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BEQUEST 
.UNIVERSITY  OF  MICHIGAN  1 1 
^^  GEaJERAL  LIBRARY  ' 

LfcIO  ■-■'■"    ■■J    ,  ■■JV.i  -■'!-   ■  ---L. -S-- 


■^ 


REPORT  AND  TRANSACTIONS 


DEVONSHIRE  ASSOCIATION 


FOR 


THE  ADVANCEMENT  OF  SCIENCE,  LITERATUKE, 
AND  AET. 


[LYNTON,  JULY,  1906.] 


VOL.  XXXVIIL 

[VOL.   VIII,    8ECX)ND   8ERIBS.1 


PLYMOUTH : 
W.    BRENDON   AND   SON,    Ltd.,   PRINTERS, 


1906. 

AH  rljhtt  rrgereed. 


[    4    1 


The  Council  and  the  Editor  desire  it  to  be  understood  that 
they  are  not  answerable  for  any  statements,  observations,  or 
opinions  appearing  in  any  paper  printed  by  the  Society ;  the 
authors  only  are  responsible. 

The  Transactions  of  the  Society  are  not  published,  nor 
are  they  on  sale.     They  are  printed  for  Members  only. 


[    8    ] 


CONTENTS. 


List  of  Officers                      .                                                ...  9 

Places  of  Meeting .                                                                ...  10 

Rules     .                                                                                ...  11 

Bje-la^TB  and  Standing  Orders                                                         .         .  16 

Report  of  the  Conncil                                                           ...  21 

Proceedings  at  the  Forty-fifth  Annual  Meeting  .                            .        .  23 

Balance  Sheet  .  .         80,  81 

Selected  Minutes  of  Council  appointing  Committees                      .        .  82 

Obituary  Notices  .                                .                                ...  84 

President's  Address                                                               ...  40 

Twenty  -  fifth    Report   of    the    Barrow    Committee.      R.    Hansford 

Worth,  C.E.  .                                .                .                .            .        .  67 

Twenty-fourth  Report  (Third  Series)  of  the  Committee  on  the  Climate 

of  Devon.     R.  Hansford  Worth,  c.K.          .                            .        .  67 

Twenty-third    Report  of   the   Committee   on    Devonshire   Folk-lore. 

P.  F.  S.  Amery                                                              ...  87 
Eleventh  Report  of  the  Dartmoor  Exploration  Committee.     Rev.  I.  K. 

Anderson,  m.a.                                                              ....  101 

The  Parishes  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury.     I.    Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter,  m.a.  114 

The  Parishes  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury.    IL   Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter,  M.A.  169 

Documents  relating  to  the  above  Parishes.     Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter,  m.a.  .  226 

North  Devon  Pottery  of  Seventeenth  and  Eighteenth  centuries.     T. 

Charbonnier  .                                                                ...  266 

Pigmy  Flint  Implements  in  North  Devon.     Thomas  Young,  f.r.c.8.    .  261 

Some  Cryptograms  of  Braunton  and  Sherwill.     Miss  C.  E.  Larter  270 

Pages  from  a  Manuscript  History  of  Hatherleigh.     J.  M.  Martin  294 

The  Earliest  Portion  of  '*  Testa  de  Nevill."    J.  Horace  Round,  m.a.    .  818 

Fees  of  Earl  Hugh  de  Courtenay.     Rev.  T.  W.  Whale,  m.a.                 .  818 
The  Early  Descent  of  the  Devonshire  Estates  of  the  Honoura  of  Mortain 

and  Okehampton.     Rev.  Oswald  J.  Reichel,  m.a.,  d.c.l.                .  887 

The  Recent  Neuroptera  of  Devon.    C.  A.  Briggs,  f.e.s.   .  867 

Supposed  Currency  Bars,  Holne  Chase.     P.  F.  S.  Amery                      .  870 


6 


CONTENTS. 


Ancient  Oak  Altar  in  St   Peter's  Chnrch,  Tawttock.    G.  R.  Baker 

King,  F.K.I.B.A.  .  ...  877 

Old  Tiverton  or  Twyford.     MIbs  Emily  Skinner  .        .  880 

The  Private  Chapele  of  Devon:  Ancient  and  Modem.    Rev.  D'Oyly  W. 

Oldham,  m.a.  ...  891 

Totnes :  Its  Mayors  and  Mayoralties.     Part  VI.     Edward  WindeaU    .  404 

The  Forest  Bounds  near  Princetown.    Arthur  B.  Prowse,  m.i».,  f.r.c.8.  411 

Raleghana.     Part  VIII.    T.  N.  Brushfield,  m.d.  .        .  416 

Botanical  Notes.     Part  III.     Miss  Helen  Saunders  .        .  491 

The  Accounts  of  the  Head  and  Subsidiary  Wardens  of  South  Tawton. 

I.  Introduction.     II.  Accounts  of  Subsidiary  Wardens.     Miss  £. 

Lega-Weekes  .  ...  497 

Devonshire  Wit  and  Humour.     III.     J.  D.  Prickman     .  .        .  529 

The    Stone    Bows   of   Dartmoor.     VI.      Rev.    J.    F.    Chanter   and 

R.  Hansford  Worth,  c.s.  .  ...  585 

Rude  Stone  Monuments.     II.     R.  Hansford  Worth,  c.E. .  .  588 


List  of  Members 
Index    . 


.     558 


571 


[    7    ] 


PLATES. 


Bkpokt  of  Barrow  OoMMiTm— 

Plate  I.    Urn  found  in  Barrow  near  Brockenborrow 
,,  II.    Plan  of  Five  Barrows 


To  face  p.  62 
68 


BSPORT  OF  COMMITTBE  OV  THK  ClIMATR  OF  DkYON— 

Plat«8  I,  II,  and  111.     Diagrams  showing  Rainfkll  at  Druid, 
Ashbnrton  ..... 

Rsport  of  Dartmoor  Exploration  OoMMrrrsK— 

Plan  of  group  of  Hut-circles  on  Dartmoor,  at  Watem  Oke 

Ths  Parishes  of  Ltntom  akd  Countuburt— 

Lynmouth  and  Bast  Lyn  Valley,  a.d.  1880 

Sections  of  Ramparts 

Camps  at  Oldburrow  and  Martinhoe 

sunning  Knife,  with  ground  edge,  found  at  Fursehill 

Flint  Arrow-heads  found  near  Fursehill 

Flint  Arrow-heads  found  near  Hoar  Oak 

Plan  of  the  Port  of  Lynmouth 

Old  Lynmouth  Harbour 

Lynton  Church  and  Village,  a.d.  1800     . 

Stoop  fh>m  Chapel  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  Fursehill 

The  Old  Parsonage,  Lynton 


Between  pp.  82  and  88 


.    To  foot  p.  101 


114 
118 
119 
120 
120 
120 
126 
ISO 
177 
209 
211 


Nom  OS  North  Dsfost  Pottbry— 

Bideford.    Harvest  Pitcher       .  .  .        • 

Barnstaple,  North  Walk.    Cup  and  Plate  ... 

Barnstaple,  North  Walk.    Mould  for  Raised  Tiles,  and  Tile  made  in 

old  mould  .  .  .  .  ... 


256 
267 


267 


SoMB  Ortptooams  of  North  Dsvom— 

LopkocoUa  alata  Mitt.,  n.  sp.     .  ...  Page  286 

SUPFOflXD  CURREBTCT  BaRB  FOUKD  NRAR  HOLNB  CHASB  OaMP— 

Supposed  Currency  Bars  .  ...  „    370 

AvciXNT  Oak  Altar  in  St.  Peter's  Church,  Tawstock— 

Sketch  of  Altar-Uble  .  .  .,   To  face  p.  977 

Private  Chafbi^  of  Devon  :  Ancient  amd  Modern— 

Private  Chapel  of  St.  Mary's,  Gnaton  Hall,  8outh  Devon.    Erected  1887  „        402 

The  Forest  Bounds  near  Princetown— 

Map  .  .  ......        412 


PLATE& 


Ralmhana— 

Map  showing  position  of  San  Thom6  in  1590  and  in  1617 
Map  showing  Oooraes  of  Riven  Amaion  and  Orinoco 


Page  450 
To  focf  p.  470 


Ths  OHTjROHWARDKirs'  AoooumB  OP  South  Tawtom— 

East  end  of  St.  Andrew's  Church,  South  Tawton,  with  Burgoyne  Aisle 

on  South,  and  extension  of  1881,  and  Vertrj  added  1908,  on  North          „  497 

Ancient  Qranite  Font  removed  ttom  Church  in  restoration  of  1861                  „  497 

Broken  Cross  at  West  Week,  showing  Gateway  and  old  House-front                ,,  497 
Ancient  Granite  Gross  at  Rhighole  Copse                                                       ,,506 

Cross  by  roadside  near  Ozenham                                        .          .       .           „  506 
Remains  of  Moon's  Cross  at  fork  of  roads  about  a  quarter-mile  South 

of  Church             .                           ......  506 

Andent  Monumental  Slab  recently  discovered,  and  now  set  in  disused 

North  Doorway     .                           .             .             506 


Thb  Stokk  Rows  or  Dabtmoob^ 

Plan  of  Long  Stone  Row,  Erme  Valley 


5S6 


Stone  Mokxtmbmtb  of  Exmoob  and  its  Bobdbbb— 

Plate  I.    Fig.  1.    Photograph  of  Hangman  .  .  .       .  „       589 

Pig.  8.    Photograph  of  Longstone,  Lyn  Down    .  .       .  ,,589 

„    II.    Fig.  1.    Plan  of  Longstone  and  associated  M6nhir,   Lyn 

Down     ....       Between  pp,  542  and  548 
Fig.  2.    Plan  of  Quadrilateral,  Brendon  Two  Gates  „  „       „ 

„  III.    Fig.  1.    Enlargement  fh>m  Ordnance  Survey,  plan 

of  Quadrilateral,  Trout  Hill,  near  fence  „  „       „ 

Fig.  2.    Plan  of  remaining  stones  of  Quadrilateral, 

Trout  Hill,  near  fence        .  .  »  >•       » 

„    IV.    Plan  of  Parallelogram,  Little  Toms  Hill  .  „  „       „ 

„     V.    Plan  of  Parallelogram,  East  Pinford     .  „  n       » 

„   VI.    Plan  of  Stone  Row,  near  Bxe  Head      .  .  .       .   To  ftue  p.  544 

„  VII.    Fig.  1.    Plan  of  Stone  Row  on  Furzehill  Common         .       .  ,,545 

Pig.  2.    Plan  of  Stone  Row  on  Furzehill  Common         .       .  „        545 

„Vin.    Fig.1.    PUn  of  Stone  Row,  Exe  PUin  .  .       .  „        546 

Fig.  2.    Group  of  Stones,  Clannon  Ball  546 

„  IX.    Group  of  Stones,  Trout  Hill  .  .  547 


[:9  ] 
OFFICERS 

1906-7. 


yrrsiHrnt. 
F.  T.  EL  WORTHY,  Esq.,  f.8.a. 

W.  RIDDELL,  Esq.,  j.p.,  Chairman,  Urban  Districl  Council. 

Sir  GEORGE  NEWNES.  Bart.,  m.p. 

E.  B.  JEUNE,  Esq.,  j.p. 

BASIL  H.  THOMSON,  Esq. 

Sir  ROPER  LETHBRIDGE,  k.c.i.e.,  d.l.,  j.p  ,  m.a. 

ROBERT  BURNARD,  Esq.,  j.p.,  p.s.a. 

9(on.  ^fiifrtl  SrrMurrr. 
P.  F.  S.  AMERY,  Esq.,  j.p.,  o.c,  Druid,  AahbuHon. 

9(on.  (Smeril  i^rmtarirs. 

J.  BROOKING-ROWE,  Esq.,  F.8.A.,  F.L.S.,  Castle  Barbican,  FlympUm. 

MAXWELL  ADAMS,  Esq.,   Wolborough  ffouse,  Newton  Abbot, 

1l(on.  local  Srrasum. 
VERNON  PITT-NIND,  Esq.,  Lloyds  Bank,  Lynion, 

9(on.  local  ibrrrrtarp. 
CHARLES  A.  BRIGGS,  Esq.,  F.e.8.,  Back  House,  Lynmouth. 

Ikon.  9LutiiXox. 
ROBERT  C.  TUCKER,  Esq.,  j.p.,  ca.,  The  Hall,  Ashburton, 


ADAMU.  MAXWELL. 
ALSOP,  R. 
AMERY,  J.  8. 
AMERY,  P.  F.  S. 
ANDRBW,  SIDNBT. 
BARING-GOULD,  Ret.  S. 
BINGHAM,  Rbt.  W.  P.  8. 
BLACKLSR,  T.  a. 
BOND,  F.  BLIOH. 
BRIOG9,  C.  A. 
BRUSH  FIELD.  T.  N. 
BITRNARD,  R. 
CHANTER,  Rky.  J.  F. 
CHAPMAN,  Rbt.  C. 
CHARBONNIER,  T. 
CHOPB.  R.  PEARSB. 
CLIFFORD,  LORD 
COLERIDGB.  LORD. 
CROFT.  Sib  A.  W. 
DAVIES,  W. 
DOE,  G.  M. 
DUNCAN.  A.  G. 
EDMONDS,  Rsv.Ghahcxllor. 
ELLIOT,  B.  A.  S. 
ELWORTHY,  F.  T. 
EYANS,  H.  M. 
FALCON,  T.  A. 
OIFFARD,  HARDINGB  F. 


Cotmcil. 

GRANVILLE,  Rsv.  Pbeb. 

ROGER. 
HAL8BURY,  LORD. 
HAMILTON,  A.  H.  A. 
HAM  LINO,  J.  G. 
HARPLBY,  Rev.  W. 
HARRIS,  Rbv.  8.  G. 
HARVEY.  T.  H. 
HIERN,  W.  P. 
HINE,  JAMBS. 
HUDLE8T0N,  W.  H. 
HUGHES,  T.  CANN. 
HUNT,  A.  R, 
JORDAN,  W.  F.  C. 
JORDAN,  W.  R.  H. 
KING.  C.  R.  B. 
LAKE,  W.  C. 
LARTER,  Mif  8  C.  E. 
LETHBRIDGE,  Sir  ROPER. 
LOWE,  HARFORD  J. 
MARTIN,  J.  M. 
MORSHBAD,  J.  Y.  A. 
NECK,  J.  8. 

OLDHAM,  Rev.  DOYLY  W. 
PEARSON,  Rev.  J.  B. 
PlTT-NlND,  V. 
POLLOCK,  Siu  P. 
PRICKMAN,  J.  D. 
PROWSE,  ARTHUR  B. 


RADFORD,  Mrs.  G.  H. 
REKD,  HARBOTTLE. 
REICHEL,  Rkv.  O.  J. 
RISK.  Rev.  J.  ERSKINE. 
ROBERTS,  C.  E. 
ROBINSON,  C.  E. 
ROUND,  J.  HOKACB. 
ROWK,  J.  BROOKING. 
SAUNDERS,  Ml88  H. 
SHAPLAND,  A    E. 
SKINNER,  Mi3f<  E. 
SOMERVAIL,  A. 
8PRA0UE,  F.  S. 
STEUBING,  Rkv.  T.  R.  R. 
THOMs^ON,  BASIL  H. 
THORNTON,  Rev.  W.  H. 
TROUP,  Mr8. 
TUCKER.  R.  C. 
VINCKNT,  SIR  EDGAR 
WAINWRIOHT,  T. 
WEEKE.S,  Mis-s  LEG  A. 
WHITE-THOMSON,  Sir  R  T. 
WHITLEY.  H.  MICHELL. 
WINDEATT,  K. 
WINDEATT.  G.  E. 
WOODHOU8K,  H.   B.  S 
WORTH,  R,  HANSFORD. 
WYKES-FINCH,  Rev.  W. 
YOUNG,  TH08. 


[   10    ] 


PLACES  OF  MEETING 


OF 


THE    DEVONSHIRE    ASSOCIATION. 


PUce  of  Meeting. 

1862. 

EXETKR 

1863. 

Plymouth      . 

1864. 

Torquay 

1865. 

Tiverton 

1866. 

Tavistock      . 

1867. 

Barnstaple  . 

1868. 

HONITON 

1869. 

Dartmouth  . 

1870. 

Devonport    . 

1871. 

BiDEFORD 

1872. 

Exeter 

1873. 

SlDMOUTH 

1874. 

Teionmouth  . 

1876. 

Torrinoton  . 

1876. 

ASHBURTON     . 

1877. 

EiNGSBBIDOB . 

W8. 

Paignton 

1879. 

Ilfracombb   . 

1880. 

Totnes 

1881. 

Dawlish 

1882. 

Crkditon 

1883. 

EXMOUTH 

1884. 

Newton  Abbot 

1885. 

Seaton 

1886. 

St.  Maryohurch 

1887. 

Plympton 

1888. 

EXKTER 

1889. 

Tavistock     . 

1890. 

Barnstaple  . 

1891. 

Tiverton 

1892. 

Plymouth      . 

1893. 

Torquay 

1894. 

South  Molton 

1895. 

Okehampton  . 

1896. 

Ashburton    . 

1897. 

KiNOSBRIDOB  . 

1898. 

HONITON 

1899. 

Torrinoton  . 

1900. 

Totnes 

1901. 

EXETRR 

1902. 

BiDBFORD 

1903. 

SlDMOUTH 

1904. 

Teionmouth  . 

1905. 

Princetown  . 

1906. 

Lynton 

PrMi4ent 
Sir  John  Bowring,  ll.d.,  f.r.s. 
C.  Sponco  Bat«,  Esq.,  F.R.8.,  f.l.8. 

E.  ViYJaii^  Esq.,  u.jv, 

C.   G.    B,    Daubeuj,   M.D.,   LL.D.,   F.R.a,   Pro- 

feasor  of  BoUdj^  Oxford. 
Earl  Russell,  e.g.,  k.g.c.,  f.r.s.,  etc. 
W.  PeugcUj,  Esq.,  F.R.8.,  F.o.s. 
J.  D.  Coleridge,  Esq.,  q.c,  M.A.,  M.p. 
G.  P.  Hif^der,  E=iq.,  c.E. 
J.  A.  Froude,  Esq.,  m.a. 
Rev.  Canon  C.  Kingsley,  M.A.,  f.l.8.,  f.o.s. 
Rt.  Rev.  Lord  Bishop  of  Exeter  (Dr.  Temple). 
Right  Hon.  S.  Cave,  m.a.,  m.p. 
Earl  of  Devon. 
R.  J.  King,  Esq,,  m.a. 
Rev.  Treitsurer  Hnwker,  M.A. 
Ven.  Archdeacon  Earlc,  m.a. 
Sir  Samuel  White  B&kflr,  M.A.,  F.R.8.,  f.b.o.8. 
SirR.  P  Collier  M,A, 

H.  W.  Dyke  AoJatid,  w.a.,  m.d.,  ll.d.,  f.r.8. 
Rev.  Profoaaor  Chapman,  M.A. 
J.  Brook ing-Ro we,  E&q.,  F.8.A.,  f.l.8. 
Very  Rev.  C.  Merivale,  d.d.,  d.cl. 
Rev.  T.  R.  R.  Stebbing,  m.a. 
R.  F.  Weynioutlj,  Esq     m.a.,  d.Lit. 
Sir  J.  H,  Phear^  M.A.,  F.G.8. 

Rev.  W.  H.  Dallinger,  ll.d.,  f.r.8.,  F.L.8.,etc 
Very  R«v  Dean  Cowiu,  d.d.  [f.l,8.,  etc. 

W     H,   Hudlegtoti     Esq.,  M.A.,  F.R.8.,  F.O.8., 

Lord  Clinton,  m.a. 

R.  N.  Worth,  Esq.,  f.g.s. 

A.  H.  A.  Hamilton,  Esq.,  m.a.,  j.p.,  c.c. 

T.  N.  Brushfield,  m.d.,  f.8.a. 

Sir  Fred.  Pollock,  Bart,  m.a. 

The  Right  Hon.  Earl  of  Halsbuiy. 

Rev.  S.  Baring-Gmild^  m.a. 

J.  Hiue,  Esq,,  F.a.i.E,A, 

Lord  Coleridge,  m.a. 

Rev.  Chancellor  Edmonds,  b.d. 

Lord  ClifTord,  m,a. 

Sir  Ro]>«r  Lotlibfidgo,  K.C.I.E.,  m.a.,  D.L.,  j.p, 

Rev,  \V,  Hnrpley^  m.a.,  F.C.P.8. 

Sir  Edgar  Vincent,  K.C.M.G.,  M.P. 

Sir  Alfred  W.  Croft,  k.o.i.e.,  m.a.,  j.p. 

Basil  H.  Thomson,  Esq. 

F.  T.  El  worthy,  Esq.,  f.8.a. 


[  11  ] 


RULES. 


1.  Ths  Association  shall  be  styled  the  Devonshire  Association 
for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  Literature,  and  Art. 

2.  The  objects  of  the  Association  are — To  give  a  stronger 
impulse  and  a  more  systematic  direction  to  scientific  inqniry  in 
DeTonsbire  ;  and  to  promote  the  intercourse  of  those  who  cultivate 
Science,  L.iterature,  or  Art,  in  different  parts  of  the  county. 

3.  The  Association  shall  consist  of  Members,  Honorary  Members, 
and  Corresponding  Members. 

4.  Every  candidate  for  membership,  on  being  nominated  by  a 
member  to  whom  he  is  personally  known,  shall  be  admitted  by 
the  General  Secretary,  subject  to  the  confirmation  of  the  Grenersil 
Meeting  of  the  Members. 

5.  Peraons  of  eminence  in  Literature,  Science,  or  Art,  connected 
with  the  West  of  England,  but  not  resident  in  Devonshire, 
may,  at  a  General  Meeting  of  the  Members,  be  elected  Honorary 
Members  of  the  Association;  and  persons  not  resident  in  the 
county,  who  feel  an  interest  in  the  Association,  may  be  elected 
Corresponding  Members. 

6.  Every  Member  shall  pay  an  Annual  Contribution  of  Half 
a  Guinea  or  a  Life  Composition  Fee  of  Seven  and  a  Half  Guineas. 
But  Members  of  Ten  Years'  standing  and  more,  whose  Contribu- 
tions are  not  in  arrears,  may  compound  by  a  Single  Payment  of 
Five  Guineas. 

7.  Ladies  only  shall  be  admitted  as  Associates  to  an  Annual 
Meeting,  and  shall  pay  the  sum  of  Five  Shillings  each. 

8.  Every  Member  shall  be  entitled  gratuitously  to  a  lady's  ticket. 

9.  The  Association  shall  meet  annually,  at  such  a  time  in  July 
or  August  and  at  such  place  as  shall  be  decided  on  at  the  previous 
Annual  Meeting. 

10.  A  President,  two  or  more  Vice-Presidents,  a  General 
Treasurer,  and  one  or  more  General  Secretaries,  shall  be  elected 
at  each  Annual  Meeting. 

11.  The  President  shall  not  be  eligible  for  re-election. 


12  RULES. 

12.  At  each  Annual  Meeting  a  local  Treasurer  and  local  Secre- 
tary shall  be  appointed,  who,  with  power  to  add  to  their  number 
any  Members  of  the  Association,  shall  be  a  local  Committee  to 
assist  in  making  such  local  arrangements  as  may  be  desirable. 

13.  In  the  intervals  of  the  Annual  Meetings,  the  aifairs  of  the 
Association  shall  be  managed  by  a  Council,  which  shall  consiBt 
exclusively  of  the  following  Members  of  the  Association,  excepting 
Honorary  Members,  and  Corresponding  Members : — 

(a)  Those  who  fill,  or  have  filled,  or  are  elected  to  fill,  the  offices 
of  President,  General  and  Local  Treasurers,  General  and  Local  Secre- 
taries, and  Secretaries  of  Committees  appointed  by  the  Council 

{b)  Authors  of  papers  which  have  been  printed  in  extenso  in 
the  Transactions  of  the  Association. 

The  Council  so  constituted  shall  have  power  to  make,  amend, 
or  cancel  the  Bye-laws  and  Standing  Orders. 

14.  The  CouncU  shall  hold  a  Meeting  at  Exeter  in  the  month 
of  January  or  February  in  each  year,  on  such  day  as  the  General 
Secretary  shall  appoint,  for  the  due  management  of  the  affidrs  of 
the  Association,  and  the  performing  the  duties  of  its  office. 

15.  The  General  Secretary,  or  any  four  members  of  the  Council, 
may  call  extraordinary  meetings  of  their  body,  to  be  held  at 
Exeter,  for  any  purpose  requiring  their  present  determination,  by 
notice  under  his  or  their  hand  or  hands,  addressed  to  every  other 
member  of  the  Council,  at  least  ten  clear  days  previously,  specifying 
the  purpose  for  which  such  extraordinary  meeting  is  convened. 
No  matter  not  so  specified,  and  not  incident  thereto,  shall  be 
determined  at  any  extraordinary  meeting. 

16.  The  General  Treasurer  and  Secretary  shall  enter  on  their 
respective  offices  at  the  meeting  at  which  they  are  elected ;  but 
the  President,  Vice-Presidents,  and  Local  Officers,  not  until  the 
Annual  Meeting  next  following. 

17.  With  the  exception  of  the  Ex-Presidents  only,  every 
Councillor  who  has  not  attended  any  Meeting,  or  adjourned 
Meeting,  of  the  Council  during  the  period  between  the  doae 
of  any  Annual  General  Meeting  of  the  Members  and  the  doae 
of  the  next  but  two  such  Annual  General  Meetings,  shall  have 
forfeited  his  place  as  a  Councillor,  but  it  shall  be  competent  for 
him  to  recover  it  by  a  fresh  qualification. 

18.  The  Council  shall  have  power  to  fill  any  Official  vaoancy 
which  may  occur  in  the  intervals  of  the  Annual  Meetings. 

19.  The  Annual  Contributions  shall  be  payable  in  advance,  and 
shall  be  due  in  each  year  on  the  first  day  of  January;  and  no 
person  shall  have  the  privileges  of  a  member  until  the  Subscription 
for  the  current  year  or  a  Life  Composition  has  been  paid. 


BULBS.  13 

20.  The  Treasmer  ahall  receive  all  sums  of  money  due  to  the 
Anociation ;  he  shall  pay  all  aocoonts  due  by  the  Asaociation  af tw 
they  shall  have  been  examined  and  approved ;  and  he  shall  report 
to  each  meeting  of  the  Council  the  balance  he  has  in  hand^  and 
the  names  of  such  members  as  shall  be  in  arrear,  with  the  sums 
due  respectively  by  each. 

21.  Whenever  a  Member  shall  have  been  three  months  in  arrear 
in  the  payment  of  his  Annual  Contributions,  the  Treasurer  shall 
apply  to  him  for  the  same. 

22.  Whenever,  at  an  Annual  Meeting,  a  Member  shall  be  two 
yeaxs  in  arrear  in  the  payment  of  his  Aiinual  Contributions,  the 
Council  may,  at  its  diacretion,  erase  his  name  from  the  list  of 
members. 

23.  One  mouth  at  least  before  each  Annual  Meeting  each  mem- 
ber shall  be  informed  by  the  Geneial  Secretary,  by  circular,  of  the 
place  and  date  of  the  Meeting. 

24.  Any  Member  who  does  not,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of 
January,  give  notice,  in  writing  or  personally,  to  the  Grenerai 
Secretary  of  his  or  her  intention  to  withdraw  from  the  Association, 
shall  be  regarded  as  a  member  for  the  ensuing  year. 

25.  The  Association  shall,  within  a  period  not  exceeding  six 
months  after  each  Annual  Meeting,  publish  its  Transactions,  in- 
cluding the  Kules,  a  Financial  Statement^  a  List  of  the  Members, 
the  Eeport  of  the  Council,  the  President's  Address,  and  such 
Papers,  in  abstract  or  in  extenao,  read  at  the  Annual  Meeting,  as 
shall  be  decided  by  the  Council,  together  with,  if  time  allows,  an 
Index  to  the  Volume. 

26.  The  Association  shall  have  the  right  at  its  discretion  of 
printing  in  eactenso  in  its  Transactions  all  papers  read  at  the  Annual 
Meeting.  The  copyright  of  a  paper  read  before  any  meeting  of 
the  Association,  and  the  illustrations  of  the  same  which  liave  been 
provided  at  his  expense,  shall  remain  the  property  of  the  Author ; 
but  he  shall  not  be  at  liberty  to  print  it,  or  allow  it  to  be  printed 
elsewhere,  either  in  exteiiso  or  in  abstract  amounting  to  as  much  a.s 
one-half  of  the  length  of  the  paper,  until  after  the  publication  of 
the  volume  of  Transactions  in  which  the  paper  is  printed. 

27.  The  authors  of  papers  printed  in  the  Transactions  shall, 
within  seven  days  after  the  Transactions  are  published,  receive 
twenty-five  private  copies  free  of  expense,  and  shall  be  allowed  to 
have  any  further  number  printed  at  their  own  expense.  All 
arrangements  as  to  such  extra  copies  to  be  made  by  the  authors 
with  the  printers  to  the  Association. 


14  BULBS. 

28.  K  proofs  of  papers  to  be  published  in  the  Transactions 
be  sent  to  authors  for  correction,  and  are  retained  by  them 
beyond  four  days  for  each  sheet  of  proof,  to  be  reckoned  from  the 
day  marked  thereon  by  the  printers,  but  not  including  the  time 
needful  for  transmission  by  post,  such  proofs  shall  be  assumed  to 
require  no  further  correction. 

29.  Should  the  extra  charges  for  small  type,  and  types  other 
than  those  known  as  Koman  or  Italic,  and  for  the  author's  correc- 
tions of  the  press,  in  any  paper  published  in  the  Transactions, 
amount  to  a  greater  sum  than  in  the  proportion  of  ten  shillings 
per  sheet,  such  excess  shall  be  borne  by  the  author  himself,  and 
not  by  the  Association ;  and  should  any  paper  exceed  four  sheets, 
the  cost  beyond  the  cost  of  the  four  sheets  shall  be  borne  by  the 
author  of  the  paper. 

30.  Every  Member  shall,  within  a  period  not  exceeding  six 
months  after  each  Annual  Meeting,  receive  gratuitously  a  copy  of 
the  Volume  of  the  Transactions  for  the  year. 

31.  The  Accounts  of  the  Association  shall  be  audited  annually, 
by  Auditors  appointed  at  each  Annual  Meeting,  but  who  shall  not 
be  ex  officio  Members  of  the  CouncU. 

32.  No  rule  shall  be  altered,  amended,  or  added,  except  at  an 
Annual  General  Meetiug  of  Members,  and  then  only  provided 
that  notice  of  the  proposed  change  has  been  given  to  the  General 
Secretary,  and  by  him  communicated  to  all  the  Members  at  least 
one  month  before  the  Annual  General  Meeting. 

33.  Throughout  the  Rules,  Bye-laws,  and  Standing  Orders  where 
the  singular  number  is  used,  it  shall,  when  circumstances  require, 
be  taken  to  include  the  plural  number,  and  the  masculine  gender 
shall  include  the  feminine. 


[    15    ] 


BYE-LAWS  AND  STANDING  ORDERS. 


1.  In  the  interests  of  the  Association  it  is  desirable  that  the 
President's  Address  in  each  year  be  printed  previous  to  its 
delivery. 

2.  In  the  event  of  there  being  at  an  Annual  Meeting  more 
Papers  than  can  be  disposed  of  in  one  day,  the  reading  of  the 
residue  shall  be  continued  the  day  following. 

3.  The  pagination  of  the  Transactions  shall  be  in  Arabic 
numerals  exclusively,  and  carried  on  consecutively,  from  the 
b^inning  to  the  end  of  each  volume;  and  the  Transactions  of 
each  year  shall  form  a  distinct  and  separate  volume. 

4.  The  General  Secretary  shall  bring  to  each  Annual  Meeting 
of  the  Members  a  report  of  the  number  of  copies  in  stock  of  each 
•  Part '  of  the  Transactions,  with  the  price  per  copy  of  each  *  Part ' 
specified;  and  such  report  shall  be  printed  in  the  Transactions 
next  after  the  Treasurei^s  financial  statement. 

5.  The  General  Secretary  shall  prepare  and  bring  to  each 
Annual  Meeting  brief  Obituary  Notices  of  Members  deceased 
during  the  previous  year,  and  such  notices  shall  be  printed  in  the 
Transactions. 

6.  An  amount  not  less  than  eighty  per  cent  of  all  Compositions 
received  from  existing  Life  Members  of  the  Association  shall  be 
applied  in  the  purchase  of  National  Stock,  or  such  other  security 
as  the  Council  may  deem  equally  satisfactory,  in  the  names  of 
three  Trustees,  to  be  elected  by  the  Council. 

7.  At  each  of  its  Ordinary  Meetings  the  Council  shall  deposit  at 
interest,  in  such  bank  as  they  shall  decide  on,  and  in  the  names  of 
the  General  Treasurer  and  General  Secretary  of  the  Association,  all 
uninvested  Compositions  received  from  existing  Life- Members,  all 
uninvested  prepaid  Annual  Subscriptions,  and  any  part,  or  the 
whole,  of  the  balance  derived  from  other  sources  which  may  be  in 
the  Treasurer's  hands  after  providing  for  all  accounts  passed  for 
payment  at  the  said  Meeting. 

8.  The  General  Secretary,  on  learning  at  any  time  between  the 
Meetings  of  the  Council  that  the  General  Treasurer  has  a  balance 
in  hand  of  not  less  than  Forty  Pounds  after  paying  all  Accounts 
which  the  Council  have  ordered  to  be  paid,  shall  direct  that  so 
much  of   the  said  balance  as  will  leave  Twenty  Pounds  in  the 


16  BYE-LAWS  AND  STANDING  ORDERS. 

Treasurer's  hand  be  deposited  at  interest  at  the  Capital  and  Counties 
Bank,  Ashburton. 

9.  The  Greneral  Secretary  may  be  authorized  to  spend  any  sum 
not  exceeding  Ten  Pounds  per  annum  in  employing  a  clerk  for 
such  work  as  may  be  found  necessary. 

10.  Every  candidate,  admitted  to  Membership  under  Rule  4,  shall 
forthwith  receive  intimation  that  he  has  been  admitted  a  Member, 
subject  to  confirmation  at  the  next  Ceneral  Meeting  of  Members ; 
and  the  fact  of  the  newly  admitted  Member's  name  appearing  in 
the  next  issue  of  the  printed  list  of  Members,  will  be  a  sufficient 
intimation  to  him  that  his  election  has  been  confirmed.  Pending 
the  issue  of  the  Volume  of  Transactions  containing  the  Kules  of 
the  Association,  the  newly  admitted  Member  shall  be  furnished  by 
the  General  Secretary  with  such  extracts  from  the  Rules  as  shall 
be  deemed  necessary. 

11.  The  reading  of  any  Report  or  Paper  shall  not  exceed  twenty 
minutes,  or  such  part  of  twenty  minutes  as  shall  be  decided  by  the 
Council  as  soon  as  the  Programme  of  Reports  and  Papers  shall 
have  been  settled,  and  in  any  discussion  which  may  arise  no  speaker 
shall  be  allowed  to  speak  more  than  ten  minutes. 

12.  Papers  to  be  read  at  the  Annual  Meetings  must  strictly  relate 
to  Devonshire,  and,  as  well  as  all  Reports  intended  to  be  printed 
in  the  Transactions,  and  prepared  by  Committees  appointed  by  the 
Council,  must,  together  with  all  drawings  intended  to  be  used  in 
illustrating  them  in  the  said  Transactions,  reach  the  General  Secre- 
tary's residence  not  later  than  the  24th  day  of  June  in  each  year. 
The  General  Secretary  shall,  as  soon  as  possible,  return  to  the 
Authors  all  such  Papers  or  drawings  as  may  be  decided  to  be  un- 
suitable, and  shall  send  the  residue,  together  with  the  Reports  of 
Committees,  to  the  Printers,  who  shall  return  the  same  together 
with  a  statement  of  the  number  of  pages  each  of  them  would  occupy 
if  printed  in  the  said  Transactions,  as  well  as  an  estimate  of  the 
extra  cost  of  the  printing  of  Tables,  of  any  kind ;  and  the  whole 
accompanied  by  an  estimate  of  the  probable  number  of  Annual 
Members  for  the  year  shall  be  placed  before  the  firat  Council 
Meeting  on  the  firat  day  of  the  next  ensuing  Annual  Meeting, 
when  the  Council  shall  select  such  Papera  as  it  may  consider  desir- 
able to  accept  for  reading,  but  the  number  of  Papera  accepted  by 
the  Council  shall  not  be  greater  than  will,  with  the  Reports  of 
Committees,  make  a  total  of  forty  Reports  and  Papers. 

13.  Papera  communicated  by  Membera  for  Non-Members,  and 
accepted  by  the  Council,  shall  be  placed  in  the  List  of  Papera  for 
reading  below  those  furnished  by  Membera  themselves. 


BYE-LAWS  AND  STANDING  ORDBKS.  17 

14.  Papers  which  have  been  accepted  by  the  Council  cannot  be 
withdrawn  without  the  consent  of  the  Council. 

15.  The  Council  will  do  its  best  so  to  arrange  Papers  for 
reading  as  to  suit  the  convenience  of  the  Authors ;  but  the  place  of 
a  Paper  cannot  be  altered  after  the  List  has  been  settled  by  the 
Council. 

16.  Papers  which  have  already  been  printed  in  extenso  cannot  be 
accepted  unless  they  form  part  of  the  literature  of  a  question  on 
which  the  Council  has  requested  a  Member  or  Committee  to 
prepare  a  report. 

1 7.  Every  meeting  of  the  Council  shall  be  convened  by  Circular, 
sent  by  the  General  Secretary  to  each  Member  of  the  Council  not 
less  than  ten  days  before  the  Meeting  is  held. 

18.  At  the  close  of  the  Annual  Meeting  in  every  year  there 
shall  be  a  meeting  of  the  Council,  and  the  Council  shall  then 
decide  what  Reports  and  how  many  of  the  Papers  accepted  for 
reading  the  funds  of  the  Association,  as  reported  by  the  Treasurer, 
will  permit  of  being  printed  in  the  volume  of  Transactions. 

19.  All  Papers  read  to  the  Association  which  the  Council  shall 
decide  to  print  in  extenso  in  the  Transactions,  shall  be  sent  to  the 
printers,  together  with  all  drawings  required  in  illustrating  them, 
on  the  day  next  following  the  close  of  the  Annual  Meeting  at  which 
they  were  read. 

20.  All  Papers  read  to  the  Association  which  the  Council  shall 
decide  not  to  print  in  extenso  in  the  Transactions,  shall  be  returned 
to  the  Authors  not  later  than  the  day  next  following  the  close  of 
the  Annual  Meeting  at  which  they  were  read;  and  abstracts  of  such 
Papers  to  be  printed  in  the  Transactions  shall  not  exceed  such 
length  as  the  General  Secretary  shall  suggest  in  each  case,  and 
must  be  sent  to  him  on  or  before  the  seventh  day  after  the  close 
of  the  Annual  Meeting. 

21.  The  Author  of  every  Paper  which  the  Council  at  any  Annual 
Meeting  shall  decide  to  print  in  the  Transactions  shall  be  expected 
to  pay  fur  all  such  illustrations  as  in  his  judgment  the  said  Paper 
may  require. 

22.  The  printers  shall  do  their  utmost  to  print  the  Papers  in  the 
Transactions  in  the  order  in  which  they  were  read,  and  shall  return 
every  Manuscript  to  the  author  as  soon  as  it  is  in  type,  but  not 
f)e/ore.  They  shall  be  returned  intact,  provided  they  are  written 
on  l(K>se  sheets  and  on  one  side  of  the  paper  only. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  B 


18  BYE-LAWS   AND  STANDING  ORDERS. 

23.  Excepting  mere  verbal  alterations,  no  Paper  which  has  been 
read  to  the  Association  shall  be  added  to  without  the  written 
approval  and  consent  of  the  General  Secretary,  or  in  the  event  of 
there  being  two  Secretaries  of  the  one  acting  as  Editor;  and  no 
additions  shall  be  made  except  in  the  form  of  notes  or  postscripts, 
or  both. 

24.  In  the  intervals  of  the  Annual  Meetings,  all  Meetings  of 
the  Council  shall  be  held  at  Exeter,  unless  some  other  place  shall 
have  been  decided  on  at  the  previous  Council  Meeting. 

25.  When  the  number  of  copies  on  hand  of  any  Part  of  the 
Transactions  is  reduced  to  twenty,  the  price  per  copy  shall  be 
increased  25  per  cent. ;  and  when  the  number  has  been  reduced  to 
ten  copies,  the  price  shall  be  increased  50  per  cent,  on  the  original 
price. 

26.  After  deducting  the  amount  received  by  the  sale  of 
Transactions  from  last  year's  vahiation,  and  adding  the  value  of 
Transactions  for  the  current  year,  a  deduction  of  10  per  cent, 
shall  be  every  year  made  from  the  balance,  and  this  balance,  less 
10  per  cent.,  shall  be  returned  as  the  estimated  value  of  the 
Transactions  in  stock  for  the  current  year. 

27.  The  Association's  Printers,  but  no  other  person,  may  reprint 
any  Committee's  Keport  printed  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Associa- 
tion, for  any  person,  whether  a  Member  of  the  said  Committee,  or 
of  the  Association,  or  neither,  on  receiving,  in  each  case,  a  written 
permission  to  do  so  from  the  Honorary  Secretary  of  the  Association, 
but  not  otherwise;  that  the  said  printers  shall  [>ay  to  the  said 
Secretary,  for  the  Association,  sixpence  for  every*  fifty  Copies  of 
each  half-sheet  of  eight  pages  of  which  the  said  Keport  consists ; 
that  any  number  of  copies  less  than  fifty,  or  between  two  exact 
multiples  of  fifty,  shall  be  regarded  as  fifty ;  and  any  number  of 
pages  less  than  eight,  or  between  two  exact  multiples  of  eight, 
shall  be  regarded  as  eight ;  that  each  copy  of  such  Keprints  shall 
have'  on  its  first  page  the  words  "  Keprinted  from  the  Transactions 
of  the  Devonshire  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science, 

Literature,  and  Art  for with  the  consent  of  the  Council  of 

the  Association,"  followed  by  the  date  of  the  year  in  which  tlie 
said  Report  was  printed  in  the  said  Transactions,  but  that,  with  the 
exception  of  printer's  errors  and  changes  in  the  pagination  which 
may  be  necessary  or  desirable,  the  said  Reprint  sliall  bo  in  every 
other  respect  an  exact  copy  of  the  said  Report  as  printed  in  the 
said  Transactions  without  addition,  or  abridgment,  or  modification 
of  any  kind. 

28.  The  Bye-Laws  and  Standing  Onlers  shall  ))e  printed  after 
the  *  Rules  '  in  the  Transactions. 


BYK-LAWS  AND  STANDING  ORDERS.  19 


29.  All  resolutions  appointing  Committees  for  special  service  for 
the  Association  shall  be  printed  in  the  Transactions  next  before 
the  President's  Address. 

30.  Members  and  Ladies  holding  Ladies*  Tickets  intending  to 
dine  at  the  Association  Dinner  shall  be  requested  to  send  their 
names  to  the  Honorary  Local  Secretary  ;  no  other  j)erson  shall  be 
admitted  to  the  dinner,  and  no  names  shall  be  received  after  the 
Monday  next  before  the  dinner. 


b2 


[    21    ] 


REPORT  OF  THE  COUNCIL. 

Present^  to  the  General  Meeting  held  at  Lynton^  17  July^  1006, 


At  the  meetings  of  the  Council  held  at  Princetown  in  July, 
1905,  the  ordinary  routine  business  was  transacted.  The 
Winter  Meeting  of  the  Council  was  held  at  Exeter  on  23rd 
February,  1906,  at  which,  besides  the  usual  general  business, 
certain  proposed  alterations  in  the  Rules  of  the  Association 
were  discussed  and  passed  as  recommendations  from  the 
Council  to  be  brought  before  the  General  Meeting,  of  which 
notice  has  been  duly  sent  to  all  members.  Some  verbal 
amendments  to  the  Bye-laws  were  also  made,  and  the  follow- 
ing new  Bye-law  (No.  18)  was  added,  viz. : — 

**  18.  At  the  close  of  the  Annual  Meeting  in  every  year 
there  shall  be  a  Meeting  of  the  Council,  and  the  Council 
shall  then  decide  what  Reports  and  how  many  of  the  Papers 
accepted  for  reading  the  funds  of  the  Association,  as  reported 
by  the  Treasurer,  will  permit  of  being  printed  in  the  volume 
of  Transactions  for  the  year." 

The  question  of  extending  the  usefulness  of  the  Associa- 
tion and  the  best  means  of  increasing  its  membership  were 
also  discussed.  It  was  pointed  out  inter  alia  that  funds  are 
much  needed  to  aid  the  various  Committees  appointed  by 
the  Association,  not  only  to  carry  on  their  work,  but  also  to 
adequately  illustrate  their  Reports,  all  expenses  being  at 
present  entirely  borne  by  individuals,  an  arrangement  which 
under  the  circumstances  does  not  appear  equitable.  It  was 
also  considered  desirable  that  a  high  standard  should  l)e 
maintained  for  the  annual  volume  of  the  Transactions. 

It  is  obvious  that  with  a  membership  of  about  550,  and 
the  low  annual  subscription  of  10s.  6d.  now  payable  by 
members,  there  cannot  be  any  funds  available  for  the  pur- 
poses indicated  above,  and  it  is  therefore  very  desirable  that 
the  number  of  members  should  be  largely  increased. 

The  discussion  resulted  in  the  Secretaries  teing  instructed 
to  take  steps  by  circular  or  otherwise  as  might  be  deemed 
expedient  to  obtain  new  members,  so  as  to  raise  the  total 


22  REPORT  OF  THE  COUNCIL. 

number  of  meml>ers  to  1000  if  possible,  that  being  con- 
sidered tlie  least  number  requisite  to  enable  the  Council  to 
carry  out  the  objects  in  view.  Acting  on  these  instructions, 
the  Secretaries  have  prepared  a  circular  inviting  existing 
members  to  endeavour  to  enlist  as  many  new  members  as 
possible,  and  those  who  are  not  already  members  to  become 
so.  About  600  copies  of  this  circular  liave  so  far  been 
issued  to  members  and  others,  and  it  is  proposed  to  send 
out  in  due  course  alx)ut  200  further  copies  to  the  clerg\' 
and  other  influential  residents  in  the  principal  towns  and 
districts  of  Devonsliire.  Seventy-five  new  members  have 
been  added  to  tlie  list  this  year,  alwut  lialf  of  which  number 
may  be  considered  to  l>e  the  result  of  this  circular. 

A  copy  of  Volume  XXX VII  of  the  Transactions  for 
1905  has  been  sent  to  the  principal  libraries  and  to  certain 
learned  societies  as  in  previous  years. 

J.   r»R00KING-R0W^E, 

Maxwell  Adams, 

Hon.  General  Secretaries, 


[    23    ] 


PROCEEDINGS  AT  THE  FORTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL 
MEETING  OF  THE  ASSOCIATION, 

Held  at  Lynton,  17  July  to  20  July,  1906. 


The  Annual  Meeting  of  1906  commenced  under  somewhat 
sad  circumstances,  for  it  was  known  to  the  officers,  if  not  to 
the  members  generally,  that  serious  illness  would  prevent 
the  President-elect,  Mr.  F.  T.  Elworthy,  from  being  present 
He  had  been  ill  for  some  months,  but  it  was  hoped  that  he 
had  recovered,  and  that  a  stay  at  Minehead  had  been  pro- 
ductive of  much  good — so  much  so,  that  he  was  able  to 
complete  his  Presidential  Address.  But  unfortunately,  early 
in  July,  Mr.  Elworthy  had  a  relapse,  and  his  medical  man 
was  compelled  to  forbid  his  taking  any  part  in  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  meeting,  his  weakness  being  such  as  to 
necessitate  his  being  spared  all  fatigue,  mental  or  bodily. 

Admirable  arrangements  had  been  made  by  the  local 
Officers  and  local  Committee  for  the  reception  of  the 
Association.  The  Urban  District  Council  placed  at  its  dis- 
l)0sal  their  fine  Town  Hall  and  the  most  convenient  rooms 
therein.  The  Chairman  of  the  local  Committee,  Mr.  W. 
Riddell,  w^ho  is  also  the  Chairman  of  the  District  Council. 
Mr.  Charles  A.  Briggs,  and  Mr.  Vernon  Pitt-Nind,  the  local 
Secretary  and  Treasurer  respectively,  did  all  in  their  power 
to  make  the  first  meeting  of  the  Association  in  "  the  twin 
villages  of  Lynton  and  Lynmouth  "  a  pleasant  and  success- 
ful one. 

The  proceedings  commenced  with  a  Meeting  of  the 
Council,  at  whicli  the  necessary  business  was  transacted, 
the  Report  of  the  Council  for  the  past  year  decided  upon, 
the  Reports  of  Committees  received,  and  the  papers  for 
reading  at  the  meeting  accepted. 

At  the  close  of  this  meeting  tlie  time  for  the  reception  of 
the  Association  by  the  Urban  District  Council  had  arrived, 
and  at  3.30  the  members  of  this  body  with  its  Chairman, 
Mr.  William  Riddell,  presiding,  and  the  members  and 
associates  assembled  in  the  Town  Hall.  Mr.  Riddell  extended 
a  hearty  welcome  to  the  Association,  and  expressed  the  hope 


24  PROCBBEDINGS   AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING. 

that  all  would  enjoy  the  beautiful  scenery  and  lovely  air. 
There  was  plenty  in  the  neighbourhood  that  would  interest 
them — the  encampment  at  Countisbury,  the  barrows  at 
Parracombe,  the  fossil  at  Stairhole,  and  the  curious  rock  in 
the  North  Walk  among  them.  Dr.  Brushfield  acknowledged 
the  welcome  in  a  pleasant  speech,  and  Professor  Chapman 
also  joined  in  the  thanks,  and  said  that  he  did  not  know  any 
place  in  Devonshire  with  more  attraction  for  the  eye,  the 
heart  too,  and  the  imagination  than  Lynton. 

The  General  Meeting  of  the  members  followed,  and  it  was 
seen  that  a  large  number  had  already  arrived.  The  Rev. 
William  Harpley  presided.  The  Report  of  the  Council  was 
received  and  adopted,  as  were  also  the  Balance  Sheet  and 
Statement  of  Accounts  for  the  past  year  (see  pp.  30-31). 
The  adverse  balance  of  last  year — £35  15s.  5d. — had  un- 
fortunately been  increased  to  £86  Os.  4d.,  and  the  Auditor 
thought  that  this  should  be  discharged  by  a  sale  of  some  of  the 
invested  money.  It  was,  however,  pointed  out  that  adverse 
balances  in  former  years  had  been  much  larger  than  this, 
and  had  in  time  been  cleared  off,  and  that  with  economy 
this  would  soon  be  reduced.  The  suggested  sale  of  stock 
did  not  find  favour  with  the  meeting,  but  it  was  considered 
that  it  was  very  desirable  that  the  expenditure  of  each  year 
should  be  met  as  far  as  possible  by  the  income.  The  Report 
of  the  Committee  on  the  place  of  meeting,  etc.,  for  1907  was 
also  received  and  adopted.  It  stated  that  an  invitation  had 
been  received  from  the  town  of  Axminster,  and  that  the 
Right  Rev.  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Exeter.  Archibald  Robert- 
son, D.D.,  had  accepted  the  office  of  President,  and  that 
Mr.  W.  Pitfield  Chappie  would  act  as  local  Secretary,  and 
various  alterations  in  the  Rules,  of  which  due  notice  had 
been  given,  were  made. 

By  the  kind  invitation  of  Mrs.  Jeune  the  members 
assembled  at  the  Manor  House,  Lynmouth,  later  in  the 
afternoon,  where  they  were  kindly  received  and  hospitably 
entertained. 

In  the  evening  the  President,  Mr.  Basil  H.  Thomson,  took 
the  chair,  and  in  retiring  from  the  office  thanked  the 
members  for  the  kindness  extended  to  him  during  the  past 
year.  He  regretted  the  enforced  absence  of  the  new  President, 
and  read  a  letter  received  from  Mrs.  Elworthy  with  reference 
to  his  state  of  health,  and  his  great  regret  that  he  was  pre- 
vented from  attending,  and  expressing  his  satisfaction  with 
the  arrangements  which  had  been  made  necessary  under  the 
circumstances.     Mr.  Basil  Thomson  then  i-ead  the  address 


PROCEEDINGS  AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING.  25 

which  had  been  written  by  the  President  (printed,  p.  40). 
On  the  proposal  of  Capt.  E.  B.  Jeune,  supported  by  Professor 
Chapman,  a  vote  of  thanks  was  given  to  Mr.  F.  T.  Elworthy 
for  his  interesting  address. 

The  reading  of  Reports  and  accepted  papers  commenced 
on  Wednesday  morning.  Dr.  Brushfield  in  the  chair.  The 
following  is  the  complete  list : — 

Twenty-fifth  Report  of  the  Barrow  Committee. 
Twenty-fourth  Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Climate  of  Devon. 
Twenty-third  Report  of  the  Committee  on  Devonshire  Folk-lore. 
Eleventh  Report  of  the  Dartmoor  Exploration  Committee. 
^'  h^^l.  ""^  .^^^°  *'!'^  Counti8-|  ^  J  p  ^^^^^  ^^ 
Ditto  ditto  II.     Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter,  m.a. 

Documents  relating  to  the  above  Parishes    Eev.  J.  F.  Ch4inUr,  m.a. 
North   Devon   Pottery  of  Seventeenth  \  «,  ra^^i^„^,v- 
and  Eighteenth  Centuries     .        .]  ^'  <^^^''^^^' 
^^vo^'"!^    Implements    in    Northj  ^^  j.^^^^  ^  ^  ^  ^ 

^^"sher'JSf^"^   "^    Braunton    ^^idj  Miss  C.  K  Larter. 

