thicker than the -Parliament's loins," and this lead considerably to the declining of -his cause. When the tide of war turned a couple of years after, he -appeared again here, and stayed at Coley; but we do not hear then of -any more forced benevolences; indeed he conferred a real benefit, by -having the fortification "slighted," which no doubt the burgesses -received with extreme satisfaction. So the siege ended. Sieges in -those days were trying to reputations. Colonel N. Fiennes, at Bristol, -and then Prince Rupert at the same place, whether justly or not, were -heavily censured for surrendering, and both of them came very near -to sharing the fate of Fielding. That old lamentation was speedily -verified; but with this we have happily no further connection. - - "Lament! Lament! - And let thy tears run down, - To see the rent - Between the robe and crown! - War, like a serpent, has its head got in, - And will not cease so soon as 't did begin." - - - - -Reading Abbey. - - -It is hardly necessary to state that in rather early days, when the -Thames flowed into the Rhine and Great Britain was a part of a greater -continent, there was no Reading Abbey. Neither was there sometime -after, when the city was a swamp between the Thames and the Kennet, and -some few huts clustered round the Roman station Ad Pontes, where the -legions crossed from Londinium on their way to the rich and important -town of Calleva. We may possibly date our abbey's beginning from the -third or fourth century. It may have been a chapel of ease to that -interesting little church lately uncovered, and alas! covered up again, -at Silchester. At any rate we are on firm ground when, towards the -end of the tenth century, we locate a nunnery here, founded by Queen -Elfreda, who at last began to repent of her various crimes. She had, -perhaps, some excuse for arranging with the King to get rid of her -first husband, who had deceived his royal master, lead astray by her -fatal beauty. Thus she attained the throne to which she had no doubt -been destined; but it was going too far to retain it by the murder -of the son of her predecessor, Queen Ethelfleda; which is one of the -horrid memories that clings round Corfe Castle. And now we leap to -the beginning of the twelfth century and get on still firmer ground, -when Henry I., at the height of his power, and also beginning to feel -a little compunction, resolved to make reparations by founding what -should be an abbey of world-wide magnificence. - -He certainly succeeded. I mean with his abbey, though I am not prepared -to go as far as do the chroniclers of his predecessor:-- - - "King Ethelbert lies here, - Closed in this polyander. - For building churches straight he goes - To heaven without meander." - -Henry I. never did things by halves, and they could build in those -days. His architect had _carte blanche_, and with wonderful speed there -arose that glorious fabric whose ruins we weep over, and use for our -flower shows. The abbey covered some thirty acres. It was surrounded -with a wall, vast and strong, except where guarded by the Kennet, and -four huge embattled gateways opened out to the four quarters. Almost -all its stones are now gone. "It pitieth," or it ought to pity the -by-passers to see some in the wall of that house in Hosier Street, some -very few on the site, and oh, 18th century! many cartloads vandalised -into a bridge on the road to Henley, near where the Druid's temple -of despoiled Jersey adds another sorrow to the scenery. But at its -dedication in 1164, in Henry II.'s time, the abbey and the abbey church -must indeed have been magnificent. The latter was a cruciform building -420 x 92 feet in dimensions, without an aisle, covering the vast space -between the Forbury and the gaol. Its extent is well shown, by the -notices the Corporation has lately put up under the skilled guidance -of those two chiefest of experts, the Secretary and Treasurer of the -Berkshire Archaeological Society. After the dedication ceremony, the -King, and his still friendly Beckett, would doubtless adjourn to the -magnificent Consistory, the great Hall, one of the largest and finest -in England, destined to see so many Parliaments, and other national -assemblings. - -The inner gateway still remains, restored, perhaps, almost too -modernly; close inspection will, however, show the old gate hinges and -portcullis way; closer investigation still may even discover the dog -badge of the last abbot, and a dolphin with the red rose of Lancaster -on its tail, probably also belonging to the same period. Here the -humble burgesses used to bow themselves before the Lord Abbot, and -listen whilst he was pleased to indicate which of them might fulfil the -then limited office of mayor. In front of this, as some say, the last -abbot and his two accomplice monks died the awfully cruel traitor's -death, having been convicted of sending supplies to the northern rebels -in their so-called Pilgrimage of Grace. It has much pleasanter modern -memories, being lent by the good town to the Berkshire Archaeological -Society, and being the scene in its fine old chamber of many -interesting archaeological gatherings. But I have strayed a long way -from 1164. The second Henry's reign was no doubt its golden period; -more memories cluster about the abbey in the twelfth century than at -any other time. Here, the year before, in 1163, had occurred "the Fight -on the Island," when, much to Henry's regret, de Bohun fell beneath the -spear of de Montford. - - "His fame, as blighted in the field, - He strove to clear by spear and shield; - To clear his fame in vain he strove, - For wondrous are His ways above. - How could the guiltless champion quail, - Or how the great ordeal fail!" - -"The knights met on horseback," says Norroy Seagur, "clad in armour, -(on the island just below Caversham Bridge; a street running down to -it has lately been called De Montford Street), Montford attacked with -such resolution as to hurl Henry of Essex out of the saddle, when -being stunned and faint from loss of blood, he was taken up apparently -dead." King Henry handed him over to the monks of Reading Abbey, under -whose care he recovered, and at once joined the fraternity. Some years -after, and following on that bad Beckett business, Henry was here -again, for here, in 1185, came Heraclius, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, -and the Master of the Temple with him, appealing for a crusade to all -Christian Kings, and especially to King Henry, who, it was considered, -especially needed that moral white-washing. What a sight for the abbey! -They brought with them the Standard of the Kingdom of the Holy Land, -the Keys of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and of the Tower of -David. The King reverently received them all, but handed them back to -the Patriarch until he could consult with his barons. Henry was too old -to go, but numbers of the young nobility took the cross, and carried -it in the van against the Infidel; and not least fiery Prince Richard, -the king of all knight errants. He went off immediately on coming to -the throne, and performed exploits which far exceed those imagined by -Ariosto. Unfortunately he needed money, and had to carry off the golden -cover his father gave for the chief abbey relic, the hand of St. James; -but that doubtless would soon be replaced by the offerings of the -home-staying faithful. - -Also in this reign, and at its close, were several royal funerals. -Henry I. of course had himself buried here, as it was said in a silver -coffin, which caused some very ruthless explorations at the time -of the Suppression. A stone coffin found here recently had a very -distinguished origin suggested for it by a high local authority. In -1154, Prince William, eldest son of Henry II., was buried here near -his grandfather. Also here was buried King Henry II.'s second wife, -Adeliza; and thereby hangs a very complicated and curious tale. - -[Illustration: READING ABBEY GATEWAY, LEADING TO THE VESTRY AND -TREASURY.] - -In 1810 some workmen digging in the abbey precincts "found a box which -contained a perfectly formed fleshy hand (writes Mrs. Climenson, in -her almost universal 'History of Shiplake,') holding a slender rod -surmounted by a crucifix." This, she says, is now in Mr. Scott Murray's -Roman Catholic Chapel at Danesfield, and is considered to be the hand -of St. James the Less, which was brought from Germany by the Empress -Maud, and given by her to her father, who gave it to the Abbey. "It is -in perfect preservation, a plump and well-shaped hand, small, and with -taper fingers, and almond-shaped nails, so small it might well be a -woman's." And it probably is, and the hand of Queen Adeliza. One almost -regrets it was not left in its hoped-for last resting-place. There is -something gruesome in such remains, especially, perhaps, in heaped-up -skulls in museums. Those lines of a modern poet on such a sight are -pathetic. - - "Did she live centuries, or ages back? - What colour were those eyes when bright and waking? - And were your ringlets fair, or brown, or black? - Poor little head! that long has done with aching!" - -In Stephen's days, in the interval between the Henries, the poor monks -seem to have had rather an uncomfortable time of it. Stephen patronized -them; he would have money, but he took it politely. When for a while -his cause went down, and the Empress Queen arrived here, she was quite -as exacting, and also bullied them most unmercifully. They must have -been devoutly thankful when she at last went off to her continental -possession; and when she came back for sepulchre would no doubt be able -to receive her with greater equanimity. An English dean not long ago -was accused of having "refused to bury a Dissenter." "On the contrary," -he replied, "I shall feel the greatest pleasure in burying you all!" - -Now we pass to the fourteenth century. Here, in 1359, Edward III. -celebrated the marriage of his son John of Gaunt with Blanche, daughter -of Henry Plantagenet. This was unquestionably the grandest wedding that -ever happened, or could happen at Reading. The King of France, just -lately taken prisoner at Poictiers, was part of the bridal party; so -also a very famous Englishman, who came over here from his residence at -Donnington Castle. Chaucer describes the whole thing at much length:-- - - "And the feste holden was in tentes, - As to tell you my intent is: - In a rome, a large plaine, - Under a wode, in a champagne; - Beside a river and a welle - Where never had abbeye ne selle; - Ben, ne kerke, hous, ne village, - In time of any man's age, - And dured three Months the feast, - In one estate, and never ceased. - From early of the rising of the sun, - Till the day spent was, and y-ronne; - In justing, dancing, and lustiness, - And all that served to gentilesse." - - --_The Dream._ - -From Edward III. we will pass, though not in immediate succession -to Edward IV.'s time; and I am again indebted to Mrs. Climenson for -calling attention to a picture in the British Museum of Reading -Abbey about 1470, where "the widow Gray"--as the Lancastrians called -her--where Edward IV.'s bride, Queen Elizabeth, is represented as -standing under this very inner gateway, already mentioned, so dear to -the heart of every citizen of Reading. The abbot is there to meet her -on her disembarkation, with all fitting reverence. In the distance are -the royal barges, at the abbot's landing, on the Kennet. - -After this almost a century glides by uneventfully. Like the Vicar of -Wakefield, though not accompanied as he was, the abbot's adventures -do not seem to have got much beyond "changing from the blue room to -the green," at least from the abbey to Bere Court and back again. -There were squabbles with the rising town; the aldermen began to be -what would be now called "uppish," but the abbot was practically -omnipotent, and sometimes, as in Abbot Thorne's time, had a heavy hand -which effectually kept town councillors in their proper places. We can -hardly realise now what very great men those mitred abbots must have -been--practically-popes in their own districts where they wielded both -the temporal and spiritual sword pretty vigorously. - -The Abbot of Reading had precedence over all except Glastenbury and St. -Albans. He had vast revenues at his disposal, worth nearly L20,000, it -is reckoned, of our money,--a handsome income even after allowing for -the lavish hospitality and almsgiving expected and rendered. He had -the power of making knights, which the local name "Whiteknights," and -the hospice there, shows to have been pretty freely exercised; though -the fact that every priest was at one time "Dominus," or "Sir so and -so," occasions a little ambiguousness as to knights in these earlier -centuries. - -In Reading itself, as already remarked, the abbot, within the law, was -almost absolute over the lives and properties of the township growing -up under the abbey shadow; his household, and all about him, was -modelled on a scale of more than princely magnificence, and it is to -be doubted whether any, except the very highest nobility, could show -anything like such an extravagant retinue. - -The very list is exhausting: marshal, master of the horse, two keepers -of the pantry, three cupbearers, four janitors, five pages, eight -chamberlains, twelve hostellers (whose duty was to receive strangers), -twenty huntsmen, thirty-one running footmen, and last, not least, an -almoner. What wonder that such magnificence contrasted but badly by the -side of the self-denying Grey Friars, and that the great Benedictine -abbey broke down at last under its own greatness! Its last abbot was -not the worst, nor the least deserving by any means, only he fell on -evil days; and, when he stood by his own order, had little idea of the -terrible significance of treason in the eyes of a Tudor. - -At first Abbot Hugh was favourably reported on by the commissioners. -"On Sep. 16, 1539," quotes Froude, "they were at Reading; on the 22nd -at Glastenbury; but the abbot there, his