^"^a^thSle?  h^*""'^"^*    ^^^"^  ""^jj^  i/.  Martin. 
TheEarlie8tPortionof**TestadeNevill"  J.  Horace  Round. 
Fees  of  Earl  Hugh  de  Courtenay  .         .     Rev.  T.  W.  Whale,  m.a. 
The  E^rly  Descent  of  the  Devonshire^ 

Estates  of  Honours  of  Mortain  and  I  Rev.  OswaldJ.  ReicJul,  m.a.,T).(:.l. 

Okehampton  .         .  .  | 

The  Recent  Neuroptera  of  Devonshire  .     C.  A.  Briggs,  f.e.s. 

Supposed  Currency  Bars,  Holne  Chase  ,     P.  F.  S.  Amery. 

AncicntOak  Altar  in  St.  Peter's  Church,  \  ^   „    n^r,^  rr.„«  ^  i,  t  »  * 
Tawstock       .  .  .  j  *  ^*  F.K.I.B.A. 

Old  Tiverton  or  Twyford       .        .        .     Miss  Emily  Skinner. 

^*r"d'M^CTn^''°'°'''°°'  '^°"*°*}^«'-  D-Oyly  IV.  Oldham. 

Totnes:  Its  Mayors  and  Mayoralties.  VI.     Edward  Windeatt. 

The  Forest  Bounds  near  Princetown      .     Arthur  B.  Prowse^  m.d.,  f.r.c.8. 

Raleghana.     VII T.  N.  Bnishfield,  m.d. 

Botanical  Notes.     III.  .         .         .     Miss  Helen  Saunders. 

The  Accounts  of  the   Head  and  Sub- 'I  ,,.  .  j,   j ^„^  \v^„\..^ 
sidiary  Wardens  of  Sonth  Tawton./  ^"»  ^-  ^?<'-  "^^*"- 
West-country  Wit  and  Humour.     III.  .     «/.  D.  Priekinan. 
The  Stone  Rows  of  Dartmoor.     VII.    .     R.  Hansford  WoHh,  r.E. 
Rude  Stoue  Monuments.     II.        .         .     R.  Hansford  JForthj  c.e. 

After  the  conclusion  of  the  day's  business  a  visit  was  paid 
to  Glen  Lyn,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tong  having  kindly  invited  the 
members  and  their  friends  to  walk  through  their  lovely 


1M»  l'KO(^KKniN(;S   AT   THE   ANNUAL   MEETING. 

^r«nm<ls.  jinil  to  a  garden  parly,  and  a  very  pleasant  time 

was  S|MMll. 

This  yi'jir.  at  tho  roiiuest  of  the  local  Committee,  it  was 
drcithMl  that  ihiMV  should  U*  a  dinner,  which  was  accordingly 
held  al  ihe  lJ<)val  Castle  Hi»tel.  About  eighty  attended. 
Sir  All'n'd  Crofl  presiding.  The  function  was  agreeable  in 
rwvy  way.  and  I  he  arrangenients  made  by  Miss  Baker,  the 
n lanagrii 'ss,  and  hov  sister  were  admirable.  The  speeches 
wtM't'  iVw  and  brief.  In  rt'iurning  tljanks  for  the  toast  of 
the  uiru't'is.  whicli  was  prop«»seil  by  the  llev.  S.  Gordon 
INuisonby,  ihi*  Sei-retary,  who  respon«led  for  his  colleague,  the 
othiM"  oHii-ers,  ant!  hinjself.  ivferred  to  the  pecuniary  position 
of  I  he  SiM'iiM  V.  and  si  a  lei  I  that  there  ouglit  to  be  a  thousand 
members  al  lea.sl  to  eany  t»n  the  work  satisfactorily,  and 
asked  Ids  listentMs.  if  llu'y  appreeiateil  lht»  services  of  those 
who  wrvr  entrustiMJ  with  its  management,  to  do  all  in  their 
poN>er  lo  increase  I  he  number,  and  .slid  that  if  every  member 
dnrini:  \hv  eoniing  ye;ir  would  obtain  a  new  mendjer,  no 
iH'ller  >>a\  of  thanking  the  ollieers  ctiuld  be  devised,  or  any 
Ilia  I  would  bi'  so  satisfactory  io  them. 

On  Tliur.*<day  I  la*  reading  of  tin*  ])apers  was  resumed,  and 
on  the  (Mnu'lusitm  of  the  business  tlie  ailjnurned  meeting  of 
tla»  members  louk  place.  A  resolution  expressing  the  regret 
i»f  lUv  Assoiialion  at  the  absence  oi  the  President,  and  a 
lh»pe  thai  lu'  woulil  be  speedily  resioreil  to  health,  was 
uuanimniisly  pa^seil  liesolution^  weieals-)  earrieil  thanking 
Mr.  W.  IIi«ld(dl,  Chairman  vi  the  Trban  District  Council, 
and  I  he  bu*al  (.'ommittee,  for  the  e*»mmodious  rooms  they 
provide.!,  and  f«»r  l!ie  exeelleni  arrangements  made  for  the 
tMiiiMMiieiire.  f.»mfi»rt.  and  enteriainment  of  the  members; 
Messrs.  I'hailes  A.  r>riggs  and  V.  rilt-Nintl,  the  local 
Sei-retary  and  local  Treasurer  re^i»ectively.  for  their  etlicient 
^erviees,  and  linally  the  members  of  the  Lynton  and  Lyn- 
moulh  Men's  Institute  an«l  <»f  the  Volunteer  Institute  re- 
sivelively  for  their  hospitality  in  throwing  oj>en  their  rooms 
•J/v  the  use  «)f  the  members  durinu'  the  meeting. 

At  the  concluilin;^'  meeting  «^f  the  ('»)uncil  ilie  (juestion  of 
-4  i\s  and  means  was  very  seriously  rjiseussed,  and  there  was 
^  .vAuimous  feeling  that  clloris  shouM  be  made,  as  mentioned 
-,     "o  uioeting  of  members,  to  make  the  year  s  income  meet 

.     jMvuses.     It  was  consiilored  impossible   to  }»rint   the 

V    -r  '*c'  :he  papers  rear!,  but  the  kind  consideration  of  .^omo 

•:^  ui:hors  enabletl  the  (Council,  on  the  suggestion  of  the 

'-2^  Secretary,  to  make  such  omi.ssions  fnau  the  list  as 

-rni  "i*  f'»'^t  of  printing  within  the  estimated  limits. 


PROCEEDINGS  AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING.  27 

To  further  assist,  two  readers  of  papers,  which  had  been 
accepted,  then  stated  that  they  would  contribute,  the  one 
£10,  the  other  the  cost  of  printing  his  contribution.  These 
offers  were  followed  by  a  gratifying  announcement  by  the 
Treasurer,  that  he  had  received  an  intimation  from  an  old 
and  valued  life  member  (whose  name  was  not  mentioned) 
that  he  was  willing,  as  a  token  of  his  appreciation  of  the 
work  and  value  of  the  Association,  to  present  to  the  funds 
a  donation,  so  that  the  financial  pressure  of  the  last  two 
or  three  years  might  be  removed.  It  was  resolved  that  this 
very  kind  offer  should  be  accepted,  and  the  Treasurer  was 
requested  to  convey  to  the  generous  donor  the  best  thanks 
of  the  Council  of  the  Association  for  this  welcome  gift.  The 
Treasurer  has  since  the  meeting,  it  may  be  said,  received 
from  Mr.  Sydney  P.  Adams — who  now  permits  his  name 
to  be  given— a  cheque  for  £100. 

The  afternoon  was  spent  by  many  in  the  valley  at 
Watersmeet,  with  tea  at  Myrtleberry,  some  returning  by 
Beggarsroost  Hill,  visiting  the  two  menhirs  recently  re- 
erected,  and  reaching  Lynton  by  way  of  Barbrook  Mill; 
others  returning  by  the  riverside  path  to  Lynmouth. 

In  the  evening  the  Chairman  of  the  Urban  District 
Council  and  Mrs.  Kiddell  held  a  reception  at  the  Town  Hall. 
There  was  a  large  attendance  of  townspeople  as  well  as  of 
our  members  and  friends.  The  Chairman  recited  an  amusing 
piece  in  the  Devonshire  dialect,  and  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Cox  told 
a  ferreting  stor}',  Mrs.  E.  Goode  and  Dr.  Brushfield  sang, 
and  Miss  Kiddell  and  Mr.  Broadleigh  were  at  the  piano. 

For  Friday  a  capital  excursion  had  been  arranged.  The 
party  drove  through  the  Valley  of  Kocks  —  Southey's 
"palace  of  the  pre- Adamite  kings."  The  Devil's  Cheese 
Wring  or  Press  was  noticed  on  one  side,  and  the  Castle  Rock 
and  the  White  Lady  on  the  other.  Mr.  C.  F.  Bailey  gave  his 
kind  permission  to  visit  Lee  Abbey,  and  the  grounds  and 
Jennifred's  Leap  and  Duty  Point.  The  drive  was  continued 
to  Hunter's  Inn,  where  lunch  was  provided,  and  a  stay  was 
made  for  some  little  time.  Parracombe  was  then  visited, 
and  Holwell  Castle.  The  barrows  and  Parracombe  old  church 
were  examined  under  the  guidance  of  the  Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter, 
whose  valuable  help  had  all  through  done  so  much  to  con- 
tribute to  the  success  of  the  meeting.  Then  to  finish  the 
day,  on  the  lawn  and  amid  the  beautiful  surroundings  of 
their  rectory,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Chanter  welcomed  very  heartily 
the  somewhat  tired  and  warm  excursionists,  and  introduced 
them  to  a  number  of  their  friends  and  neighbours  who  had 


•JS  PROCEKDINGS   AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING. 

hoon  invitod  to  meet  them  at  tea.  Before  leaving  Sir  Alfreil 
I'nift,  in  tlio  name  of  the  Society,  thanked  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
dmntor  for  all  that  they  had  done  in  connexion  with  the 
visit,  to  Lynton. 

As  in  some  former  years  the  members  were  invited  to 
jnin  in  a  botanical  walk  on  Saturday.  Unfortunately  the 
nmrnin^  ])rovod  very  unfavourable,  and  but  few  were  foimd 
liiiivo  tMiough  to  face  the  down  and  marsh  of  Holdstone  and 
Ihiyliiko.     l^ndtM*  the  able  guidance,  however,  of  Mr.  W.  P. 

I I  mill,  M.A.,  K.u.s.,  a  small  party  started  from  the  Blackmore 
i\i\\{^  Station,  anil,  drenched  although  we  believe  they  were, 
a  MM  V  |»r«»lit.abh»  anil  interesting  day  was  spent.  Two  species 
of  Willnw -herb  were  noticed — one  of  them  \y as  Chamosnerion 
innfiififi/ii/iinii,  of  which  there  are  two  varieties,  according  to 
llin  lnii^<th  of  the  iH)ds,  whether  they  measure  from  four 
In  Meveii  ccMitinictros  in  length  or  only  from  two  to  four 
run li hint roH.  The  specimens  were  not  in  ripe  fruit,  but  they 
a|i|MMii«Ml  In  l)olong  to  the  short-fruited  variety,  which  is 
iIimI  oI'liMi  ^n'(»\vn  in  gardens.  Tlie  young  root-shoots  of  this 
Mjnieien  hervt^  as  an  agreeable  article  of  food  when  cooked 

III  lei  the  fashion  of  asparagus,  and  the  leaves  are  sometimes 
Mrteil  In  iiiiK  with  china-tca.  The  other  willow-herb  noticed 
\MM\  M  MiiHiller  anil  less  robust  species,  and  a  commoner  plant, 
iMinM»lv,  Nftilohium  tnontiinnm.  It  is  supposed  to  be  the 
MMIIII1  ari  that  llgured  by  Dodoens  under  the  name  of  Z//.st- 
niih/intni  fini'fiuiruni  primum,  the  iirst  purple-red  willow- 
IiimIi  Jir  Lvsiiiiaehiuni,  also  "the  Sonne  l)efore  the  Father," 
Willi  lel'emiii'O  ti)  which  Henry  Lyte  in  1578,  in  his  edition 
III  hniliieiiM'  "Niewe  llerball."  wrote  that  the  leaves** are 
tiiiHil  abtuil  ihe  tvlges,  much  like  unto  Willow  leaves.  The 
llimiert  ill  colour  and  making  are  somewhat  like  the  floures 
nf  \\\ts  eoiiiiiion  wihle  Mallow  or  Hock,  that  is  to  say,  it  hath 
foiiie  lilth^  broadc  leaves  standing  togither,  and  lying  one 
UN ei  an  others  e<lges,  under  which  there  groweth  long  huskes 
(II  CinMes,  like  to  the  huskes  of  stocke  Gillofers,  which 
luinKeM  do  a])]»eare  before  the  opening  of  the  tioure;  the 
\>liicli  huskes  or  seede  vessels  do  open  of  themselves,  and 
».|ea\o  abroade  into  three  or  four  partes  or  quarters,  when 
ilie  neeils  is  rype,  the  whiche  bycause  it  is  of  a  woolly  or 
vveMony  Hul»stance  is  carried  away  with  the  winde.  The 
u^»le  IM  Imt  small  and  thready."  It  is  "called  of  some,  in 
\  M\\\\\  Filinii  nntc  Patrcni,  that  is  to  say,  the  sonne  before 
\\\\\  ItUlior.  bycause  that  his  long  huskes  in  which  the  seede 
t-1  \\khnod  do  come  forth  and  ware  great,  before  the  fioure 
v'^sv^olh."     Among  the  plants  observed  the  following  may 


PROCEEDINGS  AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING.  29 

be  mentioned :  Com  Cockle  {Lychnis  githago),  not  nearly  a8 
prevalent  in  North  Devon  as  in  the  corn-growing  districts 
of  the  east  of  England;  Planchon's  Furze  {Ulex  gallii), 
and  the  variety  humilis;  Corn  Marigold  {Chrysantliemvm 
segetum),  sparingly;  Wood  Spurge  {Ewphorhiu  amygdaloides), 
in  the  bog  at  Hoylake ;  Toad  Eush  {Jumits  hufonius),  in  fine 
tlower  and  unusually  pretty  for  this  species;  Scaly-stemmed 
Club  Sush  (Scirpits  ccesjntosKs),  in  large  masses  and  in  some 
cases  exceeding  four  decimetres  high ;  Mat  Grass  (Nardus 
drwta),  in  fruit  and  about  three  and  a  half  decimetres  high ; 
Hay-scented  Fern  {Ladrea  ccinula),  fine  specimens;  and 
Kusty-back  Fern  {Cetemch  officinarum). 

The  meeting  of  1906  was  an  altogether  pleasant  and 
instructive  one — marred,  however,  by  the  absence  of  the 
President,  who  had  been  looking  forward  to  the  meeting  up 
to  within  a  comparatively  short  time  of  its  commencement. 

Maxwell  Adams, 
J.  Brooking-Rowk, 

Hon.  Secretaries. 
11  August,  1906. 


[    30    ] 


Treasurers  Eeport  of  llcceipts  (nid  Expenditure 


Becriptfii. 

By  Subscriptions : — 
Arreai-H  1904  (29). 
Due  ill  1905  (172i) 
CuiTcnt  year  1906  (157) 

,,  Lady  Associatos  (2) 

,,  Life  Composition  (1) 

„   Dividends— Consols  £300  Stock 

„  ,,  India  3  i>cr  cent  £350  Stock 

From  Autliors  of  Papei-s  : — 
„   Excess  under  Rule  29 
,,  Dr.  rcarson,  cost  of  his  paper 

,,  Transactions  sold  (1) 

,,  Messrs.  Brendon,  Discount    . 

,,  Balance  due  to  Treasurer 


£,     s.     d,      £     s.    d. 


15  4 

6 

90  11 

3 

82  8 

6 

— 

188 

4 

3 

, 

, 

0 

10 

0 

7 

17 

6 

7  2 

8 

9  17 

8 

17 

0 

4 

16  13 

0 

0  18 

0 

17 
0 

11 
IS 

0 
6 

. 

. 

4 

3 

9 

236 

5 

4 

. 

S6 

0 

4 

JC322     5     8 


{iiigned)  W   F.  S.  AMKKY,  Jloiu   Treasunr. 


[    31    ] 


for  the  year  ending  5th  July,  1906. 


Cjrpenlitture. 

To  Messrs.  Brendon  and  Son,  Ltd.,  Printing,  etc. 
Circnlars  and  programme     . 
Postage,  late  issue  **  Transactions  " 


Vol.  XXXVII,  "Transactions," 592 pp 
Extras  for  small  type  and  tables 
Extra  for  coiTCctions 
Plans  and  plates  . 
Covers,  and  doing  up 

Addressing,  packing,  and  postage 
Anthors'  Reprints,  25  each  . 
Carriage  of  "  Devon  Wills,"  Part  VII 
Errata  slips  for  Vol.  XXXVI 
List  of  papers  and  notices,  1906 
Insurance  premiums  1905  and  1906 


„  Record  Society,  **  Devon  Wills,"  Part  VII 

„  General  Secretaries'  Ex^ienses  : — 

Postage,  Stationery,  and  Clerical  Assistance 
Printing  circnlars  and  cards,  1905 

,,  General  Treasurer's  Expenses: — 
PosUge  and  expenses 
Paid  Hooper,  illustrating  lectures 


2    2 
0  15 


£    s.    d. 


2  17  10 


,600  copies  123    0 

36  19 

16    0 

.       13  15 

22  10 


,,  Bank  Charges 


„  Balance  due  to  Treasurer,  1905 


212    6     0 


18  18 

13  17 

0    9 

0  5 

1  10 
1  17 


13  19 
2    5 


36     8     3 
12  12    0 


16     4     8 


1  18 
1     7 


1 
0 

-      3     5  1 

.       1     7  5 

285  10  3 

.     36  15  5 

£322     6  8 


Kxninined  with    Vouchers,  etc.,  atid  fouruJ  to  be  correcty  with  a  balance 
of  £86  05.  \d.  diie  to  the  Treamrer,  this  lOth  day  of  July,  1906. 


{Signed)  ROBERT  C.   TUCKER, 

A  miitor. 


[    32    ] 


SELECTED  MINUTES   OF   COUNCIL  APPOINTING 
COMMITTEES. 

Passed  at  the  Meeting  at  Lyntvn,  17  July,  1906. 


6.  That  Dr.  Brushfield,  Sir  Roper  Lethbridge,  Rev.  W. 
Harpley,  Sir  A.  Croft,  and  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe  be  a  Com- 
mittee for  the  purpose  of  considering  at  what  place  the  Associa- 
tion shall  hold  its  Meeting  in  1908,  who  shall  be  invited  to 
be  the  Officers  during  the  year  beginning  with  that  Meeting, 
and  who  shall  be  invited  to  fill  any  official  vacancy  or  vacancies 
which  may  occur  before  the  Annual  Meeting  in  1907;  that  Mr. 
J.  Brooking-Rowe  be  the  Secretary ;  and  that  they  be  requested 
to  report  to  the  next  Winter  Meeting  of  the  Council,  and,  if 
necessary,  to  the  first  Meeting  of  the  Council  to  be  held  in 
July,  1907. 

7.  That  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  Dr.  Brushfield,  Mr.  Robert 
Burnard,  Mr.  E.  A.  S.  Elliot,  Mr.  H.  Montagu  Evans,  Rev.  W. 
Harpley,  Mr.  C.  E.  Robinson,  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  Mr.  A. 
Somervail,  and  Mr.  H.  B.  S.  Woodliouse  be  a  Committee 
for  the  purpose  of  noting  the  discovery  or  occurrence  of  such 
facts  in  any  department  of  scientific  inquiry,  and  connected 
with  Devonshire,  as  it  may  be  desirable  to  place  on  permanent 
record,  but  which  may  not  be  of  sufficient  importance  in  themselves 
to  form  the  subjects  of  separate  papers;  and  that  Mr.  J.  Brooking- 
Rowe  be  the  Secretary. 

8.  That  Mr.  P.  F.  S.  Amery,  Rev.  S.  Baring-Gould,  Mr.  R. 
Pearse  Chope,  Mr.  G.  M.  Doe,  Rev.  W.  Harpley,  Mr.  J.  S.  Neck, 
Mrs.  Radford,  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  Mrs.  Troup,  and  Mr. 
H.  B.  S.  Woodhouse  be  a  Committee  for  the  purpose  of  collecting 
notes  on  Devonshire  Folk-lore ;  and  that  Mr.  P.  F.  S.  Amery  be 
the  Secretary. 

9.  That  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  Dr.  Brushfield,  Mr.  F.  T.  Elworthy, 
Mr.  C.  H.  Laycock,  Miss  Helen  Saunders,  and  Mrs.  Troup  be  a  Com- 
mittee for  the  purpose  of  noting  and  recording  tlie  existing  use  of 
any  Verbal  Provincialisms  in  Devonshire,  in  either  written  or 
spoken  language ;  and  that  Mr.  F.  T.  Elwortliy  be  the  Secretary. 

10.    That  Mr.   P.   F.  S.   Amery,   Rev.   S.   Baring-Gould,  Dr. 
Brushfield,  Mr.  Burnai*d,  ]Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter 


RESOLUTIONS  APPOINTING  COMMITTEES.  33 

and  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth  be  a  Committee  to  collect  and  record 
hcts  relating  to  Barrows  in  Devonshire,  and  to  take  steps,  where 
possible,  for  their  investigation ;  and  that  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth 
be  the  Secretary. 

11.  That  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  Mr.  A.  H.  Dymond,  Rev.  W. 
Haipley,  and  Mr.  R.  C.  Tucker  be  a  Committee  for  the  pur- 
pose of  making  arrangements  for  an  Association  Dinner  or  any 
other  form  of  evening  entertainment  as  they  may  think  best  in 
consultation  with  the  local  Committee;  and  that  Mr.  R.  C.  Tucker 
be  the  Secretary. 

12.  That  Mr.  P.  F.  S.  Amery,  Sir  Alfred  W.  Croft,  Mr.  James 
Hamlyn,  and  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth  be  a  Committee  to  collect 
and  tabulate  trustworthy  and  comparable  observations  on  the 
Climate  of  Devon ;  and  that  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth  be  the 
Secretary, 

13.  That  Sir  Roper  Lethbridge,  Dr.  Brushfield,  Mr.  R. 
Pearse  Chope,  Rev.  Chancellor  Edmonds,  b.d..  Rev.  Preb.  Granville, 
Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  and  Mr.  E.  Windeatt  be  a  Committee  for 
the  purpose  of  investigating  and  reporting  on  any  Manuscripts, 
Records,  or  Ancient  Documents  existing  in,  or  relating  to,  Devon- 
shire, with  the  nature  of  their  contents,  their  locality,  and  whether 
in  public  or  private  hands;  and  that  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe  be 
the  Secretary. 

U.  That  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  the  Rev.  I.  K.  Anderson,  Mr.  R.  Bur- 
nard,  Rev.  S.  Baring-Gould,  Mr.  J.  D.  Pode,  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe, 
Mr.  Basil  Thomson,  and  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth  be  a  Committee 
for  the  purpose  of  exploring  Dartmoor  and  the  Camps  in  Devon ; 
and  that  the  Rev.  S.  Baring-Gould  be  the  Secretary. 

15.  That  Mr.  Maxwell  Adams,  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  Dr.  Brushfield, 
Rev.  Professor  Chapman,  Sir  Alfred  W.  Croft,  Rev.  O.  J.  Reichel, 
Mrs.  Troup,  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  Dr.  Arthur  B.  Prowse,  Mr. 
William  Davies,  Miss  H.  Saunders,  and  Mr.  W.  A.  Francken  be 
a  Committee  to  consider  the  matter  of  preparing,  according  to 
the  best  methods,  an  Index  to  the  First  Series  (Vols.  I-XXX)  of 
the  Transactions;  that  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery  be  the  Secretary;  and 
that  this  Committee  have  power  to  add  to  their  number. 

16.  That  Mr.  Maxwell  Adams,  Mr.  J.  S.  Amery,  Dr.  Brush- 
field,  Rev.  Chancellor  Edmonds,  Mr.  T.  Cann  Hughes,  Sir  Roper 
Lethbridge,  Rev.  O.  J.  Reichel,  Mr.  Harbottle  Reed,  Mr.  J. 
Brooking-Rowe,  Mr.  George  E.  Windeatt,  and  Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter 
be  a  Committee,  with  power  to  add  to  their  number,  to  prepare 
a  detailed  account  of  the  Church  Plate  of  the  Diocese  of  Exeter ; 
and  that  Mr.  T.  Cann  Hughes  and  Mr.  Harbottle  Reed  be  the 
joint  Secretaries. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  C 


[    34   ] 


©bituarj?  fiotitta. 


The  Eev.  Samuel  Eundle.  The  Eev.  Samuel  Bundle 
was  the  son  of  the  Eev.  Samuel  Bundle,  M.A.,  who  at  the 
time  of  his  death  was  Beetor  of  Stoekleigh  Pomeroy.  The  son 
was  born  in  1849,  educated  at  a  private  school  at  Stoke, 
Devonport,  and  proceeding  to  Oxford,  graduated  at  St 
Edmund's  Hall,  and  took  his  degrees,  B.A.  in  1873  and  M.A. 
in  1876.  He  was  ordained  deacon  in  the  diocese  of  Exeter 
and  priest  in  1875.  He  was  curate  of  Ladock,  Cornwall, 
his  only  curacy,  and  in  1879  he  was  appointed  to  the  living 
of  Godolphin.  He  did  good  work  in  his  parish,  and  was 
much  beloved  by  his  congregation  and  held  in  high  esteem 
by  his  neighbours  and  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  was  a 
good  antiquary  and  genealogist,  and  frequently  was  a  well- 
known  figure  at  our  meetings,  and  at  those  of  the  Penzance 
Antiquarian  and  Natural  History  Society  and  of  the  Boyal 
Institution  of  Cornwall.  To  the  publications  of  the  two 
latter  he  was  a  contributor,  but  his  interest  being  mainly 
confined  to  the  county  in  which  he  lived,  ho  wrote  nothing 
for  our  Transactions.  He  left  uncompleted  a  history  of 
liis  parish,  and  of  the  house  and  family  of  Godolphin.  He 
liad  been  ill  for  some  little  time,  and  it  became  necessary 
tliat  he  should  undergo  an  operation :  from  the  effects  of 
this  he  did  not  recover,  and  in  spite  of  careful  nursing  and 
every  attention  at  a  Nursing  Home  in  London,  he  passed 
away  on  6  April,  1906. 

Alfred  John  Pound.  Mr.  Pound  was  a  member  for  a 
short  time  only,  having  been  elected  in  1905.  He  was  the 
son  of  a  clergyman,  who  was  at  one  time  Head  Master  of 
the  Appuldurcombe  Collegiate  School.  He  died  under  sad 
circumstances  in  May  last. 

George  Egberts  Shgrtg.  The  greatly  esteemed  Town 
Clerk  of  Exeter  was  a  valuable  member  of  the  Association, 
and  he  was  always  ready  to  help  any  one  who  sought  his 


OBITUABY  NOTICES.  35 

valuable  aid,  or  who  wished  to  consult  any  of  the  many 
valuable  documents  under  his  charge.  His  career  was  a 
varied  one,  and  we  are  indebted  to  the  "  Western  Morning 
News  "  for  this  account  of  his  life.  He  was  born  in  Exeter 
24  August,  1837.  To  those  whose  knowledge  of  him  was 
limited  to  his  municipal  life,  it  does  indeed  seem  strange 
that  he  should  have  served  a  long  period  in  the  army.  But 
his  career  in  the  military  service  was  no  less  remarkable 
than  his  civil  service.  He  started  life  in  the  army,  and 
in  September  of  1854  enlisted  in  the  1st  Battalion  of 
the  Eille  Brigade,  and  in  February  of  the  following  year 
was  given  corporals  stripes.  In  May  of  the  same  year  he 
went  to  the  Crimea,  where  he  took  part  in  the  siege  and 
capture  of  Sebastopol.  He  often  in  later  years  recounted 
his  experiences  in  the  trenches  in  the  Crimea.  Promotion 
was  rapid  in  those  stirring  times,  and  in  March,  1856, 
Corporal  Shorto  became  sergeant,  being  then  eighteen  years 
and  seven  months  of  age.  Eetuming  from  the  Crimea  in 
July,  1856,  he  was  transferred  as  sergeant  to  the  4th  Batta- 
lion of  the  Eifle  Brigade,  in  which  he  served  six  years  as 
colour-sergeant.  It  is  said  that  at  one  time  he  served  under 
General  Garibaldi's  colours.  On  the  expiration  of  his  term 
of  service  in  the  army  he  took  his  discharge,  but  still  the 
military  spirit  was  strong  in  him,  for  almost  his  first  act  on 
coming  to  the  city  was  to  join  the  volunteers,  being  sworn 
in  by  Major  Denis  Moore.  He  for  many  years  captained  the 
B  Company  of  the  1st  E.V.,  was  an  excellent  shot,  and  was 
frequently  elected  as  one  of  the  team  to  represent  tlie 
county.  He  retired  some  years  ago  with  the  honorary  rank 
of  major,  having  for  thirty-nine  years  worn  her  late 
Majesty's  uniform.  He  possessed  the  volunteer  long  service 
medal  and  the  Crimea  and  Turkish  medals. 

At  the  time  of  Mr.  Shorto's  return  to  civil  life,  the  town 
clerk  was  Mr.  John  Gidley,  grandfather  of  the  present 
citizen  of  that  name.  He  soon  afterwards  died,  and  Mr. 
Denis  Moore,  being  a  candidate  for  the  office,  asked  Mr. 
Shorto  if  he  would  take  service  under  him  if  he  was  ap- 
pointed. The  post  was  given  to  him,  and  Mr.  Shorto 
entered  Mr.  Moore's  office  in  September,  1865,  and  re- 
mained with  him  until  his  death  in  1878.  From  1868 
Mr.  Shorto  acted  as  his  locum  tenens  whenever  he  was 
absent  from  the  city,  and  upon  Mr.  Moore's  demise  he  was 
appointed  town  clerk  jpro  tern,,  and  was  so  acting  when  tlie 
Mayor's  chain  was  presented  to  the  city  by  the  Arclijeo- 
logical  Institute.     Upon  the  appointment  of  Mr.  Bartholo- 

c2 


36  OBITUARY  NOTICES. 

mew  Gidley  as  town  clerk,  Mr.  Shorto  entered  his  office  as 
managing  clerk,  having  special  charge  of  the  Council  work. 
Mr.  Shorto  served  his  articles  with  Mr.  Gidley,  and  was  ad- 
mitted a  solicitor  in  March,  1880.  With  this  remarkable  record 
and  experience  behind  him,  Mr.  Shorto  was  appointed  town 
clerk  upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Gidley  in  1888.  When  Mr. 
Shorto  made  his  first  acquaintance  with  town  clerk's  duties 
the  Council  met  once  a  month,  and  had  little  more  to  do 
than  look  after  the  police  and  manage  the  borough  property. 
Since  then  it  has  become  the  Urban  Sanitary  Authority, 
with  control  of  the  sewers  and  streets;  it  has  become 
possessed  of  the  waterworks,  of  an  asylum,  the  Albert 
Memorial  Museum  and  College,  with  all  the  incidentals, 
electric-light  works,  etc.  The  city  has  also  been  enlarged, 
Exe  Bridge  rebuilt,  and  the  system  of  electrified  tramways 
installed.  The  growth  of  business  that  has  marked  Mr. 
Shorto's  association  with  the  city  clerkship  may  be 
gathered  from  the  fact  that  whereas  in  1865  the  annual  dis- 
bursements were  only  about  £12,000,  to-day  they  are 
£150,000  or  more. 

On  commencing  his  municipal  career  he  made  rapid  pro- 
gress towards  attaining  the  dignified  position  in  which  he 
served  so  long  and  so  faithfully  as  the  town  clerk  of  Exeter. 
Only  those  continually  in  association  with  him  know  how 
he  gloried  in  his  work ;  no  one  had  a  more  intimate  know- 
ledge of  the  city's  history  than  Mr.  Shorto,  and  no  one  had 
a  more  thorough  grasp  of  municipal  law.  He  dearly  loved 
talking  of  the  ancient  glories  of  the  past,  in  showing  by  the 
valuable  documents  which  the  Corporation  possess  that 
Exeter  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  cities  of  the  kingdom. 
Pressed  on  more  than  one  occasion  to  write  an  up-to-date 
history  of  Exeter,  his  reply  would- be  that  it  would  take 
two  lives,  one  to  study  the  history,  the  other  to  write  it. 
One  of  his  last  acts  was  to  relate  the  city's  history,  and 
show  its  historic  regalia  to  Princess  Frederica  of  Hanover. 
A  brilliant  feature  of  Mr.  Shorto's  civic  life  was  the  ability 
wliich  he  displayed  in  the  Council  Chamber.  Always  genial 
in  manner,  he  had  wonderful  tact  in  dealing  with  a  member 
inclined  to  be  obstreperous.  He  enjoyed  a  joke  thoroughly^ 
and  invariably  made  one  at  the  expense  of  a  comicillor, 
whilst  he  had  a  happy  way  of  silencing  a  member  who  dis- 
regarded the  rules  of  debate. 

Mr.  Shorto  also  found  other  spheres  of  activity.  For 
many  years  he  took  great  interest  in  the  Western  Provi- 
dent  Association,  and  was   formerly  identified   with    the 


OBITUARY  NOTICES.  37 

Western  Annuitant  Society.  As  an  ardent  follower  of  foot- 
ball, he  was  for  a  long  time  a  member  of  the  Exeter  Foot- 
ball Club.  It  was  in  regard  to  the  city  muniments  and 
insignia  that  Mr.  Shorto  was  particularly  authoritative. 
When  he  first  joined  the  town  clerk's  office,  and  for  seven 
years  afterwards,  Mr.  Stuart  A.  Moore,  of  London,  an  expert 
in  such  matters,  was  engaged  in  arranging  and  calendaring 
the  city  records,  and  he  gave  legal  assistance  from  his  anti- 
quarian research  in  many  important  lawsuits  in  which  the 
Council  were  then  engaged.  All  the  records  are  still  pre- 
served in  the  order  in  which  they  were  left  by  Mr.  Moore. 
Mr.  Shorto  was  of  necessity  much  associated  with  him  in 
this  work,  and  thus  obtained  a  unique  knowledge  of  the 
city's  unrivalled  muniments.  When  Sir  Henry  Irving  was 
in  the  city,  Mr.  Shorto  had  the  personal  delight  of  showing 
the  distinguished  actor,  amongst  the  charters  and  seals,  a 
deed  bearing  the  signature  of  Thomas  k  Becket,  a  char- 
acter whjch  Sir  Henry  was  to  play  at  the  theatre  the  same 
evening. 

For  some  time  he  had  been  in  indifferent  health.  Early 
in.  August,  on  a  very  hot  day,  he  had  a  heat  stroke,  and  was 
in  a  very  critical  condition.  He  however  rallied,  but  there 
was  a  relapse,  and  he  died  on  23  August,  1905,  at  Exmouth. 
He  was  buried  at  Honiton  Clyst,  the  first  part  of  the  service 
ha\ang  been  performed  at  the  Cathedral. 

Mrs.  Mary  Isabella  Jordan.  The  news  of  the  death  of 
Mrs.  Jordan,  wife  of  Mr.  W.  F.  C.  Jordan,  of  Teignmouth,  was 
received  with  much  regret  by  the  large  circle  of  her  friends 
by  whom  she  was  much  beloved.  She  was  the  only  surviv- 
ing child  of  the  Eev.  James  Metcalfe,  for  twenty-seven 
years  Vicar  of  St.  James,  Teignmouth.  Mr.  Jordan  was  the 
local  secretary  at  the  last  Teignmouth  meeting  of  the  Asso- 
ciation, and  his  wife  took  a  very  active  part  in  tlie  arrange- 
ments and  helped  much  in  ensuring  its  success.  On  that 
occasion  she  read  a  paper  on  West  Teignmouth  Church.  In 
the  spring  of  1905  she  became  ill  of  phthisis  and  rapidly 
becoming  worse,  died  at  Yelverton  in  August  at  the  early 
age  of  37. 

Mr.  Baldwin  John  Pollexfen  Bastard.  Mr.  Baldwin 
J.  P.  Bastard  died  at  Buckland  Court,  Ashburton,  on  22 
October,  1905.  He  was  the  head  of  one  of  the  oldest 
families  in  the  county.  As  a  young  man  he  served  in  the 
9th  Begiment  of  Foot,  and  fought  with  it  in  the  Crimea. 


38  OBITUARY  NOTICES. 

Succeeding  to  the  family  estates  on  the  death  of  his  elder 
brother,  he  left  the  Army  and  lived  the  life  of  a  country 
gentleman,  and  for  some  years  took  an  active  part  in  public 
matters,  and  also  for  some  time  acted  as  chairman  of  the 
Conservative  party.  He  was  a  U.L  and  J.P.  for  Devon, 
and  had  served  as  Sheriff.  He  had  been  a  member  since 
1876. 

Frederick  James  Cornish-Bowden.  Mr.  F.  J.  Comish- 
Bowden,  of  Black  Hall,  barrister-at-law,  was  the  son  of 
James  Bowden,  of  Kidbrook,  Kent,  formerly  of  the 
Admiralty  Office.  He  was  born  24  December,  1843,  and 
married  Esther  Priscilla  Cornish,  daughter  and  co-heiress  of 
James  Cornish,  of  Black  Hall,  upon  which  he  assumed  the 
prefix  surname  of  Cornish.  He  was  well  known  in  the 
county,  and  held  in  great  esteem  by  all.  He  was  an  active 
magistrate  and  useful  in  many  public  matters,  the  whole 
district  benefiting  by  the  zeal  and  liberality  he  displayed. 
He  took  much  interest  in  agriculture,  and  although  he  did 
not  take  any  prominent  part  in  politics,  the  Conservative 
cause  had  his  hearty  support.  He  was  a  devout  Church- 
man and  a  member  of  the  English  Church  Union,  and  for 
many  years  was  President  of  the  South -Western  District  of 
the  Union.  He  was  much  interested  in  the  work  of  the 
riympton  Deanery  Choral  Union,  and  his  stalwart  figure 
carrying  the  cross  at  the  head  of  the  procession  at  the 
annual  gatherings  will  be  remembered  by  many.  His  gifts 
to  the  Church  were  numerous,  many  known  only  to  the 
recipients  and  himself.  In  1878  he  supplied  a  great  want 
by  building  the  church  of  St.  James  at  Avonwick,  the 
chancel  being  a  memorial  to  his  father.  He  had  been  ill  for 
some  time  before  his  death,  which  took  place  on  3  October, 
1905,  at  Avonwick. 

Henry  Bingham  Mildmay.  Mr.  Mildmay,  of  Shoreham 
Place,  Kent,  and  of  Flete,  in  this  county,  was  the  son  of 
Humphrey  St.  John  Mildmay  and  the  Hon.  Anne  Eugenia 
Baring,  his  wife.  He  was  held  in  the  highest  esteem  by  all. 
His  kindly  nature  was  displayed  to  every  one,  and  every 
object  which  tended  to  the  advancement  and  betterment  of 
those  about  him  had  his  warmest  sympathy  and  assistance. 
He  was  much  interested  in  farming,  and  was  a  member  of 
the  Devon  County  and  other  societies.  He  was  Sheriff  of 
Devon  in  1886-7,  and  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  Devon  and 
Kent  as  well  as  D.L.  for  the  latter  county.    The  churches 


OBITUABY  NOTICES.  39 

of  Holbeton  and  Ermington  were  restored  by  him  at  great 
cost.  He  had  been  a  member  of  the  Association  for 
several  years,  and  at  the  Plympton  meeting  in  1887  he  took 
the  opportunity  of  inviting  the  Society  to  visit  him  at  his 
princely  residence  at  Flete.  For  twelve  months  before  his 
death  he  had  been  in  weak  health,  and  a  cold,  which  he  had 
not  strength  enough  to  throw  oflP,  caused  heart  failure,  and 
he  died  on  1  November,  1905. 

Thb  Earl  Fortescub.  Hugh  Fortescue,  Earl  Fortescue, 
Viscount  Ebrington,  and  Baron  Fortescue  of  Castle  Hill, 
was  bom  4  ApiS,  1818,  and  died  on  10  October,  1905.  He 
was  one  of  the  oldest  members  on  our  list,  and  although  he 
never  had  any  opportunity  of  joining  in  its  proceedings,  he 
was  always  interested  in  its  welfare  and  progress.  He  was 
greatly  respected  and  loved  by  those  who  knew  him  best, 
a  good  landlord  and  neighbour,  and  died  full  of  years  and 
honours.  We  need  not  repeat  the  events  of  his  life,  as 
they  have  been  given  in  full  detail  in  many  memoirs  in  the 
Press. 

Mr.  E.  p.  Hawkins,  of  Exeter,  and  Mr.  Edward 
GoDDARD,  of  Torquay,  have  also  died  during  the  past 
year. 


ADDRESS  OF  THE  PRESIDENT, 

FRED.  T.  ELWORTHY,  F.S.A. 


Ladies  and  Gentlemen, — Duty  no  less  than  inclination 
compels  me  to  place  in  the  very  forefront  of  my  address 
an  expression  of  my  appreciation  of  the  high  honour  you 
have  done  me  in  electing  me  for  your  President,  and  I 
assure  you  it  was  after  much  hesitation  and  with  the  utmost 
diffidence  that  I  accepted  the  responsibility.  I  could  not 
but  remember  the  number  of  highly  distinguished  men  who 
have  filled  this  chair,  and  feared  that  you  had  chosen  but 
a  bruised  reed  to  follow  them.  It  would  be  improper  in 
me  now  to  cavil  at  or  to  find  fault  with  your  choice,  yet 
I  cannot  avoid  the  reflection  that  it  might  have  been  wiser 
to  select  a  younger,  abler,  and  more  vigorous  man  for  your 
President,  one  who  would  have  less  need  to  crave  your 
indulgence  for  much  that  you  will  have  to  endure  from 
one  who  has  long  passed  the  age  of  man,  and  who  is  fully 
conscious  of  the  weakness  of  senility  and  old  age.  Most  of 
my  predecessors  have  announced  at  once  the  subject  or 
main  thesis  of  their  addresses,  but  I  have  thought  it  well,  on 
the  contrary,  to  let  the  matter  tell  its  own  tale  and  to  leave 
it  to  you  to  decide  what  it  is  all  about. 

It  has  been  held,  and  in  my  judgment  amply  demon- 
strated, that  every  common  pattern  or  design,  even  of  those 
conventional  and  seemingly  absurd  ones  on  our  wall-papers, 
is  the  direct  outcome  or  development  of  some  early  and 
crude  attempt  to  depict  some  actual  object  familiar  to  every- 
day life.  For  instance,  it  was  shown  that  the  guilloche,  a 
very  common  running  pattern  for  paper  borders,  etc.,  is  no 
more  than  a  row  repeated  over  and  over  of  cocks'  heads 
very  crudely  and  cursorily  drawn,  so  that  at  last  it  seems 
almost  like  a  row  of  old  pothooks  and  hangers,  but  with  a 
method,  and  then  the  turn  of  each  hook  forms  a  cock's  eye. 


MR.  FRED.  T.   ELWORTHY'S   PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.       41 

All  this  is  shown  in  the  clever  illustrations  of  two  books 
by  friends  of  mine — **  Evolution  in  Decorative  Art,"  by 
A.  C.  Haddon  and  Henry  Balfour. 

In  like  manner  very  little  investigation  will  show  that 
all  the  common  beliefs  which  we  are  accustomed  to  call 
superstition  can  be  traced  back  to  some  actual  event  or 
occurrence  that  has  given  rise  to  story  and  legend,  until  in 
these  days  the  result  is  as  widely  divided  from  the  original 
as  our  wall-paper  designs  are  from  their  prototypes.  It  is 
80  easy  to  call  it  superstition,  and  to  set  down  strange  beliefs 
not  easily  explained  to  ignorance,  but  it  is  well  before  com- 
mitting ourselves  to  sweeping  statements  to  decide  what  we 
mean  by  superstition.  It  is  common  to  laugh  at  foolish 
and  ignorant  people  on  whom  we  look  down  from  the  height 
of  our  superior  wisdom,  yet  a  very  little  sweeping  away  of 
surface  dust  will  show  how  very  much  of  what  we  are  pleased 
to  call  superstition  or  ignorance  remains  still  amongst  us  who 
resent  the  imputation  of  ignorance,  and  how  much  it  enters 
into  the  life  and  conduct  of  many  whom  we  admit  to  be 
enlightened  and  hard-headed.  For  example,  no  one  would 
accuse  the  Cunard  Steamship  Company  of  practising  super- 
stition in  the  conduct  of  their  business.  Yet  we  hear  that 
as  a  sop  to  superstitious  voyagers  by  sea,  the  Cunard  Com- 
pany have  determined  to  eliminate  the  number  13  from 
their  staterooms  in  all  new  vessels.  This  system  has  already 
been  adopted  on  the  "Caronia,"  and  will  apply  to  the  two 
turbine  mail  steamers  on  the  stocks. 

This  same  notion  as  to  the  fatality  of  the  number  13  is  to 
be  seen  every  day.  Witness  the  Thirteen  Club,  whose  very 
raison  d*itre  is  evidence  of  this  widespread  belief.  Hotel- 
keepers  say  that  they  dare  not  number  their  rooms  13. 
The  owner  of  the  "  Quisisana "  at  Capri,  in  reply  to  my 
inquiry  for  a  room  I  wished  to  have  which  used  to  have  that 
number,  told  me  he  had  been  obliged  to  alter  it  to  14, 
because  visitors  would  not  have  13. 

We  shall  find  that  from  the  very  cradle  mankind  has  be- 
come inbred  and  has  grown  up  to  that  set  of  ideas  we  call 
superstition.  When  we  consider  the  extent  to  which  these 
perverted  conceptions  of  divine  nature  had  grown  even  in 
the  golden  age  of  Roman  civilization,  we  cease  to  marvel  that 
with  all  our  modem  culture,  scientific  discoveries,  with  all 
the  dogmatic  arrogance  of  our  professors,  that  which  we  call 
superstition  still  holds  its  place.  Not  only  is  it  rampant 
among  the  uneducated,  but  very  little  search  will  prove  it  to 
be  very  much  in  evidence  among  those  who  pose  as  en- 


42       MR.  FRED.  T.  ELWORTHY*S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

lightened  citizens,  who  would  deeply  resent  the  slightest 
suggestion  that  they  were  superstitious. 

Keflection  will  show  that  people  in  general  are  not 
governed  by  force  or  by  any  consideration  of  law,  but  by  a 
body  of  traditional  ideas  and  customs,  some  Christian,  some 
heathen,  which  are  the  result  of  long  centuries  of  growth, 
and  which  will  take  ages  to  die  out;  and  though  we  may 
laugh  at  ignorant  and  foolish  people  on  whom  we  look  down 
from  our  superior  wisdom,  yet  a  very  little  clearing  of  the 
dust  from  the  surface  of  things  will  show  how  very  much  of 
what  we  are  pleased  to  call  superstition  remains  amongst 
ourselves  and  bears  a  very  distinct  effect  on  our  laws  and 
conduct,  even  among  the  most  enlightened  and  matter-of-fact 


Pardon  a  digression  on  the  arrogance  of  science,  a  word 
which  in  its  usual  modern  sense  rather  sets  my  back  up. 

Not  far  away  nor  long  ago  a  gentleman  who  poses  as  a 
scientific  botanist,  whom  we  will  call  the  Eev.  Fulwell  Prig, 
was  enlarging  at  great  length,  with  much  learning  and  many 
Greek  words,  to  an  appreciative  audience  of  ladies,  on  the 
special  peculiarities  of  an  obscure  Indian  plant,  when  a  by- 
stander ventured  to  ask  if  it  were  not  possible  that  certain 
points  might  be  explained  otherwise.  "  What  do  you  know 
about  it  ? "  says  Fulwell  Prig. 

Presently  another  listener  mildly  asked  if  the  lecturer 
knew  who  that  was. 

"  What,  that  ass  that  wanted  to  teach  me  ?    Who ? " 

"That  is  Mr. ,the  Government  botanist, who  discovered 

and  named  this  plant,  who  knows  more  of  Indian  botany 
than  any  man  alive."     Suhsidit  Fulwell  Prig. 

Once  a  sucking  physiologist  used  the  identically  rude 
expression  to  an  unobtrusive  old  gentleman  among  his 
audience,  and  afterwards  discovered  him  to  be  Professor 
Owen ! 

The  antiquity  of  the  belief  in  the  power  of  the  evil  eye, 
as  well  as  its  constant  persistence,  is  proved  by  abundant 
evidence.  In  the  times  of  ancient  Greece,  and  all  the 
subsequent  ages,  the  earliest,  the  latest,  the  most  familiar, 
the  most  constantly  portrayed  in  art  of  all  the  possessors  of 
the  evil  eye,  has  been  the  Gorgon  Medusa,  whose  fatal  glance 
turned  to  stone  all  who  beheld  her  awful  face.  She  was  at 
first  depicted  in  a  more  or  less  conventional  manner,  with 
staring  eyes,  wide,  grinning  mouth,  showing  wolf-like  fangs, 


MB.  FRED.  T.  ELWORTHT'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.       43 

and  a  protruded  tongue  split  down  the  centre.  This  was  the 
typical  archaic  type,  and  to  her  fearful  ugliness  was 
attributed  her  baneful  influence.  The  story  once  started 
evidently  developed  rapidly,  for  at  a  very  early  period  a 
parallel  version  seems  to  have  taken  root,  and  henceforward 
until  comparatively  recent  times  the  two  ran  on  con- 
currently. First  the  face  lost  its  extreme  hideousness,  and 
by  degrees,  easily  traced  in  ancient  art,  it  became  at  last  in 
Boman  days  just  as  lovely  as  it  had  been  frightful,  while  the 
story  grew  to  match.  She  was  said  to  have  been  beautiful 
at  first,  and  then  to  have  been  punished  by  being  changed 
into  a  hideousness  so  terrible  that  whoever  looked  upon  her 
was  turned  to  stone  (see  "  Solution  of  the  Gorgon  Myth  "  in 
"Folklore,"  vol.  XIV,  Sept.,  1903).  The  belief  that  her 
baneful  influence  arose  from  her  fearful  hideousness  con- 
tinued to  hold  its  full  force,  while,  at  the  same  time,  the 
story  had  developed  in  the  opposite  direction  to  such  an 
extent  that  her  power  of  fascinating^  heivitching,  or  advanc- 
ing was  held  to  be  the  result  of  her  matchless  beauty ;  yet 
with  all  this  development  the  belief  has  ever  remained  that 
the  baneful  effect  sprang  from  the  eyes  alone.  Thus  we  see 
the  process  by  which  these  terms  applied  to  women  in  our 
day  derive  their  meaning.  Many  Grseco-Koman  and  Etruscan 
Medusse  exhibit  her  as  beautiful,  but  with  a  sort  of  horror- 
struck,  agonized  expression  (see  "  Horns  of  Honour  *'). 

^lany  theories  have  been  put  forward  respecting  the  Medusa 
and  the  legend  of  Perseus — all  more  or  less  mythical  and  specu- 
lative. The  other  famous  exploit  of  Perseus,  the  rescue  of 
Andromeda,  is  doubtless  still  more  mythical — by  some  it  is  said  to 
be  the  classic  form  of  the  fight  between  the  sun-god  of  Babylon 
(Merodach)  and  Tiamat  the  dragon  or  power  of  darkness  (cf.  Job 
IX.  12).  Horus  slaying  the  dragon  in  several  forms  on  Egyptian 
I>aintings  is  but  another  version;  the  myth  also  appears  in  the 
fight  between  Michael  and  the  dragon — and  again  is  perpetuated 
by  St.  George  on  our  modern  coinage.  The  representations  of 
Perseus  and  St.  George  in  art  are  almost  identical,  except  that  the 
former  rides  the  winged  Pegasus,  while  in  some  sixteenth-century 
reliefs  St.  George  is  represented  in  plate  armour.  The  panic- 
stricken  lady  on  the  rock,  instead  of  being  in  the  classic  nudity 
where  Perseus  is  the  hero,  is  dressed  in  the  hoop  and  farthingale 
of  the  Renaissance,  in  reliefs,  at  the  Lou\Te  and  Palermo 
Museums. 

Livy  was  honest  enough  to  complain  of  the  neglect  of 
augury,  of  signs  and  omens,  which  at  that  time  according  to 
Cicero  it  was  the  fashion  to  treat  with  outward  contempt,  as 


44       MR.   FRED.   T.   ELWORTHY  S   PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

it  is  to-day.  Yet  Cicero  was  liimself  as  certain  a  believer  in 
charms,  in  omens,  in  bird-lore  and  other  forms  of  so-called 
superstition,  as  are  to-day  many  highly  educated  men ;  e.g. 
Hawker  of  Morwenstow  was,  and  the  present  Tsar  of  Holy 
Kussia  certainly  is  a  devout  user  of  magical  protectors. 

How  long  continued  and  well  protected  are  devices  for 
personal  protection  against  that  external  influence  hardly 
needs  to  be  proved,  but  some  anecdotes  of  the  present  Tsar 
are  interesting  instruction  on  that  matter.  He,  like  many 
another  living  potentate,  is  a  sufferer  from  the  ever-present 
dread. 

He  (Nicholas  II)  is  not  remarkable  for  physical  or  for  moral 
courage,  and  he  lives  in  a  perpetual  state  of  nervous  anxiety. 
The  grand  visit  which  Nicholas  II  paid  to  France  a  few 
years  ago  was  a  period  of  severe  strain  both  to  himself  and 
to  his  gentlemen-in-waiting.  So  long  as  he  was  at  sea 
Nicholas  was  happy  enough,  but  his  troubles  began  when  he 
landed  in  France.  He  was  far  from  happy  whilst  he  was  in 
Paris,  though  the  newspapers  had  a  great  deal  to  say  about 
his  magnificent  entry  in  state ;  but  the  newspapers  did  not 
tell  their  readers  what  his  gentlemen-in-waiting  had  to 
undergo.  Twice  a  day  he  received  absolution  from  his 
chaplain.  In  his  clothes  was  concealed  a  small  piece  of 
garlic,  as  a  talisman  against  the  plots  of  his  enemies.  A  pope 
of  the  "  Orthodox  Church  "  used  to  lick  his  left  eye  twice  a 
day  as  a  preventative  against  the  machinations  of  the 
Nihilists.  No  one  but  Baron  Freedericksy  knows  the  extent 
of  the  misery  which  he  suffered  until  he  returned  to  Russia 
again  (Carl  Joubert's  "The  Truth  about  the  Tsar,"  1905, 
pp.  22,  23). 

Astrology,  that  essentially  fatalist  creed,  was  devoutly  held 
by  famous  classical  writers.  Suetonius,  Tacitus,  and  Dion 
Cassius  all  believed  implicitly  the  predictions  sought  from 
Chaldajan  seers  on  the  accession  of  each  new  Emperor.  At 
the  same  time  that  men  had  entire  faith  in  the  skill  of  these 
impostors,  they  had  apparently  a  corresponding  distrust  of 
their  honesty  (Dill.,  "  Eoman  Society  from  Nero  to  Marcus 
Aurelius,"  p.  445.  A  most  valuable  book).  Casters  of 
'*  nativities,"  readers  of  the  planets,  are  now  in  the  same  way 
scoffed  at  in  public  and  consulted  in  private.  It  has  been 
well  said,  "Superstition  is  the  belief  by  other  people  in 
things  that  are  incredible  to  your  exalted  self." 

This  latter-day  afifectation  of  superiority  is  well  matched 
by  that  of  the  highly  cultured  Komans.  Plutarch,  indeed, 
had   a  genuine   hatred   of    the   degrading   fear   of    unseen 


MR.   JRBD.  T.  KLWORTHY'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.       45 

malignant  powers  in  his  day,  for  he  says, "  Better  not  believe 
in  God  at  all,  than  cringe  before  a  God  worse  than  the 
worst  of  men  "  (Dill.,  •*  Roman  Society  from  Nero  to  Marcus 
Aurelius,"  p.  444J. 

The  garlic  worn  by  the  Czar  is  still  a  very  common  pro- 
tector in  Sicily  and  in  Greece ;  indeed,  so  potent  is  it  in  some 
of  the  Greek  islands  that,  as  in  Naples  with  the  word  Corno, 
80  with  them  the  mere  utterance  of  the  word  for  garlic  is  a 
protection  (see  "Evil  Eye,"  p.  196,  etc.).  Of  all  people  the 
Sicilians  are  perhaps  fullest  of  what  we  understand  by  super- 
stition, in  many  particulars  quite  agreeing  with  notions  cur- 
rent among  ourselves.  Many  beliefs  respecting  everyday 
work  are  the  same.  A  bed  must  be  made  at  certain  times  when 
an  angel  is  thought  to  be  passing  who  will  leave  a  blessing  on 
it.  A  bed  must  never  be  made  by  one  person,  always  by  two, 
or  still  better,  three.  The  devil,  too,  is  a  very  real  personage 
in  Sicily ;  so  too  are  the  endless  charms,  both  concrete  and 
verbal,  like  garlic,  to  guard  against  general  as  well  as  specific 
evils.  To  give  even  a  summary  of  these  would  require  far  more 
time  and  space  than  I  can  give  or  than  you  would  endure. 

In  all  ages  superstition  has  been  differently  understood. 
The  term  has  been  both  denied  and  applied  to  the  very  same 
belief,  so  that  what  is  devoutly  held  in  one  generation  is 
scoffed  at  as  superstition  in  the  next;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  that  which  has  been  looked  on  as  mere  superstition  has 
subsequently  been  accepted  as  a  creed  unquestionable. 
Cicero  defined  superstition  as  any  religious  belief  or  practice 
going  beyond  ancestral  usage  ("  De  Natura  Deor."  I,  xvii.  42), 
while  Plutarch  devoted  a  whole  treatise  to  the  subject,  much 
more  in  accordance  with  our  own  views.  These  we  may 
shortly  define  as  a  dread,  a  recognition  of  supernatural 
powers,  ever  ready  to  injure  and  aftiict,  whose  evil  workings 
haunt  their  victims  day  and  night,  who  must  be  propitiated 
and  approached  with  fear  and  trembling  prostration.  Fear 
is  the  basis  of  superstition — the  ills  that  tiesh  is  heir  to  have 
ever  been  looked  on  as  the  direct  result  of  malignant  and 
destructive  influences. 

Poor  humanity  has  in  all  ages  regarded  Nature's  inexora- 
bility and  apparent  cruelty — the  dangers  from  earthquake, 
fire  and  tempest,  with  their  threats  to  life  and  its  inevitable 
end  for  all,  have  had  a  far  greater  place  in  man's  imagination 
and  experience  than  the  pleasures  and  joys  of  existence. 
Gratitude  for  favours  received  has  had  but  a  very  small 
place  in  comparison  with  fear  of  the  evil  that  may  happen 
to  the  body.     Hence  it  comes  that  he  whom  we  call  the 


46       MR.   FRED.  T.   ELWORTHY'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

child  of  nature  has  always  been  more  ready  to  fear  and  to  act 
so  as  to  pacify  or  propitiate  the  unknown  powers  of  dark- 
ness, the  authors,  as  he  believes,  of  all  his  troubles,  rather 
than  to  acknowledge  with  thanksgiving  those  beneficent 
powers  which,  notwithstanding  his  misfortunes,  he  is  com- 
pelled in  his  inmost  heart  to  recognize.  Thus  it  is,  that 
from  the  very  earliest  times  fear  has  been  the  great  mover 
of  mankind. 

As  I  said  before,  nowhere  is  what  we  call  superstition  so 
actively  surviving  as  in  modern  Sicily,  where  it  has  of  late 
been  my  privilege  to  give  it  some  time  and  study.  Whether 
anything  further  will  come  out  of  the  work  I  have  done  in 
that  direction  remains  to  be  seen.  Sicilian  folk-lore  is,  how- 
ever, an  euormous  yet  hitherto  unexploited  subject. 

Judged  by  the  number  and  variety  of  charms  and  amulets 
mounted  with  rings  to  be  worn  on  the  person,  exhibited  for 
sale  in  the  shops  and  streets  of  Sicily,  the  demand  for  them 
must  be  very  great,  even  after  allowing  for  the  number  manu- 
factured and  sold  to  tourists  as  mere  trinkets  and  curios. 

The  well-known  arms  of  Sicily,  known  as  the  Trinacria, 
are  to  be  seen  in  Palermo  chiefly,  and  the  device  is  made  in 
several  forms  to  be  worn  as  a  charm.  **  La  Migration  des 
Symboles,"  by  Goblet  d'Alviella,  a  wonderful  treatise,  must 
be  studied  by  all  who  are  interested  in  this  sign. 

Tlie  idea  of  the  three  legs  is  exceedingly  ancient,  and  may 
be  seen  on  the  shields  of  warriors,  upon  vases  of  the  very 
earliest  Greek  periods,  and  it  is  said  to  be  the  same  as  the 
four-legged  fylfot  or  svastica,  by  some  called  the  "  catch  K" 
This  device  was  brought  home  to  England  by  the  Crusaders, 
and  lias  become  the  recognized  badge  or  symbol  of  the 
Isle  of  Man.  The  difference  between  the  comparatively 
modern  Manx  arms  and  those  of  Sicily  is  that  the  former 
consist  of  three  running  legs  only,  but  spurred  and  cased  in 
medieval  plate  armour,  whereas  the  arms  of  Sicily  are 
naked  legs,  but  radiating  from  a  Medusa's  head.  Very  much 
might  be  said  on  this  quaint  device,  now  become  one  of  the 
commonest  badges  of  modern  life.  Of  course,  both  are  the 
offspring  of  the  same  primitive  idea,  but  they  have  evolved 
into  very  different  outward  appearances.  The  ancient  form 
appears  always  as  with  nude  legs,  and  in  that  fonn  was  one 
of  the  earliest  of  heraldic  shield  decorations  enlarged  on  else- 
where. I  could  produce  from  Greek  vases  the  fylfot  or  swastica 
represented  on  shields  of  pre-Homeric  age  (on  this  see 
"  Horns  of  Honour,"  page  67).  Modern  heraldry  being  dis- 
tinctly a  science  is  progressive,  and  still  in  course  of  develop- 


MR.  FBED.  T.  BLWORTHT'S   PBBSIDBNTIAL  ADDRE8S.       47 

ment,  as  may  well  be  seen  bj  the  easily  obtained  and  eagerly 
displayed  modem  coats  of  arms  and  manufacture  of  achieve- 
ments, though  one  and  all  have  sprung  from  the  primitive 
desire  of  protection  against  the  fatal  Evil  Eye  (see  "Evil  Eye," 
pagel79> 

A  much  older  representation  than  any  now  in  Sicily  is  on 
a  Greek  altar  in  Malta  (see  "Evil  Eye,"  page  291).  The 
present  Sicilian  common  representation  is  a  quite  modem- 
century  rendering,  taken  from  a  large  medallion  upon  a 
fountain  in  the  Villa  Giulia  at  Palermo.  The  arms  of  the 
city  of  Palermo  are  a  spread  eagle,  while  for  a  crest  is  borne 
a  legendary  figure  of  a  nude  male  wearing  a  crown,  whose 
breast  is  being  attacked  by  a  large  serpent.  The  best  repre- 
sentation of  this  so-called  Palermo  is  a  life-size  statue  on  a 
fountain  in  the  Piazza  Eafaelo.  The  same  is  to  be  seen 
above  a  shield  with  the  spread  eagle  on  the  facade  of  the 
'*  Municipio  "  and  on  a  fountain  outside  the  Porta  Felice. 

Kather  favourite  charm-amulets  are  a  skeleton,  a  skull, 
or  a  harlequin  mounted  with  a  ring  for  suspending  to  the 
watch  chain,  and  made  of  either  silver  or  base  white  metal. 
A  cock,  a  pig,  a  boar,  a  half-moon  with  a  profile,  are  also 
very  common ;  while  such  things  as  an  old  boot,  a  violiu, 
a  mandolin,  a  lady's  shoe,  a  winged  cupid,  a  little  bucket,  a 
revolver  made  of  silver  and  mounted  are  quite  comnioii. 
Hands  of  coral,  carved  in  various  positions,  but  particularly 
that  known  as  maiw  in  fica,  are  to  be  seen  in  Sicily  just  as 
frequently  as  in  Naples. 

Sicilians  say  in  this  world  there  is  a  cure  for  every 
disease,  and  if  one  dies  it  is  because  we  do  not  know  it. 
There  was  a  book  which  described  all  these  remedies,  but 
God  destroyed  it,  otherwise  there  would  have  been  no  death, 
and  there  would  not  have  been  food  enough  for  all  to  live  on. 

The  body  of  Mahomet  is  shut  up  in  an  iron  box  at  Mecca, 
and  this  box  is  suspended  in  the  air  by  means  of  a  load- 
stone (per  via  di  calamita).  The  counteraction  against  the 
loadstone  is  garlic.  If  a  Christian,  having  got  into  the 
temple  of  Mahomet,  should  throw  some  garlic  on  the  box, 
the  miraculous  suspension  would  end  and  it  would  fall  to 
the  ground. 

Sicily  is  supported  by  three  columns  which  are  the  bases 
of  the  three  feet — one  column  at  Faro,  one  at  Pechino,  and 
one  at  Trapani.  Of  course  these  feet  are  those  of  the 
"  Trinacria,"  the  well-known  arms  (three  legs)  of  Sicily. 

The  fire  of  Etna  is  in  direct  communication  with  that  of  hell. 

On  Mount  St.  Julian  of  Trapani  are  the  most  beautiful 


48       XB.  FEED.   T.  ELWOBTHT'S  FUESIDECTIAL  ADDSK8. 

women  of  Sicilv,  bat  if  thev  come  down  from  thence  and 
settle  elsewhere  thev  I*~j6e  their  beantr. 

11  TrapacL  «:mE.i  li  sost^i  ciuviddL 
Efl  a  la  Mucri  li  p:cc:*xci  reddi ; 
Also 

Cu:  vol:  sal:  vaji  a  TrapoziL 
Cii*  voli  vei-ii  vnja  a  la  Mund. 

.S:.  Ar.:ony  Abate  is  the  p»atron  of  fire. 

If  :he  fire  crackles  or  the  lamp  spatters  thev  pour  holj 
wat^rr,  ^Urr-ie^l  on  holy  Saturiay.  over  it. 

}f<:  who  keeps  no  light  burning  (before  a  saint)  in  his 
ho:;rie  wiU  <i:*:  accursed. 

If  you  --nufi  a  candle  and  throw  the  snuff  still  alight  on 
th^:  '/round,  you  must  stamp  it  out  instantly,  lest  the  souls 
in  limr/)  blaspheme  God  and  curse  their  relations  to  the 
sevc-nth  j^eneration,  for  they  are  in  darkness,  and  at  the 
sight  of  that  little  light  suffer  horribly. 

A  lij^ht  on  the  ground  portends  near  misfortune. 

If  the  kitchen  fire  goes  out  on  a  Holy  Saturday  it  is  a 
frightful  omen ;  l>efore  the  next,  one  of  the  family  will  die 
accur->;d.  Therefore  the  common  people  are  careful  not  to 
put  wet  or  green  fuel  on  the  fire  alx)ut  that  time. 

To  try  if  wine  is  pure  or  watered,  a  little  is  poured  on  a 
plate  on  which  stand-;  a  lighted  taper — this  is  to  be  covered 
by  a  glass  tumbler  reversed.  If  there  is  water  with  the 
wine  it  remains  outside,  while  the  wine  is  instantly  sucked 
up  in.side. 

Another  way  is  to  half  fill  a  large  glass,  and  then  put  a 
smaller  glass  inside  it.  If  there  is  water  this  rises  between 
the  two  glasses,  while  the  wine  stays  at  the  bottom. 

A  third  proof  is  to  pour  some  water  on  a  plate,  fill  a 
sponge  with  the  wine,  and  put  it  in  the  plate  of  water :  if 
the  wine  is  pure,  it  will  take  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  colour 
all  the  water;  if  it  is  watered,  instantly. 

Garlic  destroys  the  power  of  a  magnet. 

The  protector  of  thieves  is  St.  Disma,  the  penitent  who 
was  crucified  on  Calvary. 

The  ^ladonna  of  the  island  of  Lampedusa  has  a  lamp 
always  wanting  in  oil. 

There  lived  on  it  a  hermit  who  wore  a  two-faced  hood:  on 
one  was  painted  a  crucifix,  which  he  offered  to  be  kissed  by 
Christians;  on  the  other  was  painted  Mahomet,  which  he 
offered  for  the  adoration  of  Turks  who  landed  on  the  island ; 
hence  the  Sicilian  proverbial  phrase,  Zu  Eiviitu  di  la 
*Mpidusa — For  those  who  serve  God  and  Mahomet. 


lOL   FRED.  T.   ELWOBTHT'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.       49 

Drunken  women,  when  suffering  much  in  labour,  cause  the 
image  of  Madonna  to  be  brought  so  as  to  assist  quickly,  and 
say,  LHutra  Maria  I  Diutra  Maria!  But  directly  they  are 
reUeved,  have  her  put  out  of  the  house,  saying,  Fora  Maria  ! 
Fora  Maria!  Hence  the  saying  about  a  fickle,  voluble, 
inconstant  person.     Diutra  Maria  !    Fora  Maria  ! 

The  Agnxis  Dei  has  always  been  miraculous.  A  woman 
persecuted  by  a  demon  attached  an  Agnus  Dei  to  her  neck 
and  the  demon  fled. 

A  house  on  fire  was  extinguished  by  a  morsel  of  Agnus  Dei 
thrown  on  the  flames. 

A  child  overlooked  (Cersaglio)  by  a  witch,  was  taken 
every  night  from  his  mother's  bed,  placed  before  the  thres- 
hold of  the  house,  with  an  Agnus  Dei  on  his  neck,  and  was 
freed  thereby  from  that  trouble. 

Among  the  devout  Sicilians  lard  is  not  considered  as  real 
fat,  but  as  a  milky  substance  that  may  be  consumed  on  fish 
days  {giomi  di  magro).  Fish  is  called  scanamaru;  meat,  eggs, 
milk,  are  cammaru :  hence  cammardrisi  means  to  eat  flesh. 

If  they  see  signs  or  figures  on  the  ground  they  get 
together  and  hide  in  some  hole ;  especially  if  the  figures  are 
like  crosses,  they  are  very  bad  omens. 

It  is  a  common  belief  in  some  parts  that  ecclesiastical 
fasts  or  devotions  are  valueless  when  the  eve  has  been  spent 
without  eating,  for  the  commonalty  hold  that  not  to  have 
eaten  on  the  eve  of  a  fast  day  is  a  sin  to  be  confessed. 

No  one  ought  to  "communicate"  unless  he  has  slept  at 
least  a  quarter  of  an  hour  the  previous  night. 

As  all  venomous  reptiles  become  deadly  on  and  from  the 
first  of  March,  therefore  all  through  that  month  the  wood  of- 
certain  trees  is  most  dangerous  from  the  poisons  it  con- 
tains; those  who  are  poisoned  {ferite)  not  only  by  these 
creatures  and  by  this  wood  but  by  other  means,  will  not 
heal  before  the  end  of  the  month. 

On  Candlemas  Day  the  bear  shakes  himself;  if  the 
weather  is  fine  all  evils  on  earth  or  on  man  disappear — even 
if  bad  no  ill  will  happen. 

If   anything  is  missed  or  lost  they  go  to  St.  Spiridion 
because  he  concedes  the  grace  to  find  it. 
Santu  Spiririuni 
Fa  li  grazii  a  rammucciimi. 

To  him  and  to  St.  Onofrio  they  go  promising  one  centesimo 
— no  more,  no  less — which  they  will  then  give  to  some  poor 
man. 

There  are  many  details  how  to  obtain  help  from  various 

XXXVIII.  D 


50       HR.  FKKD.  T.  ELWORTHY*S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

saints ;  how  to  know  if  a  wife  is  faithful ;  if  a  journey  will 
succeed ;  what  is  of  good  or  bad  omen,  if  met  on  the  way ; 
how  to  divine  with  a  ring  and  a  hair,  etc.  etc.  Marriages 
between  relations  always  end  badly,  physically  and  morally. 

If  a  tooth  comes  out,  throw  it  on  to  the  roof  of  a  pregnant 
woman :  if  the  tooth  be  an  incisor  or  canine  she  will  bring 
forth  a  boy ;  if  a  molar,  a  girl. 

Girls  marry  on  St.  Jolm's,  widows  on  S.  Peter's  Day, 
Plenty  of  signs  are  current  by  which  to  predict  the  future 
sex  of  unborn  infants. 

If  a  pregnant  woman  longs  for  lemons,  vinegar,  straw- 
berries, or  sour  fruit,  she  will  bear  a  boy  who  will  make  a 
man  of  judgment ;  if  she  likes  to  nibble  dry  bark  of  trees, 
charcoal,  chalk,  egg-shells,  she  will  have  a  girl,  who  will  one 
day  be  capricious,  hare-brained,  giddy ;  or  else  a  Ganymede 
weak  and  insipid  as  the — ^man. 

If  on  the  day  she  should  happen  to  wash  the  baby  clothes 
the  sky  is  cloudy,  grey,  and  rainy,  or  gloomy,  she  will  have 
u  girl.  Celu  griciu  e  giittumiisu, 

Priparacci  la  fusa  (the  distaff). 

For  a  woman's  second  child  they  take  account  of  her  last 
confinement.  If  the  moon  was  growing  then,  she  will  have 
a  boy ;  if  waning,  a  girl.  If  the  last  day  of  birth  was  odd, 
she  will  have  a  boy ;  if  even,  a  girl  (this  time).  If  the  last 
day  was  odd,  and  the  day  of  the  week  even,  she  will 
miscarry.     If  even  both,  there  is  the  best  conception. 

If  twin  boys  are  born,  one  will  surely  die;  if  both  are 
girls,  the  same ;  but  if  a  boy  and  girl,  both  may  live. 

Women  take  care  of  their  children  that  a  boy  and  girl  do 
not  kiss  each  other  during  the  year  of  birth,  otherwise  the 
younger  will  die :  if  both  are  the  same  sex  they  may  kiss 
without  injury. 

If  a  man  does  not  return  to  his  native  village  on  Satur- 
day night  before  the  Ave  sounds,  his  wife  suspects  him,  or  is 
afraid  he  is  dead,  or  wants  to  know  why  he  is  later  than 
usual ;  and  a  scene  with  the  neighbours  takes  place. 

If  few  people  are  following  the  Viaticum,  the  sick  person 
will  die. 

A  portent  of  a  death  shortly  is  the  peeling  of  a  red- 
cupped  rose  near  the  family  that  has  had  that  calamity. 

Sign  of  death  when  there  are  two  women  in  trouble 
distrecciate  in  a  house  at  the  same  time. 

Do  not  burn  the  wooden  pulley  of  your  house  if  you  do 
not  wish  to  shorten  your  own  life  or  one  of  your  house- 
hold. 


MR.  FRED.  T.  RLWORTHT's  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.       51 

To  help  or  to  ease  the  dying,  put  underneath  the  bed  the 
threads  or  weft  of  a  (Ziz^u)  loom. 

If  you  receive  a  gift  from  a  miser,  they  believe,  or  at 
least  they  say,  that  you  will  soon  die. 

If  any  one  heaves  a  deep  sigh  expressive  of  great  sadness, 
those  present  say  at  once  either  that  it  is  a  bad  omen,  or  to 
a  woman,  'Nta  fossa  toiy  figghiu  !  "  May  it  be  a  son  in  thy 
bones."  This  is  a  most  friendly  salutation,  equivalent  to 
our  ■•  I  wish  you  joy." 

The  murderer  who  keeps  the  knife  with  which  he  com- 
mitted the  crime,  will  be  dragged  by  a  mysterious  power 
into  the  hands  of  justice. 

Many  of  these  sayings  and  beliefs  are  too  coarse  for 
production  here. 

A  woman  who  lays  down  her  distaff  and  whorl  in  spin- 
ning takes  care  to  put  them  on  a  chair  or  anywhere  but  on 
a  bed,  if  she  wishes  not  to  fall  out  with  her  husband. 

It  is  a  good  omen  if  the  thread  in  spinning  gets  entangled 
in  the  whorl ;  it  presages  that  her  husband  will  bring  home 
money  and  other  good  things. 

Any  one  who  treads  down  the  back  of  his  shoes  and  so 
spoils  the  leather  is  said  to  have  told  lies. 

The  house  will  be  firm  into  whose  foundations  gold  or 
silver  coin  has  been  thrown. 

On  setting  out  on  a  journey,  if  on  an  ass,  you  may  know 
at  starting  what  will  be  the  result  of  your  business.  If  the 
ass  on  starting  eases  his  belly,  no  obstacle  will  hinder  and 
all  will  be  well. 

Any  one  who  puts  on  his  waistcoat,  shirt,  or.  hose  inside 
out,  should  be  asked  to  dine  outside  the  house. 

To  those  who  are  naturally  timid,  if  you  wish  to  ease 
them  of  silly  fear,  give  in  a  spoon  with  sugar  and  water  the 
gall  of  a  hedgehog,  and  they  will  become  brave. 

Whoever  buys  a  new  pitcher  takes  care  to  make  a  male 
person  drink  out  of  it  for  the  first  time,  never  a  female ;  and 
thus  it  will  never  become  musty. 

To  run  like  the  wind  anoint  your  feet  with  ointment  made 
of  black  soap,  kidney  of  a  stag,  and  a  black  eel. 

Every  ten  years  one  changes  in  face  and  in  temper. 

Every  creature  in  the  world  has  seven  beings  who  re- 
semble him  absolutely  in  everything — in  habits,  height, 
size,  riches,  and  poverty. 

The  beauties  of  the  body  are  seven :  hence  the  popular 
song — 

Setti  su*  li  bidizzi  di  la  donna. 
d2 


52       MR.  FRED.  T.  ELWORTHY'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

There  are  seven  principal  languages,  and  of  a  very  learned 
person,  considered  as  a  monument  of  wisdom,  they  say,  Sapi 
li  sctti  lin^ui. 

There  is  a  spring  in  certain  remote  parts  called  sataredda, 
that  if  drunk  by  old  people  renews  their  youth. 

At  a  public  execution  it  is  customary  to  take  boys  to  see 
the  show.     To  make  them  remember  well  and  take  warning,  • 
at  the  fatal  moment  smart  blows  are  given.    This  custom  of 
thrashing  to  impress  the  memory  is  always  practised  in 
England  as  "  beating  the  bounds.*' 

Certain  deadly  sins  are  punished  by  the  burial  alive  of 
the  guilty  in  the  walls  of  the  church.'  This  is  said  to  have 
been  done  in  many  places,  and  by  order  of  the  governor  an 
investigation  was  made  in  the  mother  church  of  Begalmuto 
in  1882.  In  the  walls  were  found  nineteen  skeletons  of  the 
guilty  ones ;  many  of  them  were  partly  turned  to  dust. 

Sicilians  believe  in  basilisks — half  snake,  half  bird — which 
have  the  power  of  paralysing  a  person  by  merely  looking  at 
him.  The  vulgar  belief  is  that  all  paralytics  have  been 
overlooked  by  basilisks.  There  are  many  wise  saws  about 
them  and  their  victims. 

Serpents  with  seven  heads  and  seven  tails  still  exist,  and 
there  are  those  who  have  seen  them.  A  serpent  of  this  kind 
was  hidden  in  a  grotto  near  a  spring,  and  devoured  all  who 
approached  it.  These  creatures  possess  very  fine  power  of 
smelling. 

There  are  three  special  prayers  to  Maria,  St.  Anna,  and 
St.  Monica,  for  easy  labour  by  women  in  childbirth,  and  after 
reciting  them  they  pray  to  Madonna  della  Grazia  to  relieve 
their  sufferings.  A  prayer  to  the  new  moon  for  increased 
prosperity  to  the  house,  is : — 

Santa  Dduna  nuova, 
Dogni  iiiisu  s'riniiova 
Crisci  til,  crisciu  ia, 
Crisciu  'u  bien  'n  casa  mia. 

In  one  district  (Alia),  when  after  harvest  the  women  go 
gleaning  in  the  field,  they  often  leave  the  baby  swathed  up 
on  the  naked  ground,  but  they  take  care  to  provide  it  with 
a  defensive  circle.  This  consists  of  nothing  but  some  drops  of 
milk  from  their  own  breast  run  round  the  ring ;  then  they 
are  quite  sure  neither  snake  nor  viper  nor  other  venomous 
beast  will  break  through  this  magic  entrenchment  to  injure 
the  poor  little  i)xccini.  Besides  tliis  (to  make  doubly  safe), 
some  nurses  squirt  a  little  of  their  own  milk  over  the  child 
which  they  have  placed  in  a  cradle.    That  milk  is  Sisalvtxnos. 


HR.   FBED.   T.   ELWOBTHY'S   PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS.        53 

The  forgoing  notes  are  but  a  mere  suggestion  of  the  vast 
mass  of  the  folk-lore  of  Sicily.  For  students  who  really 
desire  full  knowledge  on  the  subject  there  is  abundant  op- 
portunity provided  in  the  "  Biblioteca  delle  Traditione  Popu- 
lari  Siciliane,"  2-i  vols.  Palermo,  L.  Pedone  Lauriel,  1889, 
etc.  etc. 

Now,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  you  will  have  concluded  that 
the  main  subject  of  this  address  is  after  all  only  egomet,  yet 
with  that  judgment  staring  me  in  the  face  I  must  detain  you 
while  I  declare  how  infinitely  the  value  and  satisfaction  to 
me  of  this  presidentship  are  enhanced  by  the  choice  of  this 
lovely  place  for  the  meeting.  I  have  been  familiar  with  the 
neighbourhood  for  nearly  threescore  years  and  ten,  and  can 
challenge  any  one  to  name  one  within  the  four  seas  of 
Britain  equal  to  it  in  natural  beauty ;  indeed,  after  long  and 
wide  experience  there  is  none  in  Europe,  taken  all  in  all,  to 
be  compared  with  it.  There  are  some  very  beautiful  valleys 
with  woods,  rocks,  and  streams  in  the  Saxon  Switzerland  near 
the  Elbe  at  Spaudau  and  Konigstein,  but  lovely  as  they  are, 
they  want  the  ever-present  complement  that  we  find  here — 
the  sea!  Just  as  every  modern  design  or  pattern  has  its 
prototype  in  some  rough  attempt  at  primitive  art,  so  a  very 
little  honest  investigation,  called  by  any  name  you  please — 
even  scientific  research,  if  you  will — calls  back  every  custom, 
legend,  and  myth  to  some  actual  event  or  occurrence  round 
which  there  has  grown  up  and  developed  that  which  has  now 
become  the  ordinary  legend  or  common  belief.  We  are  all 
familiar  with  the  commonest  form  of  door-knocker,  a  boss 
consisting  of  a  head  surrounded  by  the  practical  knocker  in 
the  form  of  a  hinged  ring,  usually  of  iron  foliage.  The  makers 
of  this  everyday  Brumagem  implement  little  dream  that 
they  are  perpetuating  one  of  the  earliest  legends  of  mankind. 
The  face  they  have  cast  is  now  intended  to  be  at  least  comely 
and  attractive,  but  originally  it  was  the  very  type  of  hideous- 
ness;  in  fact,  this  is  the  surprising  outcome  of  the  awful 
face  of  the  Gorgon  Medusa,  whose  aspect  was  so  fearful  as  to 
petrify  all  who  looked  on  it.  Elsewhere  I  have  attempted  to 
show  the  stages  by  which  it  grew  from  ugliness  to  become 
the  type  of  beauty,  and  this  notion  survives  in  our  everyday 
talk  when  we  speak  of  a  very  fascinating  woman  or  face,  as 
if  it  had  the  power  to  entrance  or  spell-bind  us.  Legends 
and  myths  grow  up  everywhere,  but  in  no  parts  so  profusely 
as  in  Southern  Italy,  and  specially  Sicily,  which  may  be 
called  the  home  of  fable.     It  is,  too,  curiously  instructive  to 


54       MR.  FRED.  T.   ELWORTHT'S  PRESIDKXTIAL  ADDRES& 

compare  the  various  legends  wiih  those  current  at  home. 
Here  in  Devon,  we  are  all  familiar  with  the  harvest  custom  of 
Crying  the  Neck.  Again  it  has  been  my  good  fortune  to 
bring  together  evidence  of  the  very  same  practices  from 
Egypt,  America,  Jerusalem,  Jericho,  Scotland,  Wales,  and 
Sicily,  besides  the  islands  of  Greece.  Examples  from  all 
these  places  I  have  shown  by  lantern  slides  in  my  own  native 
county,  and  not  only  are  harvest  customs  the  same  in  widely 
divided  countries,  but  other  practices  equally  familiar  to  us 
are  found  far  afield.  Our  old  acquaintance,  the  Split  Ash, 
about  which  I  am  not  now  going  to  enlarge,  is  to-day  in  full 
force  in  the  Canary  Islands,  where  the  ceremony  performed 
is  identical  with  that  we  know  so  well,  save  that  there  is 
slightly  more  religious  ritual  in  the  Spanish  form.  I  have 
the  whole  of  it  from  the  hand  of  a  lady  resident  in  Teneriffe. 
The  peculiarity  of  the  Sicilian  form  of  Crying  the  Xeck  is 
that  the  function  is  performed  before  a  figure  representing 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  and  the  man  who  makes  the  offering 
of  the  object,  called  Crocriatu  in  Sicilian,  is  or  typifies  a 
naked  man ;  to  perform  this  decently  the  custom  is  for  him 
to  wear  a  shirt  only.  Many  other  similar  analogies  might 
be  produced. 

Not  very  much  is  to  be  said  about  special  customs  or 
archieology  as  relating  to  this  part  of  Devonshire.  Its 
attractions  are  all  natural  beauties,  and  as  if  they  were 
not  amply  sutlicient,  one  rather  resents  the  idea  that  they 
should  be  so  much  enhance^l  or  advertised  by  being  the 
scenes  of  popular  romances.  I  distinctly  despise  the  name 
Blackmore  Country,  as  if  Lynton  and  its  surroundings  would 
not  have  been  just  as  lovely  and  attractive  if  '^Lorna  Doone" 
had  never  been  written.  Indeed,  it  seems  to  me  no  less  than 
mischievous  and  harmful  to  the  locality,  because  people  get 
so  excited  with  the  glamour  and  atmosphere  of  the  novel, 
that  when  they  go  to  the  actual  spot  like  the  Doone  Valley, 
thev  are  disappointed  and  disgusted  at  the  want  of  romance 
and  fancied  beauty  of  the  place.  I'ut  for  the  novel,  how  many 
of  the  visitors  would  ever  go  near  the  Doone  Valley  ?  The 
i«nie  applies  equally  to  what  is  called  Kingsley  Country. 
^K^t  a  shock  it  is  to  admirers  of  his  "  Westward  Ho ! "  to 
V  ttken  to  Northain  Burrows  !  I  find  no  inspiration  in 
<5njjrs  **  Blackmore  Country."  The  whole  of  the  first  part  is 
ld^«  «P  ^'^'^  Cuhnstock  and  Blundell's  School,  very  in- 
^rr^r^^  in  themselves,  but  a  long  way  from  Lynton.     The 

lt:*,5Uife  put  out  by  the  local  committee  is  by  far  the  best 

»,jj^^  •«»«  seen. 


HR.  FRED.  T.  SLWORTHY'S  PRK8IDENTUL  ADDRESS.       55 

In  these  parts,  besides  ever-changing  nature,  there  is  an 
interest  in  its  primitiveness,  for  even  yet  in  some  parts  it 
is  not  up  to  cUUe.  For  example,  it  is  but  almost  within 
living  memory  that  the  civilization  of  forks  has  penetrated. 
My  father  visited  a  farmhouse  not  far  from  this  where  not 
even  the  two-pronged  fork  had  arrived.  A  warm  ham  was 
carved  and  eaten  without  a  fork — and  many  of  us  have 
heard  the  saying,  "  Vingers  and  thumbs  was  a-made  avore 
knives  and  vorks."  The  two-pronged  fork  we  all  remember 
is  not  a  useful  implement  for  eating  pease,  but  readers  of 
that  quaint  old  book  of  travels,  Coryatt's  "  Crudities,"  will 
see  that  even  those  were  not  used  by  our  forefathers  in 
Elizabeth's  day. 

Not  much  is  to  be  said  of  a  scientific  nature  about  this 
district,  but  for  those  whose  strength  permits  nothing  could 
be  better  than  to  follow  out  to  the  letter  the  admirable 
Uttle  book  of  the  local  committee.  One  or  two  omissions 
are  obvious  to  me.  From  or  near  where  we  now  are  is  to 
be  seen  a  real  typical  British  camp — of  course,  like  every 
other,  known  as  the  "  Soman  encampment."  Why  I  never 
can  make  out ;  probably  no  Roman  ever  saw  it  nor  most  of 
the  other  so-called  Roman  works.  No  doubt  the  Romans 
left  their  mark  very  conspicuously  here  in  England,  but 
every  ancient  remains  is  by  no  means  theirs ;  nor  were  our 
British  forefathers  anything  like  the  painted  savages  depicted 
by  many  historians ;  on  the  contrary,  they  were  in  many 
ways  quite  as  civilized  as  their  conquerors.  The  Glaston- 
bury Lake  Village  proves  beyond  dispute  that  200  years 
before  the  Roman  invasion  the  inhabitants  of  Britain  were 
no  mean  handicraftsmen.  The  tools  they  had  and  their 
work,  especially  coopering,  were  quite  equal  to  anything  of 
contemporary  Rome,  and  in  several  respects  quite  equal  to 
the  work  and  tools  of  some  parts  of  modem  Italy.  I  noticed  a 
saw  in  a  shop  at  Brescia,  a  few  years  ago,  of  a  peculiar  shape, 
and  made  as  they  were  anciently  to  cut  when  drawn,  instead 
of  as  now  when  pushed  or  thrust.  That  saw  is  matched, 
handle  and  all,  identically  by  one  at  Glastonbury.  There  is 
also  part  of  a  ladder  exactly  what  may  be  seen  to-day  in  daily 
use  in  Italy.  They  had  lathes,  for  there  are  the  turned  hub 
or  nut  and  spoke  of  a  wheel  as  well  made  as  if  by  a  modern 
English  wheelwright.  Who,  then,  shall  declare  the  ancient 
Britons  to  have  been  woaded  savages  ? 

Besides  the  walks  recommended  by  the  local  committee, 
I  would  point  out  one  of  wonderful  chann.  Go  up  to 
Countisbury,  past  the  camp,  noticing  on  the  way  the  grass 


56       MB.  FRED.  T.  SLWOBTHT'S  PRESIDENTIAL  ADDRESS. 

slope  or  track  which  seems  to  lead  from  it  down  towards 
the  beach.  I  want  to  learn  from  the  experts  here  what  this 
was ;  it  is  too  steep  for  a  road  or  path,  and  never  could  have 
been  so  used,  for  it  ends  abruptly  in  a  precipice,  and  never 
could  have  been  a  smugglers'  road. 

Take  a  turn  to  the  right  by  the  public-house  and  keep  on 
over  the  brow  of  the  hill ;  this  will  bring  you  to  a  spot  where 
you  look  down  into  the  wonderful  gorge  of  Watersmeet.  I 
shall  never  forget  the  thrill  with  which  that  view  burst  upon 
me  more  than  sixty  years  ago.  No  words  can  express  the 
loveliness  of  that  spot :  were  I  to  attempt  to  find  adjectives 
tit  to  describe  it,  I  must,  in  choice  journalese,  at  once  "stop 
over,**  The  Portuguese  corral  is  the  only  term  known  to  me 
that  can  convey  any  notion  of  what  it  is  like.  The  extra- 
ordinary density  and  even  surfaces  of  the  steep  woods  are  a 
very  remarkable  feature,  and  the  same  effect,  perhaps  of 
prevailing  winds,  is  noticeable  in  other  places  around.  The 
knoll  from  whence  this  view  is  gained  is  called  Homer^s 
Neck,  and  it  is  well  worth  a  special  walk  to  see  it. 

There  are  no  hut  circles  or  other  prehistoric  remains  in 
this  district  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  but  over  the  border  in 
Somerset  are  to  be  found  objects  of  that  kind. 

Mr.  Snell  alludes  to  a  Menhir  on  Winsford  Hill,  near 
Spire  Cross,  where  the  road  turns  off  to  Tarr  Steps.  It  was 
I  who  made  the  squeeze  when  I  took  Dr.  Murray  and 
Professor  Ehys  to  see  it  (see  "  Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist. 
Society  Proceedings").  The  late  Mr.  Charles  I.  Elton 
was  also  of  the  party,  and  liis  vast  knowledge  confirmed 
the  interpretation  of  the  other  savants.  It  is  a  very 
remarkable  and  most  interesting  monument  of  antiquity. 
Our  thanks  are  due  to  Sir  T.  D.  Acland  for  having  erected 
a  fence  around  it  to  protect  it  from  cattle  and  bipeda 
The  subsequent  finding  of  the  initial  letter  N  is  a  strange 
confirmation  of  the  correctness  of  the  reading,  nepus  for 
epuSy  on  the  stone. 

There  is  but  little  to  be  said  about  the  dialect  of  this 
district,  and  that  little  I  will  postpone  until  I  can  find  a 
fitting  opportunity  later  during  the  meeting. 


TWENTY-FIFTH  BEPORT   OF   THE   BAREOW 
COMMITTEE. 

TwiNTY-FlFTH  REPORT  of  the  Committee — consisting  of  Mr, 
P.  F.  S.  Am^ry,  JRev.  S,  Barinf/'Oould,  Dr,  Binishfieldy  Mr, 
R,  Burnxird,  Mr,  J,  Brooking- Rmve^  Rev,  J,  F,  Chanter,  and 
Mr,  R.  Hansford  Worth — appo-inted  to  collect  and  record 
facts  relating  to  Barraivs  in  Devonshire,  and  to  take  steps, 
v-here  possible,  for  their  investigation. 

Edited  by  R.  Haksford  Worth,  Hon.  Secretary. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Your  Committee's  present  Report  includes : — 

(1)  The  record  of  the  exploration  of  two  small  cairns  in 

the  Tavy  Valley,  on  Dartmoor,  by  the  Rev.  I.  Kempt 
Anderson. 

(2)  The  record  of  the  exploration  of  three  barrows  near 

Brockenburrow  Lane,  Challacombe,  North  Devon, 
by  the  Rev.  J.  F.  Chanter.  To  which  is  added  an 
abstract  of  Westcote's  tale  of  the  opening  of 
Broaken  Barrow. 

(3)  A  description  of  certain  North  Devon  barrows,  Five 

Barrow  group,  and  Setta  Barrow.  To  which  is  an- 
nexed an  abstract  of  Westcote's  report  of  the  open- 
ing of  Woodbarrow. 

TAVY  VALLEY. 

On  the  slopes  of  Hare  Tor,  near  Tavy  Cleave,  is  a  small 
caim,  unmarked  on  the  Ordnance  Survey  (Devon  Lxxxvin. 
S.E.  Long,  r  2'  52",  lat.  50'  38' 3^-  Of  this  the  Rev.  I.  Kempt 
Anderson  reports : — 

The  caim  is  about  11  feet  in  diameter  and  stands 
about  18  inches  high  in  centre;  it  has  a  stone  boundary 
circle.  It  was  opened  on  6  July,  1905,  in  the  presence  of 
myself,  Mrs.  Anderson,  Mr.  G.  Warren  Smallwood,  Robert 


58      TWENTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITTEE. 

Densham,  William  Tancock,  William  Cole,  Joseph  Newcomb, 
Miss  Meade  (Mary  Tavy),  Miss  Dora  Brown  (ditto),  and 
others. 

We  found  the  place  of  cremation,  about  18  inches  to  24 
inches  below  the  natural  surface.  There  was  a  great  quantity 
of  large  pieces  of  charcoal,  some  ash,  and  what,  I  think, 
might  prolmbly  be  human  cinder  dust.  No  pottery — ^no 
kistvaen. 

Irvine  K.  Anderson. 

Near  Homer  Eed  Lake  is  another  small  cairn,  also  un- 
marked on  the  Ordnance  Survey  (Devon  xcviii.  N.E.  Long. 
4^  1'  50",  lat.  50"  37'  40i"). 

This  is  a  small  caini,  which  I  found  on  5  June,  1905.  It 
is  but  4  feet  in  diameter  and  2  feet  high  at  centre.  There 
is  no  stone  circle. 

It  was  opened  on  26  July,  1905,  in  the  presence  of  my- 
self, lwol)ert  Densham  (of  Hornden),  Joseph  Newcorab  (ditto), 
William  Cole  (ditto),  William  Tancock  (Mary  Tavy),  and 
James  Stevens  (Devonport). 

Burnt  earth  was  first  found  within  1  foot  of  surface, 
afterwards  more  burnt  earth,  a  good  quantity  of  charcoal 
(prolmbly  oak),  some  ash,  and  one  good  worked  flint  with 
remarkably  sharp  edge.  (A  small  semicircular  scraper. — 
E.  H.  W.)    We  cleared  the  surface  of  the  "  deads." 

Irvine  K.  Anderson. 

barrows  near  brockenburrow  lane. 

The  neighbourhood  of  Brockenburrow  or  Broaken  Burrow 
has  an  especial  interest.  Westcote  preserves  for  us  the 
record  of  a  barrow-opening  here  in  or  about  the  year  1623. 
Tliis  will  l>e  found  given  in  cvtcnso  in  our  first  report.  Vol. 
XI  of  the  "  Transactions,"  p.  149.  It  appears  that  a  certain 
labouring  man,  having  saved  a  little  money,  invested  this  in 
some  few  acres  of  waste  land  and  began  to  build  a  house 
thereon.  Jf ot  far  from  the  site  was  Broaken  Burrow ;  and, 
following  the  method  even  now  prevalent,  this  he  utilized  as 
his  quarry,  fetching  "  stones  and  earth  to  further  his  work." 
Presently,  **  having  pierced  into  the  bowels  of  the  hillock,  he 
found  therein  a  little  place,  as  it  had  been  a  large  oven, 
fairly,  strongly,  and  closely  walled  up."  Evidently  a 
kistvaen. 

This  and  the  prospect  of  treasure  "  comforted  him  much." 
He  broke  through  into  the  cavity  and  espied  an  earthen  pot, 
which  he  essayed  to  seize.   Twice  he  tried,  and  twice  a  noise 


TWEanr-FIFTH  BKPORT  OF  THB  BARROW  COMMITTEE.      59 

as  of  trampling  or  treading  of  horses  caused  him  to  desist, 
fearing  that  there  were  those  coming  who  should  "  take  his 
purchase  from  him."  The  third  time  he  brought  the  urn 
away,  and  found  "  therein  only  a  few  ashes  and  bones,  as  if 
they  had  been  of  children  or  the  like."  "But  the  man, 
whether  by  the  fear,  which  yet  he  denied,  or  other  cause 
which  I  cannot  comprehend,  in  very  short  time  lost  senses 
both  of  sight  and  hearing,  and  in  less  than  three  months 
consuming  died.  He  was  in  all  his  lifetime  accounted  an 
honest  man." 

The  record  is  in  all  probability  the  true  account  of  an 
"honest  man's"  tragic  adventure.  The  kistvaen  and  urn 
accord  with  the  results  of  the  most  recent  opening  in  this 
immediate  locality. 

A  further  interest  attaches  to  these  barrows,  since  they 
are  associated  with  some  of  the  despoiled  stone  monuments 
described  in  the  "Transactions"  for  last  year,  and  again 
referred  to  in  Part  II  of  "  The  Eude  Stone  Monuments  of 
Exmoor  and  its  Borders,"  in  the  present  volume. 

[E.  H.  W.] 

BARROW  A.     BROCKENBURROW. 

Devon  vi.  S.E.     Long.  3**  54'  19",  lat.  5V  9'  56". 

Last  year  my  investigations  of  the  barrows  on  the  western 
slopes  of  Exmoor  were  confined  to  the  groups,  being  on 
Chapman  Barrows,  the  results  of  which  were  given  in  the 
twenty-fourth  Eeport.  This  year  I  determined  to  shift  my 
ground  somewhat,  and  tempted  by  the  account  which  West- 
cote  gives  of  the  mysterious  events  which  happened  before  his 
days  at  the  opening  of  one  of  the  barrows  on  Challacombe 
Common,  known  as  Broken  Barrow,  fixed  on  the  same 
locality  as  a  probably  interesting  field,  and  it  is  perhaps 
needless  to  say  that  the  noise  as  of  trampling  horses  which 
alarmed  the  explorer  of  those  days  at  the  opening  of  the 
kistvaen  did  not  visit  me  when  I,  in  my  turn,  made  my  dis- 
covery. 

The  first  barrow  on  which  work  was  commenced  lay  in  a 
field  known  as  Deer  Park,  formerly  part  of  Challacombe 
Common,  enclosed  and  broken  about  forty  years  ago,  and 
now  forming  part  of  Wistland  Pound  Farm,  in  the 
occupation  of  Mr.  W.  E.  Smyth,  by  whose  kind  permission, 
and  also  that  of  the  owner,  Lord  Fortescue,  I  was  allowed  to 
make  the  necessary  excavations.  The  barrow  is  marked  A 
in  Plate  XI  of  "Stone  Monuments  of  Exmoor"  ("Trans.  D.A.," 
1905,  p.  397),  where  the  stones  in  connexion  with  it  are 


60      TWENTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITTSE. 

described.  It  is  31  feet  in  diameter  and  3  feet  7 
inches  high  above  the  present  level  of  the  ground  at  its 
highest  point,  and  had  no  traces  of  any  previous  disturbance. 
A  trench  about  4  feet  6  inches  wide  was  driven  in  from  the 
south  side,  and  at  14  feet  from  the  margin  some  quantity  of 
charcoal  and  burnt  clay  was  found  just  below  the  present 
ground  level,  while  at  15  feet  G  inches  a  cairn  of  stones  was 
reached  of  conical  shape  about  2  feet  3  inches  high,  with 
its  top  1  foot  11  inches  below  the  top  of  the  barrow.  The 
stones  were  all  set  longways  upward  and  leaning  inwards. 
On  removing  the  outer  stones  of  this  cairn  a  kistvaen  was 
exposed  17  inches  long,  13  inches  wide,  and  12  inches  deep — 
the  cover-stone  was  18  inches  long  and  12i  inches  wide^ — the 
ends  composed  each  of  a  single  stone  about  12  inches  by 

13  inches,  the  north  side  a  single  stone  19  inches  long  and 
irregular  in  height,  and  the  south  side  of  two  stones,  one 

14  inches  by  13  inches,  the  other  4|  inches  by  10  inches — 
the  bottom  formed  bv  a  single  stone  about  17  inches  by 
12  inches.  The  length  of  the  kist  lies  N.  67'  13'  E.  On 
lifting  off  the  cover-stone  an  urn  was  exposed  full  of  bones, 
bone  ash,  and  charcoal,  and  some  earth  which  had  been 
forced  in  by  pressure  from  above,  and  which  in  its  fall  had 
unfortunately  broken  the  urn  in  several  fragments ;  and  in 
attempting  to  move  these  they  proved  to  be  so  imperfectly 
baked  and  so  sodden  with  water  that  many  crumbled  and 
broke ;  sufficient,  however,  remained  intact  to  render  some 
reconstruction  and  measurements  possible.  It  stood  upright, 
not  inverted,  and  was  probably  about  10  inches  high  and 
10  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  internally;  6  inches  inter- 
nally and  7i  inches  externally  at  the  base;  the  thickness 
of  the  material  varies  from  '70  inch  at  the  base  and  at  a 
ridge  half-way  up  to  -45  incli  at  the  rim ;  the  clay  is  very 
coarse,  with  a  large  admixture  of  sand;  externally  the 
colour  is  yellow-brown,  internally  nearly  black,  the  black 
colour  extending  through  three-quarters  of  the  thickness. 

The  urn  was  perfectly  destitute  of  any  ornamentation 
except  a  plain  rib  half-way  up,  and  is  rudely  hand- 
moulded,  the  rim  being  very  uneven.  An  examination  of 
the  contents  showed  large  quantities  of  bones,  some  quite 
white,  others  charred,  charcoal,  and  one  burnt  flint,  broken 
in  two,  about  3-25  inches  long,  which  showed  traces  of  work- 
ing and  use  at  both  ends  and  sides.  At  the  bottom  of  the 
kistvaen  four  small  shale  stones  and  one  quartz  had  been 
placed  round  the  base  of  the  urn  to  keep  it  in  position.  An 
extended  search  did  not  bring  anything  else  to  light  in  the 


TWENTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITTEE.      61 

ground  around,  but  one  flint  chip  was  found  in  the  next 
field.  The  barrow  consisted  entirely  of  earth  and  layers  of 
surface  turf.  Barrow  was  opened  on  Saturday,  2  June,  and 
Monday,  4  June,  1906. 

The  base  of  the  kistvaen  was  4  feet  2  inches  below  the  top 
of  the  barrow,  and  therefore  about  7  inches  below  present 
level  of  ground. 

J.  F.  Chanter. 

Mr.  Chanter  has  kindly  forwarded  the  flint  and  a  portion 
of  the  urn  for  examination.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  the 
urn  was  made  in  the  near  locality.  The  flint,  a  much-worn 
"fabricator,"  is  very  interesting.  It  has  obviously  been 
burnt,  the  surface  being  fused  in  parts  and  presenting  the 
appearance  of  an  irregular  glaze.  It  was  broken  by  the  fire 
before  the  cremation  was  completed,  one  half  being  much 
more  fused  than  the  other,  having  presumably  fallen  into  a 
hotter  part  of  the  fire.  If  we  except  the  absence  of  a  slight 
ornamentation,  the  urn  is  of  the  same  character,  and  of  much 
the  same  shape,  as  one  figured  in  the  last  Eeport,  and  found 
at  Westerland  Beacon,  South  Devon. 

E.  H.  W. 

BROKEN  BARROW  GROUP. 

BARROW  B.     (Plate  XI,  "  Stone  Mon.") 

Devon  vi.  S.E.    Long.  3"  54'  18",  lat.  5V  9'  57^'. 

Examined  10  June,  1906. 

The  barrow  was  ploughed  over  when  the  moor  was  broken 
forty  years  ago,  but  has  not  been  touched  since ;  it  is  30  feet 
in  diameter,  20  inches  high.  A  trench  was  driven  in  from 
south  about  4  feet  wide ;  about  2  feet  in  a  low  wall  of  stones 
was  reached,  and  another  about  10  feet  in ;  beyond  this  the 
ground  appeared  to  have  been  previously  disturbed,  large 
stones  which  may  have  been  part  of  a  kistvaen,  earth,  clay, 
and  decayed  turfs,  with  small  pieces  of  charcoal,  being  indis- 
criminately mixed  up.  After  driving  about  3  feet  beyond 
the  centre  it  was  abandoned  and  filled  in,  nothing  being 
found  but  one  small  flint  flake  and  spot  where  the  cremation 
seemed  to  have  taken  place. 

BARROW  c.     (Plate  XI,  "  Stone  Mon.") 

Devon  vi.  S.E.    Long.  3^  54'  28J",  lat.  51^  9'  57i". 
Excavated  10  June. 

This  barrow,  according  to  the  old  man  on  the  farm,  was 
not  ploughed  over  or  touched  when  the  field  was  taken  in 


62     TWENTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITTEE. 

from  the  common,  but  the  top  was  irregular,  with  depression 
in  the  centre.    Diameter,  42  feet  6  inches ;  greatest  height, 

3  feet  9  inches.    A  trench  was  driven  in  from  south  about 

4  feet  6  inches  wide.  The  mound  was  entirely  of  earth  and 
turfs,  with  no  containing  wall;  and  at  about  16  feet  from 
edge  it  showed  previous  disturbance,  a  large  shaft  having 
been  sunk  from  the  top  about  6  to  7  feet  diameter  down 
below  the  subsoil  in  this  area.  Everything  was  mixed  up, 
large  flat  stones,  earth,  etc.,  as  if  thrown  in  indiscriminately. 
At  about  1  foot  9  inches  down  from  the  top  a  few  sherds  of 
pottery  were  found,  probably  the  remains  of  the  former 
barrow-openers,  and  may  perhaps  determine  their  date.  Was 
this  ljarrow,for  it  lies  close  to  Broken  Barrow  Lane, the  broken 
barrow  of  which  old  Westcote  tells  such  strange  tales? 
Nothing  was  found  on  the  present  occasion  beyond  the 
potsherds  and  a  flint  core. 