answer appeared cankered -and traitorous; he was sent to the Tower to be examined by Cromwell -himself, when it was discovered that both he and the Abbot of Reading -had supplied the northern insurgents with money." - -Reading Abbey perished; on the other hand, the Grey Friars Monastery -was simply dissolved, its monks frugally pensioned, and turned out into -the street; their noble church was made into a guildhall, but preserved -by that at any rate, and is now restored, and is the town's noblest -relic of antiquity. Of the great Benedictine abbey, on the other -hand, only the almost imperishable flint core survives of its mighty -buildings. It may have plundered Silchester; it was itself for long a -very stone pit for the builder. Its "record" is that of Rome, "Quod non -fecerunt Barbari fecerunt Barberini"--the Roman princes made a stone -quarry of the Colosseum. That bridge at Park Place is an almost equal -barbarism, but before this, boat loads of abbey stones had gone down -the river to help to build the Hospital of the Poor Knights of Windsor. - -The roof of the great Consistory went to St. Mary's Church, in Reading, -thus happily preserved, and where all may still see it. The panelling -went to Merton College, Oxford. In fact by the time of James the -plundering was complete; only land cannot run away, and so he conferred -that upon Prince Henry, the then heir apparent of the kingdom. - -Since then its history has been uneventful; granted at first to the -Knollys family, it became at times a royal residence; the royal stables -were extensive, and horses stood where monks had knelt. This seems to -be alluded to, in that singular old poem, "Cantio Cygni," when Thamesis -is spoken of as arriving at Reading. - - "From hence he little Chansey Seeth, and hasteneth to see - Fair Reddingetown, a place of name, where clothy-woven bee, - This shows our Alfred's victories, what time Begsal was slain - With other Danes, who carcases lay trampled on the plain. - And here these fields y-drenched were with blood upon them shed, - Where on the prince, in stable now, hath standing many a steede." - -King James, as has been stated, gave the abbey to his eldest son, and -it passed, in due time, into the excellently guardian hands of the -Reading Corporation. Musing amid the ruins of this ancient pile, we may -call to mind the lives of the men who once lived and worked and prayed -on this spot, of the kings and great men who thronged the minster -church and held parliaments in the precincts, and all the mighty events -in history which took place in this, the chiefest and grandest monastic -house in England. The memory of the glories of Reading Abbey will not -soon pass away. - - - - -The First Battle of Newbury, 1643. - -BY EDWARD LAMPLOUGH. - - -The armed phase of the great rebellion was in its second year, and -neither party had achieved any great advantage. If the Royalists -had thought to carry all before them in a summer campaign, they had -found out their mistake; and it must have been equally evident to the -Parliamentarians that they had embarked upon a struggle the end of -which might prove bloody and disastrous to their cause. - -Charles resolved upon the capture of Gloucester. On the 10th of -August, 1643, he sounded trumpets before the gates, and called upon -the commandant to surrender. Colonel Massey, a soldier of fortune, -was faithful to his trust, and the royal trumpeter returned to the -King's camp accompanied by two deputies of "lean, pale, sharp, and -dismal visages," the bearers of a written declaration that, by God's -help, Gloucester should be maintained, under the King's command, _as -signified by both Houses of Parliament_. To this defiance was attached -the signatures of Governor Massey, the Mayor, thirteen aldermen, and -many wealthy burghers. Enraged rather than discouraged, Charles broke -ground before the walls, amid the smoking suburbs, which had been fired -by the stubborn Parliamentarians, whose wives and daughters went forth -to cut turfs for the renewal of the earthern ramparts, shot away by -the fire of the besiegers. With attack and sally, and storm of cannon -and musket bullets, the siege held for a time, then resolved into a -blockade, and Charles was on the eve of winning by famine where steel -and lead had failed, when the Earl of Essex bestirred himself, and came -to the rescue with the trained bands of London and a body of horse. He -arrived not a moment too soon, for the besieged were reduced to their -last barrel of powder. - -The caution of Essex might well have stimulated the besiegers to give -him battle before the walls of Gloucester; he was, however, permitted -to enter unopposed, and to secure the city by liberal supplies of -provisions and ammunition, and by the reinforcement of the garrison. -The object achieved, the return march was commenced, in the course -of which Essex paid a surprise visit to Cirencester, cutting off two -regiments of Royal horse, and seizing a considerable quantity of -provisions which had been collected during the siege of Gloucester. - -The opportunity of striking a very serious blow at the enemy now -offered itself to the King, and he resolved to act. Essex's forces -consisted principally of the City trained bands, held in little repute -by his army, and supported by a small body of cavalry, inferior to -the bold riders of Rupert in number and conduct. Essex cut off and -destroyed, Charles might strike the capital, and stifle the rebellion -in the nest that bred it. - -So Rupert poured forth his gay cavaliers, with gleam of cuirass and -rapier, to intercept Essex, and hold him at bay until Charles came -up to strike; for, as usual, the Royalists knew nothing of Essex's -movement until twenty-four hours after he had left Gloucester. First -blood was shed at Hungerford, when Prince Rupert, seconded by the -Queen's life-guards, struck Essex's rear, and found tough work with -Stapylton's brigade. But night closing in, rapier and broadsword were -sheathed. Here the Marquis de Vieuville, a gallant Frenchman, fell, -mortally wounded, into the hands of the Parliamentarians. - -The next day the two armies converged upon Newbury, but Charles won the -race by two hours, and Essex lay in the open fields, alert and anxious, -for a conflict on the morrow was inevitable. - -Assisted by General Lord Ruthven, Charles made his disposition for the -battle, holding Essex at bay, with all the advantages of a defensive -position and a superior cavalry. His army held Speen Hill, with its -right wing resting upon the Kennet; the left protected by a battery, -and lying towards Shaw Fields. The rear was sufficiently defended by -the river Lambourne and the artillery of Donnington Castle. Thus the -Parliamentarians were barred from the London road by the cavaliers. - -Although Charles had taken up a defensive position, sunrise of the -following morning, September, 20th, 1643, set the skirmishers free, -and shots rang along the front from hedge and cover, as the soldiers -felt their way towards the closer, sterner business of the day. -Essex's first aim was to take up a position on Speen Hill. He lead -the attacking force, which consisted of his own regiment, Barclay and -Balfour's horse, Stapylton's brigade, and Lord Roberts' regiment of -foot. His lordship had cast aside buff and corslet, and fought in his -white holland shirt. Essex, a notable swordsman, found brisk work with -the cavaliers on Speen Hill, but he won and held his position, although -the young Earl of Carnarvon held him long in deadly play, charging -straight through his rank. Pierced, but not routed, the troops were -reformed, and obstinately maintained the struggle. It proved fatal -to the gallant Carnarvon, who, according to Lord Clarendon, was run -through the body by a passing trooper. Sir Roger Manley, however, -states that the Earl was laid low by a shot, which struck him in the -head, while leading the pursuit. Essex, although successful in this -movement, was separated from the infantry, who fought the real battle, -and, by their stubborn valour, held the Royal army at bay. - -Had Charles maintained a purely defensive position, Essex would have -been compelled to force the fighting. His inferiority in cavalry would -have told heavily against him, and his infantry would probably have -failed to force a passage through the Royal army. The ardour of the -skirmishers in the first hours of the day probably drew him into the -battle, which soon became general. - -The London trained bands, under Skippon, received their baptism of -blood in Newbury marsh and meadows, where they were drawn up, with the -cavalry on the flanks. Rupert was seconded that day by some of the -boldest and fiercest cavalrymen in the Royal armies; and he poured them -again and again, a raging flood of foaming horse and men, upon the -Parliamentarians. Pressing up to the very edge of flashing pike-points, -with desperate stroke and thrust, and discharge of pistols, the gallant -cavaliers strove to reach the sturdy Londoners; only to fall back from -the fierce pike-thrust, while the snorting war-chargers reared and -swerved from the iron front, and the grim musketeers poured in their -heavy fire from the rear, emptying many a saddle, and sorely thinning -the ranks of the King's bold riders. - -Fighting under the King's eye, the cavaliers did all that could be -expected from the most devoted loyalty; but Skippon's pikemen were -beating back the repeated surges for their very life's sake; for the -honour and safety of London, and for Essex's preservation. Once let -that tide break in, and Rupert's revenge would be terrible. Three -times, in quick succession, the London Blues were charged by two -regiments of Royal horse, bent at all hazards to break in, but the -musketeers plied their shot so thick and fast, and made such great -havoc in the charging ranks, that the cavaliers drew off, after their -third charge, and made no further attempt. - -Triumphant as the Parliamentarians were in beating back the spirited -charges of Rupert's gallant cavalry, the toil and strain of battle fell -heavily upon them, and stung into sudden action by the galling fire -of the Royal batteries, they made a somewhat disordered dash towards -Donnington, with the intention of spiking the cannon, the Red London -trained bands leading. Rupert saw the movement, and was quick to seize -the only opportunity of victory that presented itself. In an instant he -was upon them with "Byron's Blacks" and Colepepper's brigade; but as -quickly the pikes were brought to bear, the musketeers poured in their -shot, and the first charge was beaten back; before it could be renewed, -Skippon had got the brave fellows ready, the front ranks kneeling, -and a forest of long pikes presented to the plunging chargers. The -utmost valour of the cavaliers could achieve nothing against the iron -formation, while the regular and destructive fire of the musketeers -swept the front, and strewed the field with dead and wounded men and -horses. - -Essex had had another tough encounter with a chosen band of Royalists, -who, making a long detour, and adopting the broom and furze twigs -which Essex's men wore to distinguish them from the King's men, fell -furiously upon his ranks. The conflict that followed was to the death, -for if the Royalists were incensed by the stubborn resistance that they -met, and by their heavy losses, the Parliamentarians were not the less -fiercely revengeful when, after the long strain of that terrible day, -they rallied all their energies to beat back the perfidious attack of -the Royalists. The desperate melee terminated in favour of Essex's -troops, who beat off and chased the Royalists back. - -The last scenes of the battle had taken place under the gathering -glooms of the September night, and Skippon having succeeded in joining -Essex's cavalry, nothing more could be effected until the morrow. -The exhausted armies reluctantly parted, and silence settled over the -field that had, during the long day, re-echoed the furious and dreadful -sounds of war. Under the peaceful heavens lay 6,000 dead and wounded -men, to be carted into the town by the humane burghers, when there was -a great outcry for surgeons, always, alas, far too few in number to -meet the requirements of war. - -Both armies rested on the field, and stood to arms, ready to renew -the battle, when the day broke again upon Newbury. Essex had secured -his retreat, and could expect to achieve no more. Rupert could force -the fighting with no greater skill and daring than he had already -exercised, and with no greater prospect of penetrating the ranks of -Skippon's pikemen. Essex drew off, unmolested, about noon, but Rupert -fell upon his rear near Aldermaston, and inflicted some loss upon his -troops. His march upon London was not, however, interrupted, and he -entered the city in triumph, having fought a battle that was in all -ways honourable to his army, whether nominally a victory or defeat. -If the King claimed the honour of the field, it was indeed a barren -honour. At every point he had been repulsed, although his cavalry had -sacrificed itself with unmeasured devotion. He had not kept Essex out -of Gloucester, and he had not cut off his retreat upon London. - -During the battle Essex lost a trained band colonel and a few officers; -but Charles lost many gallant and distinguished gentlemen, chief of -whom were the Earls of Sunderland and Carnarvon, and the virtuous and -talented Lord Falkland. The wounded included some of the first cavalry -officers in the Royal army, Lords Chandos, Peterborough, Andover, and -Carlisle, Sir Geo. Lisle, Sir Charles Lucas, and Colonels Gerrard, -Constable, and Darcy. - -In the pages of Clarendon will be found an elaborate account of the -virtuous and unfortunate Falkland, who had a strong presentiment that -he would perish in the conflict, and he accordingly put on clean linen, -and arrayed himself in his richest apparel. - -Essex, before marching off, issued orders for the burial "of the dead -bodies lying in and about Enborne and