J.  F.  Chanter. 

Mr.  Chanter  has  sent  me  a  piece  of  the  pottery  found  in 
this  barrow.  It  is  red  ware,  yellow  glazed  inside,  and  may 
be  medieval  or  of  almost  any  later  date.  Quite  probably  it 
is  the  relic  of  a  seventeenth-century  barrow-opening.  But 
from  the  description  I  hardly  think  that  this  is  the  original 
"Broaken  Burrow."  (I  fear  the  name  as  attached  to  any 
definite  mound  is  now  lost.)  The  state  of  the  barrow  hardly 
accords  with  what  one  would  expect  liad  it  been  used  as  a 
quarry.     Tliis,  however,  is  purely  a  personal  opinion. 

K.  H.  W. 

FIVE  BARROW  GROUP,  NEAR   SPAN   HEAD,   NORTH  MOLTON. 

Devon  xi.  S.W. 

Inland,  Heame's  Copy,  Vol.  II,  p.  103 : — 

There  rennith  at  this  Place  caullid  Simonshath  a  Rj'ver 
betwixt  to  great  Morisch  Hilles  in  a  depe  Bottom  and  tlier  is  a 
Bridfje  of  Woodde  over  this  Water.  .  .  . 

Tlie  Boundes  of  Scmiersetshire  go  bey<»nd  this  streame  one  way 
by  Xortli  West  a  2  Miles  or  more  to  a  place  caulUd  the  Spanne, 
and  the  Taurre't ;  for  ther  be  Hillokkes  of  Yerth  cast  up  of  auncient 
tyiue  for  Markes  and  Limites  l)etwixt  Somersetshir  and  Devon- 
till  Ire,     And  liere  about  is  tlie  Limes  and  Boimdes  of  Ezmore  forest. 

The  locality  thus  indicated  by  Leland  is  that  of  **Two 
Barrows,"  "  Five  Barrows,"  and  "  Setta  Barrow."  Of  these 
Setta  Barrow  is  the  only  one  which  actually  lies  on  the 
county  boundary,  although   at   Two  Barrows  this  latter 


PLATE  I 
BARROW     NEAR     BROCKEN  BURROW. 

VI.  S.E.  /on  .  3'  -S^'-zs' 
/aK  JV-  9-Se' 


URN      X  1/4. 


<  31'- O*  > 

SECTION    OF    BARROW. 


e 


^ 


ai*-7' 


TWKNTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITTEE.      63 

touches  one  of  the  mounds.    Five  Barrows,  which  number 
eight,  are  all  in  Devon. 

Taken  in  order,  from  east  to  west,  the  following  are  the 
descriptions  of  these  barrows.  The  numbers  refer  to  the 
plan  (Plate  II). 

(1)  A  small  mound,  39  feet  in  extreme  diameter,  in  the 
form  of  a  truncated  cone,  5  feet  5  inches  high,  and  measuring 
12  feet  across  the  top. 

(2)  The  total  diameter  of  this  barrow  is  111  feet.  It 
consists  of  a  central  mound,  the  top  surface  of  which  is 
slightly  domed,  and  measures  46  feet  6  inches  across.  From 
the  edge  of  this  area  the  sides  fall  rapidly  3  feet  1  inch  to  a 
trench.  The  trench  is  surrounded  by  an  annular  "  rampart," 
rising  2  feet  1  inch  above  the  surrounding  ground.  For  21 
feet  of  the  western  circumference  there  is  no  ditch.  A 
somewhat  similar  barrow  was  described  in  Part  I  of  "  The 
Kude  Stone  Monuments  of  Exmoor "  last  year,  and  illus- 
trated in  Plate  XI,  fig.  2.  In  that  instance  a  few  spar  stones 
lay  on  the  outer  margin  of  the  trench.  I  do  not  think  that 
this  form  of  barrow  is  in  any  case  original.  Subsequent  spo- 
liation is  responsible  for  the  present  shape.  We  have  to 
remember  that  many  barrows  are  provided  with  a  retaining 
circle  of  stones,  which  very  probably  formed  the  original 
margin.  Such  a  circle  is  well  seen  at  Setta  Barrow.  Subse- 
quently, as  the  slopes  of  the  mound  flattened,  in  consequence 
of  weathering  and  the  tread  of  animals,  the  material  would 
bank  up  outside  the  retaining  circle,  and  very  likely  rise 
high  enough  to  obscure  it.  Intermediate  conditions  can  be 
found.  Any  person  desiring  stone,  and  seeking  it  in  such  a 
barrow,  would  find  the  best  material  in  this  circle,  and  in 
removing  the  same  would  excavate  a  trench.  For  hedging 
and  other  purposes  the  slate  stone  is  best,  spar  blocks  being 
very  awkward  and  irregular  in  shape,  hence  any  spar  stones 
might  be  allowed  to  remain.  The  barrow  itself  might  also 
be  likely  to  be  reduced  in  height  for  the  sake  of  the  earth  it 
contained.  It  is  noteworthy  in  this  connexion  that  the 
trenched  form  is  always,  within  the  writer's  experience, 
found  in  the  vicinity  of  hedges  and  enclosure  walls. 

(3)  A  mound  in  the  form  of  a  truncated  cone,  the  diameter 
at  base  104  feet,  the  diameter  of  the  top  12  feet,  and  the 
height  10  feet.     A  fine  and  well-preserved  barrow. 

(4)  A  dome-shaped  barrow,  66  feet  in  diameter  and  4  feet 

10  inches  in  height. 

(5)  A  conical  barrow,  from  100  to  110  feet  wide  at  base, 

11  feet  in  height.     The  top  has  been  partially  excavated, 


64     TWENTY-FIFTH  REPORT  OF  THE  BARROW  COMMITrKK. 

and  the  material  thrown  out  steepens  the  upper  slopes  of 
what  was  probably  a  dome. 

(6)  A  dome-shaped  barrow,  81  feet  in  diameter  at  base 
and  7  feet  5  inches  in  height.     Apparently  untouched. 

(7)  A  dome,  93  feet  in  diameter,  7  feet  in  height.  Bears 
slight  signs  of  disturbance. 

(8)  The  barrow  which  is  shown,  with  its  associated  stones, 
in  Plate  X,  fig.  2,  of  the  paper  above  referred  to.  Its  height 
is  9  feet  9  inohes  and  its  diameter  at  the  base  98  feet.  A 
shallow  basin,  14  feet  in  diameter,  in  the  top  shows  where 
an  attempt  has  been  made  to  open  this  mound. 

This  brief  description  will  enable  some  idea  to  be  formed  of 
the  magnitude  and  importance  of  the  members  of  the  group. 
The  total  distance  from  1  to  8  is  2000  feet,  and  the 
barrows  are  scattered  over  a  width  of  500  feet  measured  at 
right  angles  to  this  length.  They  occupy  the  summit  of  a 
ridge  and  are  conspicuous  from  many  directions  for  miles 
around.  There  is  no  true  alignment,  but  the  group  as  a 
whole  trends  N.  67°  W.  The  Two  Barrow  group  on  the 
adjacent  hill  lie  very  much  in  this  line,  but  S.  67°  E.,  while 
their  own  alignment  is  N.  86°  E. 

There  is  a  general  tendency  toward  east  and  west  exten- 
sion in  many  groups  of  barrows  in  this  neighbourhood.  For 
example,  Chapman  Barrows,  N.  89**  30'  W. 

Instances  are  known  elsewhere  in  the  county  of  north  and 
south  rows  of  barrows,  such  as  the  seven  on  Broad  Down, 
near  Honiton. 

SETTA  BARROW,  BRAY  COMMON. 

Devon  xi.  N.W. 

This  is  one  of  an  irregular  group,  of  which  the  general 
trend  is  northerly,  but  there  is  no  approach  to  an  alignment. 
Setta  Barrow  is  one  of  the  bounds  between  Devon  and 
Somerset,  and  has  been  cut  into  in  order  to  admit  the  con- 
struction of  a  fence  across  its  crest.  Its  form  is  a  truncated 
cone,  101  feet  in  diameter  at  the  base,  51  feet  in  diameter  at 
the  top,  and  8  feet  1  inch  in  height.  At  some  time  it  has 
been  opened  from  the  top,  as  is  evidenced  by  a  saucer-shaped 
depression  2  feet  9  inches  in  depth  and  31  feet  in  diameter. 
Its  retaining  circle  is  very  perfect,  in  part  obscured  by  the 
margin  of  the  barrow,  in  part  standing  clear  from  it.  The 
largest  stones  are  to  the  north,  one  measuring,  ba  it  stands, 
1  foot  9  inches  in  height,  5  feet  in  length,  and  1  foot  1  inch 
in  breadth.  On  the  western  margin  is  clearly  seen  the 
manner  in  which  the  stones  of  this  circle  have  been  packed 


TWINTT-FIFTH  BIPORT  OF  THB  BARROW  COMMITTEB.      65 

against  each  other,  flat  sides  toward  the  mound.  When  the 
stones  are  small,  four  or  five  thicknesses  are  used. 

Four  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  southward  from  Setta 
Barrow  is  a  companion,  which  has  an  associated  stone  row, 
figured  in  Plate  VIII  of  the  paper  above  referred  to.  This 
also  has  a  retaining  circle. 

One  hundred  and  seventy-five  feet  northward  from  Setta 
Barrow  is  another  companion,  probably  despoiled  in  part. 
Its  diameter  is  81  feet  and  height  2  feet;  the  top  is  flat. 
Considerable  remains  of  the  retaining  circle  are  visible,  the 
largest  stone  nearly  equalling  the  largest  named  above. 

WOODBARROW. 

Devon  vii.  S.W. 

This  also  is  a  well-known  barrow,  and  one  of  the  bounds 
between  the  two  counties.  I  mention  it  here  because 
Westcote  records  its  opening  in  the  early  seventeenth 
century. 

His  information  as  to  Broaken  Barrow  being  to  some 
extent  corroborated,  it  may  be  well  to  recall  his  tale  of  the 
"  brass  pan  "  found  here.  If  by  "  brass  "  is  meanh  "  bronze," 
there  seems  some  possibility  of  the  truth,  but  the  find  would 
be  most  unusual 

It  appears  that  "  two  good  fellows,  not  inhabiting  far  from 
this  burrow,  were  informed  by  one  who  took  on  him  the 
skill  of  a  conjuror,  that  in  that  hillock  there  was  a  great 
brass  pan,  and  therein  much  treasure  both  silver  and  gold." 
The  said  conjurer  undertook  to  preserve  them  from  the 
powers  of  evil  provided  they  would  open  the  barrow  and 
share  the  find  with  him.  A  fourth  man  whom  "  in  love  they 
made  acquainted  therewith,"  "no  dastard,  but  hardy  in  deed," 
was  "  better  qualified  than  to  take  such  courses  to  procure 
wealth  and  absolutely  refused  to  partake  therein." 

The  barrow  being  opened,  the  pan,  covered  with  a  large 
stone,  was  found.  The  cover  was  to  be  opened,  and  the 
strongest  fellow  at  work,  but  he  was  suddenly  taken  with 
such  a  faintness  that  he  could  neither  work  nor  scarce 
stand.  His  companion  met  a  similar  fate,  the  faintness 
lasting  no  time  in  either  case.  Their  defender,  the  conjurer, 
thereupon  told  them  "  the  birds  were  flown  away  and  only 
the  nest  left,  which  they  found  to  be  true,"  for  recovering 
their  strength  they  lifted  away  the  stone  and  found  nothing 
in  the  pan,  but  the  bottom  where  the  treasure  should  have 
been  was  very  bright  and  clean,  the  rest  all  eaten  with 
cankered  rust.     "  The  relator  protested  that  he  saw  the  pan, 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  E 


66     TWENTT-FIFTH  BEPORT  OF  THE  BABBOW  COHMITTBB. 

and  they  two  that  laboured  told  him  severally  all  the  circum- 
stances, and  avowed  them." 

The  record  will  be  foimd  in  extenso  in  the  Barrow  Com- 
mittee's first  Report. 

Woodbarrow  may  be  called  the  extreme  southern  member 
of  the  Chapman  group.  Not  far  from  it  are  a  stone  quadri- 
lateral and  triangle  combined. 

E.  H.  WOBTH. 

Postscript. — On  the  sole  substantial  basis  of  the  facts 
above  stated,  tlie  "  Daily  Mail "  of  18  June,  1906,  produced 
the  following  historical  novel : — 

ANCIENT  BRITISH  RELICS. 

CARTLOADS  FOUND  IN  A  DEVON  EARTH  MOUND. 


IlfracoTiibe  seems  likely  to  add  to  its  long  list  of  attractions  one 
which  will  specially  interest  scientists,  especially  those  who  make  a 
study  of  arcliaBolog}\ 

A  well-known  local  clcjrgyman,  who  has  devoted  many  years  to 
wide  researclies  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  lovely  North  Devon 
healtli  resort,  has  recently  discovered  a  barrow — a  great  earthen 
mound — containing  among  other  precious  relics  arrow  heads,  spear 
and  axe  heads,  knives,  bludgeons,  and  club  spikes  of  flint,  })ieces 
of  pottery  ware,  ornamented  l)ones,  and  sundry  other  gear  used  by 
the  ancient  Britons.  Several  cartloads  of  these  relics  were  taken 
out  of  the  barrow — it  being  a  somewhat  i)aradoxical  fact  that  the 
contents  of  this  single  barrow  lillcd  many  wagons.  It  is  understood 
that  the  British  Museum  has  l)cen  advised  oif  the  find. 

Tlie  searcli  for  further  deposits  is  being  continued  with  un- 
abated zeal.  Archaeologists  have  long  regarded  the  neighbourhood 
of  Ilfracombe  as  one  of  the  favourite  haunts  of  the  Britons. 
There  are  many  evidences,  also,  of  the  occupation  of  the  country 
by  the  hardy  legions  from  Cajsar  to  Honorius ;  one  in  particular  is 
an  encampment  made  in  the  limited  time  of  one  day,  yet  complete 
in  its  details,  and  leaving  uix)n  it  the  trade  mark  of  its  builders — 
"  thorough." 

Great  is  the  (magnifying)  power  of  the  Press. 

R.  H.  W. 


TWENTY-FOURTH  REPOET  (THIRD  SERIES)  OF 
THE  COMMITTEE  ON  THE  CLIMATE  OF  DEVON. 

TwKNTY-FOURTH  REPORT  of  the  Committee — eonsistifig  of  Mr. 
P.  F,  S.  Amery,  Sir  Alfred  Croft,  Mr.  James  Hamlyn, 
and  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth — appointed  to  collect  and 
tabulate  trustworthy  and  comparable  Observations  on  the 
Climate  of  Devon. 

Edited  by  R.  Hansford  Worth,  Hon.  Secretary. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Your  Committee  presents  its  Report  for  the  year  1905. 

With  great  regret  the  Committee  records  the  death  of  Mr. 
F.  H.  Plumptree,  J.P.,  of  Teignbridge,  Newton  Abbot,  to 
whom,  since  the  year  1897,  the  Association  has  been  in- 
debted for  the  annual  record  from  that  station. 

A  new  rainfall  station  at  Archerton,  Postbridge,  on  the 
West  Dart,  with  an  elevation  of  about  1200  feet  O.D., 
appears  for  the  first  time;  Mr.  E.  A.  Bennett  is  the  Observer. 

The  following  changes  have  taken  place: — At  Newton 
Abbot  the  station  lost  by  the  death  of  Mr.  Plumptree  has 
been  replaced  by  Observations  taken  by  Mr.  E.  D.  Wylie, 
at  The  Chestnuts,  elevation  100  feet  O.D.  The  comparison  of 
these  stations  for  the  years  1903,  1904,  is  as  follows: — 

Teignbridge.  The  Chestnuts. 

Rainfall,  1903        ...        4261  ins.         ...        38-35  ins. 
„         1904         ...         35-81  ins.         ...         36-48  ins. 

At  Salcombe  Mr.  W.  Prowse  has  ceased  to  take  records 
and  the  Observatory  has  been  removed  to  Holm  Leigh,  now 
occupying  an  elevation  of  137  feet  O.D.  in  place  of  the 
former  height  of  110.  Mr.  V.  W.  Twining,  M.B.,  kindly 
supplies  the  return.  No  comparison  of  these  stations  is 
possible. 

On  the  Torquay  Waterslml  the  monthly  gauge  at  Blacking- 
stone  has  been  removed  from  our  list,  and  Tottiford  gauge 
is  now  disused. 

Teignmouth,  The  Den,  is  now  entered  as"Teignmouth  Obser- 
vatory," and  Torquay,  Cat^j  Green,  as  **  Torquay  Observatory." 

Additional  Observations  for  Humidity  are  recorded  at 
Teignmouth,  Bitton,  and  for  Sunshine  at  Teignmouth  Obser- 
vatory. 

e2 


68        TWSNTT-FOURTH  REPORT  (THIRD  SSRIXS)  OF  THE 

The  best  thanks  of  the  Committee  and  of  the  Associa- 
tion are  due  to  the  Observers,  whose  assistance  renders 
possible  the  preparation  of  this  Beport. 

The  names  of  the  Observers  or  the  Authoritj,  and  of  the 
Stations,  with  the  height  above  Ordnance-datum,  are  as 
follows : — 


STATION.  SLBVATIOM  (feet).  OBSKR7KR  OR  AUTHORITT. 

Abbotskerswell (Court Grange)! 50  ...  Mrs.  Marcus  Hare. 
—      -  —'  ...  p.  F.  S.  Amery,  j.p. 

...  Thomas  Wainwright. 
...  Sir  Alfred  W.  Croft,  ii.A.,  K.C.L1. 

James  Hamlyn,  j.p. 
...  T.  Turner,  j.p.,  f.r.Hr.Soc. 


584 
25 
124 
250 
202 


Ashburton  ^Druid) 

Barnstaple  (Athenseum) 

Bere  Alston  (Rumlei^h) 

Buckfastleigh  (Bossel)  . 

Cullompton 

Devonport  Watershed ; — 

Cowsic  Valley  (weekly)    1352 
Devil's  Tor  (near  Bear- 
down  Man)  (quarterly)  1785 

Exeter   (Devon   and   Exeter 
Institution).  .         .  155 

Holne  (Vicarage)  .        .  650 

Huccaby  .  .        .  900 

Ilfracombe         .  .        .     20 

Kingsbridge  (Westcombe)     .  100 

Newton  Abbot  (The  Chest- 
nuts) .  .        .  100 

Plymouth  Observatory  .  116 

Plymouth  Watershed : — 
Head     Weir    (Plymouth 

Reservoir)  .        .  720 

Siward's  Cross  (weekly)    1200 

Postbridge  (Archerton).         1200 

Princetown  (H.M.  Prison)      1359 

548 
516 
137 
186 
500 


Roborough  Reservoir    . 
Rousdon  (The  Observatory) 
Salcombe  (Holm  Leich) 
Sidmouth  (Sidmount)   . 
South  Brent  (Great  Aish) 
Castle   Hill   School  (South- 

molton)         .  .        .  363 

Tavistock  (Statsford,  Whit- 
church) .  .  .  594 
Teignmouth  (Bitton)  .  .  70 
Teignmouth  Observatory  ,  20 
Torquay  Observatory  .  12 
Torquay  (Livermead  House)  30 
Torquay  Watershed  : — 

Kennick      .  .        .  842 

Laployd  (monthly)  1030 

Mardon        .  .         .  836 

Torrington,  Great  (Enfield) .  336 

Totnes  (Berry  Pomeroy)       .  185 

Woolacombe  (N.  Devon)      .    60 


H.  Francis,  M.LG.K. 


John  E.  Coombes,  Librariaii. 
The  Rev.  John  Gill,  Mjk. 
R.  Bumard,  P.S.A. 
M.  W.  Tattam. 
T.  W.  Latham. 

...  E.  D.  Wylie. 

...  H.    Victor     Prigg,    A.1CI.C.K., 
F.R.MsT.Soc. 


>  Frank  Howarth,  A.if.i.ax. 

...  E.  A.  Bennett. 

...  W.  Marriott,  F.RMrr.Soc. 

(AsOT.  Seo.  RoY.HcT.Soa) 
...  Frank  Howarth,  A.M.I.C.B. 
...  Lady  Peek. 
...  V.  W.  Twining,  m.b. 
...  Miss  Constance  M.  Radford. 
...  Miss  C.  M.  Eingwell 

W.  H.  Reeve. 

E.  E.  Glyde,  p.r.Mbt.8oo. 

W.  C.  Lake,  m.d. 

G.  Rossiter. 

Frederick  March,  F.R.Hr.Soc. 

Edwin  Smith. 


S.  C.  Chapman,  A.M.LC.B. 

Georee  M.  Doe. 
Charles  Barran,  j.p. 
Basil  Fanshaw. 


OOMMimB  ON  THK  CUMATB  OF  DBVON. 


69 


JANUARY,  1906. 


RAINFALL. 


10N& 


I 

a 


:enwell 
on . 
pie. 
Bton 

tleigh 

>ton 


fb.:    : 

idge        .1 
Abbot    . 

th  . 

th 

tenhed 
Weir 

d'sCroas.j 

own 

ugh  ! 

8.  Devon) 

D     . 

^    .        .' 

th  .       .; 

Srent       .| 

[ill  School 

thmolton) 

ok 

nitchnrch) 

oath 

(Bitton) 
oath 
•enrmtory. 

f 
•ecTfttorj. 

iwermetA)- 
f  Wtrebd. 
iek . 

>jd.        . 
on  . 
;ton. 

Pomcroy) 
onib# 


ins. 

2.17 

2.58 
1.98 

2.S1 
4.05 

1.54 
3.63 
3.19 
1.94 

1.94 
1.58 

2.37 


3.09 

4.23 

2.46 
1.18 
1.72 
1. 17 
3.42 


2.21 


2.39 
1.58 

1.39 

1.42 

1.30 

1.91 

1.84 
1.75 

1.26 


OKSATIST 
rALLIV 

a4Hop«a. 


.80 

.49 
.82 
.82 

•53 

.92 

.99 

1. 14 

.70 

.62 

.76 

•93 


.97 

.72 
.72 

.53 
.63 
•85 

•so 

.77 
.81 
.70 
.82 
.76 


.85 

•44 

.80 
.33 


TBMPSBATURB  IN  SCREEN. 


16  16 
10 1  13 
16  17 
16  15 
16   12 

i*6  ■** 


10 13 

161  8 

16  15 
16.13 

8,12 

i6'ii 

17  II 
15  14   41.8 


deg. 

40.1 
42.0 

38.4 
38.8 


37.9 
40.0 


43.3 


i6ii4 


35.9 


39-2 
43-4 
40.3 


37.8 

39-3 
4a  6 

41.7 
41.6 


42.7 


deg. 

36^6 
36.6 
34.6 
33-7 

33.2 
36.5 


39-9 

ssii 

31.7 


36.0 

33-6 
34-9 
35.7 
370 
37.6 
36.4 


39.3 


deg.  I  deg. 


46.2  1 4] 


46.4 

45-1 
46.6 


41.4 
41.5 
39.8 
38.2 


45-4   39-3 
45-5  41.0 


46.6 


43-2 


47.3   42.8 


42.0 


35.8    45-0  40.4 
38.1    48.7  43.4 


36.9 


46.2  41. 1 


44.4 
44.0 
47.2 

47.4 
48.0 
48.2 


46.7 


I  Incomplete. 


39.0 

39.5 
41.4 
42.2 
42.8 
42.3 


43.0 


deg. 

30.5 
23.0 
22.0 
22.0 

19.5 
24.5 


32.4 


28.6 


25.9 


27.3 
30.0 
26.9 


19.9 
27.1 
26.9 

27.3 
29.4 

27.2 

21.0 
32.2 


i  12 

1  '  •§ 

3  o 

H  I  5 


I 
i 

§ 

OQ 


deg. 

% 

52.1 
53-3 
53.0 
545 

?7 
83 

66 

54-7 
54.5 

88 

49.'8 

si 

53.7 

85 

49.0 

89 

52.3 
54.4 
53.6 

90 
88 
86 

51.8 

87 

50.5 

88 

54.5 

83 

54.9 

83 

54.8 

83 

55-7 

... 

49.0 

... 

5^.2 

82 

%  0-10,  hours. 


6.3  j 
6-9, 

6.3     62.4 


6.9 


7.6     69.39 

I 


^o'  ::. 

...I  ... 
6.51 87.4 
7.4, 82.79 

6.6  I  85.35 
8.0, 


6.0 


6.5 


87.3 


57.60 


12 


10 

10 

7 


14 


70 


TWENTY-FOURTH  REPORT  (THIRD  SERIES)  OP  THE 


FEBRUARY,  1905. 


RAINFALL, 

TEMPKHATUItE   IN  SCREEN. 

i 

0 

i 

} 

MEANS.                            1 

utuckis. 

t 

STATlOKa. 

124  DOCBa. 

i. 
£ 

1 

1^ 

1 

n 

i 
1 

E 

B 

1 

4 

£ 

a 

1 

J 

1 

1 

iiifl. 

ins.  1     1 

deg. 

deg.  1  deg. 

deg. 

f^eg*  1  deg. 

% 

0^0 

hours,  i 

Abbotskerswell   . 

1.13 

.49  as   II 

14* 

... 

,,. 

... 

... 

„. 

.., 

„. 

J^b  burton  . 

1.62 

.71*5113 

4L9 

37,9,  484    43.4 

30*7 

5S'4 

86  6.5 

->,' 

., 

BeniBtAplc . 

L70 

.j8  26   10 

43.S 

39.8,  4S.0    43*9 

31.0 '53.0 

7S   7.0 

.,. 

*» 

Bere  Abtou 

1. 21 

.33    2S     16 

4"*<     37*3;  47*a   4^.3 
42.4    37.8    49-5   42.2 

26.0 

Sl<^ 

... 

,., 

... 

., 

BuGkfftstloiKh      , 
Cowaic  Vallfly     . 

U76 

,78135     10 

27*5 

57*0 

86 

5-3 

..*. 

., 

390 

' 

...    1    ... 

..,    1   ... 

... 

... 

... 

...     '  ., 

Culloropton 

1*^3 

'      ,32   22    15 

4a.o  ,  37^4 

48.-6  j  43.0  !'S'3 

57*2 

86 

7.3 

74*1 

i 

Ei€ter 

'37 

.36  35     10 

-S?  as   i^ 

43-4  l3».7 

491    43-9 

2S,o'  56,5 

... 

>.. 

>.. 

*- 

Holne 

2.69 

...    1    ... 

p.,  i  p.. 

... 

„. 

,,. 

.. 

Huccaby     , 

2.16 

;    .86  25   17 

...    1  ,,» 

_ 

... 

... 

... 

*.. 

., 

Ilfracombe  . 

1.04 

*30  30,14 

44  4     4»  2 

47*4   44.  S 

3S^o 

S2,0 

S3 

8.0 

.,* 

.. 

Eiugabridge 
Kewtyoti  Abbot    . 

0.96 

l,02 

■43  25  13 
.43  26     9 

.,. 

.,. 

... 

... 

■' 

Plymouth  . 

<i95 

.28  as  <3 

43-9    406 

48^4 '  44^5 

32,1 

54^1 

83 

7-i 

St.04 

1 

Plymouth 
Wat^rahed 

i 

Head  W*ir      . 

309 

1,00 

16  14 

,.> 

.<. 

... 

.■♦ 

... 

.., 

p.. 

,,4 

.» 

Si  ward  "a  Cross. 

J.JO 

1     ■    " 

... 

.1.              1             ,F« 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

*.» 

*» 

Poatbridge 

352 

.84  24  Vs 

.,. 

*k' 

p.. 

...  ■    ... 

.♦* 

.. 

Prittcetown 

4.67 

,S4  ^5^14 

37.0  .31*7     42.2    37.4 

2S-9 

47*3 

90    6,4 

... 

.. 

Roborongh 

3 

(S.  Devon) 

1.48 

.56  25  IS 

^     1 ^ 

.,. 

.4 

.,. 

p.^ 

... 

,. 

Eousdon     t 

0,64 

,32    25     12141.3      37.5147^3    42-4 

\n 

54*2 

90 

5*7 

99.8 

\ 

felcombe    , 

0.77 

^24  35    15  i  45-3     39-9    49*7   44-S 

5S'9 

.P. 

71 

94*28 

1 

Sid  mouth   . 

0.96 

.22  25    13 

43.8   1  38.6     48,6    43.6 

88.7 

56.3 

84 

6.4 

9*^35 

J 

South  Brent 

1-9S 

*SJ  ^S  ^7 

1 

... 

.., 

,. 

OMtleHUlSahool 

1 

(Southmolton' 

a.4S 

.37  26  20 

40,4     36.1    46.2   4L I 

26.7 

51.0 

86 

8,0 

,** 

.. 

Tavktock 

1 

■ 

(Whitchurch) 

1.91 

,68  25! 19 

4D.6  ^36.7    45^7 '41-2 

28.4 

Sr.S 

SS 

7,0 

»,» 

.* 

Teignmoiitb 

1 

<                     1 

(Bitton) 

r*03 

.42  35 

12 

43-7 

39*7    48^8  44^2 

89.4 

55*3 

79 

^*S 

... 

.. 

Teignmouth 
Observatory  . 

0.93 

^34 [*5 

9 

... 

40.6   49' I 

44.8 

31-4 

SS*5 

S3 

*.» 

.. 

Torqtmy 

Obacrvatory  . 
Torquay 

(Livermead] 

o,g4 

46  as 

10 

444 

4aa  '  49-7 

45*0 

31.0 

56.8 

82 

S,o 

98.3 

1 

aS5 

'    *46|35 

It 

44  7 

39^ Si  49^6,44.5 

39.6 

55.7 

,,4 

.., 

... 

,^ 

Torquay  Wtrahd. 

1          1 

Kennick          J  r.2i 

,38  IS  14 

,p. 

,,. 

p.. 

... 

... 

,,. 

... 

.., 

.,, 

,. 

Laployd  , 

0.81 

■   ...    J...   ... 

,., 

... 

.., 

.,, 

,.. 

... 

.,. 

,., 

,,* 

*, 

Hardon  * 

f  37 

^SS  25  U 

... 

... 

,.. 

.., 

„, 

p*. 

>■** 

.,. 

... 

- 

Torrington 

E,76 

■33.:^ 

1% 

,.. 

.., 

.,, 

,., 

26,0 

49.0 

.., 

„< 

,,. 

" 

Totn^s 

1 

(B<rry  Pomeroy) 

0.99 

.59:25 

9 

... 

..t 

*■* 

... 

.-, 

... 

... 

—  i 

„ 

Woolacoraba 

LOO 

,33 

:'s 

iS 

44-3 

41.4 

47*0 

44-2 

33.6 

Si.a 

86 

7*1 

69.C90 

t; 

COMMITTEB  ON  THE  CLIMATE  OF  DEVON. 


71 


MARCH, 

1905. 

RAINFALL. 

TEMPERATURB  IN  SCREEN. 

Ok 

i 

Ok 

1 

s 

{ 

1 

GBRATK8T 

FALL  IN 
24  HODBS. 

•* 
1 

1 

MEANS. 

KXTREMCS. 

j 

?f. 

ATIONS. 

i 

a 

i 
1 

1 

1 

i 

s 

t 
& 

akerswell  . 
irton . 
Uple . 
Alston 
astleigh 
Q  Valley     . 
npton 
r 

>mbe. 

bridge 

m  Abbot    . 

>ath 

>uth 

'at«rshed 

id  Weir      . 

ard's  Cross. 

[idge 

itown 

ongh 

(S.  Devon) 
on 

nbe    . 
►nth   . 

Brent 
Hill  School 
uthmolton) 
;ock 
Hiitchurch) 

ODOUth 

(Bitton) 
mouth 
Observatory 

Observatory 
ay 

Livermead) 
ay  Wtrshd. 
inick . 
.loyd  . 
•don  . 
igton 

B 

•y  Poraeroy) 
icombe 

ins. 

6.97 

9.17 

4.65 

6.23 

11.85 

11.00 
4.80 
4.06 

10.98 

9.95 
4.61 
6.07 

533 
5.19 

7.83 
8.95 
12.45 
12.78 

6.25 
4.82 

4.64 
9.66 

5.39 
8.34 

5-71 

495 

5. 33 

5.52 

599 
4.04 
6.62 
5-40 

6.60 
2.65 

ins. 

1-79 
2.60 
1.08 
1.05 
2.63 

t 
2.74 
2.04 

.78 
1. 19 

1.55 
1. 01 

1.70 

3.06 
2.38 

1-39 
.84 
•94 
.83 

2.09 

.93 
1.72 
1.26 

.92 

1.42 

1.50 

1.17 

1.40 
1. 12 

1.92 
.38 

10 
10 
10 
10 
10 

22 

14 
10 
10 
10 

8 

"s 

8 

9 
10 

10 
8 

10 
8 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 
10 

10 
10 

24 
22 

23 
22 
21 

>9 
19 
22 

23 
23 
21 
22 
21 

22 

21 
21 

22 
20 
20 
21 
21 

24 
23 
21 
20 

19 

20 

21 

20 
21 

19 
22 

deg. 

4^ 
46.4 

43-9 
46.4 

44.9 
47.0 

46.7 

47.0 

::: 
39.3 

44.1 

47.9 
46.2 

... 

43.4 
44.2 
46.6 

47-5 
47-5 

46.7 

iicg. 

39.4 
40.0 

37.3 
36.6 

37.9 
39-9 

4  0.5 

34.9 

39.5 
41.5 
39.6 

36.8 
37.5 
39.7 
40.4 
40.4 
39.5 

42.0 

deg. 

517 
51.7 
50.9 
51.9 

52.9 
53.1 

50.8 
52.0 

... 

46.2 

49-4 
52.3 
51.4 

50.7 
50.1 

53.3 
52.1 

52.3 
53.1 

50.9 

deg. 

45-5 
45-8 
44.1 
42.5 

45.4 
46.S 

46.7 

46.2 

40.6 

44-5 
46.9 
45.5 

43.7 
43.8 
46.5 
46.2 
46.4 
46.3 

46.4 

deg. 

32.0 
29.0 
27.0 
275 

26.'2 

28.5 

34.9 
28.6 

27.7 

3i'9 
32.0 
30.8 

27.7 
30.4 
30.9 
31.7 
315 
29.6 

25.0 
33.8 

deg. 

59.0 
61.5 
57.0 
575 

61.0 
59.0 

60:3 

6o.'7 

SS'3 

... 
57.0 

61.9 
59.0 
61.5 
57.2 
58.5 
57.9 

58.0 

% 

85 
78 

84 

84 

80 

84 

92 
89 

8s 

86 
88 
80 
81 

81 

... 
86 

0-10 

7.3 
7.1 

6.2 

7.2 

6"s 

7.4 

7-9 

6.7 
6.5 
7.2 

7.0 
7.3 
7.3 

6.0 
7.0 

hours. 
104.0 
136^59 

1 29. 1 

146.86 

157.30 

153.9 
139.57 

4 
z 

3 
0 

I 

0 

2 

72 


TWENTY-FOURTH  BEPOET  (THIRD  SERIES)  OF  THE 


APRIL,  1905. 


BTATIOWa. 


RAINFALL. 


OBKAXEST 

FALt  tX 

34  HOFna. 


TEAIPiniATURK  IN  SCRBEN. 


h 


I 


AbbotskersweU 
Ashburton « 
Barntitaple . 
Brre  Alston 
Buckfaatleigh 
Cowsic  Valley 
OuUomptott 
Exeter 
Holne 
Euccaby     , 
IlfraeotJibe , 
Eingjibridge 
Newton  Ablwt 
Plymoutli 
Plyniouth 
Wiiterslied 

Head  Wdr 

Si  ward's  Cross* 
Poatbridgc  . 
Priuci^lown 
Roborough 

Eousdou  . 
Salcombe  , 
Sidmmith  , 
South  Brent 
C*stle  Hill  School 
(SoythmoUon) 
TayistocTc 

(Wbilchurcli)    3*99 
Teignmouth 

(Bitten) 
Teignmouth 

Observatory 
Torquay 

Observatory 
Torquay 

(lavermead)! 
Torquay  Wtrsbd. 
Kennick . 
Laployd  . 
Mardon 
Torrington 
Totnes 

(Berry  Pomeroy) 
Woolaicombe 


3.50 

3-20 

4^45 
2.60 
3*01 

S-ST 
2,36 

3.S4 
Z.70 
2.72 


7.07 

7.10 

3.41 
3,36 

4^55 


10 


2.78 

'43 

3^99 

,70 

2.98 

.78 

2.81 

.73 

2.65 

.67 

2.80 

.68 

3.97 
2.61 

.88 

.88 
.58 

3.38 
1.74 

.69 
.46 

.St 

■Sq'io 

-Sa  10 

.65 1 10 

1-05  10 

.54'i'o 
.70,15 
1-07  13 
i.iS  13 

^39,  9 

■73  10 
-7^'n 
^63,10 


.SO|i3 

MI    29 
L2S    IJ 

.72' 10 
■4^1 10 
■77  1 10 

■  SS  10 
t.03!io 


di^g,    dog. 


47*7 
4it-3 
4S.1 
49-7 

48,0 
49-1 


48. 5 


49.3 


I 


41.4 
43-4^ 
41  4 
41-3 

41.8 
42.9 


45-1 


44.1 


20,      ,.,     '    .,. 
22    4L3     37,5 

J   ...I... 

2(     45.7    I  41.  I 


15  50,0 

22  47,8 

19,   **• 

23  46.3 

22  I  47.0 

i 
16 1  49.6 

I6|     ... 

15:49-5 

16  50.3 

19 

17 
17 

18 

18   48.5 


43*5 
42.1 


40.S 
40.4 

43-7 
43-6 

43.8 
42.8 


44-3 


d€g.    deg.    deg. 

54-0 '47-4'  3J-7 
52.9148.3134.0 
55*5!47  5'3i*o 
54*514^-7    3Z-0 


deg. 

60.4 
59-6 
61.0 
61.5 


54.0   47,9 
55-3  49- » 


55  5  48  8 


53-^ 


46.5  I  42,0 


50.4 1 45-7 
S3-4U8.5 
5M  47-2 


517 


46.2 


SO-9  45-7 


53-1 
53.5 
53.6 
54.3 


52.1 


48.4 
48.7 
48.7 
48.5 


34.0:61.2 
3S.O   61.5 


39.2    62.2 


4S.6    35-^;  58.5 


29.0    53,0 


33-3    56' I 
35^0  I  58.9 

345    57-2 


78  s-s 
to  6.7 


31-s 


598 


48.2 


31-6.58*4 


hours. 


S7>x 


113*00 


S.0 


8,5  Sao 
7  5  H2.SI 
8.2    113*5 


36.1    61.5    7     &6 

36.4   60.7    82    ... 

36.9    59-3    78    8.0 

107.S 

35.2    61,6 

... 

32.0  sao 

38.2    61.0    Si    7.7 1  101.00 


1' 


10 

7 

1 


COMMITTEB  ON  THB  CLIMATE  OF  DEVON. 


73 


MAY,  1906. 


RAINFALL, 

TEMPERATURE  IN  BCRKEK. 

d 

^ 
S 

1 

%^Am, 

ElT&EUta. 

1  t 

IATIOK& 

94  BODA&. 

1 

1- 

^       It 

1 

1 

j 

i 

B 

4 

1 

1 

1 

5 

ills. 

iufi. 

dfg. 

dej;. 

dpg. 

deg. 

deg. 

dcg. 

% 

0-10 

lioiu^s. 

UkerswcU   . 

0.61 

4J 

I 

7 

+  n 

p.* 

,.. 

... 

#«i 

nrton  . 

aSa 

.50,    I 

7 

543 

44-7 

61.4 

S3*o 

36.5 

c^g-i 

7» 

5' I 

t^.      !  .•» 

atAple  . 

0.24 

.11     I 

7 

54.5 

43-3 

6i;o 

S^'i 

34-0 

72.5 

6s 

4*9 

j  .«* 

Alston 

a77 

44     ' 

S    S2.S 

42.7 

63.5 

52,6 

33^0 

73.0 

'  ... 

fastleigh     . 

1-^3 

.61      3 

7 

S7.0 

41-3 

64.5 

S^.:^ 

32^5 

So.  5 

32 

30 

'  .., 

ic  Valluj     , 

1.50 

*.4 

... 

.►. 

.#* 

mpton 

0.29 

,19.     1 

4 

^i 

4i"s 

63.9 

52.4 

30'S 

72!  2 

63 

4.6 

351.0 

I 

IT 

0.3a 

,iS     I 

6 

54.8 

45.6 

63.2 

54-4 

38*5 

72.0 

H,. 

•  *»* 

e 

1.09 

.70  I 

7 

.*. 

... 

... 

... 

.,. 

►  .. 

... 

... 

»by     .         . 

1,4! 

.7a;  I 

6 

.,. 

... 

... 

... 

.T. 

.«* 

»iiib«  , 

a.  IS 

.09  31 

4 

53*0 

4S.0 

57.a 

S4.9 

41*9 

71.1 

82 

S-o 

«'< 

■bridge 

^  Abbot    , 

0.91 
0.92 

.46  I 

.44      2 

1  ::: 

"' 

1.T 

... 

::; 

lonth  -      1 

0.96 

.34    I 

6 

54.7 

45  3 

59' 7 

S2.S 

37^9 

6g.S 

73 

59 

269.  iG 

— 

\xmth 

ratershed 

ttd  Weir      - 

1. 00 

M    t 

S 

'--      1 

... 

... 

.., 

... 

... 

... 

rard'^  OroftH . 

i.oS 

.„  I.„ 

... 

■  ■« 

... 

.»» 

... 

... 

..T 

... 

... 

-** 

Bridge 

0.4S 

*iSl   "^ 

7 

... 

..t 

... 

!1! 

mmt 

telown 

1.29 

,871   I 

S 

4fi^3 

39-9 

5S'4 

47".^ 

3»-3 

6^3 

76 

4^1 

... 

... 

™^^ 

(S-  DeFonJ 

0.98 

'49 1    I 

7 

.'F 

h.. 

... 

..» 

... 

^.. 

... 

ion     , 

0-49 

.20;  i:  7 

Si^S 

43-4 

58.9 

SIV2 

lis 

68.  s 

80  5^3 

279^8 

X 

cub«    . 

0,64 

'43     il    7 

56.0 

45- 1 

61.0 

53^0 

36.0 

68. 0 

6S  4^S 

299.10 

f 

outK  . 

0.6a 

'371    "     6 

53^5 

43-3 

60.0 

517 

34-4 

7a  0 

73 

5-5 

2S8.10 

I 

1  Brent 

1. 19 

*79|   i 

6 

■  ■■ 

.T. 

»». 

... 

... 

eHiUScbwl 

1 

outbmolton) 
itoek 

a  IS 

.06    1 

4 

SM 

40.5 

60.4 

S04 

3P.9 

70.9 

7J 

6.0 

... 

... 

ft'hitchtiroh) 

1,10 

.67     I 

7 

53-3 

42.6 

60.S 

5>'S 

35' 1 

7a  2 

7* 

S-S 

... 

„. 

lIDOIlth 

(Bitton)  a  78 
imoutb 
Obeeryatorj,  0.7% 

.50    16 

sa.4 

46,0 

64.2 

55' I 

391 

73*«5 

63 

s.* 

... 

... 

.46     I     6 

.., 

46.  r 

61.3 

53*6 

40.0 

69*5 

63 

,** 

... 

ObiftTvatorf.  0.56 
(Liveroi^d)  0.64 

^43'  I   S 

54-4 

45^8 

60.2 

^l^^ 

37-9 

6S,8 

6S 

3*5 

28&3 

I 

'48,   1     S 

S9-0 

43*9 

62.0 

53-9 

36,1 

68,3 

... 

., 

..* 

.«. 

nay  WtJisUd. 

nnick  . 

0.63 

.361   I     9 

.*. 

IT. 

.<■ 

.+. 

>*« 

... 

... 

... 

... 

..« 

ployd  * 

0^43 

,„  \ 

p»* 

... 

... 

■^.. 

... 

..^ 

... 

..* 

... 

... 

krdon  - 

o^Sl 

.36     1     9 

>-^ 

».* 

.+» 

•  *  + 

... 

.r« 

... 

... 

... 

Ovi6 

.09 

a    4 

... 

„. 

'- 

... 

32.0 

71.0 

... 

,., 

... 

... 

0,6  s 

'41 

1 

7 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

Acombe 

0,13 

.04 

tl 

4 

S3*  3 

46.5 

si's 

5^4 

40.0 

69.0 

7S 

4.3 

29320 

I 

74 


TWENTY-FOURTH  REPORT  (THIRD  SERIES)  OF  THE 


JUNE,  1905. 


fiTATIOHS, 


RAINFALL. 


rALL  IN 

S4  BOPag> 


TBUFfiRATlTRB  IN  SOREBM. 


i 


I 

I 


Abbotskerswell  . 
Afthburton . 

Bere  Aiaton 
Buck  ffwitleigh     . 
Cowiic  Valley     . 
Cunompton 
Eietcr 
Holne 

Ilfraeombe  * 
Kingsbndge 
N<*wton  Abbot    , 
Plymouth  , 
Plymouth 
Wfttorelied 
Head  Weir      . 
8iward*sCrosa. 
Poatbridgifj  * 
Princotown 
Roborough 

(S.  De^on) 
Rousdon     , 
Snlcombe    , 
Sidmrtuth  . 
South  Brent 
Co^tk  Hill  School 
(Sonthtimltoo)' 
Tarifltock  I 

(Whitchurch) 
Teignnioutli 

(Bitton) 
Teign  mouth 

Observatory. 
TonjciAy 

Obaervfttoij. 
Torquay 

(Livemiftad) 

Toninay  Wtrahd. 

Keuiuck  . 

LA[jloyd . 

M»rdoii  . 

Torringfeon 

Totnes 

(Berry  Pomeroy) 

Woolacombe 


403 

3-79 

3-S3 
3^5" 
4.00 

J.2S 

3^86 
1.90 

374 
3.15 
2.46 


300 

363 

3.6S 

3,91 
i.SS 

373 
2.3a 

2,46 
2.S4 
-43! 
2.45 
2.77 

3-49 
3=3 

3'4S| 
309  ■ 

3S& 

t.2l 


1.30  I  16 

,»4'ia 

'73^9 
-91,29 
79  17 

.90  261 


J. 


.9$ 

.64 
1.09  29 

f3  "7 
.62  29 


.67  17 


■73 
74 

'99 


-  29 
.60,  5 
1.38  29 

78:   5 
74  1 16 

.5l!l2 


75 
54 

.SB 

.61 

-57 

1. 13 

1. 12 

^S7 

1. 00 
>22 


58.2 

60.  s 

597 
60,4 

60,0 

6[.2 


19! 
*., ' 

19 

iS 

19 
15 
17 
r6 

17 


52,6 


56,6 

5S.S 
587 


57-9 
5S.6 

60.  s 

59^ 
59.6 


deg. 


deg. 


d€g.    deg. 


51.S    64.1    S7.S    4S.4 


5^  ' 

Si.S 


67.1  |59»6  41.0 
67.7  S9.S  42.0 
S5.5:5S.2    39.5 


dcg. 

74-3 
82.  S 
S2.0 
77^0 


58.5    54-5 
60.1    53.3 


477 


Si.o 
53.1 
5'7 


49  5 
51-3 

53-7 
53-5 
52-7 


60.0    S3. 5 


63-5 


59'fi   537    40-6 


65.S 

64.0 
66.  □ 
63.8 

64.1 


57-6    397  I  76^1 


64^8 


58,4    45-9 

39-0 
59.2    47-8 


51. S  167.4   59^4    429    77-4 
S3. 9    68,2  61.0,  45.5    8a  s 


64-1,59-3:48.51  75^5 


58.4!  46.0    7S.8 


717 


61,8,56.4  43^3'  74-3 
63.3 1  57-7  45*0  74-S 
61.7   56.7    44.3;  76.6 


57-7    44-6 

58.8,45-9 

I 
58,8146,2 

I 
58.4.46,9175,9 


76,5 
S1.3 
74*3 


75.1 

86,0 

76-0 


% 

0-10 

houra. 

81 
70 

7-6 

7.1 

... 

74 

6,3 

,.. 

75 

7,2 

154^3 

83 

7-^ 

,.; 

76 

7A 

164^84 

86 

6^3 

*,. 

86 
79 
79 

7^3 
7-5 
7-4 

158^4 
173-94 
167,1s 

Si 

&o 

..« 

Si| 

7-6 

.*. 

72 

8.0 

.,, 

7$ 

*,, 

r& 

7.5 

167.1 

76 

5-9 

I9s"ii 

CXJMUITTKS  ON  THB  CLIMATE  OF  DEVON. 


75 


JULY,  1905. 

RAINFALL. 

TEMPERATURE  IN  SCREEN. 

i 

Ok 

Ok 

i 
i 

} 

0BBATB8T 

FALL  IK 

MEAJCS. 

KXTRBMSft. 

& 

ATI0N8. 

34HODBa. 

1 

1 

1 

8 

i 
1 

i 

1 

i 

1 

m 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

.1 

ins. 

ins. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

% 

0-10 

hours. 

akerswell  . 

I. II 

•S3 

26 

6 

... 

... 

... 

... 

irton . 

0.50 

.20 

9 

8 

65.3 

56.0 

7i.i'63.5 

50.2 

81.4 

70 

6.6 

... 

taple. 

1.91 

.50 

9 

18 

64.0 

55.8 

69.2  62.5 

44.0 

79.0 

62.5 

7.1 

... 

••. 

Uston 

0.65 

.19 

9 

9 

63.8 

55.6 

71.6  63.6 

47.0 

79.0 

... 

... 

... 

utleigh     . 
5  Valley     . 

0.51 
0.48 

.18 

II 

6 

68.9 

53^8 

73.9  62.5 

43.0 

82.0 

66 

4.3 

... 

apton 

.12 

'5 

9 

66*6 

54.4 

73-7  64.1 

42:8 

Si.'s 

69 

7*."3 

190.5 

I 

r 

0.31 

.12 

9 

6 

67.6 

56.4 

74.4  65.4 

48.5 

82.0 

... 

. 

0.47 

.14 

10 

8 

... 

... 

... 

by     .        . 

0.69 

.20' 10 

10 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

imbe. 

1. 19 

.29 

I 

16 

63*8 

58.8 

67.0 

62.9 

52.9 

74.0 

79 

6.9 

... 

bridee 

m  Abbot   . 

0.65 

.50 

10 

7 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

.. . 

0.92 

•33 

II 

5      ... 

... 

... 

... 

.. 

... 

... 

•nth  . 

»ath 

atershed 

0.80 

.46 

9 

7 

65.5 

57.0 

68.9 

62.9 

49.8 

7S-8 

75 

7.3 

199.54 

I 

d  Weir      . 

1.17 

.45  10 

14 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

ird's  Cross . 

1.20 

•  •• 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

idge 

1. 00 

.27 

9 

8 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

town 
ough 
(S.  Devon) 

1.92 

.72 

10 

10 

si'? 

52.5 

64.2 

S8.3 

46.0 

73.4 

84 

5-5 

... 

... 

1.02 

.30  10 

10 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

on     . 

0.50 

.29  10 

6 

6'2.'6 

55-2 

68.2 

61.7 

47*5 

75-9 

81 

?-5 

222.0 

2 

abe    . 

0.60 

.33   10 

7 

65.1 

55-5 

70.0 

62.7 

48.2 

74.8 

76 

6.1 

226.25 

I 

nth  . 

0.50 

.19  10 

10 

65.1 

55^4 

70.1 

62.7 

47.5 

77-4 

74 

6.S 

234.0 

0 

Brent 

1.25 

.56 

10 

6 

... 

... 

HiU  School 

athmolton) 

2.42 

1.02 

I 

18 

62.3 

53-2 

69.6 

61.4 

41.8 

79.1 

81 

8.0 

... 

... 

ock           1 
itchurch)  j 

0.85 

.19 

9 
10 

12 

638 

54  3 

69.S 

61.9 

46.0 

78.4 

79 

7.6 

... 

nouth 

(Bitton) 
nouth 
)bservatory 

0.66 

.25 

27 

67.4 

57.4 

73.8 

65.6 

50.3 

84.2 

67 

6.9 

... 

... 

0.78 

.36 

27 

... 

56.9 

72.2 

64.S 

49.4 

81.4 

71 

... 

... 

)n8ervatory  0.59 

.20 

27 

65.7 

57.2 

70.9 

64.1 

50.5 

78.7 

70 

6.5 

238.9 

0 

Livermead)  0.64 

.17 

10 

66.2 

55^7 

71.7 

63-7 

49.1 

79-5 

... 

... 

... 

ayWtrehd. 

nick .        •    0.39 

.10 

9 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

.«• 

... 

loyd .        .0.20 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

don  . 

0.31 

.12 

9 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

gton 

1.32 

.60 

I 

13 

... 

... 

... 

41.0 

79.0 

... 

... 

1 

yPomeroy)  a  52 

.26 

II 

6 

... 

.. 

... 

... 

... 

... 

combe 

1. 01 

.30 

I 

13 

63.1 

57.5 

66*9 

62.2 

50.8 

77.2 

79 

6^3 

196.12 

s 

76 


TWENTY-FOUKTH  BEPOBT  (THIRD  SEBIBB)  OF  THB 


AUGUST,  1906. 


8TATI0Na 


RAINFALL. 


I 
i 


GBKA.TB8T 

FALL  IN 

34  HOUBB. 


TE&fPERATURE  IN  SGRBBN. 


Abbotskerswell  .  3.70 

Ashburton .  •4.73 

Barnstaple.  .4.81 

Bere  Alston  .  4.98 

Buokfastleigh  .  5.09 

Cowsic  Valley  .  7.15 

GuUompton  .  5.07 

Exeter        .  •3.93 

Holne         .  .  6.83 

Huccaby    .  .7.28 

Ilfracombe .  •  307 
5.61 


Newton  Abbot    .  3.39 

Plymonth  .        •4.42 

Plymouth 

Watershed 

Head  Weir      .6.12 

Siward's  Cross .  6.90 

Postbridge         |  6.77 

Princetown         .  8.38 
Boborough 

(S.  Devon)  5.43 

Eousdon 


{I..98 


Salcoxnbfl    ,         *i4.i3 
Sid  mouth  ♦        .  I  3.80 
South  Brent        .16.80 
Castle  HiUSohoor 
(Sontlinioltoii)j5.87 

(Wbitchansh)'  5.47 
Teignmoutb         | 

(Bittoii);3.i3 
Tetgnniouth         | 

Observatory  J  3.21 
Torquay 

Observatory     .  3.16 
Topqtiay 

(Livemjead)  3.31 

Torquajr  WtrHhd- 

Ketimck,         .  4.53 

Laployd  .         *  3.68 

Mardon  ,         *  4.42 

Torriugton  ,  5.29 

Totnes 

( Berry  Pomeroy)  3.99 

Woolaeombe       ,  2.83 


ins. 

.85 

1.20 

.76 

1. 11 
1.20 

1.15 

1. 12 
1.82 
1.80 

.75 

1-33 

.80 

.97 


1.30 

.93 
1. 15 

1.25 
.67 
1.16 
1.33 
1.17 

1.03 

1. 12 

1. 00 

1.14 

.77 

.74 

1.42 

1.40 
.84 

.86 
.57 


deg.     deg. 


deg.  I  deg. 


2 1  22 


2  20 
26  22 


60.1 
59.6 

59.7 
63.0 

61.0 
61.8 


52.6 
53-7 
51.7 


65.2 
67.1 
66.0 


51.9  168.2 


50.8  167.1    58.9 
51.5  168.6  60.0 


58.9 
60.4 
58.9 
57.7 


61. 5    59.5 


62.0 


64.8 


52.6   65.3 


53.3  ,49.0   59.0 

...    i   .. 

592    52.9  J64.1 

61.6  '  53.3   65.1 
61.3    52.8   65.^ 


57.9 
58.9 
62.4 

61.5 
62.7 


50.0 

51.4 
54.6 

54-7 
54.8 
53.7 


61. 1    55.5    65.2  60.4 


64.6 

637 
67.9 
65.8 
65.7 
67.3 


58.9 


S4.0 


58.5 

59.4 
593 


57.3 
57.6 
61.2 

693 
60.3 

60.5 


deg. 

48.2 
44.0 

43.0 
42.0 

40.0 
45.0 


47.1 


44.3 


47.7 

45.5 
45.3 


40.5 
46.0 
48.8 

48.4 
50.2 
47.2 

42.0 
50.2 


deg. 

71.3 
76.0 

75.0 
73.5 

74.5 
76.0 


62.1    514    71.8 


72.8 


67.4 


69.7 

71.0 
71.9 


72.9 
72.3 
74.5 
69.3 
69.8 
71.0 

72.0 
72.8 


% 

0-10 

hours. 

'i 

6.7 
7.9 

... 

73 

2.7 

... 

76 

7.3 

134^ 

80 

7.9 

... 

79 

7.2 

I7M6 

90 

6.5 

••• 

83 

6.5 

179.7 

79 
77 

kl 

197.84 
196.0 

84 

8.0 

... 

82 

7.5 

... 

72 

7.2 

... 

75 

... 

193-55 

69 

d.o 

193-7 

79 

7.0 

166^83 

OOMMITTBB  ON  THE  CUHATX  OF  DBVOK. 


77 


SEPTEMBER,  1905. 


RAINFALL. 

TBTllPERATUaE   TN  SCRKEN. 

E 

Oh 

} 

KXTnUIB. 

i 

STATIOim. 

34  Hotro*, 

1 

1' 

»    . 

1 

1 

i 

-a 

1 

i 

1 

1 

& 

s 

i 

1 

1 

1    Ui& 

iu3. 

t  deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

dcK^     % 

0-10 

hoUJ% 

AbbctakerswelL  J  3.2S 

'79 

9 

171    ^- 

.,. 

,.. 

... 

... 

... 

Ashbnrtoo  .        ,    ^.43 

1-23 

9 

16'  56.0 

Sao 

62.S 

S6.3 

AS-0 

70.6 

80 

6.7 

... 

... 

Barnflt&ple . 

i.So 

-35 

6 

I7l 

5J.0 

47-9 

6«.o 

54-9 

36.0 

67.0   ;    80 

5' 9 

... 

♦-. 

Bere  Alatoo 

1,69 

■7^ 

9 

»3 

54.8 

47^6 

61.3 

544 

370 

69.0 

mt^w 

... 

BuckfAstteigU     , 

2  65 

K41 

9 

<4 

s».i 

47-7 

63.3 

53-3 

34^0 

72,5 

7*6 

*-S 

.». 

..♦ 

Coveiic  ValJey     . 

3-00 

,., 

... 

... 

..4 

Cttlldtnpton 

'■59 

-49 

9 

13 

56.4 

47"5 

63'3 

s'5-4 

36;  I 

73-1 

Ho 

6'S 

133- I 

1 

Eieter 

1.07 

■3« 

S 

It 

57-1 

49.  s 

63s 

56.6 

40.0 

71,51 

... 

..» 

Holne 

J.98 

1-47 

9 

IS 

>*. 

.*. 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

Huccabj     . 

2.69 

.96 

9 

u 

■  -. 

.*. 

... 

... 

.,- 

♦  +. 

-. 

I]fT»oomb« . 

i7« 

.66 

S 

II 

57^6 

53-9 

6a7 

57-3 

46.7 

65,4 

fe 

6.S 

.*. 

.** 

KingBUrld^e 

3-99 

-7S 

S 

13 

"tf 

«»* 

1T« 

N«wtou  Abbot    . 

i'93 

■S4 

6 

12 

.*. 

t.» 

*■» 

.♦♦ 

*.. 

... 

*^* 

^.Ir 

... 

.*. 

Plyi»i>tJth  , 

1-37 

-3» 

S 

n 

57.8 

50-4 

62,1 

56,  a 

42.« 

68.3 

80 

5*91 

142.68 

3 

PJjmcmth 

WatersHed 

H««d  Weir      . 

2.51 

t  33 

9 

14 

*., 

.-■, 

..* 

ifT 

Hi.. 

... 

..* 

..4. 

... 

... 

8iwftrd*»CrQia. 

3-00 

■  .* 

ttm 

X.. 

... 

.*. ' 

... 

... 

-.* 

Fostbridge 

3^34 

K14 

"s 

30 

F.t 

.xi 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

PirmcetoT*Ti* 

3^69 

1.63 

9 

>s 

SO.  4 

45- 6 

55-8 

So-7 

39-^ 

61.6 

87 

6.3 

... 

... 

Boborotigh 

(S.  Dflvon) 

i.ss 

76 

9 

IJ 

.,- 

m. 

... 

... 

... 

... 

.. 

... 

... 

..* 

Boofldon     . 

1.68 

S2 

S 

12 

54-7 

49^1 

60.9 

SSo 

433 

68.0 

88 

«.t 

147.  I 

5 

StJoomba    . 

2.92 

M 

s 

IS 

S7.0 

50.2 

6rs 

55-9 

44.0 

^5*2 

13 

6.4 

149.  iS 

4 

aidinmitli  . 

1.89 

.So 

s 

13 

56.4 

49-4 

61.9 

SS.6 

42.S 

69,8 

S: 

5-8 

i6a30 

2 

South  Brent 

2.70 

1.46 

9 

13 

... 

.,. 

... 

... 

i-t 

..# 

OutkHin  School 

(Southmolton^  3.14 

-37 

9 

17 

53-1 

45.S 

60.9 

53-3 

33-9 

66.8 

88 

6,0 

... 

... 

TaTiatock 

{Whitclmrcli) 

XI4 

.96 

9 

17 

55-0 

47.7 

60.4 

54.1 

39.4 

67.4 

8S 

&i 

.*. 

i.i 

Teign  mouth 

(Bitton) 

1.64 

.64 

S 

9 

57-9 

51.065.4 

58.2 

40.2 

74-9 

76 

6.S 

... 

... 

TaigDinouth 

Ob«erifatory 

I.7S 

M 

5 

9 

..* 

530 

62.6 

57-8 

40,2 

72.3 

76 

..r 

i6a24 

I 

ToiqtiAr 

ObservatoTj 

1.86 

.82 

5 

II 

S7.9 

5' 3 

62,9 

S7-I 

43-1 

72.4 

77 

6.0 

153^3 

2 

ToTqnay 

(Livertnead) 

a.di 

.78 

5 

12 

584 

50-a 

64.9 

s;-5 

41.0 

73-5 

*■,*■ 

... 

.H. 

... 

ToT^uaj  Wtrahd. 

Ken  nick  . 

a.  19 

-67 

9 

14 

i*. 

.*. 

*.. 

..1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

*.* 

Uipbyd  , 

I.5S 

+  *  + 

.w 

"' 

... 

..* 

.X, 

.♦. 

... 

... 

,.. 

Mudon  . 

i.g? 

-Vj 

9 

13 

'*, 

.** 

*,. 

.,. 

... 

... 

..^ 

... 

Torrington 

2.09 

-44 

6 

IS 

..,. 

... 

... 

... 

34-0 

m.o 

... 

.P. 

... 

'... 

Totneft 

2-43 

»9 

9 

13 

**, 

HI.H. 

.*. 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

{ Berry  Poroeroy) 

WooJftconib© 

1,23 

,40 

S 

14 

57-4 

52. 6 

61.1 

56.9 

45  4 

67.6 

84 

6.2 

•S4.S9 

78 


TWENTY-FOURTH  BEPOBT  (THIBD  SERIES)  OF  THE 


OCTOBER,  1905. 


RAINFALLl 

TEMPErUTTJRE   IN  eCRBBN. 

^ 

5 

' 

1 

'                    iiEAjra. 

KTAUCtt^ 

1 

STATtO»a 

$4  QGCRd. 

1 

1 

a 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

im. 

itu. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

dog. 

deg. 

% 

0-10 

hooiB. 

Abbotakerswell  . 

2.15 

1.05 

31   13 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

».i 

Ashburton  ♦ 

3'4S 

72 

311H 

49.0 

4^.0 

S4.2 

4S.1 

3»-9 

6I.S 

77 

5-S 

... 

... 

Buniitaple , 

J.  10 

*7S 

30 

IS 

4S-4 

39-4 

S4-9 

47.1 

23- 1 

64.0 

81 

S.8 

..i 

«*. 

Be  re  Alston 

z.ot 

-5J 

31 

«5 

43-3 

37.0 

S3-^ 

45- f 

25.0 

66.0 

... 

... 

... 

Buckra»t)e]g1i     . 

3^08 

.80 

30 

n 

4S-7 

38*7 

5S-3 

47^  S 

32.S 

73.5 

76 

a-? 

-*w 

..» 

CowBio  Valley     . 

&.I0 

*.* 

... 

.*- 

Cullonjpton 

2.69 

[.12 

3^ 

14 

46.4 

37-7 

S4.a 

46.0 

34-5 

63-9 

si 

S-8 

"33 

6 

Exeter 

1.79 

■H 

3ti« 

47-3 

4t.4 

53^9 

47.6 

38.5 

63.5 

..* 

Holne 

3-51 

.96 

3t|U 

*.. 

... 

... 

♦  .* 

.*. 

... 

Huocaby     . 

1^95 

•54 

30I12 

... 

... 

.►.   i 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

Ilfracombe  . 

2.94 

•73 

JO  14 

51a 

4«-3 

S+3| 

SO-3 

38.3 

59^4 

78 

6.4 

... 

... 

Kingsbridge 

2,i3 

.69 

J'   E3 

.4. 

.k. 

Newton  Abbot    . 

i.oB 

-30 

30    9 

.*» 

..* 

... 

... 

... 

... 

..4 

... 

... 

**. 

Plytwovith  . 

i.Si 

.61 

31  14 

49.6 

40.9 

SSI 

4^.0 

30.1 

63.7 

77 

6.1 

133.36 

3 

Plymouth 

WaterBhed 

Head  Weir     ( 

3.18 

.50 

'^  16 

30 

... 

... 

..* 

... 

... 

... 

.*. 

... 

... 

... 

Siward'sCrosa. 

3.90 

,,w 

... 

T.t 

... 

.1. 

... 

... 

.., 

*>« 

Poatbridge  . 

5.8S 

1.16 

31   16 

*., 

,.. 

... 

... 

... 

^ 

.n 

Prmcetown 

4.S3 

.64 

30  15 

41.3 

37-3 

48.S 

43-9 

39.6   S9.0 

ft9 

4.S 

... 

..1 

Roborough 

3,30 

-47 

3' 

16 

... 

... 

«... 

... 

(a  Devon) 

Rotudon     . 

2.46 

1. 00 

31 

13 

46.7 

40.  a 

535 

46.8 

sag    65.4 

8S 

S-4 

136.3 

3 

Sulcombe    . 

3.3S 

'73 

31 

13 

49-4 

41.7 

S4.8 

48.2 

30.0 

62.7 

78 

4^9 

14a  36 

3 

Sid  mouth  , 

a.48 

r,J9 

31 

13 

47.6 

40.7 

S4.I 

47-4 

28.7 

62.8 

82 

6.0 

^^SS 

1 

Smith  Bi-ent 

3- 19 

.90 

31    <o 

"., 

... 

... 

... 

.*. 

Caatle  Hill  School 

(SoutbmoJton) 

3  9° 

,61 

30 

15 

43-i 

36.8 

S3.9 

44-8 

21.7 

66.1 

86 

6.0 

Tavistock 

(Whitchurch) 

3.61 

*S8 

31  IS 

46-7 

39.3 

5^-5 

4S-9 

^3 

63.1 

86 

6.1 

'*i 

..i 

Tfli^moutb 

(Bitton) 

2.04 

,93 

31 

II 

47^9 

41-9 

SS-i 

48.S 

29.5 

6S,I 

7S 

6.7 

... 

.«* 

Teign  mouth          , 

Ohatrvat^ry 

2^03      ^93 

3i|"| 

... 

41.6 

55.2 

4S.4 

39.7 

62.6 

77 

130.43 

3 

Torquay 

Obaervatory 

3.30    1,09 

3' 

ti 

4S.S 

43  I 

SS4 

49*3 

31-9 

63.1 

78 

S'O 

133.0 

3 

{Livennead}  2.3J    1.06 

31 

13 

49-9 

41. S 

56.7 

49^1 

29-7, 

66.0 

Torquay  Wtrshd. 

1 

KatuiioV  . 

3' 17     n 

3' 

18 

.p* 

... 

... 

.♦. 

... 

.** 

.*. 

Loi>loyd  . 

1.90    ... 

.», 

... 

*.. 

... 

..k 

... 

^!! 

[*' 

[[[ 

lllardon  , 

2,17      ,S5 

3 1   M 

... 

... 

,*t 

... 

... 

... 

... 

«... 

... 

Torrington . 
Totn€« 
( Berry  Pomoroy) 

3^09 

.61 

3'   17 

... 

... 

... 

33.0 

S7.0 

... 

... 

.». 

.„ 

2.46 

.87 

31   >o 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

^^ 

Woolauombe 

1.85 

.53 

31 

HI 

Sas 

45-4 

54*3 

49-9 

37-3 

6r.o 

Sa 

54 

13+70 

3 

COBOilTTBB  ON  THE  CLIMATB  OF  DEVON. 


79 


NOVEMBER,  1905. 


BAIXFALL 

TEMPKRATURE  IK  SCREEN. 

i 

Ok 

i 

1 

, 

~~^ 

1 

TAtt  I3f 
24  HOL  Jig, 

1 
s 

MBJUIB. 

1 

fcTiQ^a. 

Is 

1 

1 

1 

j 

1 

1 

tketowell  , 
rtott, 
«lo.         . 
LlAU»n 

latleigh     , 
f  Valley     , 
apton 

Su':  : 

bridg*        . 

in  Abbot    . 
•nth  , 

■toTshed 
d  Weir      . 
wd^sCrosa. 
idg^.        . 
ftown 
oogb 

on     . 
Abe    -         . 

mtb  , 
Brent 

Hill  School 
»Dtbi3ioUon) 
lock 
^fTiitchuroh) 

DIDUth 

(Bitton) 
mouth 

Jhaemtory. 

my 

>ba«niitory. 

lay  Wtrahd 
mick .        . 
>loyd .        . 
rdon  . 
igton 

9 

rj  Poineroy) 
icoinb« 

ius, 
6.Z1 

6-92 

til 

7^85 
B.30 

3^9S 
«.i3 

6!i6 
6.0S 
S,8o 

7-88 
10.74 

7.4t 
542 
Sii 

4^32 

10. 8S 

1 

5-16 

8.16 

5-39 
5.04 
5  39 
5-30 

S-84 

4-45 
5-70 
553 

6.14 
2.60 

ins. 
LOS 
1.44 
55 
1.17 

1-57 

.72 
.8a 

.7a 

1.38 

1. 10 
1,11 

1.89 

t.Sa 

I3S 
1-39 

-75 

-71 
1.48 

-97 
■95 
.88 

.87 

1.25 

1-29 

'■37 

1.22 

.46 

10 
10 
12 
10 
10 

10 

JO 

10 

10 
I 

lO 

1 
10 

ro 
9 

ID 

10 

13 
12 

161 

10 

10 

10 

10 

12 

10 

10 

10 

1 

10 
12 

21 
21 
22 
23 
'9 

20 
2t 

io 
21 

19 
21 

17 

21 

23 

31 

21 

22 

18 

19 
22 

19 
^3 

^3 
"9 
18 
16 
18 
22 

33 
22 

14 

20 

de»g. 

42.7 
40,6 
38.8 
41.1 

39  4 
4a  9 

46:5 

436 

::: 

37-3 

42.3 

44.5 
42.6 

38.0 
40.6 
41.8 

42.9 

43-9 

4s:6 

deg. 

37-S 
35-5 
33-3 
33-3 

32.V 
35-9 

4^-5 

37-5 

33^4 

177 

3S-3 
37-5 

32.6 
35'9 
37.2 

37.4 

4V.. 

deg, 

493 
49^4 
47-5 
50.1 

48"S 
47-3 

50.0 

50.2 

44.2 

47-8 
49  9 
49-1 

48.6 

47.2 

49-3 
50.0 

5CJ*4 
51.4 

_ 

43-5 
424 

40.41 
37-7 

40^6 
41.6 

46.2 
43-8 

3O! 

42.8 
44.1 

433 

40.6 

,M 

43-3 
437 
44.fi 
44.1 

deg., 

i 

30-4 
23.0 
22,0 

19.  s 

26.0. 
31-7 ' 

i\ 

23^2 

1 

28:3 
28.0 

27,2 

*,' 

25-5 

26.4 
259 
25.8 

26.3 

19.0 
3^.0 

deg, 

56.0 

55-0 
5j,o 
56.0 

si  I 

54.0 
56:2 

55-7 

49.0 

53-2 
56.1 

54-7 

56.0 

52.0 
S4-4 
SS-o 
SS-7 
56. 9 

5a  0 
56,0 

X 

84 
87 

82 

8^ 

85 

...  1 
91 

92 

u 

89 

93 
86 

", 

86 

si 

0-10 

ai 
5.9 

5*3 

&2 
70 

6;"? 

6^5 
6!o 

7.0 
6.4 
6.7 

6.0 
6.3 

hours. 

8o:j 

95-^3 

1 12.3 

104^68 

98-35 

"oa55 
103- 3 

9 

s 

3 

4 
4 

3" 

80 


TWENTY-FOUKTH  REPORT  (THIRD  SERIES)  OP  THE 


DECEMBER,    1905. 


EAIXFALLl 

TEMPER ATUHB  JN  SCREEN. 

1 

} 

FA  IX  IN 

MltXHt^ 

dCTA^xuia. 

1 

BTATIONB. 

74  HODEt. 

1 

1' 

^ 

1 

j 

1 

1 

IS 

1 

^ 

1 

1 

1 

ilia. 

1.119. 

deg. 

dcg. 

d^g. 

i^eg. 

degi 

dcg. 

% 

040 

hours. 

AbbotakeraweU  , 

1.41 

-32 

s'i7 

+  .* 

,.. 

*.* 

... 

►P.* 

Aahburt^n  - 

1.S7 

^ss 

5 

14 

42^7 

39.7 

46.7 

43-2 

35-4 

^H 

§° 

7*1 

••• 

Bg-mata.plc . 

1,76 

,Si 

7 

16 

41.6 

38-0 

4S.0 

4  JO 

29.0 

54^8 

84 

7.0 

... 

Bore  Alaton 

1,49 

,26 

iS 

^5 

40s 

36^7 

46.6 

4L6 

26.0 

S4.0 

♦IP 

*,i 

,« 

BuckfiustloLgh      . 
Cowsic  ATtiMay     , 

3.64 

■77 

s 

[2 

41.9 

37^3 

47^a 

40^5 

27^5 

53.5 

9a 

M 

... 

j-ai^ 

PIP 

,.p 

p** 

GuIIompton 

1.17 

■32 

s 

14 

40.4 

36.'6 

4616 

4v;6 

Z7.^ 

SS^o 

9i 

8.1 

35-1 

t6 

Exeter 

0.74 

.iS 

27 

42.S 

39*5 

46.9 

43-2 

30  J3 

57-0 

PP1 

*.. 

Holne 

3.41 

^54 

5^^S 

1.. 

pp* 

..1 

til 

Huccaby     . 

2-49 

,46 

5  16 

... 

•  t4 

*.» 

i-» 

-»♦ 

..1 

P.F 

... 

... 

IlfnKJombe . 

2.0S 

.ss 

7 

9 

4S.8 

427 

48.8 

45-7 

3S'9 

53.S 

«5 

7-0 

-Pi 

Kinpbritlge 
Newton  Abbot    , 

■44 
-3" 

6 
6 

15 
10 

"' 

i.p 

Plpnouth   . 

1.64 

31 

27 

13 

44.'6 

40,6 

48:6 

44-^ 

310 

S'3^9 

89 

Slfi 

39-43 

iG 

Plymouth 

Watershed 

Weir  Htea<i      . 

S'^S 

.68 

5 

17 

.,. 

-.. 

■  *■ 

11, 

1-. 

p.* 

Pii 

.1. 

Siward'sCross. 

ios 

,  +  > 

..    ... 

.,, 

-.* 

*** 

**. 

P  +  « 

-n** 

.1. 

--► 

Poitbridgo 

4-7S 

1. 12 

31 

t6 

,,, 

^L,4 

*.i 

.*♦ 

.-» 

.»+ 

-.* 

PrincctowD 

3^75 

.7S 

S 

15 

39^0 

35-3 

43-4 

393 

jiis 

49-3 

94 

8.5 

.1. 

.♦. 

Roborougli 

(S.  Devoa) 

2.07 

■39 

5 

i6 

Pf . 

..p 

+  +. 

h.t 

..p 

... 

*.» 

-p. 

Rousdon     . 

1.04 

^30 

27 

*3 

42.3       3S.9 

46,3 

42.6  i  33.6 

S3-I 

92 

8.0 

47^4 

IS 

Salcotnbe    . 

r-92 

'43 

6 

T2 

4S-0 ;  400 

4K1 

44' 2 

33-° 

52.9 

8S 

7^5 

4900 

13 

Sidmouth  . 

0,82 

^3' 

27 

!4 

43-4 

40.2 

47^6 

43^9 

32.3 

5*5.9 

89 

S.X 

47.00 

13 

South  Brent 

2,70 

■73 

7 

13 

+p. 

CastkHill  School 

(Soiithraolton) 
Tmviatock 

(Whitchureh) 

2.03 

^54 

7 

IS 

40-0 

35^6 

46.4 

41.0 

26.7 

S3-a 

90 

S.O 

... 

2,13 

■44 

S 

Id 

41-7 

37.SI 

4S'7 

4t.8 

a94 

5a*  S 

91 

7^8 

Teigumouth 

(Bitton) 

0.S8 

.24 

27 

tl 

43-8 

4a  I 

47-9 

44.0 

31.6 

54.6 

86 

8.^ 

..^ 

..• 

TeigtimoAitb 

Obaervtttory 

0.S2 

as 

27 

U 

*^.. 

4^-3 

4S-5 

444 

31*0 

SS'ij 

83 

.., 

47-0 

13 

Toi:*3uay 

Ohservfttory 
Totiquay 

(Livermeud) 

1,01 

.24 

37 

9 

44.8 

4r.2 

48.9 

4S^l 

33-S 

54*5 

g3 

8.0 

49-9 

r6 

0-93 

23 

7 

10 

44-9 

39^6 

4S.9 

44.2 

30.9 

553 

1>4              1 

i.. 

Torquay  Wtrshd. 

Kemiick . 

'■47 

-30 

a? 

20 

fit 

-TI 

-1- 

.bdi 

it* 

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-11 

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i.f 

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Laployd  . 

i.05 

^, 

*** 

W,, 

.,.«    1 

I'- 

i.p 

IIP 

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pp^ 

IP. 

p.* 

Mardon  , 

1.41 

*30 

27 

17 

--F 

-11 

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ll! 

■  ■■ 

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.IP 

Torringtot) 

1.76 

.46 

7 

U 

■   ■■ 

1»1 

III 

■   ■« 

2a  0 

490 

bi* 

-.* 

... 

.*» 

Totoes 

(Een-yPomeroy) 

1^93 

.48 

7 

12 

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b.. 

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^ 

... 

t'i 

Woolacombfl 

t.09 

.38 

7 

11 

4S3 

41.9 

48-3 

45.1 

3S-4 

5i-'8 

85 

6^2 

69.10  ! 

9 

COBOilTTEK  ON  THE  CLIMATB  OF  DEVON. 
SUMMARY  FOR  THE  YEAR   1906. 


81 


HAJNPALL, 

TEUPERATtntE  IN  BCHBEN. 

9 

_j 

GRBATEtT 

MCAtlSu 

»ltBn«i. 

i 

OSB. 

i 

44  HOCiM. 

1 

1 

1^ 

1 

1 

1 

j 

i 

p 

IXI 

4 

3 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

\m.  1  iira. 

!          deg. 

d*g. 

dog. 

deg. 

deg. 

deg. 

%  :040 

houri. 

nw^U  * 

35-28    I  79 

10/3   183     ... 

,.. 

... 

... 

n  . 

41.S1  ,2.60 

10/3 '165  so.  3 

44-1 

56.2 

50.2 

30-4 

81.4 

81:4 

6.6 

... 

... 

Le. 

31.16    1.08 

10/3  1 220 

50.2 

43S 

sfi-s 

50.1 

a3.o 

82.8 

77.0 

6.8 

... 

»** 

'4m 

33*92!  1.17 

lo/t 1,(91 

4S.7 

42.25 

56.1 

r^ 

22.0 

82.0 

... 

... 

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teigli      . 

4S-03 

^;«3 

10/3 

■67 

SI. 4 

42.CH 

57- S 

'9-5 

82,0 

73"9J4>8 

... 

... 

nn 

28.05 

ih 

15/8 

til 

49-8 

41.9 

S7.0 

49"5 

^9^5 

siVs 

85.0  6.9 

1419-6 

76 

bo- 

41.20 

.-. 

... 

... 

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p 

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150 

si'.o 

44^3 

57-4 

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24.^5 

82.0 

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49-99 

2.74 
2.04 

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*o/3 

191 
192 

... 

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... 

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26.78 

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7/12 

17S 

sV.75 

4S.0 

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31-7 

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6.9 

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36.20 

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173 

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11/3 

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... 

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Ii 

3t>^49 

MI 

lO/j  I 

176 

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451 

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50.6 

27.0 

75.8 

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1621.7 

54 

Weir      . 

46.66 

1.89 

[O/II 

210 

... 

... 

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49-72 

.., 

... 

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60,95^ 

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9/3 

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... 

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.. . 

... 

... 

... 

t** 

... 

67.06 

2.38 

10/3 

193 

44.3 

39^8 

50.6 

45-1 

23-2 

73-4 

83^2 

6.4 

... 

... 

3730 

1^39 

10/3 

197 

... 

... 

... 

,.. 

^ 

... 

... 

m                 * 

25,61 

1-39 

ia/3 

165 

4S.9 

435 

54^5 

49-0 

27-3 

759 

74.8 

87.3 

6.6 

i679-3 

73 

t       , 

3]  SO 

1.38 

49/6 

166 

$2.0 

450 

56^5 

5a7 
49-8 

a8.& 

6.5 

1776.7 

61 

tl      - 

26,51 

1-33 

iS.'S 
26/11 

1S3 

SO- 5 

43-9 

SS-7 

26.9 

77.4 

si'.'s 

6.7 

1763,1 

41 

«&t 

5^^^9 

2.65 

174 

USeliiwl 

jmolton) 

36.99 

1.03 

27/8 

219 

47.6 

40.8 

S%*^ 

48.0 

18.9 

79*1 

84^7 

76 

... 

... 

Dtk 

4193 

1.72 

JO/3 

212 

49-1 

42.S 

S45 

48.5 

as- 5 

7S-4 

85*0 

70 

... 

... 

(BittonJ 

28.25 

1.26 

'0/3 

156 

51.5 

45.0 

57.6 

51*3 

26,4 

84.2 

76.0 

7.0 

... 

... 

«6,93 1 

1.14 

15/8 

T47 

... 

45-4 

56.8 

SM 

25.9 

81,4 

77.0 

... 

... 

... 

27  JS 

1.42 

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148 

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56.8 

SI. 2 

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7^0 

6.0 

1774-8 

so 

renntad) 

Wtc^d 

2S.41 

1.50 

10/3 

161 

52.4 

44-3 

57-7 

51*0 

26.3 

79' S 

... 

... 

... 

rd- 

33  79 

26,17 

i,4» 

2/8 

201 

,.. 

.... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

-•  { 

33-70 

140 

%' 

186 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

Em 

33- S4 

1.37 

i/«i 

I9S 

... 

... 

... 

... 

19.0 

86.0 

... 

... 

'onueroT) 

34.5S 

1.92 

10/3 

21/5 

IS* 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

mb« 

I*- 59 

-S7 

178 
1  J 

n.niiA.rv 

46.7 

pjatim 

S1.3 

320 

77.3 

Sf.o 

63 

1665.8 

&4 

XXXVIIL 


82        TWENTY-IOUKTH  BEPOBT  (THIBD  SERIES)  OF  THE 
RAINFALL  AT  ASHBURTON.      FORTY  YEARS'  RECORD. 

Your  Committee  tenders  its  heartiest  congratulations  to 
Mr.  P.  F.  S.  Amery,  one  of  its  members,  on  his  completion 
of  a  forty  years'  continuous  record  at  Druid,  Ashburton. 

Forty  years  at  one  station,  with  one  observer,  and  for 
thirty-seven  years  with  one  and  the  same  instrument,  and 
no  change  of  any  kind,  is  a  record  at  once  exceptional 
and  vsduable.  Ashburton  has  frequently  been  used  for 
rating  other  gaugings  of  short  period,  and  much  may  be 
learnt  from  a  detailed  examination  of  its  figures. 

Mr.  Amery  has  kindly  supplied  tables  of  averages  and 
means,  to  which  the  Secretary  has  made  some  additions, 
and  the  whole  is  now  published. 

The  years  1866-7-8  were  recorded  with  a  home-made 
gauge,  and,  although  carried  into  the  average,  these  three 
years  are  not  individually  considered.  There  is,  however, 
no  reason  to  think  that  their  figures  are  appreciably  in 
error. 

With  such  a  period  before  us,  the  first  question  which 
naturally  arises  is  whether  for  any  station  there  exists  such 
a  thing  as  a  true  average  rainfall.  Arithmetic  averages 
there  must  be,  but  do  these  correspond  to  any  real  entity  ? 
As  between  station  and  station,  one  will  be  found  over  long 
periods  drier  or  wetter,  on  the  whole,  than  another ;  but  can 
the  annual  expectation  of  rain  be  fairly  stated  for  individual 
localities?  Is  there,  for  instance,  any  ground  to  suppose 
that  the  total  rainfall  for  any  twenty  successive  years  will 
closely  approximate  to  that  for  the  similar  preceding  and 
succeeding  periods  ?  The  Ashburton  record  suggests  that 
twenty  years  is  much  too  short  a  time  in  which  to  closely 
gauge  the  rainfall  of  a  district.  From  1866  to  1885, 
inclusive,  the  annual  average  was  54.24  inches ;  from  1886 
to  1905  it  has  been  49.29  ;  obviously  either  the  first  was  an 
abnormally  wet  succession  of  years,  or  the  second  unusually 
dry. 

If  decades  are  taken  the  variation  is  greater,  thus: — 
1866-1875,  51.10  ins.;  1876-1885,  57.38  ins.;  1886-1895, 
49.05  ins. ;  1896-1905,  49.53  ins. 

In  Tdble  /,  appended,  another  method  of  dissecting  the 
returns  has  been  adopted.  There  the  annual  rainfall,  and 
the  three-year,  five-year,  seven-year,  and  nine-year  means 
are  given.  These  again  are,  in  part,  graphically  represented 
in  Plates  I  and  11^  Plate  I  giving  the  annual  variation  and 
Plate  II  the  means  of  three  and  nine  year  periods.  In  the 
latter  plate  the  ordinates  are  in  each  case  drawn  at  the 


DPUID  ,    AS 


72 

' 



7Q 

/ 

/ 

65 

J 

/ 

/ 

/ 

J 

/ 

60 

/ 

1 

/ 

] 

/ 

■ 

1 

/ 

<0 

/ 

V4 
> 

' 

/ 

/ 

/ 

L 

\ 

\ 

■^" 

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1 

^lE 

~" 

— 1 

'■ 

' 

T 

^« 

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\ 

\ 

^ 

Nl 

1 

^« 

i 

\ 

N 

\ 

««: 

\ 

"^ 

\ 

40 

\ 

\ 

.  .-^ 

?>s 

, 

i 


I 


I 


)isr 


PLATE    I 


, 

^^ 

' " 

■i^ 

1 

I 

^            i^ 

1 

-H^ 

-  ^   -     I 

A 

^                t 

1 

11 

t 

^     X 

1_      ± 

l^       4 

t       4 

t      ^^   -^ 

1 

\           I 

i 

\         i 

t    4X2    .__ 

X   -  tu 

L==2L    -^ 

T  r  rl 

t^rt    :::: 

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±1    .       FT 

r^-  t    .  _ 

I 

' 

±  -    ti 

tq   T 

' 

^-  .     tt 

44    4      - 

h- 

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44    4 

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4t       ^    ~ 

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w         ^ 

^   , 

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1 .  ^-j '    ■     .■  -  -^ 

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/ 

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/ 

S^t 

/ 

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1 

J  L 

CO 


I 

CO 


k 


DRUID  ,  a: 


N 

I 


17 

IG 

15 

14 

13 

12 

II 

10 

9 

8 

7 

6 

S 

4 

3 

2 
I 

O 


\ 

% 

\ 

\ 
\ 

^ 


o 


z 

cd 

tt: 

q: 

< 

u 

< 

CL 

-D 

ii- 

Z 

< 

< 
s 


z 


ON 


PLATE   HI 


/ 

ji 

/ 

/ 

/ 

r 

/ 

J 

^ 

a: 

K 

> 

o 

ijj 

O 

o 

liJ 

(0 

O 

z 

Q 

ooMMrrrBB  on  the  climatb  of  dsyok.  83 

centre  of  the  term  included  in  each  mean.  The  nine-year 
series  at  once  shows  that  the  station  has  been  much  drier 
during  the  last  twenty  years,  although  individual  years  have 
at  times  ranged  well  above  the  average. 

To  those  using  rainfall  returns  for  practical  purposes 
a  knowledge  of  such  possible  fluctuations  is  invaluable.  The 
most  essential  feature  is,  however,  the  ratio  to  a  long  average 
borne  by  any  possible  dry  year,  or  two  or  three  successive 
dry  years.  The  Ashburton  average  is  51.77  inches;  the 
driest  year,  omitting  1866  and  1867,  was  1889,  with  a  fall  of 
36.61  inches,  or  70.72  %  of  the  average.  The  driest  two 
successive  years  were  1892  and  1893,  with  a  mean  of  40.27 
inches,  or  77.79  %  of  the  average.  The  driest  three  succes- 
sive years  were  1887,  1888,  and  1889,  with  a  mean  of  42.77 
inches,  or  82.61  %  of  the  average. 

Now  for  Parliamentary  purposes  in  connexion  with  water 
supplies  it  has  lorig  been  assumed  that  the  driest  year  will 
yield  two-thirds  of  the  average,  the  driest  two  years  three- 
fourths  of  the  average,  and  the  driest  three  years  four-fifths 
of  the  average.  The  comparison  between  this  assumption  and 
the  actual  results  obtained  at  Ashburton  is  thus : — 


Dry  Period  of 

1  year. 

2  yean. 

Syean. 

Parliamentary  assumption 
Ashburton — actually  observed . 

66.6% 
70.72% 

77-79  % 

80% 
82.61  % 

So  far,  then,  as  this  station  is  concerned,  the  assumption 
is  on  the  safe  side  in  indicating  less  than  the  actual  fall. 
But  the  error  unfortunately  reduces  the  amount  of  compen- 
sation water  likely  to  be  given  by  any  waterworks  involving 
impounding  reservoirs. 

The  average  rainfall  for  each  month  is  given  in  Taile  11^ 
and  Plate  III  shows  the  monthly  rainfall  stated  as  percent- 
ages of  the  year's  total  Amid  all  the  wide  individual 
irregularities  the  averages  yield  interesting  results.  From 
December  to  May  the  rainfall  decreases  steadily ;  June  is 
drier  than  May,  but  only  slightly  so.  The  rise  from  June  to 
October  is  not  so  uniform ;  November  is,  on  the  whole,  drier 
than  October;  and  December  is  the  wettest  month  of  the 
year. 

RAINFALL  ON  THE  VENFORD   CATCHMENT. 

The  rainfall  at  Holne  Moor,  on  the  catchment  area  of  the 
Paignton  Waterworks,  was  the  subject  of  discussion  when 

f2 


84        TWSNTY-FOURTH  REPORT  (THIRD  SERIES)  OF  THE 

the  Paignton  Water  Act  was  before  Parliament  For  the 
promoters  it  was  asserted  that  the  average  would  not  be 
found  to  exceed  60  inches  per  annum.  On  behalf  of  those 
interested  in  the  River  Dart,  the  Secretary  of  your  Com- 
mittee gave  evidence  that  he  estimated  it  at  78.72  inches. 

Gaugings  have  been  taken,  but  never  published.  Last 
year,  however,  at  Teignmouth  evidence  was  given  that  for 
the  past  five  years  the  actual  rainfall  at  Venford  had 
averaged  "  about  80  inches."  As  the  mean  for  these  years  at 
Ashburton  was  practically  equal  to  the  forty  years'  average, 
it  may  now  be  assumed  that  the  true  average  fall  at  Venford 
is  in  fact  80  inches  per  annum,  a  point  of  considerable 
interest  to  students  of  Dartmoor  meteorology.  Application 
has  been  made  for  detailed  returns,  but  up  to  the  present 
these  have  not  been  received. 


COMMITTEI  OK  THE  CLIMATE  OF  DEVON. 


85 


TABLE   I. 

FORTY  YEARS'  RAINFALL  AT  DRUID,   ASHBURTON, 

584  feet,  O.D. 

P.  F.  8.  Amert,  Esq.,  j.p.,  Observer. 


Rainfall 

Percent 

Three 

Five 

Seven 

Nine 

Year. 

for 

of 

Years' 

Years' 

Years' 

Years' 

Year. 

Average. 

Mean. 

Mean. 

Mean. 

Mean. 

1866 

36.22 

70.0 

1867 

3533 

68.2 

... 

... 

... 

1868 

63.27 

122.2 

44.94 

... 

... 

1869 

46.22 

89.3 

48.27 

... 

... 

... 

1870 

38.89 

75.1 

49.49 

43.99 

... 

1871 

52.15 

100.7 

45.75 

47.17 

1872 

71.50 

138. 1 

54.18 

54.41 

49.08 

1873" 

48.17 

93.1 

57.27 

51.39 

50.79 

... 

1874 

57.44 

IIl.O 

59.04 

53.63 

53-95 

49.91 

1875 

61.80 

1 19.4 

55.80 

58.21 

53.74 

52.75 

1876 

65.85 

127.2 

61.70 

60.95 

56.54 

56.14 

1877 

67.98 

I3I.3 

65.21 

60.25 

60.70 

56.67 

1878 

52.76 

IOI.9 

62.20 

61.17 

6o.8i 

57.39 

1879 

58.39 

II2.8 

59.71 

61.36 

58.91 

59.56 

1880 

51.69 

99.8 

54.28 

59.33 

59.42 

59.51 

1881 

60.74 

II7.3 

56.94 

58.31 

59.88 

t^ 

1882 

62.12 

120.0 

58.18 

57.14 

59.93 
58.48 

1883 

55.66 

107.5 

59.51 

57.72 

59.67 

1884 

46.06 

89.0 

54.61 

55.25 

55.34 

57.92 

1885 

52.58 

IOI.6 

51.43 

55.43 

55.32 
54.85 

56.44 

1886 

55.09 

106.4 

51.24 

54.30 

55.01 

1887 

36.86 

71.2 

48.18 

49.25 

52.73 

5323 

1888 

54.83 

105.9 

48.93 

49.08 

51.89 

52.85 

1889 

36.61 

70.7 

42.77 

47.19 

48.24 

51.17 

1890 

44.55 

86.1 

45.33 

45.59 

46.65 

49.37 

1891 

64.11 

123.8 

48.42 

47.39 

49.23 

49.59 

1892 

38.03 

73.5 

48.90 

47.63 

47.15 

47.64 

1893 

42.51 

82.1 

48.22 

45.16 

45.36 

47.24 

1894 

64.26 

124. 1 

48.27 

50.69 

47.84 

48.54 

1895 

5367 

103.7 

53.48 

52.52 

49.11 

48.27 

1896 

43.76 

84.5" 

53.90 

48.45 

50.11 

49.15 

1897 

56.49 

109. 1 

51.31 

52.14 

51.83 

49.33 

1898 

42.37 

81.8 

47.54 

52.11 

48.73 

49.97 

1899 

50.47 

97.5 

49.78 

49.35 

50.50 

50.63 

1900 

54.98 

106.2 

49.27 

49.61 

52.29 

49.62 

1901 

44.93 

86.8 

50.13 

49.85 

49.52 

50.38 

1902 

43.76 

84.5 

47.89 

47.30 

48.11 

50.52 

1903 

66.51 

128.5 

51.73 

52.13 

51.36 

50.77 

1904 

50.26 

97.' 

53.51 
52.86 

52.09 

50.47 

50.39 

1905 

41.81 

80.8 

49.25 

50.39 

50.18 

Average 
40  Years. 

51.767 

100.00 

... 

... 

... 

... 

86       BEPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTU  ON  THB  CLDfATS  OF  DEVON. 


TABLE  II. 

MEAN  MONTHLY  RAINFALL  TAKEN  AT  DRUID,  ASHBURTON, 

O.D.  584  feet,  during  the  Forty  Years  ending  31st  December,  1905. 

By  P.  F.  S.  Amery. 


MONTI 

.a     i 

1 

0 
§ 

4 

^2 
5J 

^1 

if 

||| 

III 

Iff 

January 

.   5*74 

12.9s 

1S77 

■91 

isao 

17 

5*74 

11.04 

n.04 

Fobrtxanr 

.   4.71 

11,07 

1900 

.00 

1895 

14 

10.45 
H.48 

20.01 

9,06 

March 

*  4*03 

g.17 

1905 

'24 

1S93 

15 

S7.S6 

7-77 

April 

.   32* 

7.S3 

r8S2 

'3? 

1S93 
1896 

14 

17^70 

34.00 

6.19 

Mny 

.  3.67 

6.S7 

187S 

.01 

11 

20.37 

39**0 

5-10 

Jane 

.     2M 

11,30 

1879 

aS 

1887 

13 

23.01 

44.37 

5-03 

July 

'f  3->o 

?^3J 

igSS  , 

'33 

l8qS 

16 

26.11 

50-33 

S-96 

August 

J3^8S 

S.55 

1S91 

■79 

1869 

IS 

29-99 

57.^7 

7.46 

Septembe 

r        .    4-U 

^,M 

1896 

.^7 

;ii! 

16 

34.13 

65,66 

7.97 

October 

.        .    5  Si 

\2,g^ 

1903 

1-34 

19 

39-95 

76.47 

11.34 

Kovcmbei 

^       .    S.61 

12.66 

1895 

T'OJ 

1867 

19 

45-56 

S7.6S 

10.79 

December 

.  6,42 

16.92 

1876 

KI6 

1S73 

aa 

51.98 

loaoo 

12.70 

ToUl  Ave 
•tfl*,  yi 

^'5-^98 

,.. 

.,. 

,„ 

.p. 

190 

.,» 

,.- 

„. 

TWENTY-THIKD  REPORT   OF  THE  COMMITTEE 
ON  DEVONSHIRE  FOLK-LORE. 

Twenty-third  Report  of  the  Committee — consisting  of  Mr, 
P.  F.  S.  Am£ry  (Secretary),  Mr,  R.  Pearse  Chope,  Rev,  S. 
BaHng-G(mld,  Mr,  G.  M.  Doe,  Rev,  W,  Harpley,  Mr.  J.  S. 
Neck,  Mrs.  Radford,  Mr.  J,  Brooking-Rowe,  Mrs,  Troup^ 
and  Mr,  H.  B,  8,  Woodhouse, 

Edited  by  P.  F.  8.  Amsbt,  Honorary  Secretary. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  Jnly,  1906.) 


Thb  following  bits  of  folk-lore  have  been  contributed  since 
the  last  year's  Report.  They  are  on  various  subjects,  but 
mostly  in  relation  to  charms  of  healing  and  customs. 

The  names  of  contributors  are  attached  for  the  sake  of 
verification  and  authority. 

The  Secretary  begs,  on  behalf  of  the  Committee,  to  thank 
all  who  have  assisted  in  gathering  these  "  waifs  and  strays  " 
from  the  relics  of  the  past. 

W.  Harpley,  Chairman. 
P.  F.  S.  Amery,  Secretary. 

1.  Sacrifice  of  a  Sheep. — In  or  about  1883  a  man  whose 

name  was  J S ,  in  Meavy  parish,  a  farmer  who  had 

come  from  North  Devon,  performed  a  curious  rite  that  shall 
be  described  in  the  words  of  the  Rev.  W.  A.  G.  Gray,  then 
Vicar  of  Meavy.  He  told  me  of  it  at  the  time,  and  at  my 
request  he  has  written  me  the  particulars :  "  Soon  after  his 
arrival  in  the  parish,  as  I  believe  not  infrequently  happens 
with  an  entire  change  of  pasture,  he  lost  a  good  many  cattle 
and  sheep,  and  he  told  me  that  he  accordingly  took  a  sheep 
up  to  the  top  of  Calisham  Tor  and  killed  it  there  to  pro- 
pitiate the  evil  influences  which  were  destroying  his  flocks 
and  herds.  And  the  offering  had  the  desired  effect — ^he  had 
lost  no  more  cattle." 

Compare  with   this  a  commumcation  made  to   Jacob 


88  TWENTY-THIKD   REPORT  OF  THB  COMMITTBB 

Grimm,  and  inserted  by  him  in  his  "  Deutsche  Mythologie," 
p.  576,  ed.  1843.     It  is  a  passage  from  a  correspondent  in 

Northamptonshire.    "  Miss  C and  her  cousin,  walking, 

saw  a  fire  in  a  field,  and  a  crowd  around  it.  They  said, 
•What  is  the  matter?'  *  Killing  a  calf.'  *  What  for?'  'To 
stop  the  murrain.'  They  went  away  as  quickly  as  possible. 
On  speaking  to  the  clergyman,  he  made  inquiries.  The 
people  did  not  like  to  talk  of  the  affair,  but  it  appeared 
that  when  there  is  a  disease  among  the  cows,  or  when  the 
calves  are  bom  sickly,  they  sacrifice,  that  is,  kill  and  bum, 
one  for  good  luck." 

See  also  in  White's  "Selbome"  (p.  295,  ed.  1837)  for 
stories  of  the  seamed  pollards  and  shrew-ash. 

The  same  man,  J S ,  had  a  little  granddaughter 

ill.  Mr.  Gray  asked  him  how  she  was.  He  replied  "  that 
she  was  bad  with  the  thrush,  and  the  worst  of  it  was  that 
there  was  no  water  there  running  east.  I  asked  him  what 
he  would  do  if  there  were.  He  said  he  would  bring  the 
child  down  in  the  early  morning  and  hold  her  over  it, 
having  previously  twined  a  piece  of  thread  round  her  finger, 
and  as  the  stream  carried  the  thread  away  to  the  east,  so  it 
would  also  carry  away  the  thrush.  I  believe  he  said  the 
operation  was  to  be  repeated  three  times,  and  he  evidently 
believed  in  its  eflBcacy."  S.  Baring-Gould. 

2.  Hanging  in  Chains. — At  some  time  in  the  eighteenth 
century  a  man  called  Welland  was  hung  in  chains  on  Broad- 
bury  Down,  Bratton  Clovelly,  for  the  murder  of  two  sisters. 
Previous  to  this,  at  some  time  unknown,  there  had  been 
another  man  hung  there  in  an  iron  cage  and  left  to  starve. 
People  passing  by  were  wont  to  throw  up  to  him  tallow 
candle-ends,  and  these  he  caught  and  greedily  devoured.  In 
the  end  he  died  of  starvation.  Told  by  W.  Wyvill,  labourer, 
Lew  Trenchard. 

3.  Charm  to  Stanch  Bleeding. — A  farmer  in  this  parish 

had  a  cow  with  diseased  teats.    He  employed  a  man,  T 

L ,  with  a  razor  to  cut  off  the  ends  of  the  teats.  In  cut- 
ting off  the  second  of  them  the  blade  slipped  and  cut  the  1^ 
of  the  cow,  and  the  blood  gushed  forth  in  abundance.     The 

farmer  at  once  dispatched  T L for  a  woman  on  Lew 

Down  who  can  charm  and  stanch  blood,  H B .    She 

hurried  down  and  muttered  words  over  the  wound,  but  the 

blood  continued    to    flow.     She    said,  "Mr.   P "    (the 

farmer),  "  I  do  not  understand  this.  If  you  cut  the  cow's 
leg,  the  blood  ought  to  be  stanched  at  once."    "But  I  did 


ON  DBVONSHIRE  FOLK-LORB.  89 

not  cut  it.     That  was  done  by  T L ."    "  Oh ! "  said 

she ;  "  that  is  different.  I  charmed  thinking  you  had  done 
it.  Now  I  know  I  must  do  it  again."  She  repeated  the 
incantation,  and  at  once  the  blood  ceased  to  spout  forth. 

This  was  told  me  by  T L himself,  who  witnessed 

the  whole  operation. 

4  Extract  Thorns.— R P ,  a  well-to-do  farmer, 

the  son  of  the  above  J P ,  is  able  to  charm  thorns 

out  of  the  flesh.  In  cutting  hedges  a  black  thorn  will 
sometimes    penetrate    the    flesh.     When   this   occurs,  the 

sufferer  goes  to  R P ;  he   repeats  certain  words, 

and  the  thorn  comes  out  at  once.  S.  Baring-Gould. 

From  Mr.  Samuel  Doidge,  Great  Torrington : — 

When  a  boy  of  twelve,  or  thereabouts,  I  suffered  much 
from  boils — "  blackheads,"  we  used  to  call  them — and  I  also 
keenly  remember  that  I  suffered  almost  more  from  remedies, 
some  of  them  extremely  nauseous.  None  of  these  having 
proved  successful,  a  wise  neighbour  recommended  a  charm, 
and  her  advice  was  at  once  acted  upon.  I  have  an  im- 
pression that  it  was  tried  pretty  much  as  a  pis  alter, 
without  much  faith  in  its  success.  It  was  a  very  simple 
matter,  and  the  charm  I  suggest  was  a  variant  of  the  split 
tree-trunk  sent  by  Mr.  Elworthy  to  the  Taunton  Museum. 
I  had  to  go — fasting,  I  think — on  three  successive  Sunday 
mornings  to  a  bramble  grown  into  the  earth  at  both  ends, 
and  crawl  under  it  "the  way  of  the  sun."  I  cannot  dis- 
tinctly recollect  whether  I  went  under  more  than  once  on 
each  occasion,  but  have  an  impression  that  three  times  was 
the  proper  "  ritual." 

Charm  for  Boils. — A  lady  at  Chudleigh,  about  thirty 
years  ago,  was  recommended  to  crawl  backwards  three  times 
round  a  thorn  bush  very  early  in  the  morning,  while  the 
dew  was  on  the  grass.  As  the  lady  did  not  try  it,  we  cannot 
say  if  it  was  infallible.  E.  Helen  Langlby. 

Cure  for  Warts. — Take  a  prickle  from  a  gooseberry 
bush,  a  separate  prickle  for  each  wart  (this  seems  to  be  very 
important),  stick  it  well  into  the  wart.  Then  collect  the 
prickles  and  bury  them.  As  they  decay  the  warts  will 
disappear.  S.  Doidge. 

Another  Cure  for  Warts. — In  last  year's  Report  a  cure 
was  noted,  viz.  to  steal  a  bit  of  bacon,  strike  the  wart  with 


90  TWKNTY-THIBD  REPOBT  OF  THB  COMMITTBB 

it,  and  bury  the  bacon.    Mr.  Doidge  states  that  it  dundd  be 
buried  at  four  cross^toays. 

The  Place  of  Heaking  News. — The  frequent  query  on 
being  told  any  news  is,  "Where  did  you  hear  it?"  The 
place  of  hearing  is  supposed  to  add  to  or  detract  from  the 
faith  in  its  veracity. 

In  all  old  charters,  grants,  treaties,  and  agreements  care 
was  taken  to  clearly  state  where  such  were  executed.  This 
custom  still  survives  in  many  forms.  Thus  a  country  person 
repeating  something  will  say,  "Such  was  told  me  in  this 
very  kitchen,"  which  is  supposed  to  add  much  to  the  truth 
of  a  statement ;  hence  the  question,  "  Where  did  you  hear 
it?" 

The  following  appears  to  afford  a  sort  of  rude  scale  for 
judging  the  veracity  of  any  rumour. 