Newbury Wash." Charles imposed -similar duties upon the mayor of Newbury, expressly intimating that -the wounded Parliamentarians were to receive every attention, and, on -their recovery, be sent on to Oxford. - -Essex carried with him into rejoicing London "many colours of the -King's cornets;" and was there publicly thanked for what his party -were disposed to regard as a victory over the King and his gallant -cavaliers. - - - - -The Second Battle of Newbury, 1644. - - -When the second battle of Newbury was fought, the great rebellion had -received a decided impetus in favour of the Parliamentarians. Marston -Moor had been fought and the greenest laurels of Rupert had withered in -one summer's night before the walls of York. The glory of Essex waned -before the brilliant achievements and solid successes of Cromwell and -Fairfax. The period of drawn battles and disputed victories was passing -away. - -Some transient successes had attended the royal arms, and Essex -had been defeated in Cornwall; but with his army reinforced and -reorganised, he was prepared to try conclusions with His Majesty -on their old battle ground. With Essex there marched the Earl of -Manchester, Skippon, Waller, and Colonels Ludlow and Cromwell. In -consequence of the sickness of Essex, the supreme command devolved upon -Manchester. - -Charles was on the _qui vive_ from the 21st, to Saturday the 26th -October; but being ill-informed of the movements of his dangerous -adversaries, he was ultimately out-manoeuvred, his communications with -Oxford cut off, and his rear threatened. - -Mr. P. Blundell, F.S.A., in his interesting paper on the "Two Battles -of Newbury," thus describes the disposition of the opposing armies:-- - -"On the next day, Friday, and on Saturday, the 26th, Symond's diary -records pithily 'noe action'--both sides, in fact, were busied with -their deadly preparations, for all men knew that their next meeting -would be a stern and bloody one. The King's horse burned to avenge -their recent overthrow on Marston Moor, and Skippon's infantry were -resolute to win back the credit they had lost in Cornwall. - -"The beleaguered Cavaliers now exerted themselves to retrieve their -error, by adding to the strength of their position, throwing up -entrenchments and mounting extra batteries. The Earl of Manchester -with his vanguard held the lower portion of the town, and Cromwell's -Ironsides with some infantry who formed the right wing of the -Parliamentarian army, lay still, but not inactive, upon the south -side of the Kennett, near Ham Mill, and 'thence, as soon as it was -day,'--says Symonds--'they put a tertia of foot over a bridge which -they had made in the night.' - -King Charles again led the Cavaliers in person, the young Prince -of Wales accompanying him, and the Earl of Brentford acting as -Lieutenant-General. The royal standard waved upon Speen Moor, about -a mile more northerly than its position during the previous battle, -and the main body of the Cavaliers held Speen mainland and the upper -town of Newbury, with their lines extending towards the Castle, while -their extreme left rested a little below the present site of Donnington -turnpike, and crossed the lane which intersects the meadows behind -and round about Shaw House, then known as "Dolemans," occupied for -the King, and fortified so strongly as to be, in military parlance, -'the key to the entire position.' The river Lambourn flowed along -their front; Sir Bernard Astley's and Sir George Lisle's cavalry -were stationed round about the fields betwixt the town and Shaw, and -'Dolemans' not only was well garrisoned by musketry and pikes, but had -each hedge and hollow of its garden ground and pleasance, well lined -with ambushed skirmishers and marksmen." - -The burghers of Newbury maintained their accustomed neutrality, to the -great disgust of the King, who, complaining that they rendered him no -account of the movements of his enemies, stigmatised them as "wicked -Roundheads." - -The morning of the battle was spent in a distant cannonade, and the -desultory skirmishing in which so much martial energy was usually -expended. The royal forces made no movement to force the fighting, and -Manchester held his hand in the expectation of reinforcements. - -During the first movements of the battle, about mid-day, Charles and -his son were in some danger of falling into Waller's hands. They -were posted at Bagnor, with their guards in attendance, when the -Parliamentarians, having seized Speen, made a rapid push for Bagnor. -The danger of Charles was imminent, when Colonel Campfield came up on -the spur with the Queen's Life Guards, charged furiously, broke the -Parliamentarians, and followed them in headlong and vengeful pursuit. -Shippon marked the fiery Cavaliers as they swept on in triumph, and -threw out a strong body of infantry to check the pursuit, and afford -Waller an opportunity of rallying; but as quickly the fierce Goring -and the Earl of Cleveland burst upon the pikemen, threw them into -confusion, and bore them sternly back, holding them in deadly play; but -the pikemen and musketeers, whether fighting for king or Parliament, -were seldom or never routed, and they bore nobly up, dressed their -line, and made a stubborn stand; driving off the impetuous Goring with -stinging pikes and hail of bullets. Again the persistent Cavaliers fell -on, and the pikes trembled before the rushing tide of horse and men as -they fell slowly back. Goring eagerly followed up his advantage, when -the Parliamentarians opened their ranks, and allowed the assailants -to pass through, then reformed to cut off their retreat, and opened -a destructive fire. Thus entrapped the Cavaliers fought desperately, -Goring cutting his way through with a handful of followers, but leaving -Cleveland in the hands of the enemy. - -Dolemans, the key of the position, was assailed by Manchester with -3,000 foot and 1,200 horse, a force by no means too powerful for the -arduous task to be attempted. Astley and Lucas were not slow to meet -the assailing forces, and the sonorous psalms of the Parliamentarians -ceased as the battle surges closed. A stubborn and sanguinary -conflict ensued, but Manchester could make no serious impression upon -his enemies. Cromwell, holding his troops, ready to strike when the -opportune moment arrived, beheld the setting of the sun and the closing -shades of night, while the field was as stubbornly contested as ever. -He accordingly prepared to strike with his cavalry. - -Dividing his brigade, he sent one division to the assistance of -Manchester, and with the other fell upon the King's left on Speen Moor. -The king and the young prince fled on the spur to find safety beneath -the cannon of Donnington, while the Life Guards threw themselves upon -Cromwell's troopers, in a gallant attempt to arrest his advance. Vain -was their devotion. The Ironsides smote them hip and thigh, shattered -their formation, and drove them from the field in headlong flight. - - "Their heads all stooping low, their points all in a row, - Like a whirlwind on the trees, like a deluge on the dykes - Our cuirassiers have burst on the ranks of the accurst." - -A harder fate befell the second division. Involved among the hedges -and avenues of Dolmans, they were decimated by the fire of the royal -musketeers, furiously charged by the cavalry, and driven off in the -utmost disorder, after sustaining a loss of 500 men. Edmund Ludlow made -a gallant attempt to relieve them, and cover their retreat. - -With this last desperate conflict the battle ceased, not to be renewed. -The King drew off, and Manchester showed no disposition to attempt any -further operations against him. The second battle of Newbury was thus -not less hardly fought nor indecisive in its results than was the first. - -It is said that the disgust of Cromwell was so great, that it -influenced him, to make his accusation against Manchester, with the -resulting self-denying ordinance, and its remarkable and wide-extending -results. - -Mr. Blundell's paper has been closely followed, but the matter -necessarily condensed in this sketch. - - - - -Binfield and Easthampstead, 1700-1716, and the Early Years of Alexander -Pope. - -BY REV. C.W. PENNY, M.A. - - -There are few more pleasant and charming country villages in Berkshire -than the two adjoining parishes, whose names stand at the head of this -chapter. The undulating surface of the land, consisting for the most -part of well-wooded and well-watered pastures, and a better soil than -prevails in most of the surrounding heaths, must from the first have -made an agreeable oasis in this part of the old Forest of Windsor. -While their convenient situation, abutting north and south of the -old high road, which ran from Reading past Wokingham to Windsor, and -so to London, brought these secluded villages into touch, not only -with the chief town of the county, but also with the busier life of -the Metropolis. And thus, even two hundred years ago, they were an -attractive place of residence for many old families that have long -since died out and passed away. - -The early history of almost every village centres round its church. -And the church at Binfield is no exception to the rule. It lies -embowered with trees at the further end of the village, nestling -against the slope of a steepish hill. And although the ruthless hand -of modern restoration has dealt somewhat hardly both outside and -inside with the fabric itself, yet enough of hoar antiquity remains to -attract the notice of even the most careless visitor. The venerable -but somewhat dumpy tower is built, like those of Warfield and All -Saints', Wokingham, of the conglomerate "puddingstone" of the district, -and bears significant testimony to the scarceness of good building -materials at the date of its erection. For these rugged irregular -fragments must have been collected with infinite pains and labour when -the "iron pan," as it is called, of the surrounding heath country was -broken up, and the land first brought under cultivation. - -As we approach the south door, the fine open timbered perpendicular -porch, a feature which is characteristic of the churches of the -neighbourhood, cannot fail to strike the eye. It is of unusual size, -and the carved oak woodwork, black with age, is of superior workmanship. - -The interior of the church is full of interest to the antiquary -and the archaeologist. For though the roof and arches are low, the -pillars and windows poor, and the general architectural effect mean -and disappointing, yet the floor and walls are crowded with inscribed -and carved gravestones and memorial tablets of no ordinary character. -These, as well as other relics of a bygone age, at once arrest -attention. - -To begin with the latter first; on a desk near the pillar as we enter -is a black letter copy of Erasmus's Paraphrase of the Four Gospels, -which at one time was ordered to be provided in every church at the -cost of the parish. The copy is almost perfect, and has been carefully -re-bound. - -Then there is what the successive restorations have left of the fine -Jacobean pulpit, with its date, "Ano. Dom. 1628," still upon it; and -beside it, though unhappily upon the wrong side, is the elaborate -hour-glass stand of hammered iron-work, consisting of oak leaves and -acorns, alternately with vine leaves and bunches of grapes, together -with three coats-of-arms, said to be those of the Smiths' and Farriers' -Company. This is probably of the same date as the pulpit, if we may -judge from the very similar iron frame-work which is attached to the -pulpit in Hurst Church, and which bears the date 1636. The pulpit at -Binfield has been sadly mutilated; its pedestal and staircase are gone; -and its massive sounding-board has been relegated to the ignominious -silence and seclusion of the vestry. But, in 1628, it must have been -the handsomest pulpit of its kind in the neighbourhood. - -On the floor of the sacrarium is a small brass, a half-length figure -of a priest, represented with a stunted beard, and the apparels of -the amice and albe ornamented with quatrefoils. Underneath is this -inscription in Norman French:-- - - Water de Annesfordhe gist icy, - dieu de sa alme eit mercy. - -It is one of the oldest brasses in the kingdom, for the said "Water" -was rector of Binfield in 1361. Another remarkable fact about it is, -that out of the seven inscriptions of this church recorded in 1664-6 by -E. Ashmole in his "Antiquities of Berks," this is the only one which -has survived the successive restorations. The other six have entirely -gone. - -[Illustration: BINFIELD CHURCH.] - -Immediately in front of the altar the floor is composed of a row -of six black marble gravestones, each of which has a coat-of-arms -elaborately sculptured at the head. That nearest to the centre is to -the memory of Henry, fifth and last Earl of Stirling, of whose family -we shall have more to say presently. The remaining five are remarkable -as being all of them apparently placed to the memory of Papists who -lived in the reign of Charles the II. Indeed, one of them, that, -namely, nearest the north aisle, in memory of William Blount, "who dyed -in the 21st yeare of his Age on ye 9th of May, 1671," has the letters, -"C.A.P.D." engraved at the bottom in large capitals, which stand for -the well-known pre-Reformation prayer, "_Cujus Animae Propicietur -Deus_." And it is clear from the names of those commemorated in the -other inscriptions that towards the end of Charles the II.'s reign -there was a little colony of Papists residing at Binfield. - -One of the oldest of these Roman Catholic families was that of -Dancastle or Dancaster. They had been lords of the Manor of Binfield -since the time of Elizabeth; and a member of the family, John -Dancaster, had been rector of Binfield as far back as 1435. The -gravestone in the chancel is to the memory of another member, also -John Dancaster, who died in 1680, aged eighty-four. And from the -coat-of-arms at the head of it: _Az._, a ball of wild fire _Or._, -impaling, _Sa._, three