"  Heard  at  the  church  stUe  "  or  "  Told  of  to  church  porch " 
is  supposed  to  be  common  property,  and  may  be  repeated 
without  fear  of  consequences,  as  adiaitted  by  the  public  to 
be  correct. 

"  Told  of  in  public  company*'  viz.  in  a  public-house,  is 
generally  supposed  to  have  heen  well  argued  and  thrashed 
out,  and  fairly  correct  as  the  opinion  of  the  certain  class  of 
people  frequenting  that  house. 

"  Told  of  to  board"  viz.  at  table.  Usually  in  farm-houses 
all  the  household  sat  at  the  same  table  at  the  principal  meal 
of  the  day,  and  conversation  was  of  a  general  character,  or 
only  such  as  applied  to  the  household  or  farm.  Household 
secrets  might  be  made  known  to  the  circle  with  the  tacit 
imderstanding  that  they  must  go  no  farther. 

"  Heard  to  casements*  Eavesdroppers,  or  those  inquisitive 
people  who  listened  at  windows,  appear  to  have  b^n  very 
numerous  in  old  times,  for  we  find  frequent  presentments 
of  such  made  at  the  borough  and  manor  courts  and  severe 
corporal  punishment  inflicted.  Thus  many  things  "  said  to 
board,"  intended  only  for  the  ears  of  the  household,  became 
publia 

"  Told  to  claveV*  The  clavel  is  the  beam  across  a  fire- 
place. In  farm-houses,  after  the  servants  and  children  had 
gone  to  bed,  the  heads  and  adult  members  of  the  family 
would  see  the  house  safe,  and  stand  a  few  minutes  round 
the  hearth  warming  their  feet  before  the  fire  was  covered 
up  for  the  night,  with  their  hands  or  heads  resting  against 
the  claveL    This  was  the  time  selected  for  a  private  family 


ON  DKV0N8HIRS  POLK-LORE.  91 

chat,  not  intended  to  go  beyond  the  adult  members.    Any- 
thing overheard  "  to  clavel "  was  on  the  highest  authority. 

"  Whispered  in  chamber.**  The  private  talk  between  those 
occupying  the  same  room,  or  more  likely  the  same  bed.  In 
early  times  the  servant-maids  occupied  the  same  chamber 
as  the  unmarried  women  of  the  family,  likewise  the  servant- 
men  and  boys  that  of  the  sons  of  the  house.  The  rooms 
were  l^rge,  and  the  beds  occupied  by  members  of  the  family 
were  surrounded  by  curtains,  while  the  menials  lay  on  truck 
beds  in  distant  comers,  and  were  supposed  to  be  asleep 
before  the  others  came  up.  Still  eavesdropping  in  chamber 
was  not  unknown,  and  matters  of  the  highest  personal 
importance  occasionally  got  overheard.       P.  F.  S.  Amery. 

A  Born  Fisherman. — On  inquiring  of  a  salmon  fisher- 
man's wife  at  Totnes  how  the  fishing  was  this  season,  I  got 
the  following  reply : — 

"  Very  good,  always  is  where  maister's  fishmg,  for  salmon 
always  follows  he,  'cause  for  why,  he's  got  a  salmon  on  his 
'ead  [head].  Shaw  'un  to  the  lady."  Upon  that  a  child 
pushed  back  her  father's  hair  and  showed  a  bald  mark  the 
shape  of  a  salmon,  about  three  inches  long. 

G.  F.  WiNDEATT. 

Night  Quarters. — In  a  farm-house  when  bedtime  came 
the  good  wife  would  start  her  household  with : — 

Now  then,  boys  to  bed 
And  cats  to  barn. 

A  hole  was  made  in  the  barn  door  to  admit  the  cat  when 
turned  out  for  the  night.  P.  F.  S.  Amery. 

Survival  of  a  Name  :  Skipper  Davis. — ^The  Stoke  Gabriel 
fishermen  on  the  Dart  say  on  the  authority  of  **one 
Skipper  Davis "  that  the  quantity  of  fish  in  a  river  varies 
from  time  to  time.  Query.  Is  not  this  a  survival  of  the 
naine  of  John  Davis,  who  was  bom  at  Sandridge  in  Stoke 
Gabriel  parish  in  1550,  became  a«navigator,  gave  his  name 
to  Davis  Straits,  and  founded  the  Newfoundland  cod 
fisheries  ?  E.  Windeatt. 

A  Limp  Corpse. — Recently  at  Totnes  a  nurse  who  "  did 
the  last  office"  for  a  corpse  reported  to  me  some  hours  after- 
wards in  a  subdued,  confidential  tone,  **He  idn  [is  not] 
stiffening  yet,  and  that's  a  sure  sign  that  there's  another  in 
the  family  to  follow  soon."  M.  F.  Windeatt. 


92  TWBNTY-THIBD  BEPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE 

Mrs.  Eogers,  of  Whitchurch,  sends  the  following : — 
Christening  Custom. — A  few  years  ago  when  I  lived  at 
Cudlipptown,  Peter  Tavy,  a  cottager  whose  ancestors  had 
lived  for  generations  on  Dartmoor  had  four  children,  all 
girls.  At  each  christening  she  baked  a  small  saffron  cake, 
and  on  the  way  to  church,  the  first  male  they  met,  gave  him 
the  cake  neatly  wrapped  in  paper  for  luck ;  if  the  baby  had 
been  a  boy,  the  cake  would  be  given  to  the  first  female  they 
met.     I  was  told  it  was  a  very  old  custom. 

Also  this  hunting  song  was  found  among  my  great-grand- 
mother's treasures.     She  died  early  in  the  last  century : — 

A  Hunting   Song  to  Tune  of  Derry  Down. 

Little  Alderman  M T ,  a  dealer  in  ends, 

To  a  hunting  Feaat  once  invited  his  friends  ; 

Not  doubting  but  many  smart  lads  would  be  there 

To  join  in  the  hunt  and  partake  of  the  Hare  ! 

He  summoned  his  Tenants,  collected  his  Hounds, 
His  generous  soul  was  confined  by  no  bounds  ; 
A  dinner  was  ordered,  brown  bread  and  small  beer, 
And  Liquor  of  all  sorts  denoted  good  cheer. 

But  lo  on  the  table  when  dinner  was  placed, 
The  victuals  ill  chosen,  the  Landlord  disgrac'd  ; 
And  besides,  tho'  the  fact  may  surprise  your  belief. 
The  fur  beast  had  swoUow'd  six  pounds  of  the  Beef. 

But  who  can  express  the  surprise  of  each  Guest, 
When  he  found  he  must  pay  for  such  an  elegant  feast ; 
All  swore  that  the  Alderman  meant  they  to  fleece. 
For  the  price  was  exhorbitant,  had  there  been  geese. 

So  each  pay*d  his  share,  the  rumour  does  say, 

That  Alderman  M was  gainer  that  day  ; 

For  in  summing  the  bill  of  bis  excellent  savour. 
He  found  that  the  balance  was  much  in  his  favour. 

Four  and  sixpence  a  piece  was  a  price  beyond  bounds, 
And  to  produce  such  a  bill  my  Lord  had  no  grounds ; 
However,  tho'  shameful  and  mean  the  demand, 
Their  bountiful  Landlord  they  could  not  withstand. 

A  Hog,  with  the  smell  of  M *s  tallow  delighted. 

Appeared  at  the  feast  a  Guest  uninvited  ; 
And  the  old  Landlady  scolded  and  raved. 
Poor  porky  his  Bacon  would  hardly  have  saved. 

But  the  old  woman,  finding  her  tongue  not  prevail. 
From  the  Parlour  soon  drag'd  the  poor  Pig  by  the  tail, 

Tho'  M n  protested  his  Hogship  should  stay, 

And  like  all  his  neighbours  his  reckoning  should  pay. 

What  Hunting  Feast  must  we  expect  then  next  year, 
When  Math  in  his  Robes  and  fur  Gown  shall  appear  j 
And  in  the  great  Senate  shall  take  his  first  place. 
And  the  new  Council  Chamber  with  double  wicks  graced. 

What  dinners,  what  suppers,  what  an  elegant  Ball, 
When  his  worship  himself  shall  Dance  in  the  Hall ; 
If  an  Alderman  can  such  a  Banquet  prepare. 
What  must  we  expect  when  Mat n  is  Mayor  ? 


ON  DBYQNSHIRE  FOLK-LORE.  93 

Thb  Equation  of  Time. — A  friend  from  the  north  of 
England  informed  me  that  before  leaving  Yorkshire  he  was 
told  that  in  Devonshire  they  put  forward  their  clocks  half 
an  hour  for  summer  and  back  half  an  hour  for  winter.  He 
asked  me  on  arrival  what  it  meant  and  if  we  really  did  so. 

I  was  quite  unable  to  give  any  information,  never  having 
heard  of  such  a  custom.  On  reflection,  however,  I  think  it 
highly -probable  that  in  the  days  of  sundials,  before  cheap 
almanacs,  this  may  have  been  a  ready  way  to  reckon  the 
equation  of  time.  The  almanac  says  sun  fast  or  sun  slow, 
making  an  extreme  difference  of  about  half  an  hour.  Thus 
on  30  April  sun  slow  14i  minutes,  on  31  October  sun 
fast  16J  minutes,  a  range  of  thirty-one  minutes  in  the  six 
months.  This,  I  think,  accounts  for  the  myth  of  putting 
forward  the  clock  in  spring  and  back  in  autumn. 

P.  F.  S.  Ameky. 

Cure  for  Erysipelas. — Mrs.  Gaunter,  of  Gobbett  Plain, 
Dartmoor,  told  me  this  cure  for  the  'ary  ciplis,  "  You  takes 
a  piece  of  may  and  'oles  un  in  your  'and.  Then  you  takes 
some  milk  from  a  red  cow,  an'  some  wool  from  a  black 
sheep,  an'  strikes  the  place  all  one  way.  Then  you  hangs 
the  piece  of  may  [hawthorn]  up  in  the  chimney  corner,  tha 
do — an'  when  the  may  is  withered  the  'ary  ciplis  is  gone. 
It  cured  'er ! "  F.  L.  Burnard. 

S.  Lawrence's  Weather. — A  few  days  ago  it  was  very 
sultry,  and  at  Hatherleigh  a  man  used  an  expression  new  to 
me.  As  he  wiped  a  somewhat  heated  brow :  "  Law  bless  'ee, 
sir,  'tis  proper  S,  Lawrence  weather,  in't  it"  I  asked  what  he 
meant,  and  who  S.  Lawrence  was.  "  Oh,"  said  he,  **'tis  brave 
and  hot,  awe.     S.  Lawrence  was  the  king  of  the  idlers." 

J.  D.  Prickman. 

Haunted  Eoads. 

Gontributed  by  Miss  Anderson : — 

Tor  Abbey  Ghosts. — There  is  a  story  that  the  old  Lime 
Avenue  at  Tor  Abbey  is  haunted  by  the  ghost  of  one 
Widrington,  who  walks  there,  holding  his  head  in  his  hands 
before  him. 

Tradition  says  that  long  ago  it  was  a  favourite  custom  for 
malicious  persons  to  denounce  some  one  as  a  murderer, 
whereupon  the  accused  was  summoned  to  present  himself 
at  the  Court  of  Arches ;  of  course,  paying  his  own  expenses 
with  those  of  his  witnesses.     It  is  said  to  be  recorded  that 


94  TWENTT-THIBD  REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEB 

a  certain  man  was  summoned  to  appear  before  the  Court  of 
Arches  charged  with  having  murdered  Widrington.  He 
accordingly  appeared,  bringing  with  him  the  man  alive  and 
well,  which  may  account  for  the  story  getting  abroad 

The  above  tradition  is  evidently  an  edition  of  the  follow- 
ing story :  "  During  the  abbacy  of  William  Norton  at  Tor 
Abbey,  who  was  charged  in  1390  with  having  abused  his 
powers  as  lord  of  the  manor  by  cutting  oflf  the  head  of  a 
canon  named  Hastings,  the  abbot  produced  the  canon  alive 
to  satisfy  the  bishop  that  he  was  not  dead ;  the  bishop  took 
him  at  his  word  and  declared  the  whole  story  a  falsehood 
of  blackest  dye.  The  public,  however,  were  not  so  easily 
satisfied,  and  believed  the  accusation — a  belief  justified  by 
the  appearance  of  the  canon's  ghost,  which  has  ever  since 
been  held  to  haunt  the  old  abbey  avenues  on  a  spectral 
headless  horse."  ^  Editor. 

Spanish  Nun  Ghost. — One  of  the  avenues  near  Tor 
Abbey,  known  as  the  Spanish  Lane,  is  reported  to  be 
haunted  by  a  Spanish  nun.  It  is  stated  that  once  when 
some  Spanish  prisoners  were  being  taken  through  Torquay, 
a  rescue  was  attempted  and  much  blood  shed  during  the 
fight.  Afterwards  it  was  discovered  that  one  of  the  prisoners 
was  a  Spanish  lady  who  had  followed  her  husband  to  the 
war  disguised  as  a  man.  This  story  most  likely  gave  rise  to 
the  story  of  the  nun,  as  the  lady  may  have  worn  a  mantle. 

On  Wednesday,  18  April,  a  farmer  in  my  parish  called 
upon  me  with  a  view  to  purchasing  a  young  calf  I  had  for 
sale.  After  a  little  dealing  a  bargain  was  made,  and  the 
following  conversation  ensued : — 

"  I  must  ask  a  favour  of  you,  sir,  which  I  hope  you  will 
grant." 

"Whatisit,  Mr.  C ?" 

"  Well,  sir,  I  want  you  to  let  the  calf  bid  along  wi'  his 
mother  till  Saturday  morning,  when  I  will  come  and  take 
un  away." 

"  Certainly  I  will,  Mr.  C ;  but  may  I  ask  why  you 

make  this  request  ? " 

"  Well,  you  see,  it's  just  this,  sir :  old  Christmas  Day  fell 
on  a  Saturday  this  year,  and  I  always  wean  my  calves  on 
the  same  day  that  old  Christmas  Day  fell  on.  When  calves 
are  weaned  on  that  day  they  never  get  quarter-evil." 

"  Wonderful,  Mr.  C ,"  I  remarked. 

1  Worth's  "Devon,"  p.  294. 


ON  DEV0N8HIBE  FOLK-LORE.  95 

"  Oh,  it  be  true,  sir.  I've  a  varmied  nigh  on  vifty  year 
and  I've  never  had  a  ease  of  quarter-evil  in  my  herd,  and  I 
know  it  is  because  I  sticks  to  my  rule."         W.  Harpley. 

Stopping  to  chat  one  day  last  spring  with  a  labourer  at 
work  about  11  a.m.,  I  found  him  taking  some  refreshment, 
and  I  jestingly  remarked,  "  You  labourers  seem  to  me  to  be 
always  eating."  "  Only  eight  times  a  day,  sir,"  he  said,  and 
immediately  rapidly  recited  the  following  formula : — 

"A  dew-bit 
and  breakfast, 

a  pocket-bit 
and  dinner, 

a  crumbit  \   pronounced  crummat 
and  a  numbit    J       and  nummat. 

supper 
and  a  bit  after  supper."  W.  Habpley. 

Mr.  R  Pearse  Chope  sends  the  following  notes : — 

1.  Cuke  for  Fits. — The  following  letter  is  quoted  in  the 
"North  Devon  Journal"  of  19  April,  1906,  from  the 
"Western  Morning  News"  of  17  April: — 

"  Sir, — ^North  Devon  is  full  of  strange  folk-lore  and  beliefs 
(we  won't  call  them  superstition).  On  Sunday  the  parish 
church  of  Sutcombe,  a  small  village  between  Holsworthy 
and  Hartland,  was  the  scene  of  a  revival  of  an  interesting 
old  faith-cure.  A  woman  in  the  parish  has  of  late  been  a 
sufferer  from  epileptic  fits,  and  at  the  persuasion  of  a  neigh- 
bour who  nineteen  years  ago  had  done  the  same  thing  and 
had  not  suffered  from  fits  since,  she  went  round  the  parish 
and  got  thirty  married  men  to  promise  to  attend  the  parish 
church  at  the  morning  service.  It  was  a  gratifying  sight  to  see 
so  large  a  congregation,  drawn  together  out  of  sympathy  for  a 
neighbour  and  a  desire  to  do  anything  she  thought  might 
help  her.  At  the  close  of  the  service  the  rector  desired  the 
selected  men  to  pass  out  one  by  one,  and  as  they  passed 
through  the  porch  they  found  the  woman  seated  there, 
accompanied  by  the  neighbour  who  had  done  the  same 
nineteen  years  ago  (as  many  who  were  present  remem- 
bered). Each  man  as  he  passed  out  put  a  penny  in  the 
woman's  lap,  but  when  the  thirtieth  man  (the  rector's 
churchwarden)  came,  he  took  the  twenty-nine  pennies  and 
put  in  half  a  crown.     A  silver  ring  is  to  be  made  out  of 


96  TWBNTY-THIBD  REPORT  OF  THB  COMMITTBK 

this  half-crown,  which  the  woman  is  to  wear,  and  it  is 
hoped  that  the  result  will  be  as  satisfactory  in  her  case  as  it 
was  on  the  previous  occasion.  In  a  small  parish  (less  than 
300  population)  it  was  not  easy  to  find  thirty  married  men, 
but  all  were  willing  to  help — farmers,  labourers,  and  trades- 
men— and  the  whole  incident  passed  ofif  very  quietly,  and 
all  was  done  with  the  utmost  reverence  and  decorum.  The 
woman  takes  her  seat  in  the  porch  when  the  preacher 
begins  his  sermon,  and  from  the  time  she  leaves  her  house 
until  she  returns  she  must  not  speak  a  word.  We  have  not 
heard  whether  she  complied  with  this  condition.  Can  any 
of  your  readers  furnish  me  with  the  details  of  any  similar 
case  ?  "  F.  G.  Scrivener. 

"  Sutcombe  Rectory." 

This  is  another  example  of  the  custom  described  in  the 
"Trans.  Devon.  Assoc."  for  1903  (p.  133),  but  it  is  interest- 
ing from  the  fact  that  it  required  "  married  men  "  instead  of 
"  young  people  of  the  opposite  sex  "  ("  Trans.  Devon.  Assoa," 
1880,  p.  101),  "young  men"  ("The  Times"  of  7  March, 
1854,  quoted  in  "Choice  Notes,"  "Folk-lore,"  p.  173), 
"young  men  (or  women)  between  the  ages  of  sixteen  and 
twenty-one  "  (S.  Hewett,  "  Nummits  and  Cruramits,"  p.  72), 
"forty  single  men"  ("Choice  Notes,"  p.  174).  Another 
interesting  feature  is  the  necessity  for  silence,  which  is  not 
recorded  in  the  previous  accounts;  but  perhaps  the  most 
curious  development  is  the  fact  that  the  rector  himself 
acted  as  master  of  the  ceremonies.  E.  Pearsb  Chope. 


2.  Cure  for  Fits. — The  following  extract  is  taken  from 
the  "Daily  Chronicle"  of  26  May,  1906:— 

"  The  Kev.  Eoger  Granville,  of  Pinhoe,  formerly  Eector  of 
Bideford,  tells  an  interesting  story  of  Devonshire  super- 
stition. *  On  one  occasion,'  he  says,  *  a  young  farmer  from 
the  neighbourhood  of  Torrington  called  on  me  and  asked  me 
to  tell  him  what  was  contained  in  a  bag  which  he  had  worn 
round  his  neck  since  infancy,  and  which  a  white  witch  had 
given  his  mother  as  a  preventative  against  fits.  After 
cutting  open  several  outer  cases,  well  worn  and  sweat- 
stained,  I  came  upon  the  original  inner  one,  which  con- 
tained a  number  of  pieces  of  paper,  each  bearing  one 
word. 

"  *  Piecing  them  together,  I  found  they  formed  the  follow- 
ing sentences:  "Sinner,  Jesus  died  for  thee"  (thrice  repeated). 


ON  DEVONSHIKB  FOLK-LORE.  97 

"  Therefore  flee  that  sin."  At  the  man's  request,  these  pieces 
of  paper  were  reinserted  in  their  several  bags,  and  my  maid- 
servant sewed  them  up  again,  and  he,  replacing  the  charm 
round  his  neck  once  more,  went  on  his  way  rejoicing,  being 
now  in  a  position  to  tell  a  neighbour,  whose  child  had  also 
fits,  that  was  a  certain  cure  for  them.'" 

E.  Pearse  Chope. 

3.  Cure  for  Fits. — The  following  letter  appeared  in  the 
"North  Devon  Journal"  of  26  April,  1906:— 

"Faith-cure"  in  North  Devon. 

"Sir, — To  supplement  Mr.  Scrivener's  letter,  which 
appeared  in  your  last  issue,  allow  me  to  state  that  nearly 
sixty  years  ago  there  was  a  similar  exhibition  in  Welcombe 
Church,  though  not  identically  the  same  as  this,  for  the 
afflicted  one  who  was  seeking  to  be  cured  sat  in  the  church 
during  the  delivery  of  the  sermon  and  then  walked  out. 
He  was  a  single  man  named  John  Luxton,  but  always 
called  'Jack.*  And  my  sister  was  one  of  those  asked  to 
contribute  a  penny  with  twenty-nine  others,  and  Anne 
Ayres  brought  the  half-crown  from  which  the  ring  was 
to  be  made,  which  was  duly  executed  by  John  Downing, 
and  '  Jack  *  wore  it  for  some  years,  but,  alas !  it  did  .not 
efifect  a  cure.  Perhaps  the  failure  may  be  attributed  to  his 
not  sitting  in  the  porch  during  the  time  of  the  service. 
However,  he  sat  there  as  the  people  retired,  the  writer 
being  present  and  witnessing  it.  Poor  *  Jack '  died  in  a  fit 
nearly  forty  years  ago,  being  near  the  church  where  he 
had  sought  the  cure,  and  1  believe  Mr.  Toller  held  an 
inquest,  but  am  not  sure  of  this.  "  T.  Gay. 

"  Barnstaple." 

It  is  rather  curious  that,  in  none  of  the  Devonshire  examples 
of  this  well-known  cure,  was  it  regarded  as  important  to  have 
the  ring  made  of  "  sacrament  money,"  although  in  the  cure 
for  paralysis  given  by  Hunt  ("  Popular  Eomances,"  3rd  ed., 
p.  412),  the  sufferer  obtained  the  half-crown  from  the  clergy- 
man, in  exchange  for  her  thirty  pennies,  and  then  walked 
three  times  round  the  communion-table. 

E.  Pearse  Chope. 

4  Cure  for  the  King's  Evil. — The  following  came  to 
my  notice  several  years  ago,  but  I  do  not  think  it  has  ever 
appeared  in  print.  A  woman  at  Woolfardisworthy  West 
used  to  effect  the  cure  of  this  complaint  by  "  saying  words  " 

VOL.  XXXVIIL  Q 


98  TWBNTY-THIKD  BEPORT  OF  THB  COMMITTEE 

over  an  ordinary  shilling,  which  she  ordered  the  sufiferer 
to  wear  always,  threatening  him  that,  if  he  lost  or 
spent  the  shilling,  the  disease  would  return.  In  one 
instance,  at  any  rate,  the  charm  worked  well  enough  for 
some  time,  but  one  day,  having  spent  all  the  rest  of  his 
money  at  the  inn,  the  wearer  of  the  charmed  shilling  was 
persuaded  by  his  companions  to  risk  the  coin  on  "  another 
pint."  Next  morning  the  king's  evil  had  returned!  It 
should  be  noted  that  no  fee  was  demanded,  or  paid,  for  the 
original  charm.  I  could  not  ascertain  that  the  woman  had 
any  special  qualifications,  but  one  family  at  Hartland  had 
both  a  seventh  and  a  ninth  son  who  "touched  for  the 
king's  evil,"  while  in  another  the  "  doctor  "  was  the  seventh 
son  of  a  seventh  son,  a  fact  which  greatly  enhanced  the 
potency  of  his  touch.  E.  Pearse  Chope. 

5.  Cure  for  Measles:  Value  of  Personal  Names. — The 
following  note  appeared  in  '*The  Daily  Mail"  of  26  March, 
1906,  under  the  heading  "  Superstitious  Parents  " : — 

"Witchcraft  and  superstition  die  hard  in  Devonshire. 

"  There  has  lately  been  an  epidemic  of  measles  at  Chittle- 
hampton,  and  in  the  hope  of  curing  their  children  parents 
have  dragged  the  little  sufferers  through  three  parishes  in 
one  day,  which  proceeding  is  said  to  effect  a  certain  cure. 

"  Others  have  taken  their  offspring  to  women  who  have 
not  had  to  change  their  name  by  marriage,  in  the  belief  that 
whatever  such  women  gave  to  sick  children  to  eat  would 
act  medicinally.  This  treatment  has  not  proved  effectual, 
but  still  there  are  people  who  are  prepared  to  continue 
it." 

Both  of  these  items  have,  I  believe,  hitherto  been 
recorded  only  as  applied  to  whooping-cough.  Sir  J.  W. 
Walrond,  writing  many  years  ago  to  "  Notes  and  Queries  " 
(1st  ser.,  Vol.  IX,  p.  239;  "Choice  Notes,"  "Folk-lore," 
p.  218),  said :  **  Inquiring  the  other  day  of  a  labourer  as  to 
the  state  of  his  child,  who  was  suffering  very  severely  from 
hooping  cough  [sic],  he  told  me  that  she  was  'no  better, 
although  he  had  carried  her,  fasting,  on  Sunday  morning, 
into  three  parishes*  which,  according  to  popular  belief,  was 
to  be  of  great  service  to  her." 

The  second  item  is  thus  described  by  Mr.  W.  G.  Black 
("  Folk-medicine,"  p.  138)  :— 

"Grenerally  in  the  west  and  midland  counties  of  England 
the  virtue  lying  in  the  person  of  a  woman  who  has  married 


ON  DBYONSHIRE  FOLK-LOBE.  99 

a  husband  of  the  same  name  as  herself,  or  after  the  death  of 
her  first  husband  marries  a  second  whose  name  is  the  same 
as  that  of  her  maidenhood,  is  extolled,  and  this  is  the  more 
strange  that  one  of  the  commonest  maxims  for  the  guidance 
of  marriageable  girls  is  to  the  effect  that : — 

A  change  of  the  name  with  no  change  of  the  letter — 
Is  a  change  for  the  worse  and  not  for  the  better. 

"  Be  that  as  it  may  be,  the  little  sufferer  from  whooping- 
cough  is  in  Cheshire  trustfully  sent  to  get  plain  currant 
cake  from  a  woman  who  has  married  a  man  of  her  own 
name,  and  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Tenbury  to  get  bread 
and  butter  and  sugar  from  Widow  Smith,  n4e  Jones,  who 
has  become  on  her  second  marriage  Mrs.  Jones." 

The  writer  from  Cheshire  in  "Notes  and  Queries"  (1st 
ser.,  Vol.  VI,  p.  71;  "Choice  Notes,"  "Folk-lore,"  p.  18l) 
states  that  the  cake  must  be  made  by  the  woman,  and  that 
"  on  no  account  whatever  is  any  payment  or  compensation 
to  be  made  directly  or  indirectly  for  the  cake.  My 
informant  has  the  firmest  belief  in  this  specific,  he  himself 
having  witnessed,  in  the  case  of  his  own  child,  the  beneficial 
result ;  but  he  took  care  to  mention,  as  probably  an  advan- 
tage, that  the  cake  which  cured  his  child  was  made  by  a 
woman  whose  mother  had  also  married  her  namesake." 

E.  Pearse  Chope. 

6.  The  Dead  Hand.— The  "Hartland  Chronicle"  for 
February,  1906,  quotes  the  following  from  the  quarterly 
statement  of  the  Shipwrecked  Fishermen  and  Mariners' 
Society : — 

"After  the  wreck  of  the  8.8.  *  Uppingham,*  in  November, 
1890,  some  of  the  bodies  recovered  were  temporarily 
deposited  under  the  church  belfry  and  in  a  stable,  and  the 
surprising  fact  is  related  by  Mr.  Chope  (Vicar  of  Hartland 
and  local  hon.  agent  of  the  Society)  that  the  hand  of  one  of 
them  was  *  superstitiously  used  by  a  villager  for  striking 
the  king's  evil ! '  The  vicar  then  made  an  urgent  appeal  for 
funds  to  build  a  mortuary  for  use  on  such  occasions,  which 
was  generously  responded  to,  and  Hartland  is  thus  provided 
with  a  decent  resting-place  for  the  unbefriended  dead." 

The  efiicacy  of  the  dead  hand  is  well  known.  Scot,  in 
the  "  Discoverie  of  Witchcraft,"  says : — 

"To  heal  the  king  or  queen's  evil,  or  any  other  soreness  of 
the  throat,  first  touch  the  place  with  the  hand  of  one  that 
died  an  untimely  death." 

g2 


100      REPORT  OF  COMMITTEE  ON  DBVONSHIBB  FOLK-LOBB. 

Hunt,  in  his  "Popular  Bomances  of  the  West  of 
England,"  says : — 

"  Placing  the  hand  of  a  man  who  has  died  by  his  own  act 
is  a  cure  for  many  diseases,"  and  he  records  the  instance  of 
the  cure  of  a  young  man  who  had  been  afflicted  with 
running  tumours  from  his  birth ;  he  says  also  that  he  "  once 
saw  a  young  woman  led  on  to  the  scaflbld,  in  the  Old 
Bailey,  for  the  purpose  of  having  a  wen  touched  with  the 
hand  of  a  man  who  had  just  been  executed"  (3rd  ed., 
pp.  378-9). 

At  a  coroner's  inquest  at  Plymouth  in  1879,  a  lad,  who 
was  afflicted  with  the  king's  evil,  was  brought  to  the  court 
by  his  mother  and  a  friend,  to  obtain  permission  to  be 
"  struck  "  by  the  man  who  had  committed  suicide  ("  Trans. 
Devon.  Assoc,"  1880,  p.  102).  E.  Pearse  Chope. 


ELEVENTH   REPORT   OF  THE  DARTMOOR 
EXPLORATION   COMMITTEE. 

Eleventh  Report  of  the  Committee — coiisistiTig  of  Mr,  J,  S. 
Ameri/j  the  Rev.  I,  K,  Anderson,  Mr.  R.  Burnard,  Rev.  S. 
Bariiig-Gould,  Mr.  J.  D.  Pode,  Mr.  J.  Brooking-Rowe,  Mr. 
Basil  Thomson^  and  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth — for  the  pur- 
pose of  exploring  Dartmoor  and  the  Gamps  in  Devon. 

Edited  by  the  Rev.  I.  K.  Anderson. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1006.) 


HUT  CIRCLE  SETTLEMENT  AT  WATERN  OKE. 
EXPLORED  JULY,   1906. 

This  settlement  is  situated  east  of  the  junction  of  the 
River  Tavy  and  Rattlebrook  (see  Sheet  Lxxxvin.  S.E.),  and 
commences  at  a  distance  of  400  yards  from  it,  and  extends 
for  half  a  mile.  The  number  of  hut  circles  explored  was 
ninety-four  and  two  unexplored.  Between  1  and  46 
there  are  distinct  traces  of  connecting  walls,  as  shown  on 
plan.  Also  between  33  and  36 ;  37  and  43a ;  53,  58,  and 
57.  Hut  12  is  a  capital  example  of  a  hut  divided  into  two 
rooms  by  a  wall;  17,  a  triple  hut  in  the  form  of  a  trefoil. 
The  huts  are  generally  circular,  the  notable  exceptions  being 
12,  17,  38a,  36,  and  80. 

The  excavation  and  planning  commenced  on  6  June,  1905, 
and  eight  diggers  were  employed,  who  were  encamped  near 
the  spot  for  that  purpose. 

Several  days  were  spoilt  by  the  rain,  and  our  tents  were 
blown  down  on  two  occasions. 

Under  the  shelter  of  the  rocks,  midway  between  46  and 
36,  is  a  small  structure  which  may  have  been  artificial ;  and 
between  52  and  61  is  an  artificial  structure  like  a  sentry- 
box,  but  we  were  unable  to  determine  whether  it  was 
ancient  or  modern,  hesitating  about  its  destruction,  which 
would  have  been  inevitable. 


102  ELEVENTH  REPORT  OF  THE 

The  exploration  was  terminated  on  27  July. 

Charcoal  in  considerable  quantities,  much  more  than  usual, 
was  found  in  most  of  the  huts,  with  the  usual  accompanying 
cooking  stones,  pottery,  and  flints.  The  most  interesting 
find  was  a  small  glass  bead,  blue  in  colour  and  semi-opaque, 
which  was  dug  up  about  30  inches  below  the  surface  in  57, 
measuring  |  inch  long  and  ^u  ^^-  diameter,  with  a  hole 
through  it  longitudinally.  Tliis  was  submitted  to  Mr.  Head 
at  the  British  Museum,  who  thus  expresses  his  opinion 
oflBcially: — 

I  think  the  bead  old.  It  most  nearly  resembles  (1)  from  Water 
Newton  Hunts,  found  with  Roman  remains  of  the  second  century 
or  thereabouts ;  and  (2)  one  from  Thebes  in  Egypt,  of  no  certain 
period,  but  doubtless  Roman  also. 

The  hut-circle  settlement  is  of  crescent  shape  conforming 
to  the  curve  of  the  river,  No.  1  at  the  western  end  being 
about  140  feet  above  the  river  and  about  200  yards  from  it, 
whilst  the  huts  at  the  extreme  east  are  close  to  the  river 
and  both  pleasantly  situated  and  sheltered.  Those  of  the 
western  limb  are,  so  to  speak,  terraced  down  to  43  and  44, 
and  55,  56,  57. 

The  marked  entrances  of  the  huts  were  generally  either 
towards  the  south  or  directed  towards  the  river. 

Hut  80,  which  is  markedly  oblong  on  plan,  is  more  or 
less  a  departure  from  the  circular  form,  and  appears  to  have 
been  rebuilt  or  **  restored  "  at  some  period. 

The  whole  settlement  seems  to  have  been  intended  for 
occupation  in  connexion  with  peaceful  pursuits;  at  least, 
there  are  no  signs  to  the  contrary. 

Rut  Circle  1. — A  small  irregular  hut  with  no  apparent 
entrance. 

The  bottom  concave  and  formed  entirely  of  large  slabs  of 
stone. 

A  stone  projecting  18  inches  was  evidently  intended  as  a 
shelf  for  some  purpose. 

The  longest  diameter  was  9  feet  from  E.  to  W.,  from  N. 
to  S.  7  feet. 

Tr6W5e  of  a  wall  uphill  in  N.E.  direction  leading  nowhere. 

HiU  Circle  la, — Small  circle ;  entrance  on  the  south  side. 
Very  rugged  and  pit-like. 

External  diameter,  15  feet ;  internal,  9  feet,  with  rocks  on 
the  west  side. 

A  wall  from  N.K  leads  in  a  circular  direction  south,  and 


DARTMOOR  EXPLORATION  COMMITTBE.  103 

joins  Hut  Circle  5,  with  a  branch  leading  in  a  similar  way 
between  7  and  8. 

Found  sling  stones  from  river  and  some  pieces  of  rough 
quartz. 

Hut  Circle  2. — A  well-made  hut.  External  diameter,  24 
feet ;  internal,  13  feet.     Entrance  facing  S.S.W. 

Here  were  found  cooking  and  pounding  stones  and  some 
small  sling  stones.     Also  flint. 

JItU  Circle  3. — Well-defined  circular  hut  with  a  decided 
sheltered  entrance  pointing  S.  by  W.  External  diameter, 
32  feet;  internal,  11  feet. 

There  were  found  pounding  and  cooking  stones  and  some 
quartz  crystals,  some  pieces  of  which  were  pointed  and 
blunted  by  use. 

HiU  Circle  3a. — Unexplored;  about  7  feet  in  diameter, 
and  did  not  look  worth  trying.  It  was  left  till  the  last,  and 
then  overlooked. 

Jlut  Circle  4. — A  very  good  hut. 

Internal  diameter,  9  feet.     Joined  to  4a  by  a  wall. 

The  entrance  on  the  south  side  is  protected  by  a  curved 
approach  of  stones. 

There  were  found  here  about  two  dozen  stones,  rubbers, 
etc. 

Hut  Circle  4a. — Small  but  well  made. 

Internal  diameter,  8  feet;  external,  13  feet.  The  entrance 
was  probably  at  south.  The  fire-place  was  close  to  the  wall 
on  the  north  side,  where  there  were  many  burnt  stones. 

Hut  Circle  5. — Very  good  small  circle  ;  internal  diameter, 
9  feet.     Door  at  S.E.  and  the  fire-place  at  north. 

From  the  north  a  wall  circling  N.  to  W.  joins  it  to  la, 
enclosing  2,  3,  and  4. 

Hut  Circle  6. — 10  feet  internal  diameter. 

Entrance  well  made  on  east  side.  A  stone  in  the  centre 
of  floor.  The  fire-place  was  on  the  N.E.  side  not  far  from  the 
entrance.  This  circle  was  at  the  top  of  the  clatter,  which 
extends  southwards  to  the  river. 

Hut  Circle  7. — External  diameter,  21  feet;  internal,  11 
feet.  A  large  fiat  stone  extended  across  the  floor  on  the 
north  side,  of  which  many  burnt  stones  were  found  indicating 
fire-place. 

Between  7  and  8  (nearer  8)  walling  is  indicated,  proceed- 
ing north  and  curving  to  west,  joining  the  wall  which  unites 
6  to  7a. 


104  ELBYSNTH  BBPORT  OF  THE 

Hut  Cirde  8. — This  circle  presented  an  interesting  division 
by  boulders  separating  the  N.W.  corner  into  an  apartment. 
Diameter,  internal,  12  feet. 
Entrance  uncertain,  but  perhaps  at  south. 

Hut  Circles  9,  10. — These  circles  are  contiguous  and 
interesting. 

On  N.W.  of  9  is  a  large  flat  stone  10  feet  in  length  and 
the  ends  1  feet  and  3  feet  respectively  in  breadth.  They 
seem  to  have  been  similarly  designed  with  sheltered  en- 
trances on  south  side  in  each  case.  Their  internal  diameters 
were  10  feet  and  13  feet  respectively. 

In  9  the  fire-place  was  indicated  at  the  north,  where  many 
burnt  stones  were  found  and  large  pounding  stones. 

Hut  10  was  not  in  a  very  good  condition,  it  having  been 
rather  pulled  about.  A  good  many  stones  of  the  usual  char- 
acter were  found  in  it. 

Hut  Circle  11. — This  is  an  excellent  specimen  and  in  good 
condition,  with  high  walls  5  feet  thick.  The  entrance  on 
south  side,  sheltered  and  well  seen,  is  about  6  feet  long  and 
2  feet  6  inches  wide.  The  internal  diameter,  11  feet.  It 
was  evidently  paved  with  stones.  Here  we  found  a  large 
square  rubber,  many  pieces  of  clean  bright  spar,  and  a  lai^e 
quantity  of  burnt  stones. 

Hut  Circle  12. — An  interesting  dwelling,  rather  shallow, 
constructed  of  boulders,  with  central  wall  dividing  it  into 
two  compartments. 

West,  9  feet  5  inches ;  east,  8  feet  4  inches. 

Many  burnt  stones  were  found,  and  an  entrance  seemed 
to  be  indicated  on  the  south  side  of  the  western  compart- 
ment. 

Hut  Circle  13. — Not  very  satisfactory  for  exploration.  It 
was  composed  of  large  stones  which  had  fallen  inwards. 
The  greatest  length  was  from  N.W.  to  S.E.,  18  feet ;  S.W. 
to  N.E.,  about  12  feet. 

Here  were  found  a  large  pounder  and  some  rubbing  stones. 

Hut  Circle  14. — An  ordinary  hut.  Internal  diameter,  12 
feet,  with  apparent  entrance  on  east  side. 

Bubbing  and  cooking  stones  found. 

Between  14  and  15  there  is  a  small  circular  pit  of  stones 
about  6  feet  in  diameter,  which  was  evidently  used  as  a 
fire-place,  for  it  was  burnt  in  several  places. 

Hut  Circle  15. — A  good  circle  with  large  flat  stones  for 
floor.     Internal  diameter,  12  feet. 


DARTMOOR  EXPLORATION  COMMITTEE.  105 

The  entrance,  3  feet  wide,  was  at  south. 

The  fire-place  was  opposite  the  entrance  close  to  the  north 
wall. 

This  circle  was  at  the  N.E.  side  of  the  clatter. 

From  No.  14  in  a  W.S.W.  direction  are  the  remains  of 
walling  connecting  it  With  the  clatter.  The  wall  is  about 
70  feet  long.  Taking  this  wall  as  starting  from  the  clatter, 
it  proceeds  E.N.E.  to  14,  then  there  is  a  small  gap  between 
14  and  16,  then  wall  from  16  to  17  (another  piece  of  walling 
from  17  S.W.  into  clatter),  17  to  18,  then  from  18  S.W.  for 
about  80  feet ;  curving  S.  and  S.E.  to  23 ;  23  is  connected 
with  21a,  21a  with  19  and  perhaps  with  22  ;  22  is  connected 
by  wall  with  24a,  from  which  there  are  traces  of  a  wall 
towards  25. 

Hut  Circle  16. — Deep  and  circular.  Internal  diameter, 
12  feet,  filled  up  with  large  stones.  The  entrance  was  just 
E.  of  S.  Burnt  stones  and  fiat  rubbing  stones  were  dug 
up  ;  also  pottery  with  double-line  pattern. 

Hvi  Circle  17. — This  dwelling  cannot  be  considered  circu- 
lar, and  consists  of  three  compartments,  as  shown.  There 
seemed  to  be  an  entrance  into  the  south  apartment.  Here 
we  found  fiint  and  a  quantity  of  burnt  stones.     Flint. 

Hvt  Circle  18. — Internal  diameter,  10  feet ;  external,  20 
feet.     The  entrance  was  at  south. 

Hut  Circle  19. — This  again  was  not  circular,  but  oval. 
Greatest  diameter,  13  feet;  lesser,  9  feet.  It  was  very  well 
made,  and  the  entrance  was  at  south.  Here  were  found  the 
usual  stones  and  fragments  of  a  welUwom  rubber  or  whet- 
stone. 

Hvi  Circle  20. — Internal  diameter,  11  feet.  Entrance  at 
south,  and  the  fire-place  was  all  along  the  wall  opposite  the 
entrance.  This  hut  joins  23.  Here  were  found  a  curious 
small,  red,  square  ruddle  stone  and  pieces  of  fiint. 

Hut  Circle  21. — A  very  good  specimen,  deep  and  conical, 
or  pit-shaped,  being  constructed  of  large  stones  in  the  centre. 
Diameters,  16  feet  and  8  feet.  The  entrance  was  on  south 
side.  Cooking  and  rubbing  stones  found.  Also  a  piece  of 
flint. 

Hut  Circle  21a.— This  is  a  few  feet  S.W.  of  21,  and  is 
not  a  circle.  The  fire-place  was  on  the  inside  of  the  south 
wall,  and  the  entrance  at  the  west  corner.  It  was  an 
irregular  clumsy-looking  dwelling. 


106  ELEVENTH  REPORT  OF  THE 

Hut  Circle  22. — Due  south  of  21a.  Small  but  of  interest. 
Entrance  on  east  with  double  sheltering  wall,  from  which 
on  S.E.  side  a  wall  goes  to  24a. 

A  large  stone  opposite  the  entrance  showed  clearly  where 
the  fire-place  was.    The  internal  diameter  was  10  feet. 

Hut  Circle  23. — Contiguous  to  20  at  its  S.W.  edge.  Not 
well  built,  so  far  as  the  use  of  stone  is  concerned.  Perhaps 
it  was  originally  of  earth  and  small  stones.  This  hut  was 
rather  square  than  circular,  with  the  entrance  at  the  north, 
so  far  as  we  could  judge,  and  the  fire-place  was  quite  evident 
at  the  S.W.  corner  of  the  floor. 

Hut  Circle  24. — Very  nicely  constructed,  but  not  circular. 
Entrance  just  S.  of  E.  Cooking  and  rubbing  stones  found, 
and  the  tire-place  indicated ;  also  pottery  with  marking  of 
double  lines ::::::::::::::::::::::::  and  flint. 

Hut  Circle  24a. — Not  well  built,  entrance  at  south,  and 
the  material  earth  and  small  stones.  The  fire  was  at  the 
east  side.  Nearly  circular,  and  12  feet  diameter — internal. 
Found  a  flint. 

Hut  Circle  25. — A  very  good  circle.  Diameters,  17  feet 
and  10  feet.    Deep  and  conical,  with  earth  floor  unpaved. 

The  entrance  was  at  south.  Many  pieces  of  spar  and 
quartz,  also  burnt  stones  and  flint  piece. 

Hut  Circle  25a. — Also  a  good  specimen.  Probable  en- 
trance at  south.  Unpaved  earth  floor;  diameters,  20  feet  and 
14  feet.     Flint  scrapers,  cooking  and  pounding  stones. 

Clatter  to  the  south. 

Hut  Circle  26. — External  diameter,  15  feet;  internal, 
11  feet.  The  entrance  on  south  side  about  2  feet  in  width. 
The  floor  paved  with  large  stones.  We  foimd  cooking  stones 
and  pieces  of  spar. 

Hut  Circle  27. — Good  circle.  External  diameter,  19  feet; 
internal,  14  feet.     Paved  with  large  stones,  boulders. 

The  entrance  was  (probably)  W.  of  S.  Cooking  and 
rubber  stones. 

Hut  Circle  27a. — Well  shaped  ;  internal  diameter,  12  feet. 

The  entrance  (probably)  on  south.  At  any  rate,  there  was 
no  doubt  about  a  large  fire-place  at  north. 

This  circle  was  not  paved. 

We  found  quartz,  pieces  of  spar,  small  cooking  stones,  and 
rubbers. 

Hut  Circle  27b. — Well  built  and  shaped.  Internal 
diameter,  10  feet.    Entrance  distinct  on  south  side.     Large 


DARTMOOR  EXPLORATION  COMMITTEE.  107 

flat  Stone  on  west  side.  The  ground  falls  rapidly  from  it 
about  25  feet  at  S.W.,  with  rocks  and  clatter  on  the  bank. 
It  also  falls  at  S.E.  steadily  towards  40  and  41. 

Hut  Circle  27c.— This  circle  is  68  feet  from  27,  88  feet 
from  31,  centre  to  centre,  about  15  feet  diameter ;  but  being 
somewhat  covered  with  heather,  it  was  overlooked  and  not 
excavated.  The  peg  marking  its  position  had  become  over- 
turned by  the  cattle  that  were  about. 

Hut  Circle  28. — A  well-built  and  well-shaped  dwelling ; 
12  feet  internal  diameter.  The  entrance  was  about  S.E. 
The  fire-place  at  north.  A  large  stone  slab  reaches  from 
west  side  nearly  to  the  centre  of  the  hut. 

Some  pieces  of  flint  were  found. 

Hut  Circle  29. — The  present  excellent  condition  of  the 
wall  of  this  hut  leads  us  to  suspect  that  it  may  have  been 
"  restored  "  or  rebuilt  to  its  present  height  of  5  feet.  The 
original  fire-place  seems  to  have  been  at  north,  but  there  are 
traces  of  fire  in  other  places.  Many  fire  stones  were  found. 
About  13  feet  inside  diameter. 

Hut  Circle  30. — A  rough  stone  pit  with  visible  entrance  at 
south.  Tlie  fire-place  was  both  at  east  and  west.  Diameter 
(internal),  10  feet.    Some  cooking  and  rubbing  stones  found. 

H^tt  Circle  31. — Made  of  large  stones.  External  diameter, 
17  feet;  internal  diameter,  12  feet.  We  could  not  locate 
the  entrance.     There  is  a  trace  of  walling  from  it  to  27c. 

Hut  Circle  32. — Very  irregular  in  shape,  being  constructed 
of  large  stones.     General  diameter  (internal),  11  feet. 

The  entrance  was  south,  and  the  fire  at  north. 

A  wall  seems  to  have  extended  from  this  circle,  eastward 
about  90  feet,  and  west  to  29,  from  29  to  27a,  from  27a  to 
27,  from  27  to  27c,  from  27c  to  31 ;  30  and  31  may  have 
been  connected,  and  there  is  a  short  trace  of  walling  from 
30  towards  32. 

Hut  Circle  33. — Small  and  irregular,  being  constructed  of 
very  large  stones.  Internal  diameter,  9  feet.  The  only  sug- 
gestion of  an  entrance  was  at  N.E.  Traces  of  fire  all  over 
the  floor.     Cooking  stones  found. 

Hut  Circle  34. — Very  rough  dwelling  constructed  of  un- 
usually large  stones.  The  floor  is  about  6  feet  square,  and 
shows  many  traces  of  fire. 

Hut  Circle  35. — Also  constructed  of  large  stones.  The 
entrance  is  on  east  side.  Earth  floor.  Internal  diameter, 
10  feet     On  the  N.E.  side  of  floor  is  a  large  flat  stone  about 


108  ELBYENTH  REPORT  OF  THE 

1  foot  thick,  3J  feet  by  4J  feet,  which  looks  like  a  table, 
or  seat,  close  to  the  fire-place,  which  was  at  N.  and  N.E.  The 
usual  variety  of  stones  was  found. 

Excavation  36. — Certainly  a  habitation,  but  very  rough, 
more  like  a  quarry  than  anything  else. 

Length  from  north  to  south,  20  feet,  and  of  varied  breadth 
— 7  feet,  5  feet,  and  4  feet. 

There  was  no  sign  of  an  entrance. 

The  fire-place  of  considerable  extent  was  at  the  north. 
Many  cooking  stones  were  found  ;  also  piece  of  flint. 

Probably  this  was  a  large  cooking  chamber. 

Hut  Circle  37. — Very  good  circle ;  internal  diameter, 
10  feet.  Entrance  at  north,  fire-place  east.  Found  a  piece 
of  flint. 

nut  Circle  38. — Kough,  made  with  large  stones. 
Internal  diameter,  15  feet.     No  sign  of  an  entrance. 
Built  under  the  shelter  of  rocks  or  steep  clatter. 
There  were  about  five  dozen  cooking  stones. 
Found  some  pottery. 

Hut  Circle  38a. — Adjoins  38  and  is  oblong,  24  feet  from 
north  to  south,  and  10  feet  across  (both  internal  measure- 
ments). Made  of  very  large  rough  stones.  The  entrance 
was  at  S.W.  corner,  and  the  fire-place  at  S. 

Hut  Circle  39. — Eough  and  irregular.  Entrance  S.W. ;  the 
floor,  6  feet  diameter.  Probably  a  cooking  hut.  The  fire 
was  at  east. 

Hut  40. — 12  feet  greatest  length  and  7  feet  greatest 
width.  It  was  rough,  and  constructed  of  large  rocks.  Prob- 
ably a  cooking  pit.     The  fire  was  at  S.W.  corner. 

Hut  41. — The  entrance  was  possibly  at  S.W.  corner,  and 
the  tire-place  was  evidently  at  S.E.  About  two  dozen  cook- 
ing stones. 

Hut  Circle  42. — This  small  group  of  circles  (42,  43,  43a, 
and  44)  are  most  charmingly  situated  just  over  the  brow  of 
a  hill,  sheltered  from  the  north,  and  about  40  feet  above  the 
Tavy  and  100  feet  from  it,  with  a  lovely  view  of  the  river. 
No.  42  is  rather  roughly  built  of  boulders,  and  of  squarish 
floor;  diameter,  9  feet.  The  entrance  at  S.W.  Fire-place  at 
north. 

Hut  Circle  43. — Very  fine  and  circular,  its  wall  being 
3  J  feet  in  height  and  well  built.  The  entrance  (perfect)  at 
south,  the  fire-place  at  north.    Found  a  piece  of  flint. 


DARTMOOR  EXPLORATION  COMMITTEE.        109 

nvi  43a. — Eough  and  irregular,  boulder  built.  The  en- 
trance was  at  south,  and  there  were  signs  of  fire  all  over  the 
floor.  Probably  this  was  the  cook-house  for  44.  Its  greatest 
length  was  12  feet  and  the  width  9  feet. 

Hid  Circle  44. — The  most  charmingly  situated  of  the 
whole  settlement.  Its  internal  diameter,  10  feet ;  height  of 
wall,  2\  feet.  The  entrance  was  at  south,  facing  the  river, 
the  fire-place  at  N.E.  There  were  about  two  dozen  cooking 
stones. 

Hut  Circle  45. — Composed  of  about  half  a  dozen  rocks 
and  very  little  earth.  The  entrance  at  east.  A  monolith, 
which  seems  to  have  formed  part  of  its  west  wall,  has  fallen 
outwards,  and  measured  about  13  feet  in  length. 

The  floor  was  irregularly  paved  with  boulders. 

The  tire-place  was  at  east  and  west.  Many  cooking  stones 
and  a  piece  of  flint. 

Hut  Circle  46. — Circular  in  form,  about  12  feet  internal 
diameter,  but  not  very  satisfactory.  This,  with  46a  and 
46b,  being  constructed  amongst  the  clatter,  was  most  dis- 
heartening, and  took  a  good  deal  of  time,  patience,  and 
strength. 

Hut  Circle  46a. — This  was  evidently  a  cooking  place,  con- 
structed amongst  the  rocks,  impossible  to  measure  or  de- 
lineate, for  it  had  no  shape ;  it  contained  much  burnt  granite. 

Hut  Circle  466. — Very  rough,  but  apparently  about  9  feet 
diameter  on  floor.  We  could  not  discern  an  entrance.  The 
fire-place  was  at  north. 

Hvi  Circle  47. — Not  circular,  but  approaching  a  square 
8  feet  across;  poorly  constructed,  earth  floor, fire-place  at  north. 

Hut  Circle  48. — Very  well  built  with  large  stones.  Internal 
diameter,  13  feet ;  but  no  visible  entrance.  The  fire-place 
was  E.  of  N.  Three  dozen  cooking  and  fire  stones  found  and 
flint  flakes. 

H2U  Circle  49. — Very  rough,  irregular,  and  small,  com- 
posed of  large  stones.  Its  general  direction  was  N.  to  S., 
12  feet;  7  feet  E.  to  W.  The  entrance  was  evident  at  S., 
and  the  fire-place  at  N.E. 

Hut  Circle  50. — Composed  of  large  stones  overlapping, 
some  having  fallen  inwards.     Very  difficult  to  explore. 

The  entrance  was  apparent  at  east  5  feet  wide.  The  fire- 
place extended  from  E.  to  W.  at  N.  side.  This  dwelling  was 
not  circular,  being  14  feet  N.  to  S.  and  8  feet  E.  to  W.  Earth 
floor.    A  few  cooking  stones,  pieces  of  spar. 


110  BLEYSNTH  REPORT  OF  THE 

Hut  Circle  51. — ^A  fair  circle,  10  feet  internal  diameter, 
formed  of  boulders,  and  with  48,  50  on  the  edge  of  a  steep 
descent  of  about  20  feet.  There  was  no  entrance  that  we 
could  determine.     The  fire-place  was  at  N.  and  N.K 

Cooking  stones,  pieces  of  spar. 

HtU  52. — Rough  and  oblong  from  N.  to  S.,  formed  by  large 
stones  only ;  dimensions,  12  feet  by  7  feet. 

The  fire-place  seems  to  have  been  at  north,  but  the  rocks 
had  been  burnt  on  all  sides.     Charcoal,  cooking  stones. 

About  half-way  between  52  and  61  there  is  a  curious 
built-up  alcove  or  sentry-box  of  stone ;  the  entrance  is  about 
4  feet  high  by  18  inches  wide,  closed  at  the  back,  amongst 
the  clatter  on  the  side  of  the  slope.  It  faces  the  Homer 
Redlake  slightly  W.  of  S.  Whether  ancient  or  modem,  or 
what  purpose  it  has  served,  we  are  not  in  a  position  even  to 
suggest.  It  has  not  been  disturbed,  but  has  been  left  to  the 
ingenious  speculations  of  future  visitors,  or  to  the  inquisitive 
destruction  of  the  coming  archaeologist. 

Hut  Circle  53. — Fine  circle  of  14  feet  internal  diameter. 
Entrance  distinct  at  south.  Fire-place  north,  extending  to 
east.  A  large  amount  of  cooking  and  rubber  stones,  pottery, 
and  flint. 

HtU  Circle  54. — Small  cooking  pit ;  floor,  4  feet  by  5  feet; 
3  feet  deep.     No  entrance ;  fire  all  over  floor. 

Hut  Circle  55. — Well  built  of  large  stones.  Internal 
diameter,  14  feet.  Entrance  at  south.  Fire-place  on  west 
side.  Large  quantity  of  cooking  stones  were  found,  pottery, 
and  some  pieces  of  flint. 

Hut  Circle  56. — Not  a  very  good  construction,  having  few 
large  stones.  Internal  diameter,  16  feet.  The  entrance  was 
possibly  indicated  at  south.  Fire-place  N.W.  Considerable 
number  of  cooking  stones  found  and  flints. 

Hut  Circle  57. — Very  good  circle.  Internal  diameter, 
19  feet.  Number  of  stones  fallen  inwards.  Entrance  south. 
Fire-place  N.W.  Here  the  glass  bead  was  found.  About 
six  dozen  cooking  stones,  fragments  of  pottery  in  quantity, 
flint  pieces,  two  flint  arrow-points  were  found. 

Hut  Circle  58. — A  very  good  specimen.  Internal  diameter,14 
feet.  Entrance  at  south.  Fii^e  at  north.  Many  small  cooking 
stones  and  pieces  of  spar  were  obtained, and  some  pieces  of  flint. 

Hut  Circle  59. — Excellently  built  of  large  boulders,  4J  feet 
deep.  Internal  diameter,  15  feet.  Entrance  at  west.  Fire- 
places at  E.  and  N.    A  pile  of  cooking  stones  and  a  flint 


DARTMOOR  EXPLORATION  COMMITTEE.  Ill 

Hut  Circle  60. — Rather  irregular  or  oval.  Longest  diameter, 
E.  to  W.,  15  feet ;  shorter,  N.  to  S.,  9  feet.  No  visible  trace 
of  an  entrance.     Burnt  stones  at  east,  showing  fire-place. 

fftU  Circle  61. — Or  rather  a  circular  pit  about  4  feet 
deep ;  diameter  at  bottom,  6  feet ;  at  top,  8  feet ;  formed  of 
large  stones ;  traces  of  fire  all  over  the  bottom.  Here  we 
found  some  rubbers,  several  dozen  cooking  stones,  and  a 
piece  of  flint. 

RtU  62. — At  a  distance  of  146  yards,  direction  E.S.E.,  we 
come  to  62,  which  at  first  sight,  having  a  circular  appearance 
with  a  central  depression,  we  took  for  a  hut  circle,  but  after 
excavation  we  found  no  sign  of  habitation.  It  must  have 
served  some  other  purpose. 

Hut  Circle  63. — A  very  good  specimen,  but  much  filled  up 
with  fallen  stones.  External  diameter,  22  feet;  internal, 
12  feet.  The  entrance  was  at  south.  Some  cooking  stones, 
pieces  of  spar,  rubbers. 

Hut  Circle  64. — A  large  good  circle.  Exterior  diameter, 
25  feet ;  internal,  17  feet.  No  sign  of  an  entrance.  Cooking 
and  rubber  stones  (one  small  red-stone  rubber),  neck,  lip  (or 
handle)  of  a  jar,  and  pieces  of  flint. 

Hu^  Circle  65. — A  good  circle.  Exterior  diameter,  18  feet; 
internal,  11  feet.  Entrance  denoted  by  large  fallen  stone 
W.  of  S.  The  fire-place  was  at  east  side.  About  a  dozen 
cooking  and  rubbing  stones.     A  well-worked  piece  of  flint. 

Hut  Circle  66. — A  massive  stone  hut  of  large  granite 
boulders  about  100  feet  from  the  river  at  S.W.  Total  length 
from  N.E.  to  S.W.,  15  feet  internally.  Eubber  and  cooking 
stones. 

Hui  Circle  67. — Fine  small  circle.  External  diameter, 
19  feet ;  internal,  9  feet.  Could  not  determine  the  entrance. 
About  a  dozen  cooking  and  rubber  stones  found  and  some 
fn^ments  of  pottery. 

Hut  Circle  68. — Very  well  defined;  18  feet  external  and 
12  feet  internal  diameter.  There  was  a  large  slab  of  stone 
5  feet  square  in  the  centre.  Some  of  the  stones  had  fallen 
inwards,  and  there  was  no  definite  sign  of  an  entrance. 
About  two  dozen  cooking  stones  and  rubbers,  amongst  which 
there  was  one  of  granite,  12  inches  in  length,  of  triangular 
section,  with  very  flat  smooth  base.  Its  base  measured 
8  inches  across,  and  the  sides  of  the  section  were  6  feet 
and  6^  inches,  as  shown  on  sketch.  Charcoal,  pottery,  and 
some  pieces  of  flint  were  found  here. 


112  KLKVBNTH  REPORT  OF  THE 

HxU  Circle  69. — Yery  good.  External  diameter,  18  feet ; 
internal,  11  feet.  Entrance  (probable)  at  south,  the  stone 
posts  having  fallen  inwards. 

Three  dozen  cooking  stones,  pounder  of  tourmaline  granite, 
spar  polished,  charcoal,  pottery,  and  a  piece  of  flint  found. 

ffut  Circle  70. — Fine  hut.  External  diameter,  21  feet; 
internal,  13  feet  Entrance  at  south  marked  by  one  upright 
stone.  About  three  dozen  cooking,  rubbing,  and  sling  stones. 
One  specially  fine  fractured  whetstone  quite  smooth  with 
use,  pointed  piece  of  spar,  flints. 

HiU  Circle  71. — Well  constructed.  External  diameter, 
21  feet;  internal,  11  feet.  The  only  sign  of  an  entrance 
was  on  eastern  side.  More  than  one  hundred  (sling,  rubber, 
and  cooking)  stones  and  pottery  were  found. 

Hut  Circle  72. — Fair  specimen.  External  diameter,  17  feet; 
internal,  11  feet.  Some  large  stones  like  steps  suggested 
entrance  at  S.S.E.  A  considerable  number  of  rubbing  and 
cooking  stones  dug  up. 

Ifut  Circle  73. — Longer  diameter,  12  feet;  shorter,  7  feet. 
A  large,  nearly  square,  stone  nearly  filled  the  hut. 

Cooking  stones.     No  entrance. 

Hut  Circle  74. — Small  and  rough,  made  of  large  boulders. 
External  diameter,  10  feet. 

Eubbing  stone  found  here. 

Hut  Circles  75  and  76. — Contiguous.  Very  diflBcult  to 
excavate,  as  they  were  filled  with  rough  large  stones.  The 
only  sign  of  a  possible  entrance  was  close  to  the  division 
wall  on  KE.  side  of  75,  in  which  some  large  rubber  stones 
were  found.  Internal  diameter  of  75  was  15  feet ;  and  of 
76,  12  feet. 

N.B. — These  hut  circles  (75  and  76)  have  not  been  drawn 
in  the  usual  manner  north  and  south,  but  as  shown  by  arrow. 

Hut  Circle  77. — Rather  oval,  the  diameters  being  12  feet 
and  10  feet.     Formed  of  very  large  rough  boulders. 
Rubbing  stones,  pointed  piece  of  quartz  spar. 

Hut  Circle  78. — Internal  diameter,  15  feet.  Also  made  of 
large  rough  boulders.     Piece  of  glass  (?  ancient). 

Hv^  Circle  79. — Very  rough  work  indeed.  Floor,  8  feet 
and  10  feet ;  not  a  circle ;  constructed  in  the  clatter. 

(N.N.W.  of  80  at  about  30  yards  are  traces  of  perhaps 
other  ancient  huts,  but  we  were  unable  to  investigate  further.) 

Hut  Circle  79  may  possibly  have  been  the  cook-house 
for  80. 


DARTMOOR   EXPLORATION   COMMITTEE.  113 

Hut  80. — This  hut  seems  to  have  been  rebuilt  at  some 
period,  and  probably  was  never  circular.  A  very  large  stone, 
at  least  3  feet  thick  and  13  feet  in  length,  monopolizes  the 
internal  space.  We  tried  it  as  floor,  bed,  and  board,  but  it  was 
equally  unsuitable  for  our  requirements  in  each  case.  A 
corroded  piece  of  iron  was  found  (possibly  a  modern  knife). 
Large  rubbing  stone.    Pottery.    Very  good  arrow-head  point. 

HiU  Circle  81. — Before  digging,  this  seemed  like  a  hut 
circle  about  15  feet  external  diameter,  but  nothing  was  found 
to  indicate  habitation. 

Hut  Circle  82. — On  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  to  the 
west  of  Homer  Redlake,  and  nearly  S.W.  from  the  boundary 
stone  at  about  200  yards,  is  a  fine  hut  circle  fully  20  feet  in 
diameter  and  well  built.  Here  we  found  a  flint,  charcoal, 
and  traces  of  pottery. 

On  revisiting  the  above  settlement  some  months  after 
exploration,  it  was  noticeable  that  the  cooking  stones  which 
were  hard  when  first  dug  out  had  become  friable. 

Whilst  under  canvas  we  were  visited  by  Colonel  Goldie, 
R.E.,  Commanding  Western  District,  who  was  much  gratified 
with  what  he  saw. 

We  were  much  cheered  during  our  stay  in  the  wilds, 
under  canvas,  and  uncomfortable  surroundings,  by  the  visit 
of  a  party  of  enthusiastic  ladies  and  gentlemen  full  of  the 
meeting  at  Princetown,  which  was  then  in  progress,  who  were 
ably  conducted  to  our  "  diggings  "  by  Mr.  George  French,  of 
Postbridge. 

A  hut  circle  is  marked  on  the  Ordnance  Map  N.E.  by  N. 
of  the  top  of  Fur  Tor  at  a  distance  on  plan  of  about  800 
yards.  We  located  this  and  marked  it  for  excavation,  but 
were  unable  to  carry  out  our  intention,  though  we  attempted 
to  do  so. 

BURIED  HUT  CIRCLE  OR  (?)  BARROW  AT   **THE  CROFT," 
PETER  TAVY. 

A  probable  hut  circle  or  (?)  barrow  discovered  while  cutting 
a  road  in  a  field  known  as  "The  Croft,"  close  to  the  Rectory, 
at  Peter  Tavy  on  3  January,  1906,  by  Arthur  Heeley,  Esq. 

The  hollow  in  the  centre  was  about  12  inches  deep  and 
18  inches  diameter,  and  contained  charcoal. 

A  portion  of  a  vessel  of  soft  stone  was  found,  three 
pieces  of  another  vessel,  and  several  small  pieces  of  flint. 

VOL.  XXXVIIL  H 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND 
COUNTISBURY.  I. 

INTRODUCTORY,  ANTIQUITIES,  HISTORICAL  SKETCH, 
AND  MANORS. 

BY   REV.    J.    F.    CHANTER,    M.A. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


INTRODUCTION. 

Of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  almost  isolated  as  they  were 
from  the  tide  of  human  events,  with  Severn  Sea  on  one 
side  and  the  solitudes  of  Exmoor  Forest  on  the  others,  the 
older  Devonshire  writers  have  told  us  but  little.  For  litera- 
ture in  the  past  was  wont  to  gather  round  persons  rather 
than  places,  to  describe  events  rather  than  scenery.  It  is 
only  the  more  modern  writers  who  have  lingered  long  and 
lovingly  over  the  beauties  of  nature,  and  with  such  Lynton 
and  its  neighbourhood  have  ever  been  a  favourite  subject, 
for  it  is  a  land  noted  far  and  wide  for  its  beautiful  and 
romantic  scenery,  its  deep  valleys  and  precipitous  hills,  its 
rushing  streams  and  moss-clad  rocks,  its  wooded  vales  and 
rolling  moorlands,  its  ferns  and  verdure,  its  perpendicular 
cliffs,  with  fringe  of  silver  sea  beneath.  And  so  writers 
from  Polwhele  downwards  in  a  long  stream  —  Warner, 
Southey,  Dr.  Maton,  and  others — have  filled  pages  with 
description  of  its  natural  features,  and  especially  of  the 
Valley  of  Kocks,  or  Valley  of  Stones,  as  they  called  it,  in 
which  they  saw,  filled  as  their  minds  were  with  the  fantastic 
theory  of  Druids  and  Druidical  worship  invented  in  the 
seventeenth  century  and  then  so  prevalent,  a  place  which 
ought  to  have  been,  even  if  it  was  not,  a  scene  of  its 
mystical  rites.    And  each  year  adds  to  the  number  with 


I 


H 

Si 


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o 


THE  PAKISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    115 

a  new  guide-book,  which  repeats  with  slight  variations  the 
words  and  even  errors  of  the  old. 

While,  on  the  other  hand,  there  stands  up  in  the  past  of 
Lynton  scarcely  a  single  individual  around  whom  history 
could  gather,  not  even  a  squire  or  a  parson — names  often 
held  up  for  derision,  yet  the  centres  of  every  village 
chronicle,  and  here  scarcely  to  be  found.  Not  till  the  seven- 
teenth century  was  there  a  resident  lord  of  the  manor  of 
Lynton,  and  then  only  for  a  brief  period,  after  which  the 
manor  was  rapidly  dismembered ;  and  as  long  as  records 
go  back,  with  one  exception,  no  vicar  or  parson  (I  use  the 
word  parson  in  its  strict  sense,  the  persona^  or  rector,  of 
the  parish),  but  only  a  perpetual  curate,  who  was  often  non- 
resident. Yet,  in  spite  of  this,  Lynton  has  a  past  and  a 
history,  which,  if  not  so  eventful  as  other  parishes*,  will 
always  be  of  interest  to  those  who  dwell  there  or  visit  it ; 
and  I  have  tried  in  these  pages  to  give  some  account  of 
it,  the  manors,  ecclesiastical  a^airs,  and  families,  especially 
that  of  the  Wichehalses,  around  which  all  the  romances 
and  legends  of  the  district  have  gathered. 

The  only  account  hitherto  published  is  in  the  "Guide 
to  Lynton  and  Neighbourhood,"  written  about  1850,  by 
Thomas  Henry  Cooper,  a  medical  man,  then  residing  at 
Lynton.  It  was  the  result  of  a  great  deal  of  painstaking 
research,  and  contains  most  of  what  had  been  said  by  Pole, 
Westcote,  and  Risdon;  yet  as  it  is  very  incomplete  and 
contains  so  many  inaccuracies,  I  have  attempted  to  give 
an  entirely  independent  account,  gathered  almost  entirely 
from  original  deeds  and  documents,  though  I  would  acknow- 
ledge my  obligation  to  Mr.  Cooper  for  putting  me  on  the 
track  of  many  subjects,  and  also  to  E.  B.  Jeime,  Esq.,  lord 
of  the  manor  of  Lynton  (Jure  tixoris),  for  permission  to 
look  at  the  existing  records  of  the  manors  of  Lynton,  Wool- 
hanger,  and  East  Lyn;  to  Mr.  Franklyn  Walford,  of  the 
Eecord  Office;  Mr.  W.  E.  Mugford  for  his  search  into  the 
ecclesiastical  records;  and  especially  to  my  friend  Oswyn 
A.  R.  Murray,  Esq.,  whose  wonderful  knowledge  of  Devon- 
shire families  of  the  seventeenth  century,  their  wills,  records, 
and  family  relationships,  as  well  as  the  records  at  the 
Bodleian  and  Record  Office,  is  invaluable  to  any  student 
of  Devonshire  famQy  history.  In  an  appendix  I  have  given 
abstracts  of  the  most  important  of  the  documents  from 
which  my  information  has  been  drawn. 


h2 


116         THB  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBY. 

IL 
ANTIQUITIES   AND   PREHISTORIC   PERIOD. 

The  first  inhabitants  of  the  district  who  have  left  any 
traces  of  themselves  behind  are  the  men  of  the  Neolithic 
or  early  Bronze  period :  along  the  sides  of  its  streams,  on 
the  more  level  portions  of  its  downs,  and  on  the  hill-tops 
their  hut  circles,  burial  places,  stone  monuments,  and 
fortifications  .can  still  be  seen,  and  so  frequently  as  to  show 
for  the  age  a  somewhat  numerous  population  along  the 
northern  and  western  slopes  of  Exmoor. 

Polwhele,  in  his  "  History  of  Devonshire,"  says : — 

Shapeless  piles  of  stones  on  Exmoor  and  the  adjacent  country 
might  be  approached  as  rock  idols  of  the  Britons.  The  Valley  of 
Stones,  indeed,  in  the  vicinity  of  Exmoor  is  so  awfully  magnificent 
that  we  need  not  hesitate  in  pronouncing  it  to  have  been  the 
favourite  residence  of  Druidism.  .  .  ,  This  valley  is  about  half 
a  mile  in  length,  in  general  about  three  hundred  feet  in  width, 
situated  between  two  hills  covered  with  an  immense  quantity  of 
stones  and  terminated  by  rocks,  which  rise  to  a  vast  height  and 
present  a  prospect  uncommonly  grotesque.  At  an  opening  between 
the  rocks  at  the  close  of  the  valley  there  is  a  noble  view  of  the 
British  Channel  and  Welsh  coast.  The  scenery  of  the  whole 
country  in  the  neighbourhood  of  this  curious  valley  is  wonderfully 
striking.  The  Valley  of  Stones  has  a  close  resemblance  to  severtd 
of  the  spots  in  Cornwall  which  tradition  has  sanctified  with  the 
venerable  names  of  rock  idols,  Logan  stones,  or  rock  basons; 
and  the  north  of  Devon,  though  it  may  furnish  us  with  no  tradi- 
tion of  the  Druids,  must  yet  be  examined  with  an  eye  to  Druidical 
antiquities.  If  the  hills  or  valleys  which  have  been  so  long  con- 
secrated to  the  genius  of  the  Druids  of  Cornwall  deserve  so  high 
an  honour^  I  have  little  doubt  but  that  the  same  distinction  is 
due  to  the  romantic  scenes  in  Devonshire,  which  hitherto  we 
have  been  led  to  view  with  an  incurious  eye,  or  to  admire,  perhaps, 
for  their  rude  magnificence  while  we  carried  our  ideas  no  further 
than  the  objects  themselves.  Not  that  the  Druids  formed  these 
scenes,  no,  they  only  availed  themselves  of  such  recesses  to  which 
they  annexed  sanctity  by  commemorating  there  the  rites  of 
rehgion.  .  .  .  The  rock  idols  are  piurely  natural,  though  some 
labour  was  employed  in  a  few  instances  to  make  them  look 
artificial.  Nature,  or  some  great  convulsion  in  nature,  left  thoee 
rocks  in  their  present  fantastic  shape,  or  if  any  art  was  applied 
to  rock  idols,  it  was  only  to  remove  some  earth,  some  surrounding 
stone  from  the  larger  or  more  cmrious  masses,  and  then  the  whole 
would  put  on  the  appearance  it  now  possesses.     The  whole  army 


THE  PARISHES   OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  117 

of  Xerxes  could  not  have  raised  by  force  or  skill  such  ledges  of 
rock  piled  up  in  the  Valley  of  Stones  by  human  industry.  The 
most  remarkable  rock  idol  in  the  valley  is  the  Cheesewring. 
Lyttleton  observes  that  it  greatly  resembles  the  Cheesewring  at 
Altemon. 

I  have  quoted  this  passage  at  some  length  as,  however 
absurd  and  exaggerated  it  may  seem,  it  is  one  of  the 
earliest  descriptions  we  have  of  Lynton  and  the  Valley  of 
Bocks  itself,  as  it  is  now  called.  Yet  it  is  curious  that 
Polwhele,  who  came  to  examine  the  neighbourhood  with  an 
eye  to  what  he  called  Druidical  Antiquities,  and  while  he 
was  familiar  with  Speed's  words,  "Ad  Exmore  saxa  in 
triangulum  alia  in  orbem  erecta,"  could  only  see  natural 
features  and  was  blind  to  the  undoubted  erections  of  man 
in  a  prehistoric  age  still  to  be  seen  in  the  parish,  and  the  stone 
circle  and  hut  circles  in  the  Valley  of  Rocks  itself.  And  it 
would  seem  that  as  late  as  sixty  years  ago  or  less  there 
were  many  more  in  the  Valley  of  Rocks  which  have  since 
disappeared,  for  in  January,  1854,  Mr.  Charles  Bailey, 
father  of  the  present  owner  of  Ley,  in  a  public  letter 
addressed  to  the  inhabitants  of  Lynton  on  the  subject  of  the 
commons  enclosure  complains  not  only  of  the  building  of 
ugly  stone  walls  and  fences,  and  opening  of  quarries  in 
the  valley  during  recent  years,  but  also  adds,  "  worse  than 
either,  the  removal  of  the  immense  Druidical  stones  and 
circles  which  formed  its  peculiar  and  striking  interest  for 
the  purpose  of  selling  them  for  gate-posts."  In  Cooke's 
"Topographical  Description  of  Devonshire,"  published  in 
1810,  there  is  a  further  description  of  these  stone  circles 
that  have  been  destroyed.  "  The  central  part  of  the  valley 
contains  several  circles  of  stone  above  forty  feet  in  diameter, 
probably  Druidical  remains." 

Since  the  date  of  Mr.  Bailey's  letter  many  stone  monu- 
ments existing  then  in  other  parts  of  the  parish  have 
disappeared,  especially  on  the  south  side  of  the  parish, 
owing  to  the  enclosure  of  the  commons ;  and  the  new 
Ordnance  Maps  show  that  the  destruction  is  still  going  on. 
Of  those  that  now  remain,  a  first  account  was  given  of 
some  in  the  paper  by  Mr.  R.  H.  Worth  and  Rev.  J.  F. 
Chanter  in  the  '*  Transactions  "  of  the  Association  for  1905, 
and  as  a  further  instalment  of  them  is  to  follow,  I  would 
refer  those  who  desire  more  exact  information  on  these 
antiquities  to  their  papers. 


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THB  PAKISHES   OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  119 

east  side  was  apparently  made  to  accommodate  a  later 
packhorse  road. 

The  fosse,  at  a  point  25  ft.  south  of  this  opening,  is  at 
the  present  time  4  to  5  ft.  deep,  and  the  rampart  rises 
29  ft.  above  the  bottom  of  the  fosse,  and  5  ft.  6  in.  above 
the  level  of  the  internal  ground. 

The  camp  at  Qldburrow  above  Glenthorne  or  Coscombe 
is  of  a  difterent  type  from  the  last  described,  and  of  more 
complex  design.  It  stands  at  an  elevation  of  1100  ft.  near 
the  summit  of  a  hill  rising  direct  up  from  the  sea,  though 
very  little  raised  above  the  run  of  the  surrounding  country. 
It  consists  of  an  outer  fosse  and  rampart  which  are  circular, 
the  rampart  having  a  diameter  of  100  yd.  The  fosse  is 
2  ft.  4  in.  deep  and  the  rampart  6  ft.  8  in.  high  externally 
and  2  ft.  internally ;  within  this  is  a  smaller  enclosure  with 
double  ditch  and  bank  forming  an  approximate  square  with 
rounded  comers:  the  diagonal  measurement  of  this  from 
crest  to  crest  of  the  inner  bank  is  35  yd.,  the  diameter 
being  approximately  25  yd.;  the  outer  of  the  two  inner 
ditches  is  only  2  ft.  8  in.  in  depth ;  the  bank  inside  it  does 
not  rise  above  the  natural  level  of  the  ground  and  is  2  ft. 
9  in.  in  height ;  the  third  ditch  is  2  ft.  9  in.  in  depth,  and 
the  inmost  rampart  is  5  ft.  7  in.  in  height  on  its  outer 
face,  and  1  ft.  9  in.  on  its  inner  face:  all  these  measure- 
ments were  taken  at  the  north-west  comer  of  the  camp, 
where  they  are  most  perfect.  The  present  entrance  is  on 
the  north,  and  the  camp  is  in  a  very  good  state  of  preserva- 
tion, though  the  ditches  and  banks  were  probably  originally 
a  little  deeper  and  higher  respectively.  This  camp  has 
been  spoken  of  by  many  antiquarians  in  the  past  as  being 
Eoman,  and  an  imaginary  Roman  road  from  it  over  the 
Forest  of  Exmoor  to  Holland  has  been  laid  down,  but 
it  has  not  the  slightest  claim  to  be  considered  such.  I  have 
given  sections  of  all  these  four  camps,  for  which  and  the 
measurements  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth, 
who  took  them  with  me  in  1905-6. 

Hut  circles  are  to  be  found  in  all  parts  of  Lynton  on  the 
yet  unenclosed  land — a  small  circular  enclosure,  probably  for 
cattle,  is  still  to  be  seen  in  the  Valley  of  Rocks — but  are  most 
numerous  on  Fursehill  and  Ilkerton  ridges.  No  systematic 
investigation  of  any  of  these  has  yet  been  made.  (A  small 
but  very  perfect  one  made  entirely  of  stone  can  be  seen 
close  to  the  water  in  the  Hoar  Oak  Valley.)  Barrows  are  to 
be  seen  on  the  hill-tops  all  round,  and  a  kistvaen  was  exposed 
in  1896  close  to  the  edge  of  the  road  above  Glenthorne ;  it 


120         THE  PABISHES'  OF  LTNTOK  AND  COmfmSBUET. 

was  on  the  Somerset  side  of  the  border.  A  vase  was  also 
found  in  the  kist ;  it  is  now  in  the  Taunton  Museum.  Par- 
ticulars of  this  find  were  given  by  Mr.  F.  T.  Elworthy  in  the 
"Proceedings  of  Somerset  Archaeological  Society,"  VoL  XLII, 
p.  56.  The  stone  weapons  and  implements  found  in  the 
district  are  not  very  extensive,  at  least,  such  as  have  been 
recorded,  but  no  doubt  search  and  inquiry  would  bring 
many  more  to  light.  A  labourer  named  John  Bichards,  now 
residing  near  Parracombe,  who  has  worked  a  great  deal  at 
hedging  and  ditching,  has  been  in  the  habit  of  preserving 
any  good  specimens  of  flint  he  found  in  his  work,  and  has  a 
small  but  representative  collection.  The  best  specimens 
are  a  skinning  knife  with  a  ground  edge  of  black  flint 
of  oval  shape,  4  in.  by  3^  in.;  and  several  arrow- 
heads of  various  patterns.  I  have  given  an  illustration 
of  some  of  these;  they  were  mostly  found  near  Furae- 
hill  and  Hoar  Oak.  Spindle-whorls  or  pixie  grinding-stones, 
as  the  natives  call  them,  have  been  found  also  at  Stock 
Water  and  Ranscombe:  the  upper  part  of  Ranscombe  would 
probably  produce  flint  flakes  in  some  quantity.  I  have  dog 
up  several  dozens  in  the  course  of  an  hour  just  on  tihe 
edge  of  Lynton  parish  near  Woody  Bay  station,  also  flint 
cores  and  a  fabricator  which  had  been  used  a  good  deaL 
Dr.  Cooper  states  in  his  Guide  (p.  46)  that  a  great  number 
of  Eoman  coins  have  from  time  to  time  been  dug  up  in  the 
parish  of  Countisbury,  but  I  have  been  unable  to  verify 
this  statement  or  see  or  hear  of  any  specimen.  Mr.  E.  N. 
Worth  brings  forward  conclusive  evidence  to  show  that  all 
claims  of  any  Eoman  occupation  of  any  part  of  North 
Devon  are  entirely  valueless,  and  that  if  Eoman  coins  are 
found  they  would  be  only  marks  of  the  peaceful  visit 
of  some  Eoman  trader.  And  in  connexion  with  the 
supposed  Coimtisbury  finds  it  might  be  as  well  to  put 
on  record  the  statement  I  heard  my  father,  the  late  John 
Boberts  Chanter,  Esq.,  of  Barnstaple,  frequently  make,  that 
the  Bev.  W.  S.  Halliday,  a  former  owner  of  part  of  Countis- 
bury,  scattered  and  buried  coins,  Eoman  and  others,  with  a 
view  to  puzzling  the  future  antiquary. 


IV. 

HISTORICAL   SKETCH. 

The    parishes   of    Lynton    and    Countisbury    form    the 
extreme  north-east  corner  of  the  county  of  Devon.    Aocord- 


1.     Skinning  Knife,  with  ground  edge,  found  at  Fursehill. 
2,  4,  5,  6.     Flint  Akrow-heads  found  near  Fursehill. 
3,  7.     Flint  Aurow-heads  found  near  Hoar  Oak. 

Lyktok.— ro  yiic«  p,  120. 


THE  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUKY.    121 

ing  to  the  revised  Ordnance  Map,  Lynton  contains  7285 
acres,  of  which  7190  are  land,  13  water,  2  tidal  water,  and 
80  foreshore,  and  Countisbury  3201.  These  are  the  measure- 
ments of  the  Ordnance  Survey,  2nd  edition,  1905.  They 
form  part  of  the  tithing  of  Parracombe  in  the  hundred 
of  SherweU.  Brendon  also  formed  part  of  this  tithing 
(Parrecumbe  cum  Lyn  Brendon  et  Lynton  quae  sunt 
membra  ad  eandem,  a.d.  1316,  "Feudal  Aids,"  p.  367),  the 
large  extent  of  which,  about  21,582  acres,  shows  how 
extremely  thinly  the  district  was  inhabited  at  the  period 
of  the  formation  of  hundreds,  or  at  least  the  small  Saxon 
population.  The  whole  tithing  might  be  properly  described 
as  being  part  of  the  Forest  of  Exmoor,  as  the  lords  of  the 
manors  paid  chief  rents  and  owed  suit  and  service  to  the 
forest  courts,  and  had  rights  of  common  for  all  animals 
on  the  great  common  or  Forest  of  Exmoor  ("Exmoor  Forest 
Court  Papers"),  The  name  Lynton  or  Linton,  as  it  was 
more  commonly  spelt,  is  evidently  the  ton  on  the  Lyn.  It 
is  a  name  found  in  all  parts  of  England.  There  are  a  Linton 
and  Linmouth  in  Northumberland,  four  Lintons  in  York- 
shire, one  in  Cumberland,  one  in  Derbyshire,  one  in 
Cambridgeshire,  two  in  Herefordshire,  and  one  in  Kent. 
In  all  local  guide-books  lyn  is  explained  as  Celtic  for  a 
torrent  or  swift  stream.  Such  a  derivation  would  in  no 
way  fit  in  with  the  other  Lyntons,  and  it  is  merely  an 
error  into  which  successive  writers  on  the  district,  copying 
each  other,  have  fallen.  Lyn  or  line  in  Celtic  means  a 
pool,  and  is  a  word  found  in  numerous  combinations 
besides  Lynton,  such  as  Linlithgow,  Dublin,  Roslyn,  all  of 
which  take  their  names  from  pools ;  and  the  lynns  or  pools 
have  often  given  their  names  to  the  rivers  themselves,  as 
the  Lines  in  Cumberland,  Northimiberland,  Peebles,  and 
Fife ;  and  our  Devon  Lyn  is  essentially  a  stream  of  rocks 
and  pools,  many  of  which,  such  as  Peel  Pool,  Furze  Pool, 
Black  Pool,  Long  Pool,  Vellacotts  Pool,  Limekiln  Pool. 
Stag  Pool,  and  Island  Pool,  are  well  known  to  anglers, 
Countisbury  is  generally  explained  as  county's  boundary, 
though  Eisdon  says,  "Countisbury,  probably  the  land  of 
some  countess,"  but  it  is  far  more  probably,  as  the  late 
Mr.  E.  N.  Worth  pointed  out,  Kant-ys-bury,  the  camp  on 
the  headland,  taking  its  name  from  either  the  fortification 
now  called  Countisbury  Camp  or  Old  Burrow,  near  Glen- 
thome. 

The  place-names  seem  to  indicate  that  the  Saxon  settle- 
ment of  this  comer  of  Devon  was  a  gradual  and  peaceable 


122  THE  PARISHES   OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

one;  but  by  what  route  the  Saxons  first  came,  whether 
spreading  northward  from  Molton  or  Barnstaple,  or  creep- 
ing down  the  coastline  from  Porlock,  there  is  nothing  to 
show,  though  in  the  Middle  Ages  there  was  'a  closer  con- 
nexion between  Porlock  and  Lynton  than  between  Barn- 
staple and  Lynton.  The  family  names  commonest  at  Lynton 
from  A.D.  1500  downwards,  such  as  Broomholm,  are  met 
with  first  at  Porlock ;  but  Mr.  K.  J.  King  speaks  of  Exmoor 
as  being  for  a  long  period  a  mark  or  frontier,  and  that 
Simonsbath,  still  pronounced  Simmundsbath,  preserves  the 
name  of  Sigismund  the  Waelsing,  one  of  the  legendary 
heroes  wlio  were  considered  to  preside  over  boundary 
wastes.  The  names  attached  to  the  churches  in  the  neigh- 
bourliood  are  largely  Celtic  ones,  as  St.  Culbone  at  Kitnor, 
or  Culbone,  St.  Brendonus  at  Brendon,  St.  Martin  at  Martin- 
hoe,  perhaps  St.  Petrock  at  Parracombe.  Further  up  the 
coast  we  have  St.  Dubric  at  Porlock  and  St.  Decuman  at 
Watchet;  lower  down  St.  Brannock  at  Braunton  and  St. 
Nectan  at  Hartland.  St.  Mary  and  St.  John,  the  dedica- 
tions of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  are  common  to  Celt  and 
Saxon. 

Besides  the  names  connected  with  Lyn,  the  combes — as 
generally  in  Devon — are  very  frequent  in  the  parishes. 
We  have  Lyncombe,  Ranscombe,  Crosscombe,  Metticombe, 
Shortacombe,  Smallcombe,  Ladycombe,  Coscombe,  Denni- 
combe,  Ducombe,  Kipscombe,  Swannelcombe,  Nutcombe, 
and  Combe  Park.  Countisbury  and  Lynton,  the  parishes' 
names,  both  bear  witness  to  the  old  Celtic  inhabitants; 
yet  the  worthies  and  cotes,  such  as  Kibsworthy,  Thorn- 
worthy,  Dogsworthy,  and  Holworthy,  now  Holiday,  and 
numl)er8  of  others  in  the  surrounding  parishes,  show  how 
the  Saxon  found  it  unenclosed  and  sparsely  inhabited ;  but 
place-names  are  somewhat  difficidt  in  a  place  like  Lynton, 
where  they  have  been  so  much  changed  and  altered;  for 
instance,  the  steep  from  Lynton  to  the  sea  was  Mer  Hill, 
now  it  is  called  Mars  Hill. 

I  have  already  pointed  out  the  large  acreage  of  the 
tithing;  but  in  the  next  two  himdred  years  from  the 
coming  of  the  Saxon  to  North  Devon,  the  population  must 
have  increased  somewhat  rapidly,  for  at  the  date  of  the 
survey  for  "Domesday"  the  population  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  was  approximately  425.  If  this  is  compared 
with  a  population  of  481  in  Lynton  and  120  in  Countis- 
bury, total  601,  in  a.d.  1801,  it  would  point  to  the  con- 
*  ns : — 


/^ 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY,    123 

(1)  That  the  wars  between  the  various  Saxon  kingdoms 
and  Danish  raids  affected  it  very  little,  if  at  all. 

Although  there  are  notices  in  the  Saxon  Chronicles  of 
raids  on  the  coasts  of  the  Severn  Sea,  on  the  confines  of 
Devon  and  Somerset,  in  a.d.  845  and  917,  and  that  the  site 
of  the  battle  of  Cynuit  has  been  placed  at  Countisbury 
by  members  of  the  Somerset  Archaeological  Society,  yet 
evidences  for  either  Appledore  or  Cannington,  according 
to  Bishop  Clifford,  are  much  stronger;  and  the  raid  of  917, 
the  invasion  of  the  Lidwiccas,  under  Ohtor  and  Ehoald,  like 
that  of  988  and  997,  was  further  east,  affecting  Watchet 
and  Porlock.  The  landing  at  Lynmouth,  with  its  steep 
cliffs  to  ascend  to  Lynton  and  the  wild  moors  behind,  would 
never  have  been  inviting  with  Porlock  and  Ilfracombe  east 
and  west. 

(2)  That  the  statement  made  by  several  writers  "that 
Lynton  is  one  of  the  few  places  of  which  it  is  recorded  that 
William  the  Conqueror  expelled  the  natives"  is  entirely 
erroneous. 

The  origin  of  this  statement  would  appear  to  be  Risdon's 
words:  "Lynton  where,  when  William  the  Conqueror  had 
expulsed  the  English,  he  bestowed  these  lands  on  William 
Chichure  one  of  his  captains,  together  with  Crynton,  Wolve- 
combe,  Bocheland,  and  much  more  hereabouts."  I  think  this 
should  be  read  as  referring  to  the  former  owners,  Ailmer, 
Ailward  Tochesone,  and  Earl  Algar,  who  probably  never 
resided  at  Lynton  at  all.  The  Conquest  probably  made 
little  real  difference  to  the  parish ;  the  feudal  lords  changed, 
but  as  the  difficulty  of  access  would  have  prevented  them 
from  seeing  much  of  the  place  or,  perhaps,  of  coming  to  it 
at  all,  the  inhabitants  must  have  pursued  the  even  tenor 
of  their  ways  whoever  was  the  nominal  owner.  I  shall 
deal  with  the  Norman  lords  of  the  manors  in  the 
section  on  the  Manors,  and  so  need  not  refer  to  them 
here.  But  it  might  be  interesting  to  note  that  Exon 
"Domesday"  enumerates  the  following  stock  as  being  at 
that  date  in  the  parishes:  137  cattle,  84  swine,  611  sheep, 
and  150  goats ;  also  72  brood  mares,  probably  the  Exmoor 
ponies  running  half  wild  on  the  moor;  in  Brendon  104 
wild  mares  {equus  indomitas)  are  mentioned. 

In  these  records  we  read  of  manors,  lords,  villeins,  or 
farmers,  bordars  or  cottagers,  serfs  and  swineherds.  The 
lord  has  his  own  demesne  or  separate  land,  the  villeins 
their  farms,  the  bordars  their  cottages  and  an  acre  or  two, 
but  nothing  of  the  parish  or  the  church.     When  was  the 


124    THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 

parish  formed  and  its  boundaries  defined  ?  When  was  the 
church  built  and  endowed?  Of  this  we  have  no  documentary 
evidence,  nor  has  scarce  any  parish  in  the  county,  for 
"Domesday"  does  not  concern  itself  with  these  things;  only 
occasionally  does  it  mention  churches  or  priests.  The  earliest 
notices  we  have  of  the  parishes  and  rectors  are  in  the 
ecclesiastical  records  and  the  Valor  of  Pope  Nicholas  in 
1291 :  by  then  we  find  parishes  regularly  constituted  and 
parochial  clergy  mentioned,  and  that  there  were  rectors 
before  the  earliest  of  these  records.  We  can,  by  means  of 
feudal  aids,  carry  down  the  history  of  the  manors  from  the 
days  of  the  Conquest  to  the  present  time,  but  the  early 
history  of  our  country  parishes  is  entirely  dark — we  can 
only  speak  of  the  condition  of  the  people  and  their  habita- 
tions. The  earliest  church  doubtless  occupied  the  same  site 
as  the  present;  around  it  were  a  few  detached  cottages 
built  on  the  bare  earth;  the  walls  were  of  cob,  and  the  roof 
thatch ;  half-way  up  there  was  a  rude  floor  reached  by  a 
ladder,  which  was  the  general  sleeping  apartment  for  the 
household.  Their  food  consisted  of  coarse  bread,  salt  meat, 
stale  fish,  and  very  little  variety  of  vegetable  food,  which 
predisposed  them  to  scurvy  and  other  diseases.  Around 
every  house  were  a  few  enclosed  patches  and  herb  gardens ; 
further  out  were  the  farms  with  houses  a  little  bigger  of 
the  same  class;  the  one  assembly  place  and  often  storehouse 
for  the  whole  parish  was  the  nave  of  the  church. 

The  passing  of  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury 
into  the  hands  of  Ford  Abbey  may  possibly  have  made 
some  improvement,  for  the  Cistercian  Order  did  good  service 
to  England  by  the  care  it  took  to  improve  the  breed  of 
sheep  and  maintain  the  fineness  of  the  wool.  And  the 
monks  of  Ford,  who  were  Cistercians,  would  have  exercised 
some  local  influence — although  the  earliest  references  I 
have  show  that  for  some  time  the  manors  were  leased 
by  the  convent,  and  there  is  no  means  at  present  for  stating 
accurately  when  it  came  into  direct  relations  with  the 
abbey.  But  at  the  time  of  the  Valor  Ecclesiasticus  it  was 
administered  by  a  steward,  Robert  Store  being  then  bailiff 
or  steward  of  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury. 

But  the  conditions  of  the  district  were  certainly  favour- 
able for  sheep-farming,  both  on  account  of  its  large  open 
commons  and  the  fact  that  from  the  time  of  the  Conquest 
to  the  present  day  there  has  been  no  tramp  of  armies 
through  it,  or  even  near  it,  save  a  few  scattered  bands  in 
Monmouth's  rebellion  and  a  few  troopers  sent  after  them. 


THK  PARISHES   OF  LYNTON  AND   COUNTISBURY.  125 

The  Wars  of  the  Boses  and  even  the  Civil  Wars  left  it  un- 
molested, although  there  was  not  always  complete  security 
from  robbers  with  a  wild  neighbourhood  around,  to  which 
the  legends  of  the  Doones  and  other  sheep-stealers  still 
bear  witness ;  but  there  are  few  districts  in  England  which 
can  show  such  an  uneventful  history,  and  I  might  say 
disappointing  one,  to  unravel,  for  nearly  every  reference 
to  Lynton  in  the  national  archives  at  the  Kecord  OfiBce 
proved  on  examination  to  refer  to  some  other  of  the  many 
Lyntons  in  England.  But  to  its  connexion  with  Ford 
Abbey  it  was  indebted  for  the  extension  of  its  main 
industries,  agriculture  and  fishing.  The  large  open  commons 
led  to  the  grazing  of  large  flocks  and  developed  a  certain 
amount  of  spinning  of  yarn,  but  no  tucking  or  fulling  mill 
appears  in  Lynton  parish,  though  there  was  one  at  Countis- 
bury,  and  they  are  to  be  found  in  all  the  adjoining  parishes. 
The  only  other  agricultural  industry  was  the  raising  of 
store  stock,  and  sufficient  cereals,  mostly  oats  and  rye,  were 
grown  for  home  consumption.  The  following  inventory 
and  valuation  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  a  Lynton  farmer 
in  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century  will  give 
a  good  view  of  their  state  and  also  be  of  interest  as  showing 
the  prices  of  stock  at  that  period  and  of  what  the  house- 
hold goods  of  a  moorland  farmer  consisted ;  they  are  taken 
from  the  inventory  and  valuation  attached  to  the  will  of 
John  Knight,  of  Lynton,  husbandman,  proved  23  June,  1624. 

Apparel  £3,  6  oxen  £16,  3  Kine  £7  3  young  Bullocks  £4 
8  yerlings  £3  3,  calves  20s.,  1  Mare  and  2  Colts  £6  10s.,  25  Sheep 
£5  7  Lambes  13s.  2  Pigges  16s.  Com  in  the  house  40s.  Com  in 
the  ground  £10  5  Brassen  pans  46s.  8d.  2  Brasseu  Crocks  20s., 
the  Pewter  vessels  20s.  one  cupboard  21s.  The  table  board,  form, 
and  wainscote  10s.  5  coffers  10s.  4  Bedsteads  13s.  4d.  2  feather 
beds  and  two  dust  beds  with  their  furnyture  40s.  The  wooden 
vessels  208.  The  bacon  and  beeafe  20s.,  one  but  and  one  peare 
of  weeales  and  weane  bodie  20s.,  all  the  ploughshipe  23s.  4d. 
the  bees  13s.  4d.,  the  Pultree  10s.,  all  the  husbandry  workeinge 
tooles  lOs.,  all  other  things  left  unprised  or  forgotten  68.  8d. 

The  lease  of  the  farm  was  valued  as  worth  £20. 

From  this  we  see  that  oxen  were  used  for  ploughing,  and 
that  a  much  larger  proportion  of  land  was  cropped  for  com 
than  at  present;  the  presence  of  a  but  and  wheels  is 
interesting,  as  till  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century 
packhorses  and  sledges  were  almost  entirely  used  on  most 
of  the  farms  in  the  district. 


126    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

The  fishery  (mainly  consisting  of  herrings  and  oysters) 
and  the  harbour  were  the  points  that  differentiated  Lynton 
from  tlie  surrounding  parishes,  and  their  history  is  to  a 
great  extent  the  history  of  the  parish,  and  they,  too,  owed 
their  development  to  their  connexion  with  the  Abbey  of  Ford, 
which  owned  the  whole  of  the  coastline  in  the  two  parishes 
of  Lynton  and  Countisbury.  The  abbey  had,  or  claimed  to 
have,  very  extensive  rights  of  fishery  both  by  sea  and  land, 
for  according  to  the  statement  made  by  the-  Wichehalse 
family  in  commencing  an  action  in  the  Court  of  the 
Exchequer : — 

The  Abbots  of  Ford  did  possess  and  enjoy  and  did  claim  and 
entitle  themselves  to  have  the  sole  right  of  fishing  within  the 
river  of  Severne  adjoining  unto  the  coasts  and  shores  of  Lynton 
and  Countisbury  by  such  person  or  persons  only  to  whom  they 
granted  licences.  And  this  royalty  has  been  always  known  to 
extend  from  Leymouth,  being  the  most  westward  point  of  Lynton 
Mannor,  there  contiguous  with  Mattinhoe  Lordshipp  all  along  the 
shore  and  coast  of  Lynton,  and  thenceforth  spreading  to  the 
middle  current  or  thred  of  water,  running  or  flowing  in  the 
River  Severne  and  ebbing  there  vice  versa,  running  up  the  said 
Channel  soe  far  as  to  be  opposite  the  most  extream  eastern  part 
of  Countisbury  mannor  and  so  far  into  the  breadth  of  the 
channell  from  Countisbury  shore  or  coast  as  to  be  half-way 
between  Lynton  and  Countisbury  aforesaid  and  Wales  in  direct 
opposition  fronting  the  aforesaid  premises. 

This  was  a  claim  going  far  beyond  the  old  manorial  one, 
which  was  for  the  shore  so  far  seaward  as  a  horsed  knight 
could  at  low-water  springs  reach  with  his  lance.  Beyond 
this  was  the  king's,  and  all  the  subjects  of  the  king  had 
a  right  to  fish  in  the  sea  with  hooks  and  nets  and  other 
movable  appliances,  but  a  right  to  exclude  the  public  can 
be  supported  by  immemorial  usage — that  is  to  say,  of  a 
grant  by  the  Crown  made  before  Magna  Charta.  And  the 
Wichelialses  claimed  that  the  abbots  of  Ford,  and  they  as 
their  successors  in  their  rights  and  franchises,  had  from 
time  immemorial  this  royalty,  or  franchise,  or  liberty  of 
fisliing  in  the  river  of  Severn  adjoining  the  shores  and 
coasts  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  which  was  a  very  valu- 
able one.  For  formerly  it  was  a  noted  resort  of  herrings, 
and  as  such  is  mentioned  by  Westcote  and  others,  and  from 
a  very  early  date  there  were  on  both  the  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  sides  of  Lynmouth  or  Leymouth,  as  it  is  always 
called  in  all  old  documents,  cellars  and  curing-houses  called 
the  Eed-herring  houses,  all  the  buildings  then  existing  at 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    127 

Lynmouth  being  of  this  class,  the  only  access  to  them  being 
by  a  zigzag  path  down  the  steep,  which  was  called  Mer 
Hill  or  the  Sea  Hill ;  in  later  documents  Merrill,  and  now 
by  an  absurd  corruption  Mars  Hill.  These  Red-herring 
houses  were  close  to  the  beach,  and,  unprotected  by  any  sea- 
wall, were  continually  being  washed  away  by  storms  and 
high  tides.  A  great  storm  in  1607  swept  away  a  whole 
row  on  the  east  or  Countisbury  side  and  changed  the  course 
of  the  river.  The  old  bed  and  weir  can  still  be  seen  to 
the  west  of  present  river-bed.  At  times  the  herrings  for- 
sook the  shore.  A  similar  thing  has  happened  at  various  parts 
of  England,  and  everywhere  local  traditions  give  the  same 
reason — either  that  the  parson  vexed  the  people  for  extra- 
ordinary tithe,  and  so  the  herrings  left  to  avoid  contentions, 
or  that  the  herrings  were  so  plentiful  that  they  were 
used  for  manure,  which  so  insulted  the  fish  that  they  would 
not  come  again.  During  these  times  the  curing-pits  were 
suffered  to  fall  into  decay,  and  were  repaired  and  rebuilt 
on  the  herrings  returning.  About  A.D.  1750  most  of  these 
Eed-herring  houses  were  sold  by  Mr.  Short,  then  lord  of 
the  manor,  and  turned  by  the  new  owners  into  cottages. 
Since  then  there  has  been  only  one  period  in  which  the 
industry  flourished,  a.d.  1787  to  1797,  and  from  that  time 
— with  the  exception  of  two  years,  1811  and  1823 — there 
have  been  no  visits  of  large  shoals.  The  export  of  Lim- 
mouth  oysters,  however,  continued  up  to  the  beginning  of 
the  last  century. 

The  herring  fishery  and  curing  industry  led  to  a  certain 
amount  of  trade  with  Bristol  and  Scotland,  and  the  settle- 
ment of  a  Scotch  family  or  two  at  Lynmouth — the  Fer- 
gusons for  one — and  to  attempts  to  make  the  mouth  of 
the  stream  into  a  kind  of  haven.  In  the  Exchequer  Bill 
I  quoted  from  before  it  is  stated  that 

The  Lords  of  the  lordships  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  did 
always  for  the  security  of  the  vessells  to  ride,  anchor,  more,  and 
keel  in  the  harbour  formed  by  Leymouth  river  set  up  posts  of 
great  substance,  to  which  posts  such  barks  and  vessels  are  moored 
and  tyed  with  ropes  to  save  them  from  the  ground  sea  very 
rowleing  and  dangerous  there.  Without  which  posts  being  on  both 
sides  it  is  impossible  that  any  vessell  lying  in  there  should  escape 
from  being  wrecked. 

But  after  the  departure  of  the  Wichehalse  family  from 
Lynton  the  haven  or  harbour  fell  into  disrepair.  The  disputes 
and  litigation  between  Wichehalse  and  Short,  the  mortgagee. 