lions passant in bend _Arg._, between two -double cottises of the last, we are able to identify him as the "John -Doncastle of Welhouse" in Ashmole's "Pedigrees of Berks," who married -Mary, daughter of the Hon. John Browne, younger brother of Anthony, -second Viscount Montague. About five years before his death, he and his -neighbour, Mr. Gabriel Yonge, with his wife Elizabeth, whose gravestone -comes next, were excommunicated by the then rector of Binfield, most -probably for the non-payment of tithes or other ecclesiastical dues. - -In an "Alphabetical List of the Recusants in the County of Berks," who -entered the annual value of their estates for the purpose of being -double taxed, pursuant to an Act passed in 1715, John Dancastle, -probably the son of the above John Dancastle, is assessed at L234 10s., -and his son, Francis Dancastle, at L1 17s. _per annum_. While to the -south wall of Binfield Church is affixed a tablet which records the -final extinction of the race. It was erected in memory of yet another -John Dancastle, "the last of a respectable and ancient family, who -after patiently enduring the most excruciating pains of the Gout, -without intermission for upwards of sixteen years, obtained a happy -release, and passed to a country where grief, sorrow, and pain are no -more, Jany 29th, 1780. Aged 53 years. R.I.P." - -The chief interest in the Dancastle family for us lies in the fact -that it was owing to them that the poet, Alexander Pope, came to live -at Binfield. About the year 1700, the representatives of this family -at Binfield were two brothers, named Thomas and John. Very little is -known about them except what may be gathered incidentally from the -correspondence of Pope. It is believed that they lived at the Manor -House at Binfield, and that it was owing to the friendship between -Alexander Pope the elder and John Dancastle that the former was induced -to settle at Binfield in 1700, when his son, the future poet, was just -twelve years of age. After the migration to Binfield, the similarity of -their tastes, for both were passionately fond of gardening, no doubt -increased the intimacy; and we find that John Dancastle was the first -witness to the elder Pope's will. - -Scarcely anything is known for certain of the family history of -the Popes before the settlement at Binfield, except that Pope's -grandfather was a clergyman of the Church of England, and that he -placed his son, the poet's father, with a merchant at Lisbon, where he -became a convert to the Church of Rome. On his return to England, he -seems to have been unsuccessful in his business affairs. Hearne, the -antiquary, speaks of him (_Diary_, July 18th, 1729) as a "poor ignorant -man, a tanner;" and elsewhere as "a sort of broken merchant," who had -been "said to be a mechanic, a hatter, a farmer, nay, a bankrupt." But -these were probably the false libels which were levelled against the -son in after years in revenge for his keen and bitter satire. - -It is now generally agreed that Mr. Pope, senior, was a linen draper -in London at the time his son was born; and whatever may have been his -success or want of success in that business, we know that, in 1700, he -bought a small estate and house at Binfield, where he resided for the -next sixteen years. He had an income, so Hearne tells us, of between -three and four hundred a year. - -The house can now hardly be said to exist. Pope himself described it -as:-- - - "My paternal cell, - A little house with trees a-row, - And like its master very low;" - -where the retired merchant employed his time chiefly in the cultivation -of his garden, and as his son said;-- - - "Plants cauliflowers, and boasts to rear - The earliest melons of the year." - -But successive owners have so pulled down and rebuilt it, that nothing -now remains of the original house except one room, which tradition -says was the poet's study. There is an engraving of this in E. Jesse's -"Favorite Haunts and Rural Studies," published by J. Murray in 1847 (p. -90). The present house, formerly known as Pope's Wood, is now called -Arthurstone, and belongs to J.W. Macnabb, Esq. - -There is no doubt that besides the Dancastles and the other Papist -families at Binfield, there were numerous Roman Catholics settled in -the neighbourhood. In particular we find that Pope often visited, -and was intimate with, the Blounts, of Mapledurham; the Carylls, of -Ladyholt; and the Englefields, of Whiteknights. At the house of the -last, he used to meet Wycherly, who introduced him to London life, and -Miss Arabella Fermor, the heroine of the "Rape of the Lock." But it -is not a little remarkable that the Popes at Binfield appear to have -associated exclusively with their Roman Catholic friends. Throughout -the whole of Pope's letters there does not appear a single allusion to -the other county families that were undoubtedly residing at Binfield at -this time, and whose gravestones cover a goodly portion of the floor of -the church; for instance, the two branches of the Lee family and the -Alexanders, Earls of Stirling. - -Here then, from the age of twelve, the poet grew up a solitary, -precocious child. He had indeed a half-sister, Magdalen, the only child -of Mr. Pope's first wife. But she was a good deal, at least ten or -twelve years, older than her brother, and at this time, or soon after, -was married to a Mr. Rackett, and lived at Hall Grove, on Bagshot -Heath. For a short time, a few months only after the settlement at -Binfield he was placed under the charge of a priest, the fourth that -had taught him in succession. "This," he says, "was all the teaching I -ever had, and, God knows, it extended a very little way." - -His parents indulged his every whim, and accordingly the boy spent -his mornings in desultory reading, ranging freely and widely at will -through English, Italian, and Latin literature. In the afternoons he -wandered alone amidst the surrounding woods, and fed his imagination -with musings upon the studies of the morning, or feasted his eyes with -the beautiful landscape around him. In particular he is known to have -haunted a grove of noble beech trees, still called Pope's Wood, which -grew about half-a-mile from his father's house. On one of these was -cut the words "_Here Pope sang_;" and for many years the letters were -annually refreshed by the care of a lady residing near Wokingham. This -tree was blown down in a gale, and the words were carved anew upon the -next tree; but when this also fell some years ago the inscription was -not renewed.[6] - -Every evening on his return home the "marvellous boy" committed -to paper the results of his communing with the Muses in the leafy -grove. In this way he composed and wrote out many juvenile verses, -amongst others an epic poem of more than four thousand lines, which -in after years his matured taste consigned to the flames. So close an -application, combined with complete isolation from all companionship of -children of his own age, was certain in the end to affect disastrously -his mental constitution as well as his bodily health. Accordingly we -find that he never shook off the morbid self-consciousness which his -solitary childhood had developed in him. And there is no doubt that -his singular propensity to tricks and plots, which increased upon him -with increasing age, even to the end of his life, was fostered by the -atmosphere of evasion and deceit, in which, owing to the severe penal -laws against Papists, he was necessarily brought up, and which in his -case was never corrected by the wholesome training, if rough experience -of a public school. - -At the same time his intense application, untempered by any distraction -of games or amusements, produced its natural results in a constitution -by nature weakly, and began by the time he was sixteen years of -age seriously to affect his health. He tried many physicians to no -purpose, and finding himself daily growing worse thought he had not -long to live. He therefore calmly sat down and wrote to take leave -of all his friends. Amongst others he sent a last farewell to the -Abbe Southcote, who lived near Abingdon. The Abbe, thinking that -Pope's malady was mental rather than physical, went to his friend -Dr. Radcliffe, the famous physician of Oxford, and described to him -the boy's condition. Armed with full directions the Abbe hastened to -Binfield, to enforce with all the ardour of friendship the doctors -chief prescriptions--strict diet, less study and a daily ride in the -open air. - -In this way Pope, while riding in the Forest, began first to meet, then -to know, and finally to be intimate with the squire of the neighbouring -village. Easthampstead Park was at this time occupied by the veteran -statesman, Sir William Trumbull, Knt. He had lived abroad for many -years as ambassador, first at Paris and then at Constantinople. On his -return home he had been appointed Secretary of State to William III., -and now quite recently, in 1697, he had resigned all his appointments -and had retired to end his days peacefully at home. - -At this time he was a widower, his first wife, Lady Elizabeth, the -daughter of Sir Charles Cotterell, having died in July, 1704. He soon -after married Lady Judith Alexander, youngest daughter of Henry, 4th -Earl of Stirling, who at that time was residing at Binfield, though in -what house is not now known. Sir William was then almost seventy years -of age, having been born apparently about the year 1636, and had no -children. And thus it is easy to understand how the forlorn old man, -riding often no doubt in the direction of Binfield in search of his -second wife, frequently met the invalid poet as he left home in search -of health, through the devious maze of drives in Windsor Forest, on -which even then he was meditating to write a poem. - -Long residence in France and Turkey had no doubt made Trumbull a -citizen of the world. His capacious mind would have no room in it for -the prejudices against Papists, which in England at that time were very -strong, and in country districts banished them from ordinary society. - -[Illustration: EAST HAMPSTEAD CHURCH.] - -Nor was the discrepancy of their years, seventy and seventeen, any bar -to their growing friendship. Like all solitary children, especially -the children of aged parents, Pope, even when a boy, seems always to -have preferred the company and friendship of elderly men. Another link -too was doubtless their mutual incapacity for shooting and hunting, -then, as now, the ordinary pursuits of country gentlemen. Sir William -Trumbull's long absence from England throughout his youth (for he -was educated at Montpellier, in France, during the troubles of the -Commonwealth) and in middle life, when he was engaged in the service of -his country abroad, indisposed him as an old man to begin a new kind of -life, and Pope's crooked frame and feeble health forbad him altogether -to join in such sports. In 1705 he wrote to his friend Wycherly:-- - -"Ours are a sort of inoffensive people, who neither have sense nor -pretend to any, but enjoy a jovial kind of dulness. They are commonly -known in the world by the name of honest, civil gentlemen. They live -much as they ride, at random--a kind of hunting life, pursuing with -earnestness and hazard something not worth the catching; never in the -way nor out of it. I cannot but prefer solitude to the company of all -these." ... - -And in another letter he wrote to his friend Cromwell in the same -strain:-- - -"I assure you I am looked upon in the neighbourhood for a very sober -and well-disposed person, no great hunter indeed, but a great esteemer -of that noble sport, and only unhappy in my want of constitution for -that and drinking. They all say 'tis pity I am so sickly, and I think -'tis a pity they are so healthy; but I say nothing that may destroy -their good opinion of me." - -Besides this, an additional link in the chain which united the two -friends was the similarity of their tastes in literature. Sir William -Trumbull, who, in his early days, had been Fellow of All Souls' -College, Oxford, had kept up his scholarship, and retained to the last -day of his life his early fondness for Greek and Latin authors. - -The results of this friendship were of immense advantage to Pope. -His earliest published poems, _The Pastorals_, modelled on Virgil's -Eclogues, were first submitted to and discussed with Trumbull, as -they rode together about the Forest, and the first Pastoral with much -propriety was dedicated to his venerable friend. It was Trumbull who -first suggested to Pope that he should undertake the translation of the -Iliad, and thereby laid the foundation of his affluence. But far more -than this, when the poet first went to London, and seemed, under the -guidance of the old reprobate Wycherly, to be falling into evil ways, -it was Trumbull who implored him to retrace his steps. "I now come," -he wrote, "to what is of vast moment, I mean the preservation of your -health, and beg of you earnestly to get out of all tavern company, and -fly away from it _tanquam ex incendio_." As long as Pope remained at -Binfield, their friendship was warm and unabated. In striking contrast -with every other intimacy between Pope and his friends no coldness -or quarrel ever arose between them. In April, 1716, the Popes left -Binfield and removed to Chiswick, and in the following December Sir -William Trumbull died. - -To return; in the meanwhile the elder Pope devoted himself to -gardening, in the art of which, as we have seen, he was no mean -proficient. A rival in the same pursuit was his friend, Mr. John -Dancastle. And we find amongst the poet's correspondence a letter from -Sir William Trumbull thanking Pope's father for sending him a present -of "hartichokes" of superior size and excellence; and in another letter -Mr. John Dancastle excuses himself, after the Popes had left, for -not being able to procure them "some white Strabery plants" such as -apparently the elder Pope had reared in the old garden at Binfield. - -While the father was thus occupied in gardening, the son was gradually -creeping into notice as a poet. His early poems and shorter pieces -appeared at first in Tonson's or Lintot's "Miscellanies," or the -"Spectator," and similar publications. But as he became more widely -known, Pope ventured on independent publication by the then usual mode -of introducing new works, namely by subscription. In this way his fine -poems the _Essay on Criticism_, _Windsor Forest_, and the _Rape of the -Lock_, all written and composed at Binfield, appeared successively in -1711, 1713, and 1714. - -The first of these poems should be mentioned for two reasons. It led to -Pope's first introduction to London life, when he made the acquaintance -of the famous wits of the period, Steele, Addison, Gay, and Swift. And -it also was the cause of the first of those literary quarrels in which -Pope's talent for satire henceforth involved him more or less as long -as he lived. Resenting some adverse criticism of his _Pastorals_, he -inserted in the _Essay on Criticism_ the following lines:-- - - "'Twere well might critics still their freedom take, - But Appius reddens at each word you speak, - And stares tremendous with a threatening eye - Like some fierce tyrant in old tapestry." - -John Dennis, the writer thus lampooned as "Appius," retorted in a prose -pamphlet, in which he described his assailant as a "hunch-backed toad," -and went on to say: "If you have a mind to inquire between Sunninghill -and Oakingham for a young, short, squab gentleman, an eternal writer -of amorous pastoral madrigals and the very bow of the god of love, you -will be soon directed to him. And pray, as soon as you have taken a -survey of him, tell me whether he is a proper author to make personal -reflections." - -In his poem _Windsor Forest_ it was natural that Pope should -commemorate his friendship and intercourse with Sir William Trumbull, -by describing in graceful verse the peaceful occupations of his aged -friend's declining years. - - "Happy [the man], who to these shades retires, - Whom Nature charms, and whom the Muse inspires: - Whom humbler joys of home-felt quiet please, - Successive study, exercise, and ease. - He gathers health from herbs the forest yields, - And of their fragrant physic spoils the fields; - - * * * * * - - Now marks the course of rolling orbs on high; - O'er figured worlds now travels with his eye; - Of ancient writ unlocks the learned store, - Consults the dead, and lives past ages o'er. - - * * * * * - - Or looks on heaven with more than mortal eyes, - Bids his free soul expatiate in the skies, - Amid her kindred stars familiar roam, - Survey the region, and confess her home! - Such was the life great Scipio once admired, - Thus Atticus, and Trumbal thus retired." - -Of the _Rape of the Lock_ it will suffice to say that even now some -critics reckon it as Pope's masterpiece. As a specimen of the Mock -Heroic Epic Poem it has no rival in the English language. Here it -chiefly concerns us as a true and lifelike picture of fashionable -manners prevailing in country houses in the reign of Queen Anne. - -The publication of these poems made frequent journeys to London -necessary, in order to settle terms with the publishers and other -literary business. The _Rape of the Lock_ was immediately successful, -three thousand copies being sold in four days, and it was at once -reprinted. Pope's fame was therefore now established firmly, but -hitherto the sums which he had received for his poems would seem to -have been very inconsiderable. He appears to have received thirty -pounds for _Windsor Forest_, and only half that sum each for the _Essay -on Criticism_ and the _Rape of the Lock_. - -He now bethought him, therefore, of Sir William Trumbull's former -suggestion that he should translate Homer, and in October, 1713, he -issued his Proposals to the Public. His friends in London interested -themselves in the subscription. Dean Swift, in particular, said he -should not rest until he had secured for him a thousand pounds. And -so flattering was the response, that in 1715 the family was enabled -to live more at ease. It was now evident that their present abode -was too far from London, for one who had constant negotiations with -the book-sellers and the Popes determined to leave Binfield, and -accordingly their house there was sold towards the end of 1715. It was -bought by a Mr. Tanner, whose gravestone is one of those described -in the beginning of this chapter as lying in front of the altar. He -was probably a Papist, certainly a Non-Juror, for Hearne, who records -the fact, terms him "an honest man," which is Hearne's well-known -periphrasis for denoting those who were Jacobites in politics. - -The last two years of his life at Binfield, Pope spent in translating -the Iliad, or rather, for he was too poor a Greek scholar to read it in -the original, in versifying other people's translations of it. Good old -Sir William Trumbull no doubt helped him whenever a passage of extra -difficulty perplexed the poet. And Mr. Thomas Dancastle, the Squire of -Binfield, was so delighted with his young friend's enterprise that at -infinite pains and labour he made a fair copy of the whole translation -for the press. It also appears from Pope's MSS. that he occasionally -indulged his affectionate and amiable mother in allowing her to -transcribe a portion. But alas! poor Mrs. Pope had had but a slender -education. In the single letter of hers, which has been published, -the spelling is surprisingly phonetic. Alluding to a portion of the -Iliad she writes to her son: "He will not faile to cole here on Friday -morning, and take ceare to cearrie itt to Mr. Thomas Doncaster. He -shall dine wone day with Mrs. Dune, in Ducke (_i.e._, Duke) Street; but -the day will be unsirton, soe I thincke you had better send itt to me. -He will not faile to cole here, that is Mr. Mannock." And the numerous -corrections made in his own hand, sufficiently show that her mode of -spelling gave Pope more trouble than all the subsequent inaccuracies of -the printers. - -Our period draws to its close. In June, 1715, the first volume of -Pope's Homer, containing the first four books of the Iliad came out. It -has been calculated that for the six volumes in which the translation -was comprised Pope received from Lintot more than L5,000. And as the -greater portion of this sum was paid in advance his circumstances at -once became not only easy but affluent. The end of the year was spent -in preparing to migrate to Chiswick. It must be remembered that the new -year then began in March, and on March 20, 1715/16, Pope wrote to his -friend Caryll as follows:-- - -"I write this from Windsor Forest, which I am come to take my last look -and leave of. We have bid our Papist neighbours adieu, much as those -who go to be hanged do their fellow-prisoners who are condemned to -follow them a few weeks after. I was at Whiteknights, where I found the -young ladies I just now mentioned [Theresa and Martha Blount] spoken -of a little more coldly than I could at this time especially[7] have -wished. I parted from honest Mr. Dancastle with tenderness, and from -Sir William Trumbull as from a venerable prophet, foretelling with -lifted hands the miseries to come upon posterity which he was just -going to be removed from." - -Sir William died in the December following in his 78th year, leaving an -only son, also William Trumbull, barely eight years old. The subsequent -history of Binfield and Easthampstead does not fall within the limits -of this chapter. It must suffice to say that Pope occasionally visited -the Dancastles, and possibly stayed with Lady Judith Trumbull. At all -events he recommended his friend, Elijah Fenton, the poet, to be her -son's tutor, and frequently corresponded with him at Easthampstead. -Fenton continued to reside there even after young Trumbull grew to -man's estate, and when Fenton died in 1730, Pope wrote the epitaph -which is still to be seen inscribed upon the tablet erected by William -Trumbull to his memory, on the north wall of Easthampstead Church. - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 6: This was the case until quite recently; but towards the -end of 1893, the late Mr. Hutchinson Browne, of Moor Close, Binfield, -caused the words, "_Here Pope Sung_," to be once more cut in the bark -of a tree growing on the site as Pope's wood. And underneath them he -affixed a brass plate inscribed with the following elegant copy of -verses in Latin and English, which I was fortunate in obtaining for him -from the pen of the Rev. Charles Stanwell, Vicar of Ipsden, Oxon:-- - - "Angliacis resonare modis qui suasit Homerum - Hic cecinit laudes, Vindelisora, tuas; - Hinc Silvae nomen vates dedit; arboris olim - Inciso testis cortice truncus evat. - Silva diu periit, sed nomen et umbra supersunt. - Umbra viri circum, nomen ubique volat." - - "He to our Lyre who wooed great Homer's strain, - Here sang the praise of Windsor's sylvan reign; - Hence gained the wood a poet's name; of old - The attesting trunk, inscribed, the story told. - The wood hath perished, but surviving still - His shade these haunts, his name the world doth fill."--C.W. P.] - -[Footnote 7: Mrs. Blount and her two daughters were on the point of -quitting Mapledurham in consequence of the marriage of her son, Michael -Blount, in 1715.] - - - - -Berkshire Words and Phrases. - -BY REV. M.J. BACON. - - -It is not easy to determine in a subject of this kind what are -the strict lines of demarcation which separate words and phrases -used within a specific area from those used elsewhere, or again, -in many instances, to decide what is dialect, and what mere local -pronunciation. Where the area is confined to the limit of a county, -the difficulties are increased, as the dwellers near the borders would -naturally be influenced by the characteristics of the neighbouring -county. Thus Berkshire folk on the Wiltshire side of the county would -differ in many respects from those on the Hampshire side; and while -the verb to _kite_, for instance, would be unknown to the one, the -adjective _deedy_ would be equally strange to the other. - -Probably, next to verbs and adjectives, the names given to birds and -animals, implements, or any common object, would determine a man's -county. Phrases are less numerous, but adjectives rank first among -local peculiarities. - -Many of these convey the same idea, but are applied to different -objects, and in different ways. Thus in Berkshire _chuff_, _pruff_, -_fess_, _peart_, and _sprack_, all imply something sharp, smart, or -perky; but _pruff_ is applied solely to vegetable life, such as young -and healthy shoots, buds, or growing plants; while a sharp, quick -mannered man may be either _chuff_ or _fess_. "Speak up, _chuff_, now," -is the adjuration of the parent to the bashful child who has just been -addressed by the _quality_. _Fess_ will be recognised at once as the -_fierce_ of the Eastern counties, implying a certain amount of vigour, -indeed, but conveying no idea of savagery or temper. _Peart_ and -_sprack_ speak for themselves. - -Next come _bristle_ and _briffut_, used both as nouns and verbs, though -the former is more often the substantive, expressing a sharp, active -fellow, or perhaps a terrier, who would _briffut about_ in search of -rats. The adjective _deedy_, on the other hand, is careful, wary, -cautious, almost the Yankee _'cute_, and is usually intensified by -_main_, very. "What sort of a girl is your daughter?" asked the late -Baron Huddleston of the mother of a young girl who had just given -evidence in an important case in the Reading Assize Court. "She be a -main deedy little girl, my Lord," was the reply. "Greedy, did you say?" -"No, my Lord, deedy--main deedy." But Reading is not central enough -in the county for anyone in court to have replied to his Lordship's -puzzled look of enquiry. - -Besides _main_, _feart_, or _feartish_, is used to emphasise an -expression. "He be a _main sight_, or a _feartish deal_ better," or -perhaps "only _tar'blish_" a contraction of tolerablish. In like -manner, the patient would _change_ for the better, but _alter_ for -the worse, while _a bit altery_ would apply to the weather _tokening_ -for rain. _Smart_ is used to qualify another word, as _a smart few_, -meaning a good many, or it would _rain smartish_. Other words, -sometimes corruptions, are common, as _unked_, awkward, in the sense of -obstinate, troublesome; _stomachy_, proud, self-willed; _quisiting_, -inquisitive; _querky_, querulous; _wangery_, languid; _shackelty_, -shaky; _hechatty_, onomatopoean, applied to a cough; _peaked_, -pronounced _pikkid_, pointed, as the end of a stick; _worriting_ for -worrying, though _terrifying_ is more often used, to _terrify_ and -to _worrit_ being synomymous. _Casualty_ is risky, hollies being -considered _casualty things_ to plant, while it is often _casualty -weather_ in hay-making time. To be _in a ferrick_ is to be in a fidget, -and _all of a caddle_ in a muddle. _Heft_ is weight, and _hefty_, -weighty. To poise anything in the hand to test its weight would be to -_heft_ it. _Overright_ is opposite, a word unknown to the aborigines; -but what a "Leicestershire mon" would call _over yon_, is expressed -by his Berkshire compeer as _athurt thur_, evidently a corruption of -athwart there. _Overright_ would, of course, be originally rightover, -and this tendency to put the cart before the horse is common. _Droo -wet_ is always used for wet through. The same peculiarity appears -elsewhere, as in _breakstuff_ for breakfast, and even in monosyllables, -as _hapse_ for hasp, _clapse_ for clasp, and _aks_ for ask. This last, -however, is by no means confined to Berkshire. - -Some of the verbs are original, while others bear signs of being simply -mispronunciations. To _quilt_ is to swallow; to _plim_ to swell, like -rice in the boiling; to _huck_ to dig up, or empty. A man _hucks out_ a -gutter or ditch, or simply _hucks_ his potatoes. To _tuck_ is probably -originally to pluck, and is applied to dressing the sides of a newly -made rick with the hand to make it trim and neat. To _kite_, or _kite -up_, is to look up sharp or peeringly; while bees are indifferently -said to _bite_ or _tang_. "They do tang I," would seem to preclude any -derivation from sting, as it undoubtedly is. To _argue_ is used in its -proper sense, and is very common; but it is always turned into the -monosyllable _arg_. - -It is not surprising to find peculiarities in the common objects and -customs of everyday life. Thus the eleven o'clock _snack_ under the -hedge, known elsewhere as _elevenses_, is _nuncheon_; and so it comes -to pass that a horse deficient in barrel is spoken of disparagingly -as having "no nuncheon bag." A bradawl is a _nalpasser_, no doubt -"nail-passer"; but a gimlet retains its name, and is not called a -_twinnet_, as in some places. A _duckut_ is a small bill hook for -cutting faggots; while a _fag-hook_, or _fagging-hook_, is a crooked -stick used instead of the left hand in clearing a bank of nettles, -etc., with an iron "hook." The new mown hay is termed _eddish_, while -_tedding out_ hay is spreading it out in the sun after it has been -mown. The hay-loft over the stable, often the sleeping place of the -_fogger_ (_forager_), the man who tends the cattle, is called the -_tallut_; the smallest pig in the litter, elsewhere either the "cad" -or "darling," is invariably the _runt_; a dog's fangs are _tushes_, -and a bird's claws _nippens_. In the poultry-yard and pigeon-cote -the cock-bird is the _tom_; and some of the wild birds have their -peculiar names assigned them. Thus the _wry_neck, or cuckoo's mate, -is the _pe-pe_ bird, from its note; a _wish_ wagtail is a _dasher_; a -woodpecker a _yaffingal_; and the golden plover a _whistling dovyer_. -The little white moth that flits about in the twilight at sundown in -the summer months is a _margiowlet_, and the steady, plodding mole, is -either a _want_ or a _mouldiwarp_. - -Berkshire stands confessedly at the head of all pig-breeding counties, -but that is no reason why the usual call of "choog, choog, choogy," -at feeding time, should be changed to "teg, teg, teggy." The cattle -call of _coop, coop_, is of course a corruption of "come, come"; and -_coobid, coobiddy_, the poultry call of "come hither." The carter, -walking on the near side of his horses, calls them towards him by -_coomither_, or _coomither-awo-oy_, or more frequently _holt_, or -_holt toward_, with the accent on the first syllable of "toward," and -sends them to the off side with the monosyllable _wug_. It is not -often that the Berkshire man stoops to abuse, for he is naturally -easy-going, stolid, and impassive; but a driven cow taking a wrong turn -would inevitably be denounced as an _old faggot_, and a troublesome -boy be branded as a _young radical_, though without any political -signification attached. A simile would not be looked for amongst -essentially an unimaginative folk, but _as 'pright as a dish_ is -common, and singularly inappropriate. - -Of superstition there is comparatively little, and ghosts and -witches meet with but little respect, the men believing that a good -"vowld-stake" (i.e. fold-stake) is a sufficient weapon in all cases of -emergency, and the women being fully as undaunted as the men. There -is, however, a curious old Berkshire saying, that "a spayed bitch will -catch a witch," and that there is some faith in the truth of the saying -is shown by the fact that sheep dogs, if of the feminine gender, used -frequently to be so treated. - -Every race has its physical peculiarity, and where the negro is -tenderest, the Berkshire man is toughest,--in his shins. As a backstop -he prefers to stop the fastest balls with his shins, rather than with -his hands, and will keep on all day without apparent inconvenience. -At "backswording" Berkshire men were always renowned; but it was -necessarily the privilege of the few, the ordinary farm labourer having -no opportunity for practising it. Some other test of endurance must -therefore be accepted; and forty years ago it was the regular custom, -when two carters stopped at a way-side public-house, for the men to -shake hands first, in token of friendship, and then to indulge in the -pastime of either _cutlegs_ or _kickshins_, the former consisting of -the men standing apart, and lashing each others legs with their long -cart whips till one cried "Hold," while in _kickshins_ each man took -firm grip of his opponent by twisting both hands in the overlapping -collar of his smock frock, and then kicking with his hob-nailed boots -at the other's shins, the vanquished one of course paying for both pots -of ale before they started once more on their respective journeys. -There was living in the Lambourn valley, less than forty years ago, a -man who was considered the champion of the county side, and his shins -were knotted and bent and twisted in the most remarkable manner, as the -result of his numerous encounters. - -Heavy of gait, stolid of mien, and of indomitable courage, the true -Berkshire man is a staunch friend, and a very poor enemy, for he -harbours no resentment. Imperturbable to the last degree, he is rarely -surprised into an exclamation of surprise, excitement, or satisfaction. -When he is, _Dal-lee_, with a strong accent on the last syllable, is -his sole resource. "Dal-_lee_! that's got 'un," says the carpenter with -a grunt of satisfaction, as he gives the finishing blow that drives -home a big nail at which he has been pounding. Its derivation may not -be hard to find, but it makes the Berkshire man no worse than his -neighbours after all. - -But all these things are relics of a past age now. Shins are tenderer, -mouths less wide, or at least the dialect is less broad; and the -certificated schoolmaster and the railways have done their deadly work. - -_Tempora mutantur, nos et mutamur in illis._ - - - - -Bull-Baiting in Berkshire. - -BY REV. CANON STURGES. - - -The character of a people is reflected in their amusements. The -gradual decline of the popularity of rough and cruel sports is a -sure indication that there has been corresponding improvement in the -people themselves. The History of Sports will show how slowly and yet -how continuously this improvement has gone on under the influence of -Christian civilization. - -It was not until christian teaching had been leavening society for 400 -years that public opinion was educated up to the point of abolishing -the gladiatorial contests, and the wholesale massacres of the Roman -amphitheatre. For nearly a thousand years more the lists, within which -men-at-arms met in mortal combat to shew their skill or settle their -quarrels, were the very chiefest places of amusement in our own land. -There king and nobles would sit on seats raised above the crowd, and -fairest ladies gave the signal to begin, and presented the reward to -the victor when the games were over. The common people crowded round -the enclosure, while all watched the armed men tilting at one another -on horseback, or dealing mighty blows with sword and buckler, and when -a spear's head penetrated a knight's corslet, and he fell from his -horse, and his life's blood oozed out on the ground, or when a downward -sweep of a great two-handed sword fell on a footman's helmet, cleaving -it and the head beneath it in two, as sometimes happened, the men in -the crowd did not turn sick, nor the women scream and faint, as would -be the case now if such sights were seen, but the men clapped their -hands and cheered, and the women waved their handkerchiefs, and put on -their sweetest smiles for him who dealt the fatal blow. In time that -class of exhibitions passed out of use, and another took its place, -and survived to within the memory of living persons. No longer was -the stake played for human life, but for the humbler one of the life -of a brute. Sometimes, indeed, the highest in the land would mingle -with the lowest, for the pleasure of seeing a couple of strong men -battering one another's faces into shapeless mass with fists, until -one of the two could no longer stand. But the commoner and more -generally approved sport was that which transferred the duty of being -done to death for the amusement of mankind, from man himself to the -dumb helpless creatures that have been committed to man's care, and set -apart for his lawful use. Bull-baiting, bear-baiting, cock-fighting, -rat-killing, dog-fighting, and such like, were for several centuries -his favourite amusements.[8] Queen Elizabeth was an enthusiastic -patroness of baiting. The master of the bears, bulls, and dogs, was one -of the officers of the Royal household during her reign, and in several -subsequent reigns. She was wont to entertain ambassadors to her court, -with bull and bear-baiting after a state dinner. In 1591 an order of -the Privy council was issued forbidding plays to be acted on Thursdays, -because "bear-baiting and such like pastimes had usually been practised -on that day." Thus Shakespeare was silenced every Thursday, lest the -bull-ring should be neglected. - -It was not until the beginning of the present century that the -conscience of the nation began to revolt against the continuance -of this barbarous sport. In 1802 an attempt was made in the House -of Commons to pass a bill to suppress it. The question was argued -with much warmth, and the bill was lost. In 1835 public opinion had -so far advanced that a bill was passed without much difficulty, by -which it became illegal henceforth to bait or worry any bear, bull, -dog, or other animal. And thus after seven centuries of popularity, -bull-baiting ceased to be a public amusement. - -We should like now to take our readers, as far as we can by a -descriptive narrative, to one of the bull-baitings of Berkshire as they -were conducted sixty years ago. There are plenty of places we might -select for our visit. Every town in the county and every considerable -village had its common or ground where the greensward was reddened at -least once a year with the blood of bulls and dogs. Strangely enough -the favourite day for the great bait of the year was Good Friday. - -The best place we can select for our visit will be Wokingham. It is a -comfort to know that there at least the baiting will not be on Good -Friday. St. Thomas's Day, Dec. 21st, has been the day there set apart -for many generations for the sacrifice of bulls by dog-torture. And -there the sport enjoys an endowment and so flourishes wonderfully, -outdoing in the fame of its bull-baiting all other towns and parishes -in the county of Berks. The endowment arose in this way. One, George -Staverton, a lover of the sport, having himself, it is said, been -gored by a bull, charged his estate with L6 a year to provide a bull -for baiting. Whether he meant it as a revenge on the whole bull race -for his injuries, or, as the expression of a good-natured wish, that -others should enjoy the sport from which he had himself received so -much pleasure, we are left to guess. But this we know, that the bequest -increased in value, and soon was sufficient to buy two bulls at least -every year; and in 1815, which is the year to which we are going to -take our readers back to witness the Wokingham bull-baiting, anyone -strolling through the streets of the town, any day of the year, would -have had abundant evidence that the sport was held in great estimation -by the inhabitants. At many a cottage door was to be seen a specimen of -the true British bull-dog. Sometimes the animal had a silver collar, -betokening past victories won over the bull. All were sleek, and -evidently objects of much care and interest, often of much more than -were bestowed on the children of the house. - -The 21st of December, 1815, was a cold, damp, dull day. Two hours -before noon, a young fellow drove out of Reading with a companion -to see the Wokingham bull-baiting. As they drew near the town, the -road became crowded with carriages and pedestrians hurrying in the -same direction.[9] Arrived at the Market Place, the younger man found -a place in a window overlooking the scene, while the elder, a tall -fellow, evidently a _habitue_ of the bull-ring, joined the crowd -outside. The spectators filled every window, and in some cases had -seated themselves on the roofs of the houses. Carriages, filled with -occupants, were drawn up in front of the shops, and all available -standing room on the footpaths and roadway was filled by visitors, -towns-people, and parishioners. A cry arises "room for the Alderman -and Burgesses." The Corporation of Wokingham dates from Saxon times, -and the chief-magistrate was still called "the Alderman," the town -having refused steadily for eight centuries to adopt the new-fangled -Norman title of "Mayor." The remaining members of the Corporation were -"burgesses." Here they come, first pushing a way through the crowd, -two "ale-tasters" with wands of office surmounted by the acorn, the -Corporation crest; then two sergeants of the mace, the mace-bearer, the -alderman, burgesses, town clerk, and others. The alderman takes his -seat with his friends in the large window of the old "Red Lion Inn," -and gives the signal that the sport is to begin. Shouts are heard and a -commotion is evident in a corner of the crowd. Here he comes, the first -bull, led by a dozen strong men, a rope round his horns and a chain -fifteen feet long, into the middle of the market place, where the end -of the chain is fastened to a strong staple in a post level with the -ground. Away go his keepers. In a moment the bull has cleared a ring -for the coming contest. With head down and tail erect, he sweeps round -at the full extent of his chain, and is all alone in the centre of a -circle thirty feet in diameter. - -"A lane! a lane!" and quickly the crowd has given way to form a narrow -passage, at the end of which we see a man holding a dog between his -knees. It is the first dog to be set on; his owner cries, "Set on!" -and the dog loosed tears down the lane, through hoops held at regular -intervals, right at the face of the bull, who has heard his yelp, and -is waiting for him. The dog goes for the bull's nose; the animal keeps -him off by always presenting a horn to his advance. We notice he does -not _prod_ at the dog, but tries to sweep the horn along the ground -under the dog's belly. The dog, quite conscious of the meaning of these -tactics, is never for a moment still, but dancing to and fro, tries to -get through the bull's guard. It seems for a while that this game of -attack and defence might go on for the whole day. But suddenly the bull -has managed to get his horn beneath the dog, and up he goes into the -air, some twenty or thirty feet high. "Catch the dog, quick. He'll be -done for if he touches ground." And see our friend from Reading holding -out a pair of long arms, and down comes the dog, bespattering, as he -falls into them, the man's face and clothes with blood and mud. When -the day is over, many, who came out in holiday clothes, will return -home sorry spectacles from dog-catching, covered with filth, and with -torn and disordered clothes. - -Another dog is now ready. His fate is more speedily determined than -that of his predecessor. The bull, almost immediately, sends him flying -into the air, so high that he falls on the roof of the Town Hall, and -in coming down is impaled on some spikes. - -This is a grand stroke by which the present bull has outdone all former -bulls that have been fastened to that chain and stake for many a year. -And while the poor dog is writhing and whining piteously, the crowd -applauds vociferously. In one of the smaller carriages, two school boys -occupy the back seat. These boys are now standing up, wildly clapping -their hands and hurrahing, while the dog on the roof still writhes and -cries out in its agony. One of those boys will live to be a farmer in -Wokingham, and be well known for his love of animals. More than seventy -years after the event he will often tell of this, his only visit to -the bull-baiting, and express his wonder by what strange contagion he -could have caught the spirit of that cruel crowd, and witnessed, with -delirious delight, animal torture, which on any other day of his life -would have brought tears to his eyes.[10] - -And now a third dog is set on. Whether the bull is tired or demoralized -by the applause he has just received we cannot tell; but certain it is -that number three almost at once-succeeds in fastening his teeth in -the cartilage of the bull's nose. "A pin! a pin!" "The dog has pinned -the bull!" and the animal tosses its head up and down in a frenzy of -wrath and terror, trying to shake off the dog. But he might as well try -to shake off his own horns. A story is told of a man who made a bet, -and won it, that he would cut off each of his dogs legs in succession -without his letting go, when once he had got his teeth in the bull. - -The owner of the present dog with the assistance of other men forces -the dog's mouth open with a stick, and so gets him away, but not -without tearing the bull's nose and leaving a portion of the cartilage -in the dog's mouth. A note is taken of the owner's name that his dog's -success may be rewarded in due time at the distribution of prizes. - -Three or four more dogs are set on in turn, and the short winter -afternoon is already half over. People begin to clamour for the second -bull. But they are not destined to part with the first without a little -more excitement. Some young men growing bold by familiarity with the -scene, take an opportunity of tossing the loose chain over the animal's -back. This makes him start forward with great impetuosity, and in doing -so he tears the staple out of the post to which the chain is fastened. -"The Bull is loose!" Away scampers the crowd in every direction. A -woman who had been selling apples and cakes out of a large basket -is upset in her flight, and her wares are scattered. Several others -fall over her prostrate form, but before further mischief is done, -the animal is again secured. A single tree grows in the middle of the -market-place. In the boughs a number of small boys, early in the day, -had taken up their position, and there witnessed all the fun. Not -knowing how else to secure the bull while the staple in the post is -undergoing repair, the men pass the chain round this tree. The bull, -finding itself thus robbed of a liberty which just now had seemed to -offer a prospect of escape from his tormentors, frantic with rage and -terror, makes wild rushes forward, jerking and swaying the tree to the -great alarm of the urchins in the boughs. The crowd enjoying their -fright, cry out to increase it, "the tree is coming down." This is too -much for the boys' courage, down they come like apples in a gale of -wind, some on the bull's back, some in the slush and mud. The whole -crowd except a few anxious parents, is convulsed with laughter. Luckily -the boys are got out of the way of the bull, who seems fairly puzzled -at this new form of attack, and no one is seriously hurt.[11] - -It is now determined to dismiss the bull to the neighbouring -slaughter-house. The poor creature is led away, covered with blood, and -foam, and sweat, a very picture of distress and exhaustion, and of the -madness that comes of fear, rage, and pain. - -The second bull is coming out fresh and strong, and good to keep up the -sport for another hour or two. But we have seen enough, and may well -return to Reading with our young friend who has been looking on from -the window. The light is already failing. It is damp and chill, and -will be dark before he reaches home. It is well, too, to escape the -rough horse-play which grows rougher as the day closes. Already there -have been several fights among the dog-owners and others, and before -the night is over there will be many more, and not impossibly lives -may be lost. Even the lives of women were not always safe after the -passions of men had been roused by these scenes of cruelty, sustained -by a free flow of the drink, which makes men "full of quarrel and -offence." Witness the Parish Registers, where we find the entry, -"Martha May, aged 55, (who was hurt by fighters after Bull-baiting) was -buried Dec. 31st 1808." Poor Martha May! she must have been badly hurt, -and only lived six days, as we reckon, (allowing four days for the -interval between her death and burial), after her last bull-baiting on -St. Thomas's Day in Wokingham Market Place in 1808. - -There remains one other point on which information is needed. The dogs -were evidently highly trained. Knowing quite well what was expected of -them, eager as grey-hounds with the quarry in view to escape from the -master's hand, and to fly through the hoops at the bull's nose. Where -and how did they get their training? There are still old inhabitants -in Wokingham who can answer this question by word of mouth. For weeks -before the baiting, on every moonlight night, it was common practice -for a party of men with three or four dogs to visit some field or -park, and there driving an ox, which they had before noted as suitable -for their purpose, into a corner of the field, set on their dogs in -order, according to the received rules of baiting. In the morning the -owner would be furious at finding his best ox in a pitiable condition, -and useless for the market for months to come. But so general was the -interest in bull-baiting that he got no more pity than the farmer's -wife, whose ducks are all killed by a fox, gets now from her neighbours. - -Looking back on bull-baiting and similar sports, that were -contemporaneous with it, and comparing them with the scenes of violence -that formed popular entertainments in the generations that went before, -and with the sports and games of our own day, the conclusion cannot be -escaped that the world's history shews a well-marked line at progress -in the gentler virtues, and the growth of sympathy between man and his -fellow, and between man and the animals around him, that tends to -brand cruelty wherever found as a vice. - -It is the duty of every one to do what he can to further this progress -to quicken this growth, and to practise and encourage only those -amusements which seem suitable for the development of the best side in -the character of the people. - -[Illustration: THE END] - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 8: Erasmus, the reformer, speaks of 'many herds' of bears -which he saw being trained for baiting when he was in England in the -reign of Henry VIII.] - -[Footnote 9: This description is taken from "The Reminiscences of an -Octogenarian," published in _The Reading Observer_. He describes a -visit made by himself when a youth, to Wokingham, under the guidance -of an elder companion, to see the bull-baiting. Other particulars have -been derived from information given to the writer of this article by -those, most of them now dead, who were spectators of the sports.] - -[Footnote 10: The particulars of this scene were given to the writer by -the farmer who had been one of the boys in the chaise.] - -[Footnote 11: The description of this scene is taken partly from an old -picture, and partly from the narrative of an eye-witness.] - - - - -Index. - - - Abbot, power of, 133-134 - - Alfred the Great, 98-114 - - Agriculture languishing, 14 - - Albert Memorial Chapel, 41 - - Abingdon, chronicles of, 63-64; - Fair, 93; - Guild, 121 - - - Bacon, M.J., Berkshire Words and Phrases, 235-243 - - Barber's Guild, 124-126, 129 - - Berkshire Words and Phrases, 235-243 - - Bible, Alfred attempts to translate the, 107 - - Binfield, 211-234 - - Binfield and Easthampstead, 1700-1716, and the early years - of Alexander Pope, 211-234 - - British tribes, 2 - - Bull-baiting in Berkshire, 244-258 - - Burney, Fanny, life at Windsor described by, 37 - - Burning at the Stake, 14 - - - Celtic times, 2 - - Chapel Royal, 40-41 - - Charles I. a prisoner at Windsor, 34; - execution and burial, 34; - snow at his funeral, 35 - - Christianity, spread of, 8 - - Civil War, 14-18 - - Cloth-trade destroyed at Reading, 160 - - Cumnor Place and Amy Robsart, 63-97 - - Cumnor Church, 65-69 - - - Danes destroy Churches, 7-8; - defeated, 104 - - Disobedience, fine for, 126 - - Ditchfield, P.H. Historic Berkshire, 1-20; - Guilds of Berkshire, 115-136 - - Dragon stories, 140 - - Dudley, Lord Robert, 74-91 - - - Easthampstead, 211-234 - - Elfreda's crimes, 179 - - Elizabeth, Queen, patroness of baiting animals, 246 - - England united under Alfred, 7 - - - Faringdon, Hugh, 153-159 - - Field, J.E., Wallingford Castle, 47-62 - - First Battle of Newbury, 193-203 - - First monarch interred at Windsor, 31 - - Freedom of towns sold, 131 - - - Gardiner, E.R., Scouring of the White Horse, 137-152 - - Garter, institution of, 26 - - Gaunt, John of, marriage, 186 - - Gilt cup as a New Year's present, 159 - - Good Friday, baiting animals on, 247 - - Guilds of Berkshire, 115-136 - - - Handbill, quaint, 144 - - Herne's oak, 44 - - Heart of St. George brought to Windsor, 30 - - Highwayman, story of a, 142-143 - - Historic Berkshire, 1-20 - - Holy Cross, Guild of, 135 - - Hunting, 113 - - - Ingleby, Miss Evelyn, Windsor Castle, 21-46 - - Inns in Berkshire, 87 - - Isabella bestowes Wallingford Castle on Mortimer, 56 - - - Jack of Newbury, 13 - - James, flight of, 36 - - Jewel, Alfred's 103 - - John signs the Magna Charta, 11-12 - - - Knighthood, flower of, 26 - - - Lamplough, E., First Battle of Newbury, 193-203; - Second Battle of Newbury, 204-210 - - Last of the Abbots, 153-159 - - Law-giver, Alfred the, 110-114 - - Library at Windsor, 42-43 - - - Magna Charta, 11-12, 23 - - Martin, regicide, 163 - - Mercatory guild, 128 - - Merry Wives of Windsor, 33 - - Murder of Amy Robsart, 88 - - - Newbury, First Battle, 193-203; - Second Battle, 204-210 - - Nicholas, St., College of, 60 - - Norman Conquest, 65 - - Norman invaders, 9 - - - Oaks, ancient, 44 - - Origin of Guilds, 116 - - - Parliament held at Reading, 13; - at Wallingford, 53 - - Parsons, Robert, Author of 'Leicester's Commonwealth,' 76-77 - - Penny, C.W., Binfield and Easthampstead, 211-234 - - Pepys at Windsor, 35 - - Philippa, Queen, death of, 26-28 - - Poet and scholar, Alfred, 106-110 - - Poetry, Anglo-Saxon, 100 - - Pomp and vanity at Windsor, 25 - - Pope, Alexander, 217-234 - - Physical peculiarity, 241 - - - Reading Abbey, 179-192; - Guilds, 117, 123 - - Reformation, doctrines of, 14 - - Reid, H.J., F.S.A., Cumnor Place and Amy Robsart, 63-97 - - Restoration rejoicings, 18 - - Restoration of Windsor Castle, 39 - - Revolution of 1688, 18-19 - - Richard II. at Windsor, 28; - death, 29 - - Robsart, Amy, 74-91, 78-82 - - Roman times, 2-4 - - Rome visited by Alfred, 100 - - Royal county, 1 - - Royal prisoners, story of, 25 - - - Saxon times, 5 - - Scott, Sir Walter, on Cumnor, 73 - - Scouring of the White Horse, 137-152 - - Second Battle of Newbury, 204-210 - - Settlements of the Saxons, 5-6 - - Seymour, Jane, buried at Windsor, 32 - - Shaw, the Lifeguardsman, 149 - - Ship-money, 162 - - Shoemaker's guild, 126-127 - - Siege of Reading, 160-178 - - Simon de Montfort, 12, 24 - - Snow at the funeral of Charles I., 35 - - Soldiers taking down a weathercock, 67 - - Sports, 141-142 - - Standard, Saxon, 138-139 - - Staverton, George, strange bequest, 248 - - Stephen and the Empress Maud, wars of, 10-11 - - Sturges, Canon, Bull-baiting in Berkshire, 244-258 - - Sunday shaving, 124-126; - Sports, 127 - - Superstitions, 241 - - - Tailors ordered to make clothes for soldiers, 165 - - Tennyson, quoted, 46 - - Thompson, W.H., Alfred the Great, 98-114 - - Tiles as fines, 125 - - Tobacco, prize for smoking, 149 - - Trade, increase of, 12 - - - Voting L70,000 for a tomb, 35 - - Victuallers' Company, 127-128 - - Village Feasts, 137 - - - Wallingford Castle, 47-62 - - Wantage, birth place of Alfred, 98 - - Warrior-king, Alfred, 100-106 - - Wellington on a victory, 160 - - White Horse, 137-152 - - Windsor Castle, 21-46 - - William the Conqueror at Wallingford, 48 - - Wokingham, bull-baiting at 247-256 - - Wolsey's Tomb-House, 22 - - Words and Phrases, 235-243 - - - - -LIST OF PUBLICATIONS - -of - -WILLIAM ANDREWS & CO., - -5, FARRINGDON AVENUE, LONDON, E.C. - -"Valuable and interesting."--_The Times._ - -"Readable as well as instructive."--_The Globe._ - -"A valuable addition to any library."--_Derbyshire Times._ - - -The Bygone Series. - -In this series the following volumes are included, and issued at 7s. -6d. each. 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But it -seems that we had no occasion for them. Mr. Andrews discusses his -various subjects,--The Right of Sanctuary, The Romance of Trial, -Charter Horns, The Curfew Bell, and so on,--in so pleasant a style, and -with such evident love of his work, that all fear of the dry-as-dust -immediately vanishes, and we find ourselves taking as great interest -in ancient clerical usages and customs as he himself does, and are, -in fact, quite reluctant to part with our guide when the end of the -volume is reached. We feel that we should also mention the excellent -typography of the publication, and the suitable illustrations by which -it is accompanied."--_Publisher's Circular._ - - -"A worthy work on a deeply interesting subject.... We commend this book -strongly."--_European Mail._ - - -"An interesting volume."--_The Scotsman._ - - -"The book is eminently readable, and may be taken up at any moment with -the certainty that something suggestive or entertaining will present -itself."--_Glasgow Citizen._ - -_Elegantly bound in cloth gilt, demy 8vo., 7s. 6d._ - -Curious Church Gleanings, - -Edited by WILLIAM ANDREWS, F.R.H.S., - -Author of "Curiosities of the Church," "Old Church Lore," etc. - -[Illustration] - -CONTENTS:-- - - What to Look for in an Old Church--Early Church Dedications--The - Church Porch--The Lights of a Mediaeval Church--Concerning - Crosses--Misericordes--Church Gilds--Pews of the Past--The - Bishop's Throne--Chantries--Hagioscopes--Some English Shrines--The - Church and the Well of St. Chad--Burials in Woollen--Hearse: - How a Word has Changed its Meaning--Heart Burials of English - Persons--Boy-Bishops--Gleanings from a Parish Chest--A carefully - compiled Index. - -ILLUSTRATED. - -[Illustration] - - -Press Opinions. - -"The volume, which is beautifully printed and illustrated, will -fascinate the reader by its diversity, its instructive exposition, -and its record of what is odd, mystical, and glorious in the Church's -annals."--_Birmingham Daily Gazette._ - -"A most entertaining work, and useful to antiquaries and sociologists -as a book of reference."--_Leeds Mercury._ - -"A fund of quaint and pleasing information."--_Chester Courant._ - -"Mr. Andrews and his coadjutors have provided a work which will give -unqualified pleasure to the reader of the day, and which will prove -engrossing to every searcher after the ancient and the curious in -ecclesiastical history or structure."--_Dundee Advertiser._ - -"The learned editor of this work has in several volumes proved his -extensive acquaintance with early records of the English Church, and -of the marks she bears of pre-Reformation times. He was, therefore, -well fitted for the task of preparing this collection of papers dealing -with 'the byways and highways' of Church History in this country, -and the result is a volume that will give pleasure to many besides -ecclesiastical antiquarians.... 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The work may be read with -pleasure and profit, and merits a place in the reference library. - - -PRESS OPINIONS - -"A welcome addition to the lighter literature of the law."--_The Times._ - - -"A considerable amount of historical and literary information."--_Daily -News._ - - -"An entertaining work. It is rich in the lore and the humour of -the law, and ought to be as interesting to the layman as to the -lawyer."--_The Globe._ - - -"An entertaining volume."--_Manchester Guardian._ - - -"A handsome volume.... The work is printed and got up in a style that -does credit to the well-known firm of publishers."--_Chester Courant._ - - -"Deserves to be placed amongst the best English books of -reference."--_Stockport Advertiser._ - - -"It is a repository of many entertaining, useful, and surprising facts, -the result of considerable research."--_Birmingham Daily Gazette._ - -_PRICE ONE SHILLING._ - -"A very entertaining volume."--_Birmingham Daily Gazette._ - -A Lawyer's Secrets. - -By HERBERT LLOYD, - -AUTHOR OF "THE CHILDREN OF CHANCE," ETC. - -[Illustration] - - -PRESS OPINIONS. - -"Mr. Herbert Lloyd gives us a succession of stories which may -reasonably be taken to have their origin in the experience of a -lawyer practising at large in the criminal courts. It is natural that -they should be of a romantic nature; but romance is not foreign to a -lawyer's consulting room, so that this fact need not be charged against -this lawyer's veracity.... The stories, seven in all, cover the ground -of fraud and murder, inspired by the prevailing causes of crime--greed -and jealousy. Our lawyer is happy in having the majority of his clients -the innocent victims of false charges inspired and fostered in a great -measure by their own folly; but this is a natural phase of professional -experience, and we are only concerned with the fact that he generally -manages it as effectively in the interests of his clients as his editor -does in presenting them to his audience."--_Literary World._ - - -"A volume of entertaining stories.... The book has much the same -interest as a volume of detective stories, except that putting the -cases in a lawyer's mouth gives them a certain freshness. It is well -written, and makes a capital volume for a railway journey."--_The -Scotsman._ - - -"Mr. Herbert Lloyd has added a very entertaining volume to the lighter -literature of the day. 'A Lawyer's Secrets' are a charmingly-told -series of short stories, full of life and incident, without -suggesting the impossible. The professional career of the lawyer -abounds in interesting confidences, explaining many of the apparent -mysteries which so frequently crop up. Mr. Lloyd ingeniously lets -his readers--and they no doubt will be numerous--into the secrets -of a highly-respected firm of solicitors, whose clients furnish the -remarkable cases contained in the volume. Care has been taken not to -weary the reader, who is afforded a very extensive range of sensations -in crime to peruse. After 'A Double Consultation' comes 'Charged with -Theft,' followed by 'A Tragic Bankruptcy.' Then 'A Curious Love Story' -is narrated, and the mystery associated with a 'Wilful Murder' is -solved by 'The Missing Clue.' The series is pleasantly concluded by an -adventure of 'An Australian Heiress,' and if Mr. Lloyd is good enough -at a subsequent period to divulge further secrets, we are sure they -will be heartily welcomed by a wide circle of friends."--_Birmingham -Daily Gazette._ - - -"May be recommended for shortening a railway journey or a similar -purpose."--_Aberdeen Free Press._ - -_Elegantly bound, demy, 8vo., 7s. 6d._ - -"This is a charming and even captivating book."--_Friends' Quarterly -Examiner._ - -THE - -QUAKER POETS - -OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, - -By EVELYN NOBLE ARMITAGE, - -AUTHOR OF "A DREAM OF THE GIRONDE," "THE POET IN MAY," "THE MESSAGE OF -QUAKERISM," ETC., ETC. - -[Illustration] - -The volume opens with a brief sketch of the Rise of the Society of -Friends, and Characteristics of its Poetry, Biographical Notices and -Examples of the best Poems of the following poets are given:-- - - _Jessie Adams, Gulielma A. Wheeler Baker, William Ball, William - Barber, Bernard Barton, Henry Binns, James Beale, Mary Elizabeth - Beck, Louisa Bigg, Robert Bird, Elias Bockett, Hannah Bowden, John - Le Gay Brereton, Elizabeth Naish Capper, Jane Crewdson, Elfrida - Mary Crowley, Dorothy Crowley, Thomas Ellwood, Sarah Hustler Fox, - Robert Barclay Fox, Benjamin Goouch, Fanny Harris, John Harris, - Hannah T. Harvey, T. Newenham Harvey, Thomas Hodgkin, David Holt, - Mary Howitt, William Howitt, Richard Howitt, Thomas Hunton, James - Hurnard, William Kitching, Mary Leadbeater, Wm. Henry Leatham, - Thomas Lister, Charles Lloyd, Elizabeth Lucas, Mary C. Manners, - John Marriott, Mary Mollineux, Amelia Opie, Ellen Clare Pearson, - Fanny A. Prideaux, Anthony Purver, James Nicholson Richardson, - Thomas Clio Rickman, Richard Ball Rutter, John Scott of Amwell, - Lydia Shackleton, Lovell Squire, Matilda Sturge, Frederick Taylor, - Phillips Thompson, William Phillips Thompson, John Todhunter, - Arthur E. Tregelles, Anna Letitia Waring, Robert Spence Watson, - Deborah Webb, Anna Louisa Westcombe, Hannah Maria Wigham, Thomas - Wilkinson, James H. Wilson, Thomas Henry Wright._ - -Press Opinions. - -"The book throughout is a good example of scholarly and appreciative -editing."--_The Times._ - - -"The book is well worth reading, and evinces signs of careful selection -and treatment of themes."--_Liverpool Daily Post._ - - -"Mrs. Armitage's book was worth compiling, and has claims on others -than members of the Society of Friends."--_Newcastle Daily Leader._ - - -"The volume is well worth careful study."--_Manchester Guardian._ - - -"The austere simplicity of Quaker costume has, we believe, been -considerably mitigated of late, and the "bonnet of drab," which -Bernard Barton sang so enthusiastically, is no longer _de rigueur_ -in the Society of Friends. The outward garb of this Quaker anthology -symbolises this relaxation for the sumptuary laws of costume; for -instead of a severely grave binding, Mrs. Armitage's publishers have -sent forth her collection in the form of a particularly handsome and -attractive octavo of the amplest dimensions. Some sixty or seventy -poets are represented, each selection being preceded by a page or two -of biographical and critical matter."--_Irish Monthly._ - - -"The book has been compiled with care, and the biographical sketches -are well rendered. It is elegantly got up, and will doubtless be widely -read."--_Friends' Quarterly Examiner._ - - -"The book can hardly fail to be widely read as its sterling merit -becomes known."--_Hastings Observer._ - - -"One of the most remarkable features of this volume is the fact that of -the sixty-five poets sketched and quoted in its pages, not fewer than -twenty-six are women. It is doubtful whether any other religious body -could produce an equal proportion of female singers."--_Glasgow Herald._ - - -"The volume has an introduction of ten well-written pages on the -rise of Quakerism and Quaker poetry, which fittingly leads up to -the condensed biographical notices of each author whose works are -quoted.... The book is admirably done, and the editor is entitled -to the thanks of all who are interested in the preservation of the -literature of the Society of Friends."--_Christian Leader._ - -Just published. Crown 8vo., 330 pp. A Portrait of the Author and other -Illustrations. Price 3/6. - - -The Red, Red Wine, - -BY THE REV. J. JACKSON WRAY. - -[Illustration] - -"This, as its name implies, is a temperance story, and is told in the -lamented author's most graphic style. We have never read anything so -powerful since 'Danesbury House,' and this book in stern and pathetic -earnestness even excels that widely-known book. It is worthy a place in -every Sunday School and village library; and, as the latest utterance -of one whose writings are so deservedly popular, it is sure of a -welcome. It should give decision to some whose views about Local Option -are hazy."--_Joyful News._ - - -"The story is one of remarkable power."--_The Temperance Record._ - - -"An excellent and interesting story."--_The Temperance Chronicle._ - - -"It is written in a graphic and conversational style, abounding with -rapidly-succeeding incidents, which arrest and sustain the interest of -the reader."--_The League Journal._ - - -"It is just the right sort of book for a prize or present, and should -find a place in every Band of Hope and Sunday School library."--_The -Abstainer's Advocate._ - - -"A pathetic interest attaches to this volume, it being the last legacy -of Mr. Jackson Wray. It is a story with a purpose--to advocate the -claims of total abstinence. The plot is laid in a small village of the -East Riding of Yorkshire, and the author sketches the awful ravages of -intemperance in that small community. The victims include a minister, -doctor, and many others who found, when too late, that the red, red -wine biteth like a serpent. Though terribly realistic, the picture is -drawn from life, and every tragical incident had its counterpart among -the dwellers in that village. It is a healthy and powerful temperance -tale, and a fearless exposure of the quiet drinking that was so common -in respectable circles thirty years ago. It should find a place in our -school libraries to be read by elder scholars."--_Methodist Times._ - - -"This is a powerful story, the last from the pen of an indefatigable -worker and true friend of the total abstinence cause. The scene of the -o'er true tale is laid in East Yorkshire, the author's native district, -which he knew and loved so well. The characters appear to be drawn -from life, and every chapter has a vivid and terrible interest. The -friendship between old Aaron Brigham and Little Kitty is touching. -The tale of trouble, sorrow, and utter ruin wrought by the demon of -strong drink might well rouse every man, woman, and child to fight -the destroyer, which, in the unfolding of the story, we see enslaving -minister and people, shaming the Christian Church, breaking hearts all -round, and wrecking the dearest hopes of individuals and families. A -striking and pitiful tale, not overdrawn."--_Alliance News._ - - - - - * * * * * * - - - - -Trancribers note: - -The text contains unpaired double quotation marks which could not -be corrected with confidence. - -Brian Fitzcount and Brien Fitzcount (or Fitz-Count) in "Historic -Berkshire" and "Wallingford Castle" may or may not be the same person. -The authors didn't say and I cannot reliably determine. - -Hugh Farringdon and Hugh Faringdon in "The Last of the Abbotts" most -certainly were the same person. Which is correct, the reader can take -his choice. 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