128    THS  PARISHES  OV  LTHTOH  AND  OODHTISBDKI. 

went  on  for  nearly  twenty  yeacs.  Jcim  Wkhehalae  had 
no  money  to  spend  on  it,  and  Short,  of  coarae,  would  not 
till  his  position  was  seonre;  and  so  what  repairs  were  neces- 
sary had  to  be  done  by  the  fishermen  and  herring  carers 
themselves;  and  acting  on  the  advice  of  Mr.  Popham,  of 
East  Lyn,  in  whose  hands  the  trade  principally  was,  they 
refused  to  pay  any  more  for  fishery  licences,  and  spent  the 
money  on  repairing  the  mooring  posts.  On  the  lawsuits 
terminating  in  favour  of  Mr.  Short,  he  was  of  opinion  that 
enough  had  been  spent  in  law  over  Lynton  Manor  without 
throwing  more  into  the  sea ;  and  so  matters  drifted  on  till 
A.D.  1740,  when  the  Eev.  Edward  Nicholls  was  appointed 
curate  -  in  -  charge.  He  had  married  the  widow  of  Mr. 
Richard  Knight,  of  West  Lyn,  and  soon  became  the  leading 
man  in  parish  affairs.  He  took  up  the  cause  of  the  fisher- 
men, and  represented  their  case  so  strongly  that  the  lord 
of  the  manor  ordered  his  receipts  from  fishery,  keelage,  and 
mowage  to  be  spent  on  the  repairs.  The  fishermen  aoknow- 
leered  their  obligations  to  Mr.  Nicholls  by  subscribing  for 
a  silver  cup  to  be  presented  to  him,  but  after  1750  the 
receipts  fell  to  such  small  amounts  by  the  failure  of  the 
fishery  as  to  be  entirely  insufficient,  and  the  mariners  and 
fishers  had  to  repair  as  best  they  could.  But  the  dangers 
to  the  quay  were  not  only  seawards,  but  also  landward. 
The  gradients  on  the  stream  are  very  steep,  and  after  heavy 
rains  it  comes  down  at  times  a  foaming  torrent,  rolling 
great  boulders  along,  and  destroying  all  in  its  course.  Such 
a  fresh  in  1769  did  great  destruction.  The  seamen  got  up 
a  petition  to  the  lord,  which  was  signed  by  nearly  every 
inhabitant,  entitled : — 

"The  humble  petition  of  the  seamen  of  limmouth  on 
behalf  of  themselves  and  other  inhabitants  of  Linton  and 
Limmouth."     It  stated  that — 

The  river  at  Limouth  by  the  late  rain  rose  to  such  a  degree 
as  was  never  known  by  the  memory  of  any  man  now  living,  which 
brought  down  great  rocks  of  several  ton  each  and  choked  up 
the  harbour,  broke  one  boat  to  pieces  and  was  driven  to  sea,  and 
another  boat  was  driven  on  the  rocks,  which  cost  upward  of 
£12  in  repairing,  and  had  all  the  rest  been  there  some  of  them 
must  have  been  broken  to  pieces,  etc.  .  .  .  and  also  carried  away 
the  foundation  under  the  Kay  on  that  side  against  the  river  six 
foot  down  and  ninety  feet  long,  and  some  places  two  feet  under 
the  Kay,  which  stands  now  in  great  danger  of  falling.  And  had 
it  not  been  for  a  new  Kay  adjoining  to  the  head  of  the  other 
of  seventy  feet  long  and  four  feet  high  made  last  year  with  large 


THE  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  OOUNTISBURY.    129 

rocks  and  at  the  entire  expense  and  labour  of  the  seamen  the 
Kay  head  would  have  actually  been  down,  as  the  river  forced 
itself  that  way,  and  the  rest  must  soon  have  followed  after.  And 
as  the  place  is  now  so  ruinous  the  seamen  and  other  families  must 
entirely  leave  it,  and  then  it  will  all  soon  be  washed  away  if  not 
immediately  repaired,  which  by  a  moderate  computation  will 
amount  to  £40. 

Therefore  the  said  petitioners  humbly  desire  your  honour  to 
advance  what  your  goodness  shall  think  proper,  as  they  will 
advance  and  do  what  lieth  in  their  power,  which  may  be 
advantage  to  you  and  your  posterity  and  your  petitioners  as 
in  duty  bound  will  ever  pray. 

Dated  Linton,  8th  day  of  August,  1770. 

This  petition  was  signed  by  twenty-seven  inhabitants, 
twenty-two  in  their  own  handwriting — one  put  his  letters 
and  four  made  their  mark.  It  was  entrusted  to  Mr. 
Nicholls,  who  forwarded  it  to  Mr.  Short  endorsed  with 
bis  strongest  recommendations  for  its  consideration. 

Mr.  Short  replied  that  his  steward,  Mr.  Hill,  was  there 
last  summer  but  heul  no  complaint  and  heard  nothing  of 
land  floods,  and  as  for  the  great  stones,  they  would  prevent 
any  further  mischief.  At  last  the  lord  agreed  to  repair  the 
foundations  on  the  condition  that  the  seamen  would  give 
their  time  to  wait  on  the  masons  and  do  all  the  labourers' 
work  in  the  repairs ;  and  on  their  undertaking  to  do  so  the 
under-steward,  Mr.  William  Litson,  had  orders  to  get  it 
done  as  cheaply  as  possible.  The  work  was  completed 
in  1772,  Mr.  Short  telling  Litson  that  if  there  were  any 
extras  the  seamen  must  pay  for  them.  In  the  end  the 
seamen  paid  three  guineas  extras  and  also  bought  and 
set  up  new  mooring  posts.  It  was  not,  however,  very  lasting, 
as  in  1775  it  was  in  as  bad  a  state  as  ever.  At  this  juncture 
a  Mr.  William  Lock  had  settled  in  the  parish  and  was 
engaged  in  the  shipping  business  at  the  haven,  and  he  took 
the  matter  in  hand,  did  the  most  necessary  repairs  at  his 
own  expense,  and  called  in  an  expert  to  survey  the  harbour 
works,  who  advised  that  an  outlay  of  £200  would  be 
necessary  to  put  it  in  proper  repair.  The  report  was  sent 
to  the  lord,  who  promised  to  give  six  guineas  if  the  seamen 
and  fishers  would  expend  eighteen  guineas  of  their  own 
besides.  This  unsatisfactory  reply  brought  the  Kev.  Edward 
Nicholls  to  the  subject  again.  He  represented  to  Mr. 
Short  that  if  a  tolerable  quay  was  made  many  more  sails 
of  trading  vessels  and  boats  would  come  into  the  harbour, 
and  thereby  add  to  his  interest  if  he  would  keep  proper 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  I 


130         THE  PABI8HBS  OF  LTKTON  AND  COUNnSBURT. 

posts  and  moorings,  and  that  the  poor  fishermen  had  been 
obliged  to  be  at  the  expense  of  it  out  of  their  own  pockets 
as  well  as  pay  keelage,  at  which  they  greatly  grumbled,  and 
that  six  guineas  would  go  very  little  way  towards  £200 
expenditure ;  but  if  Mr.  Short  would  contribute  fairly  they 
would  raise  the  rest  by  a  collection  in  all  the  neighbouring 
seaports. 

Tlie  lord  of  the  manor  was  however  of  opinion  that 
Limmoutli  harbour  was  a  place  rather  like  the  horse- 
leech s  daughters,  always  crying  **Give,  give/'  and  that  he 
gi>t  very  little  out  of  it  and  had  little  interest,  as  he  had 
loni;  ago  dis}x>$ed  of  most  of  the  estates.  Long  n^otiations 
tMuU\l  in  what  remained  of  the  manor  and  the  manor  rights 
InnUiX  sold  to  Mr.  Lock,  by  whom  the  quay  was  ultimately 
repaired. 

Tlie  lawsuit  between  his  grandson,  Mr.  Bobert  Lock  Roe, 
and  Mr.  Green  as  to  the  right  to  levy  quay  dues  in  A.D. 
1870  is  too  recent  to  give  particulars  of,  but  it  is  interesting 
to  note  that  the  judges  in  giving  judgment  against  Mr. 
Robert  Lock  Roe  said  they  did  so  wit£  great  reluctance, 
but  they  could  not  override  the  evidence  of  a  Record  OflBce 
expert,  Mr.  Stuart  Moore,  who  showed  that  while  in  the 
Assize  Roll  of  the  Pleas  held  before  Solomon  de  Roffa  in  A.D. 
1281  the  Abbot  of  Ford,  while  claiming  certain  franchises 
and  rights,  made  no  claim  of  quay  dues,  and  that  as  such 
claims  are  recorded  in  other  cases  the  presumption  was  that 
the  Abbot  of  Ford  made  no  such  claim  or  had  no  such 
right  or  franchise.  This,  I  think,  is  of  great  interest  as 
showing  that  researches  into  the  records  of  the  past,  which 
certain  uninterested  people  may  describe  as  obsolete  rubbish, 
have  a  commercial  value  in  these  present  days,  and  I  would 
also  note  that  if  Mr.  Roe's  advisers  had  taken  equal  care  to 
search  the  records  of  the  past  the  case  might  possibly  have 
ended  dififerently,  as  there  are  papers  at  the  Record  Office, 
some  of  which  I  have  quoted  in  these  pages,  bearing  on  the 
subject  which  seem  to  favour  the  lord  of  the  manor's 
claim. 

The  trade  from  the  small  haven  has  never  been  of  any 
importance  since  the  decay  of  the  fishery.  The  export  of 
oysters  continued  for  some  time;  in  A.D.  1801  they  were 
still  sent  to  Bristol  and  were  sold  at  2s.  per  100.  The  only 
other  exports  were  bark  and  oats,  and  the  imports  were 
coal  and  limestone,  which  was  burnt  near  the  sea ;  but  the 
difficulty  of  conveying  goods  from  the  quay  up  the  steep 
only    conveyance    being    packhorses — was    an 


r\ 


'S 

^ 


o 
z 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    131 

insuperable  bar  to  any  development,  nor  did  the  making  of 
a  wheel-track  in  the  last  century  lead  to  any  improvement, 
as  the  gradients  were  so  steep.  I  have  dealt  at  some  length 
with  the  fishery  and  haven,  for  the  history  of  it  is  almost 
the  history  of  Lynton,  for  lying  as  it  did  far  oft*  from  the 
main  roads  none  of  the  great  upheavals  which  figure  so 
largely  in  the  history  of  other  districts  touched  it. 

The  suppression  of  the  monasteries,  so  much  of  the 
parishes  being  abbey  lands,  might  have  been  expected  to 
have  made  great  differences,  but  here  it  was  scarcely  felt, 
for  the  abbey  property  was  administered  not  by  one  of  the 
monks,  but  by  a  layman,  one  John  Chidley,  a  Dorsetshire 
gentleman,  who  held  the  office  of  bailiff  of  the  manors  of 
Lynton,  Countisbury,  and  Thorncombe,  which  he  obtained 
through  his  relative  Abbot  Thomas  Chard,  alias  Tybbs, 
Bishop  of  Solubria.  And  on  the  abbey  being  taken  into 
the  king's  hands,  Chidley  obtained  letters  patent  from  the 
Crown  to  hold  the  office  for  his  life,  and  held  it  during  the 
reigns  of  Henry  VIII,  Edward  VI,  Mary,  and  Elizabeth,  till 
it  was  sold  to  Nicholas  Wichehalse. 

The  political  and  ecclesiastical  storms  of  the  Civil  Wars 
passed  it  by.  The  nearest  approach  to  it  of  any  troops  was 
the  marching  over  Exmoor  from  Dunster  to  Barnstaple. 
The  clergy  were  men  of  obscure  note,  at  least  so  their 
successor  said,  and  the  livings  so  poor  that  their  poverty 
was  their  protection.  And  there  are  no  delinquents 
mentioned,  though  as  I  have  shown  in  the  account  of  the 
Wichehalse  family  it  was  the  influence  of  the  squire's  son, 
John  Wichehalse,  the  Parliamentary  Commissioner,  which 
was  its  protection.  And  so  Lynton  lived  its  quiet  life,  and 
after  the  brief  episode  of  a  resident  squire,  from  A.D.  1628 
to  1686,  it  sank  back  to  a  little  country  village,  without 
a  squire,  rector,  or  vicar,  or  scarce  a  visitor  for  another 
hundred  years.  Even  if  one  came,  there  was  no  accommoda- 
tion of  any  kind.  When  the  lord  of  the  manor  or  his 
steward  wished  to  visit  his  estate  the  only  house  able  to 
accommodate  them  was  a  new  one  built  by  the  curate,  the 
Rev.  Robert  Triggs,  and  by  a  clause  in  the  lease  the  owner 
had  to  find  lodging  and  victual  for  the  lord,  his  steward, 
servants,  and  horses.  Its  awakening  was  caused  by  the 
French  Revolution.  The  shutting  of  the  Continent  for  a 
long  period  to  the  tourists  led  them  to  seek  for  fresh 
pastures  in  the  unknown  parts  of  their  native  country,  and 
in  that  period  Lynton  may  be  said  to  have  been  discovered 
by  the  general  public;  before,  its  existence  and  beauties 

I2 


132         THK  PARISHB8  OF  LTITTON  AND  COUMTISBUST. 

had  only  been  known  to  a  few  literati  and  adventurous 
spirits.  Among  the  pioneers  were  the  Marchioness  of 
Bute  and  Mr.  Coutts  the  banker;  they  found  scarcely 
any  accommodation.  The  only  hostelry,  kept  by  John 
Litson,  "  At  the  Sign  of  the  Crown,"  as  the  records  of  the 
parish  styled  it  when  the  vestry  adjourned  there  in 
A.D.  1790,  was  small  and  insuflacient.  It  is  to  a  Mr.  William 
Litson,  son  of  Mr.  William  Litson,  schoolmaster,  that  Lynton 
really  owes  its  position  as  a  tourists'  resort.  An  enterprising 
man,  he  saw  an  opening  in  the  advent  of  the  visitor.  Accord- 
ingly he  furnished  cottages  for  the  visitors,  who  in  those  days 
came  not  for  the  day  or  the  week,  but  for  months ;  and  in 
1807  he  opened  what  was  the  beginning  of  the  now  famous 
Valley  of  Rocks  Hotel,  on  the  site  of  the  present  Globe 
Hotel.  And  soon  the  visitors,  attracted  by  the  romantic 
scenery,  began  to  build  for  themselves ;  cottages  and  bunga- 
lows sprang  up ;  and  another  hotel,  "  The  Castle,"  was  bmlt 
by  Mr.  Colley,  maltster,  of  Barnstaple,  and  the  first  Guide  to 
Lynton  made  its  appearance.  It  was  a  very  modest  sheet 
of  three  pages,  printed  at  Barnstaple,  and  written  by  John 
Davis,  giving  directions  to  visitors  of  what  were  the  chief 
objects  of  interest,  their  distances,  and  the  means  of  getting 
at  them.  They  were  the  Valley  of  Eocks,  Mr.  Clarke's 
grounds  at  Ley  Farm,  Mrs.  Sandford's  Terrace,  the  west 
valley,  the  east  valley — less  picturesque  than  the  west,  but 
more  sublime — up  to  the  meeting  of  the  waters  described 
as  somewhat  inaccessible.  Ponies  or  donkeys  were  the  only 
means  of  travelling,  except  on  foot,  there  being  even  at  that 
date  no  wheels.  Since  Lynton  started  on  its  career  as  a 
tourists'  and  visitors'  resort  its  rise  has  been  steady  and  con- 
sistent. A  rate  of  the  parish  in  1773  produced  £1  13s.,  in 
1865  the  rateable  value  was  £4927,  and  in  1905  £11,803. 

The  items  of  the  rate  of  1773  will  be  of  interest  in  these 
days  as  showing  the  items  on  each  tenement : — 


8, 

d. 

Rev.  Mr.  Knight 

for  Higher  TenS  West  Lyn     1 

2 

If 

Lower                „                 1 

1 

)* 

N.  Stock      . 

10 

)i 

Berry's  Tenement 

2 

)} 

Barbrook  Mill 

5 

Rev.  J.  Pine 

East  Lyn      . 

1 

4 

John  Lock 

Ashwells 

H 

William  Lock 

S.  Sparhanger 

2 

it 

East  Dean    . 

8 

If 

Latham's  Tenement 

4i 

THE  PAKISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 


133 


William  Lock  Minnj  Gloee 

„  Vellacotts 

New  Mill     . 
Lessee  of  Glebe  and  Tithes  . 
Occupier  of  E.  Lyn  Lower  Tenement 

„         Shortacombe 

„         East  Ilkerton     . 

„         Great  Willanger 
Philip  Squire,  Furzehill 
David  Hill,  Berry's  and  Cook's     . 
T.  Jones,  Crosscombe  . 
J.  Hooper,  Linton  Town 

„         Great  Stock 
R.  and  J.  Delbridge,  W.  Dean 
Jas.  Lean,  pt.  E.  Dean 
D.  Jones  and  J.  Lean,  Lash  Close 
J.  Punchard,  N.  Furzehill    . 
W.  Keal,  Griffith's 
Do  veil  and  Lock,  Ilkerton    . 
Occupier  of  Crocombe's  Tenement 
R.  Vellacott,  Sparh  anger) 

„  Ratsbury    / 

Occupier  of  Six  Acre   . 

„        Coffins  Heanton 
R.  Hooper,  Barham 
R  Ward,  Groves  Ten*. 
„       Thomworthy. 
Crabriel  Keal,  Combe  Park   . 
Occupier,  Ley      .... 
William  Squire,  West  Ilkerton 
Thomas  Jones,  E.  Ilkerton    . 

„  Lower  Bullen 

R.  Vellacott,  Ilkerton  . 
Occupier,  Little  Willanger    . 
Letheby,  Linton  Town 
W.  VeUacott,  Linton  Town  . 
W.  Litson,  Limouth  and  Linton  Town 
J.  Litson,  Linton  Town 
W.  Hooper,  Linton  Town     . 
W.  Richards,  Linton  Town  . 
W.  Hooper,  Oliver's     . 
H.  Vellacott,  Higher  Bullen. 


f .    d. 


2* 

n 

3    0 

1     4 

2 

1     1 

lOf 

8 

6i 
9 
4 
8 
6 
3 
4 
10 
1 
6 

n 

1  lU 

2  o' 

H 

8" 

10 

6 

1     8 

1     4 

7 

1 

6 

3 

ii 

3 
1 
2 
2 
2 
1 


Of  the  population  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  combined 
in  1060  I  have  already  given  an  estimate,  and  there  are 
no  means  of  estimating  it  again  till  we  come  to  the  Subsidy 
Bolls.    The  earliest  of  these  I  have  been  able  to  find  con* 


134 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBY. 


taining  lists  of  names  in  these  parishes  is  that  of 
6  Edward  III  (a.d.  1330),  when  the  following  names 
appear.    It  includes  Lynton  and  Countisbury. 


William  Coffyn 

12 

Roger  atte  Combe     . 

18 

Henry  Leagh    . 

18 

John  Fouke 

4 

Walter  de  Lynton 

40 

William  le  Soper 

5 

Richard  Machun 

H 

Adam  Kyng     . 

8 

John  de  Ashdene 

14 

Roger  Compyng 

8 

Roger  de  Bryhttesworth 

14 

Thomas  atte  Mill      . 

8 

William  de  Legh 

15 

Peter  Fouke     . 

12 

Richard  Kr 

15 

Philip  Cardour 

10 

Richard  Kempe 

.     18 

•       1  •     i 

Henry  atte  Mill 

l^    ^j^ __i 

10 

It  will  be  noted  in  this  list  that  surnames  are  only  partly 
fixed:  while  we  have  Coffyn,  Kempe,  and  King  there  are 
in  several  cases  the  places  of  abode,  as  atte  Mill,  Ley,  the 
combe,  Ashdene,  and  Bryghttesworth,  and  also  occupations 
le  Soper,  Cardour.  The  subsidy  does  not,  however,  go  down 
low  enough  to  be  able  to  estimate  the  population  from  it. 

The  other  existing  early  rolls  with  names  are  those  of 
24  Edward  III,  13  Henry  IV,  15  Henry  VII,  5  Henry  VIII, 
34  Henry  VIII :  the  last  of  these,  which  gives  twenty-nine 
names  for  Lynton  and  sixteen  for  Countisbury,  goes  down 
to  the  smallest  occupier  of  land,  and  forms  a  fair 
basis  for  estimating  the  population.  If  we  allow  an  average 
of  one  unassessed  household  or  labourer  for  each  farm  it 
will  give  an  estimated  population  of  290  for  Lynton  and 
160  for  Countisbury  in  A.D.  1543.  The  names  appearing 
in  this  list  are : — 


LYNTON. 

John  Berry,  of  Six  Acre 

10     John  Bromeholme  sr. 

.     10 

John  Baker 

10     John  Bromeholme  jr. 

4 

Robert  Baylie  . 

.     10 

John  Cloman,  miller 

2 

David  Knight  de  Dene 

.     10 

William  Thome 

18 

Thomas  Score  . 

3 

Thomas  Clerk  jr. 

1 

Roger  Shelford 

16 

John  Roke 

2 

Thomas  Berry  . 

2 

David  Roke 

2 

John  Berry 

1 

David  Dyer 

12 

John  Crocombe 

1 

John  Dyer 

4 

John  Cloman  9r. 

1 

John  Dyer  jr.  . 

.     10 

John  Score  de  Ljmton 

1 

John  Cloman  de  Ilkerton 

1 

David  Knight  sr. 

12 

David  Cloman  . 

1 

Roger  Knight  . 

10 

John  Bury 

1 

John  Dyer  de  Line  . 

1 

Thomas  Bond   . 

.     10 

David  Chelecombe    . 

1 

THE  FABISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 


135 


COUNTISBURY. 

4 

John  Mogerige 
John  Holle worthy  de 
Ashton 

1 

!        2 

Johnna  Holleworthy 
David  Holleworthy  . 
John  Szoley     . 
John  Rawell 

2 

.       3 

1 

1 

David  Rawyle  . 

.       2 

Richard  Frye    . 
David  Frye 
Robert  Frye 
John  Parkyn  sr. 
John  Parkyn  jr. 
David  Ward  sr. 
John  Ward  sr. 
John  Ward  jr. . 
David  Moggeridge 

Most  of  these  names  are  those  of  families  that  were 
resident  in  the  parish  down  till  the  last  century. 

Later  rolls  with  names  are  in  existence  for  1551,  1571, 
1592,  1622,  an  undated  one  temp.  Charles  I,  and  1640.  I 
have  transcribed  all  of  these,  but  as  the  period  is  covered 
by  the  registers  it  is  unnecessary  to  insert  them. 

The  population  since  1801  shows  a  steady  increase,  the 
only  drop — a  small  one — being  in  1861;  the  largest  increase 
1901.     The  figures  are : — 


1801   . 

Lynton  481     ... 

Countisbury  120 

1811   . 

„       671     .. 

113 

1821   . 

„       632     .. 

118 

1831   . 

„       792     .. 

187 

1841   . 

„     1027     .. 

185 

1851   . 

„     1059     .. 

174 

1861   . 

„     1035     .. 

176 

1871   . 

„     1170     .. 

209 

1881   . 

„     1213     .. 

184 

1891   . 

„     1235     .. 

233 

1901   . 

„     1641     .. 

279 

If  the  census  were  taken  in  August  the  total  would  be 
nearly  5000. 

The  greatest  change  that  has  been  made  in  the  last 
century  is  by  the  enclosure  of  the  commons  between  1850 
and  1860.  It  gave  rise  to  protracted  litigation  owing  to 
conflicting  interests,  the  details  of  which,  however,  it  is 
unnecessary  to  enter  into.  Under  the  award  33  acres  2 
roods  34  perches  in  the  Valley  of  Kocks  were  allotted  as 
a  recreation  ground  for  the  parishioners,  and  are  happily 
still  in  a  wild  state  and  unenclosed.  But  the  approach 
to  Lynton  from  Barnstaple  has  been  completely  altered. 
Up  till  1850,  after  leaving  Parracombe,  the  road  passed 
over  a  great  stretch  of  gorse  and  heather,  without  any 
fence  on  either  side  till  the  top  of  Lydiate  Lane  or  Dean 


136         THK  PABISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  OOmmBBUBT. 

was  reached.  Now  the  moor  can  only  be  seen  in  the 
distance,  the  heather  has  disappeared,  aU  has  been  fenced 
in,  and  wide  roads  have  taken  the  place  of  the  packhorse 
tracks  of  the  last  century.  Even  as  late  as  1859  the  Lord 
Chief  Justice  of  England,  who  was  in  that  summer  a  visitor 
at  Lynton,  wrote  to  the  local  authorities  to  complain  of  the 
dangerous  and  almost  impassable  state  of  some  of  the  roads 
(Vestry  Minutes,  1859). 

The  method  by  which  the  annual  cattle  fair  at  Lynbridge 
was  first  established  in  1854  is,  I  think,  of  interest  as 
showing  the.  strange  blend  of  superstitious  customs  and 
affectation  for  legal  forms  that  existed  among  the  inhabitants 
at  that  time. 

There  is  an  idea  which  is  prevalent  still  in  many  villages 
that  a  legal  fair  can  be  established  by  means  of  performii^ 
the  burlesque  ceremony  known  as  "  To  ride  Skimmington," 
I  need  not  describe  the  ceremony,  as  it  is  so  well  known — 
but  if  any  desire  information  I  would  refer  them  to  Butler's 
"Hudibras"  and  HalliwelL  Accordingly  this  ceremony  was 
performed,  and  the  following  account  was  drawn  up  and 
preserved  in  the  "Fair  Book  with  List  of  Tolls"  by  the 
organizers. 

MANOR   OF  LYNTON   IN   THE  CO.   OF  DEVON. 

June  '26th,  185 Jf. 

Whereas  the  inhabitants  of  Lynton  in  the  County  of  Devon 
did  send  on  the  tenth  day  of  June,  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  fifty-four,  public  notice  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  parish 
of  Countisbury  in  the  Co.  of  Devon  that  they  intended  to  ride 
Skibbiton  \sic\  on  Monday,  June  12th,  1854,  and  that  they 
would  bring,  and  nail,  and  leave,  the  Ram's  horns  in  the  parish  of 
Countisbury  aforesaid  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  an  annual 
cattle  fair  in  the  parish  of  Lynton  aforesaid.  And  the  inhabit- 
ants of  Lynton  did  ride  Skibbiton  on  Monday,  June  12th,  1854, 
and  having  carried  the  horns  and  having  nailed  and  left  the  horns 
in  the  parish  of  Countisbury  in  the  Co.  of  Devon  without  let  or 
hindrance,  and  having  sent  notice  to  the  churchwardens  of  the 
parish  of  Countisbury  on  the  nineteenth  day  of  June,  1854,  that 
they  should  bring  the  Ram's  horns  and  nail  and  leave  the  same  in 
the  parish  of  Countisbury  on  Monday,  June  26th,  1854,  for  the 
purpose  of  holding  and  establishing  an  annual  cattle  fair  in  the 
parish  of  Lynton  in  the  Co.  of  Devon,  and  the  inhabitants  of 
Countisbury  having  received  the  horns  without  let  or  hindrance, 
a  Cattle  Fair  was  held  at  Lynbridge  on  the  said  Manor  of  Lynton 
on  Monday,  June  26th,  1854. 


THS  PABISHXS  OF  LTI^TON  AND  COUKTISBUBT.  137 

Tolls  were  collected  at  this  fair  and  handed  over  to  the 
lord  of  the  manor  for  the  purpose  of  providing  stalls  and 
pens  at  the  fair,  and  a  notice  of  the  fair,  to  be  held  hence- 
forth annually  on  16  August,  was  advertised  in  a  local 
paper  by  the  steward  of  the  manor,  since  which  time  it  has 
been  regularly  held. 

The  greatest  alterations  and  improvements  in  Lynton 
itself  have  been  made  in  the  last  forty  years,  since  the 
Local  Board  was  first  formed  in  1866,  under  the  Local 
Government  Act  of  1858.  In  the  same  year  a  company 
was  formed  to  bring  a  supply  of  pure  water  into  the 
villages  from  the  West  Lyn  (the  work  was  completed  in 
1869  at  a  cost  of  about  £2500).  This  undertaking  was 
transferred  to  the  Local  Board  in  1893  for  a  fixed  rental. 
In  1894  the  Local  Board  gave  place  to  the  Urban  District 
Council,  which  is  now  the  governing  authority  for  the 
parishes  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  and  in  the  same  year 
Petty  Sessions  were  first  held  in  the  parish.  In  1895  the 
Bill  was  passed  under  which  the  long-hoped-for  railway 
between  Barnstaple  and  Lynton  was  constructed ;  it  was 
opened  on  11  May,  1898.  Communication  between  Lynton 
and  Lynmouth  by  the  Cliff  Railway  had  anticipated  this,  it 
being  opened  on  7  April,  1890. 

In  1900  a  volunteer  corps  was  started,  and  in  August  of 
the  same  year  the  new  Town  Hall  and  Municipal  Buildings, 
the  gift  of  Sir  George  Newnes,  were  opened.  A  new  Market 
House  and  new  schools  in  1901,  we  may  say,  completes  the 
equipment  of  the  modem  watering-place  which  now  lays 
itself  out  as  a  popular  visitors'  and  tourists'  resort. 


THE    MANORS. 
THEIR  EXTENT,    DESCENT,    AND   CUSTOMS. 

The  parishes  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  consist  of  the 
following  ancient  manors : — 

(i)  Lynton. 

(ii)  Incrinton  or  Woolhanger. 
(iii)  Lyn. 
(iv)  Heanton. 
(v)  Countisbury, 
and  Fursehill,  and  part  of  Crossoombe  detached. 


138         THE  PAfilSHBS  OF  LTNTON  AND  CX)X7NTISBnBT. 


L      MANOR  OF  LYNTON. 
(a)   EXTENT  AND   DESCENT. 

The  manor  of  Lynton  extended  over  the  whole  of  the 
western  side  of  the  parish,  excepting  what  lay  within  the 
manor  of  Heanton  and  Crosscombe.  Its  boundaries  were 
the  sea  on  the  north  from  the  East  Ljn  Biver  to  the  stream 
that  divides  Martinhoe  from  Lynton  at  Leymouth;  from 
there  by  a  line  running  nearly  south  having  Heanton  on 
the  west  to  a  point  where  the  three  parishes  of  Martinhoe, 
Parracombe,  and  Lynton. meet,  formerly  called  Red  Hoar 
Thorn ;  thence  down  the  stream  called  Venus  Water  to  the 
West  Lyn,  and  following  the  West  Lyn  to  its  junction  with 
East  Lyn,  and  from  there  following  the  East  Lyn  to  the  sea; 
part  of  Stock  also  was  a  detached  member  of  the  manor, 
and  probably  Fursehill  also  up  to  the  time  the  Tracies  held 
the  manor.  The  first  owner  we  know  of  is  Ailward 
Tochesone ;  by  William  I  it  was  granted  to  William  Capra, 
brother  of  Ralph  de  Pomeraia.  The  notice  of  it  in  Exon 
"  Domesday  '*  is : — 

William  has  a  manor  called  Lintona  which  Ailward  Tochesone 
held  on  the  day  on  which  King  Edward  was  alive  and  dead,  and 
with  this  manor  was  added  formerly  another  called  Incrintona 
which  Algar  held  and  these  are  held  by  William  for  one  manor, 
and  they  rendered  geld  for  one  hide.  This  can  be  ploughed 
by  twelve  ploughs,  of  it  William  has  in  demesne  half  a  hide  and 
five  ploughs,  and  the  villeins  have  a  hide  and  seven  ploughs. 
There  William  has  13  villeins  and  one  bordar  and  12  serfs, 
58  head  of  cattle,  and  22  swine,  and  200  sheep,  and  75  goats, 
and  72  brood  mares,  and  wood  7  furlongs,  and  pasture  2  leugas  in 
length  and  half  a  leuga  in  breadth,  and  Lintona  is  worth  by  the 
year  £4,  and  Incrintona  £3,  and  Lintona  was  worth  twenty 
shillings,  and  Incrintona  fifteen  shillings  when  he  received 
them. 

From  this  William  Capra,  also  called  William  Chiere, 
Cherebridge,  Cheriton,  and  Cherriford  are  stated  to  have 
taken  their  names;  but  the  names  are  certainly  of  older 
date,  as  Cheriton  under  form  of  Cereton  appears  in 
"  Domesday," 

William  Capra's  manors  would  seem  to  have  been 
escheated  to  the  Crown,  and  Lynton  and  Countisbury  to 
have  been  granted  to  a  Tracy.    Much  confusion  has  arisen 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    139 

from  there  being  two  distinct  families  of  this  name,  both  of 
which  were  connected  with  North  Devon,  who  are  often 
confounded.  The  better-known  family  in  North  Devon  is 
that  of  Tracy,  Baron  of  Barnstaple,  descended  from  Judhael, 
of  Totnes.  The  other  family,  who  held  the  honour  of 
Braneys  or  Brahancis,  were  descended  from  a  William  de 
Tracy,  a  natural  son  of  Henry  I.  This  William  de  Tracy 
left  a  daughter  Grace,  who  married  William  de  Sudely,  who 
assumed  the  name  of  Tracy ;  their  daughter  Eva  married  a 
William  Courtney,  who  also  took  the  name  of  Tracy,  and  it 
was  their  son,  Henry  de  Tracy,  who  either  in  the  first  or 
tenth  year  of  King  John  granted  the  manors  of  Countisbury 
and  Lynton  with  the  service  of  Fursehill  to  the  church 
of  St.  Mary  of  Ford  and  the  monks  there  serving  God  in 
pure  and  perpetual  alms,  commonly  known  as  Ford  Abbey, 
in  the  parish  of  Thomcombe,  formerly  part  of  the  county 
of  Devon  (see  Appendix  No.  1). 

In  this  grant  Henry  de  Tracy  speaks  of  Lynton  and  the 
service  of  Fursehill  having  been  held  by  the  Abbey  of  Ford 
of  the  fee  of  Brahancis  before  he  received  his  inheritance, 
from  which  it  would  appear  that  there  was  an  older  grant  of 
Lynton  and  Fursehill  only  to  Ford,  which  he  then  confirmed 
and  added  Countisbury  to  it.  There  is  nothing  to  show 
either  when  the  older  grant  was  made  or  which  Tracy  first 
held  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  but  as  to  the  latter  it  was 
probably  William  de  Tracy,  the  natural  son  of  Henry  I. 

The  two  manors  continued  in  the  possession  of  Ford 
Abbey  till  the  dissolution  of  the  monasteries,  when  they 
were  taken  into  the  king's  hand  by  virtue  of  an  Act  of 
Parliament,  31  Henry  VIII,  cap.  18. 

The  records  of  Ford  Abbey,  however,  give  us  very  little 
information  as  to  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury 
during  the  long  period  of  over  three  hundred  years  that 
they  remained  in  its  hand ;  perhaps  lying  so  remote  as  they 
did  from  their  other  possessions,  they  were  frequently  leased 
on  lives  instead  of  being  managed  by  the  abbey  itself 
or  their  bailiff;  and  it  is  certain  that  they  were  so  leased 
during  part  of  this  period  to  the  Bonville  family,  as  I  find 
that  Sir  William  Bonville,  of  Shute,  who  died  14  February, 
A.D.  1408,  had  a  lease  of  the  manors  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  from  William,  Abbot  of  Ford,  for  the  term 
of  his  life  and  that  of  Alice  his  wife  and  the  survivor  of 
them,  with  remainder  to  William,  son  of  John  Bonville, 
paying  yearly  to  the  abbot  and  convent  £6  13s.  4d.  (see 
Appendix  No.  4).     The  William  Bonville  mentioned  who 


140         THE  PARISHES  OF  LYKTON  AND  COUNTISBURr. 

had  the  remainder  was  the  grandson  of  Sir  William  Bonville 
by  his  first  wife  Margaret,  daughter  of  Sir  William 
Damerell,  his  father,  John  Bonville,  who  married  Elizabeth, 
Lady  of  Chewton,  having  died  in  A.D.  1396. 

The  will  of  Sir  William  Bonville  (died  1408)  is  given  by 
Dr.  Oliver  in  his  "  Ecclesiastical  Antiquities."  His  grand- 
son, the  remainder  man,  was  known  as  Lord  Bonville,  and 
his  son  by  his  marriage  with  the  Lady  Elizabeth  Harrington 
brought  the  neighbouring  parish  of  Brendon  to  the  Bonville 
family. 

I  cannot  identify  the  William,  Abbot  of  Ford,  who  grants 
the  lease  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  to  Sir  William 
Bonville,  in  either  Olivers  list  of  abbots  or  Brooking 
Eowe's  of  Cistercian  houses,  so  it  will  probably  add  a  new 
name  to  the  list  of  abbots. 

The  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  remained  in  the 
hands  of  the  Crown  from  31  Henry  VIII  to  2  Elizabeth, 
when  they  were  granted  by  letters  patent,  dated  5  July,  to 
John  Harrington  and  George  Burden  (see  Appendix  No.  9). 
This  grant,  which  included  various  properties  besides 
Lynton  and  Countisbury,  was  probably  only  a  legal  fiction, 
Harrington  and  Burden  being  agents  for  various  parties,  as 
two  days  after  they  conveyed  the  two  manors  of  Lynton 
and  Countisbury  for  a  certain  consideration,  which  is  not 
mentioned,  to  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  of  Barnstaple,  merchant 
(see  Appendices  Nos.  9  and  10).  The  original  conveyance 
Harrington  and  Burden  to  Wichehalse  is  now  at  the  British 
Museum  among  the  Harleian  MSS.  (No.  78,  E.  51). 

Nicholas  Wichehalse  died  28  August,  12  Eliz.,  seized  of 
this  manor,  Inq.  p.m.,  12  Eliz.  (Appendix  No.  11),  and  his 
son  Nicholas  was  his  heir,  and  had  livery  of  seizin,  22  June, 
1588.  Fine  Eoll,  3  Eliz.  (see  Appendix  No.  14).  Nicholas 
Wichehalse,  jun.,  died  30  October,  1605,  Inq.  p.m.,  3  Jas.  I 
(see  Appendix  No.  15),  and  his  son  Hugh  Wichehalse 
succeeded  him,  and  had  livery  of  seizin.  22  February, 
7  Jas.  I  (see  Appendix  No.  16).  Hugh  Wichehalse  died 
24  December,  1657,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  eldest  son, 
John  Wichehalse.  I  can  find  no  record  of  any  will  of  this 
Hugh  Wichehalse,  but  the  wills  of  this  period  are  in  great 
confusion.  But  it  was  perhaps  transferred  in  his  lifetime  to 
John  Wichehalse,  as  Lyncombe  manor  certainly  was.  John 
Wichehalse  by  his  will  dated  4  May,  1676  (see  Appendix 
No.  17)  left  the  manors  to  his  eldest  son,  John  Wichehalse 
(ii),  when  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  which 
had  been  united  since  the  Conquest,  were  divided,  Countis- 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUKY.    141 

bury  being  sold,  the  particulars  of  which  I  shall  refer  to 
under  the  head  of  Countisbury.  John  Wichehalse  (ii)  in 
1680  granted  a  lease  of  the  manor  for  a  term  of  one 
thousand  years  to  John  Levering,  merchant,  of  Barnstaple 
(see  Appendix  No.  18).  This  lease  was  by  the  way  of  mort- 
gage a  security  for  certain  sums  borrowed  of  his  relative, 
John  Levering,  certain  parts  of  the  manor,  including  the  resi- 
dence at  Ley,  being  excepted.  These  reserved  parts  were 
also  leased  for  a  term  of  one  thousand  years  on  29  October, 
1680  to  Arthur  Bull,  of  Shapwick,  as  security  for  other 
money;  but  Bull  assigned  his  mortgage  to  John  Levering 
on  29  March,  1682,  and  the  lease  of  the  entire  manor  came 
into  the  hands  of  Levering.  John  Levering  died  19  April, 
1686,  and  by  his  will,  dated  13  May,  1685,  he  left  his  wife 
Elizabeth  sole  executrix  and  trustee  for  his  two  daughters, 
Dorothy  and  Susanna,  his  two  sons,  John  Levering  and 
Venner  Levering,  having  predeceased  him. 

Elizabeth  Levering  married  secondly  Joseph  Ballerj  of 
Barnstaple,  and  the  Levering  property  at  Lynton,  which 
consisted  of  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  North 
Fursehill,  Radespray  or  Eatsbury,  a  moiety  of  Sparhanger 
and  East  Ilkerton,  was  vested  in  trustees  according  to  the 
directions  of  the  will,  the  trustees  being  Eev.  Henry  Berry, 
of  Torrington,  Nicholas  Marshall,  of  Taunton,  John  Nott, 
of  Irishcombe,  Eichard  Parminter,  of  Barnstaple,  and 
Anthony  Paul,  of  Honyton,  South  Melton.  They  as  trustees 
assigned  the  mortgage  of  the  manor  of  Lynton,  with  the 
concurrence  of  John  Wichehalse,  to  John  Short,  of  Kenn, 
fuller,  on  29  September,  1691,  John  Wichehalse  at  the 
same  time  borrowing  a  further  sum  of  Short  on  the  same 
security.  The  interest  on  the  mortgage  fell  into  arrears, 
and  Short  took  legal  proceedings  to  foreclose  the  mortgage, 
exhibiting  a  bill  of  complaint  on  23  March,  1694,  in  Court 
of  Chancery.  Further  particulars  of  these  legal  proceedings 
are  given  in  the  "Chancery  Proceedings"  for  1694,  of 
which  I  have  given  a  brief  abstract  (see  Appendix  No.  29). 

The  case  was  referred  to  Dr.  Edisbury,  one  of  the  masters 
of  the  Court,  to  decide  as  to  what  was  due  to  John  Short ; 
but  after  various  delays  and  extensions  of  time  to  allow 
Wichehalse  an  opportimity  for  repayment  the  mortgage 
was  absolutely  foreclosed  and  the  equity  of  redemption 
barred,  the  decree  being  exemplified  on  9  November,  1697. 
John  Wichehalse  had  allowed  the  time  for  redemption  to 
pass,  as  his  legal  adviser,  Thomas  Northmore,  advised  him 
it  would  be  best  to  let  Short  obtain  judgment  and  then 


142    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBY. 

make  arrangements  with  him  afterwards.  But  no  terms 
could  be  come  to,  and  Wichehalse  was  arranging  for  an 
appeal,  in  the  midst  of  which  he  died  in  London  in  1705, 
leaving  by  his  will  all  his  lands,  manors,  and  tenements 
in  Lynton,  High  Bickington,  and  South  Molton  to  Mary 
his  wife,  her  heirs  and  assigns.  After  some  delay  Mra 
Wichehalse  exhibited  a  bill  in  Chancery  in  Hilary  Term, 
1708,  praying  for  an  account  of  rents,  etc.,  and  to  be  let 
into  the  redemption,  as  the  former  decree  had  been  obtained 
by  collusion  on  a  promise  by  Short  to  reconvey  to  Wiche- 
halse. The  legal  proceedings  dragged  on;  they  came  first 
before  Lord  Chancellor  Cowper  and  then  before  Lord 
Chancellor  Harcourt,  and  the  appeal  was  on  28  April,  1713, 
dismissed  with  costs.  Mrs.  Wichehalse  then  appealed  to 
the  House  of  Lords  on  30  May,  1713,  stating  that  North- 
more,  her  husband's  solicitor,  had  colluded  with  Short  in 
all  proceedings,  the  estate  being  much  more  valuable  than 
the  sum  due  to  Short.  Witnesses  were  called  in  support 
of  this,  but  the  defendants  argued  that  what  the  witnesses 
proved  was  nothing  more  than  what  had  passed  occasionally 
in  conversation  with  third  persons,  and  that  no  such  parole 
evidence  ought  to  be  admitted.  They  also  denied  that 
Northmore  had  colluded  or  given  any  promise  to  reconvey, 
and  on  9  July,  1713,  the  case  was  dismissed  and  the  decree 
and  other  proceedings  complained  of  affirmed  ("Journal," 
Vol.  XIX,  p.  604).  Thus  the  manor  finally  passed  out  of 
the  hands  of  the  Wichehalse  family,  and  their  connexion 
with  Lynton  ceased. 

It  came  into  the  hands  of  John  Short,  of  Kenn,  near  Exeter, 
fuller,  who  however  died  within  a  year  of  the  close  of  the 
litigation,  and  by  his  will,  dated  8  January,  1714,  and  proved 
in  Prerogative  Court  of  Canterbury  3  July,  1715,  he  left  the 
manor  to  his  eldest  son,  John  Short  (ii).  From  him  it 
passed  by  his  will,  dated  25  February,  1731,  to  Elizabeth 
his  wife,  and  William  Short  his  brother,  in  trust  for  his 
sons — John  Short  (iii),  William  Short,  Samuel  Short,  and 
his  daughter  Elizabeth  Short,  who  afterwards  married 
Samuel  Hunn.  Samuel  Short  sold  his  part  to  his  eldest 
brother,  John  Short,  and  on  the  death  of  Elizabeth  Hunn 
her  share  passed  to  her  husband,  who  sold  it  in  1767  to 
John  Short,  while  William  sold  his  share  to  George  Short, 
of  Exeter,  in  1791. 

John  Short  (iii),  by  his  will  dated  14  March,  1779,  proved 
22  May,  1784,  left  all  his  real  and  personal  estate  to  his 
son,  John  Jeffery  Short. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 


143 


I  have  traced  down  the  manor  to  the  last  Short  who  held 
it,  but  during  the  time  it  was  in  the  hands  of  that  family 
it  was  almost  entirely  dismembered.  Most  of  the  leases 
granted  on  the  manor  had  been  for  ninety-nine  years,  if  three 
lives  mentioned  should  live  so  long,  and  by  the  Shorts  these 
reversions  for  the  remainder  of  their  term  of  1000  years 
were  sold  mostly  to  the  leaseholders.  In  this  manner  in  the 
years  1735  and  1736  the  following  estates  were  sold. 


Name. 
Ley  and  N.  Ground 

Purchaser : 
Six  Acre 

Purchaser : 
Part  of  Dean 

Purchaser : 
Part  of  Huxtables 

Purchaser : 
Part  of  Huxtables 

Purchaser : 
Part  of  Slees 

Purchaser : 
Part  of  Slees 

Purchaser : 
Virchils  Tenement 

Purchaser : 
£llis  Tenement 

Purchaser : 
Ludietts  and  Parrotts     . 

Purchaser  : 
Crocombes  Tenement     . 

Purchaser  : 
Berry's  Tenement 

Purchaser : 
Litson's  Tenement 

Purchaser : 


Leaseholders. 
John  Knight  and  David  Bale 
"William  Knight,  of  Lynton 
Peter  Squire 

William  Squire,  of  Lynton 
Richard  Vellacott 
John  Vellacott 
E.  Pedlar  and  Peter  Hooper 
Peter  Hooper 

E.  Pedler  and  Peter  Hooper 
David  Hill 
Peter  Hooper 
Joan  Hooper 
Anthony  Holland 
Peter  Hooper 
Edmund  Pedlar 
David  Hill 
Lancelot  Ellis 
Joseph  Fry,  jr. 
William  Hardy 
William  Oliver 
John  Crocombe 
Richard  Crocombe,  of  Oare 
Walter  Knight 
David  Knight,  mariner 
Anthony  Litson 
William  Litson 


Most  of  the  Red-herring  houses,  cellars,  and  dwelling- 
houses  were  also  sold  at  this  period,  the  purchasers  of 
which  it  is  unnecessary  to  specify,  and  the  remainder  with 
all  manorial  rights,  etc.,  were  sold  on  22  June,  1792,  by 
John  Jeffery  Short  and  George  Short  to  William  Lock, 
of  Countisbury.  William  Lock  assigned  his  interests  to 
John  Lock  in  1799,  who  by  his  will,  27  September,  1831, 
left  his  estates  in  trust  for  Mary  his  sister,  who  had  married 


144         THB  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUfiT. 

Rev.  Thomas  Roe,  Beotor  of  Brendon,  and  their  children. 
Mrs.  Roe  died  4  September,  1855.  The  manor  then 
descended  to  John  Golwill  Roe,  the  eldest  son,  who  died 
22  November,  1858,  his  only  daughter,  Dora  Medland  Roe, 
having  predeceased  him,  and  it  descended  to  his  brother, 
Robert  Roe,  the  present  owner  being  his  eldest  daughter, 
Ada  Medland  Jeune,  wife  of  Evan  B.  Jeune,  Esq.,  son  of 
late  Right  Rev.  Francis  Jeune,  Lord  Bishop  of  Peterborough. 

(b)   RIGHTS  AND   COURTS   OF  THE   MANOR   OF   LYNTON. 

The  present  tenure  of  the  manor  being  a  long  leasehold, 
and  it  having  come  into  possession  of  the  present  owner's 
predecessors  in  title  through  litigation,  scarcely  any  of  the 
records  of  the  manor  previous  to  Wichehalse's  lease  of  1680 
seem  to  have  passed  to  the  afterholders,  and  if  they  still 
exist,  are  probably  in  the  possession  of  the  representatives 
of  Wichehalse;  but  owing  to  the  manor  having  been  for 
some  time  in  the  hands  of  the  Crown,  I  have  been  able  to 
supplement  from  the  Ministers'  accounts  some  of  the 
references  in  the  Hundred  and  Assize  Rolls;  the  parts  of 
which  that  refer  to  Lynton  and  Countisbury  I  have  given 
in  the  Appendix  (see  Appendices  Nos.  2,  3,  5,  6,  7,  and  8). 
From  these  we  learn  that  the  Abbot  of  Ford  claimed  to  have 
gallows,  assize  of  bread  and  beer,  tumbrel,  view  of  frank- 
pledge and  weyft  in  his  manor  of  Lynton,  and  assize  of 
bread  and  beer  in  his  manor  of  Countisbury,  and  that  he 
and  all  his  predecessors  had  them  before  the  memory  of 
man ;  also  that  the  bailiff  of  the  Earl  of  Cornwall  for  the 
Honour  of  Braneys  distrained  the  men  of  the  Abbey  of 
Ford  in  Lynton  to  do  suit  to  the  earl's  court,  and  to  have 
peace  took  88.  and  one  ox,  and  that  the  jurors  found  that  it 
was  unjust  and  that  no  suit  used  to  be  done  to  the  court  of 
Braneys  (Appendix  No.  2).  In  the  Taxation  of  Pope 
Nicholas,  a.d.  1291,  there  is  the  following  reference  to 
Lynton  and  Countisbury  manors : — 

Abbas  de  Ford  fit  apud  Lynton  et  Contisbyri 
de  redditu         ....         cxs 

The  first  name  of  a  bailifif  of  the  abbot  for  Lynton  that 
I  have  met  with  is  in  the  Valor  Ecclesiasticus,  Henry  VIII, 
where  Robert  Store  is  mentioned  as  bailiff.  The  full 
entry  is : — 

Verus  et  annuus  valor  omi  possessionu  tam  spiial'  q^m 
Temporal'  Thome  Abfeis  Monas?  ij  Bte  Maria  de  Ford  pdca 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  GOUNTISBURY.    145 

in  Jur'  Monast  ij  pdci  exaiat'  &  pbat'  coram  Johe  Exon  Ep3 
&  al'  comissionar'  Diii  Begis  piioiat  ad  hoc  assignat'  nnio 
&  anno  pdcis. 

Possessiones  Temp'  al  dci  Abb'  is 

Ljmton  &  Countysb'y.  ^  , 

Val  in  toto  redd'  assie  ibm  p  annu  nlta- 1 

yjB  viijd  inde  resolut'  Eobto  Store  ballio  >  xiij     iiij     iij 
ibm  p  feed'  suo  p  annu  rem'  clar'       ,  J 

Et  de  p  qnis'  cur'  &  al'  casual'  ix"  ij^  cu  )         ^.^^     y 

fin  tr  ibdm  coib3  annis  xx  .         ,  j[ 

£xiiij  xiij*     v^ 

In  succession  to  Robert  Store,  John  Chidley,  of  Thorn- 
combe,  gentleman,  and  Eobert  Tybbes  were  appointed 
bailiffs  and  stewards  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  with  other 
convent  property.  They  both  seem  to  have  been  relatives 
of  Thomas  Chard,  the  last  abbot,  who,  with  the  title  of 
Bishop  of  Solubria,  was  suffragan  to  Bishop  Oldham,  and 
to  have  with  their  families  secured  various  other  pickings 
through  their  relative.  From  grants  made  we  discover  that 
Bailiff  Chidley  had  a  wife  Agnes,  and  two  daughters  AUce 
and  Jane.  I  have  been  unable  to  discover  any  accounts 
of  the  manors  while  they  belonged  to  Ford,  but  on  their 
being  taken  into  the  hands  of  the  Crown  Chidley  secured 
by  letters  patent  his  reappointment  to  his  ofiBce  for  life 
with  a  salary  of  £3  13s.  4d.  With  the  exception  of  the 
first  year,  his  accounts  during  reigns  of  Henry  VIII, 
Edward  VI,  Mary,  and  Elizabeth  are  to  be  found  in  the 
records  of  the  Court  of  Augmentations  and  Ministers' 
accounts.  I  have  given  in  the  Appendix  a  selection  of  these 
(see  Appendices  Nos.  5,  6,  7,  8). 

From  these  we  see  there  were  free  tenants  in  the  manor 
of  Lynton  who  paid  78.  Id.,  and  customary  tenants  in  both 
Lynton  and  Countisbury ;  also  sums  received  for  perquisites 
of  courts,  heriots,  and  farlieus.  The  later  records  of  the 
manor  show  that  the  free  tenants  were  four  in  number — 
one  for  the  Glebe,  who  paid  4s.,  one  for  South  Stock,  who 
paid  5s.,  and  two  for  Dean,  each  of  whom  paid  Is.  Id.,  as 
this  amounts  to  lis.  2d.,  and  in  all  the  ministers'  accounts 
it  is  only  7s.  Id.  It  would  seem  as  if  the  Glebe  did  not 
pay  anything  to  the  Crown.  The  customary  tenants  varied 
a  great  deal  in  number,  as  holdings  were  split  up  and  the 
fishery  varied.  The  grant  of  the  manor  to  Harrington  and 
Burden  speaks  of  the  rights  enjoyed  by  the  abbots,  but 

VOL.  XXXVIIL  K 


146    THE  PARISHES  OF  LTKTON  AND  OOUNTISBUBT. 

does  not  enumerate  them ;  but  particulars  of  some  of  them 
can  be  gathered  from  an  Exchequer  Bill  filed  during  one 
of  the  lawsuits  of  the  last  Wichehalse.  It  states  that  long 
before  the  letters  patent  and  from  time  immemorial  a 
certain  royalty,  or  franchise,  or  liberty  of  fishing  within 
the  Eiver  Severn  adjoining  to  the  several  shores  and  coasts 
thereof  did  ever  appertain  and  belong  to  the  said  manor, 
which  fishery  the  abbots  of  Ford  ever  possessed  and 
enjoyed,  and  entitled  themselves  to  have  the  sole  right  of 
fishing  therein;  also  they  claimed  a  right  to  keelage  for 
all  barks  and  boats  coming  into  Leymouth  Harbour  formed 
by  Leymouth  Eiver,  which  duty  was  at  the  rate  of  2s.  per 
time  any  vessel  keeled,  anchored,  or  moored  within  the 
harbour,  one  half  being  payable  in  respect  of  Lynton  manor 
and  one  half  in  respect  of  Countisbury  manor ;  for  smaller 
boats  the  rate  of  keelage  was  4d.  These  rights  were 
excepted  from  the  sale  by  Wichehalse,  of  Countisbury 
manor,  to  Lovering  in  1679. 

The  courts  of  Lynton  manor  seem  to  have  been  regularly 
held  from  the  earliest  time  to  the  present.  The  last  steward 
under  Wichehalse  was  Thomas  Wichehalse,  the  first  under 
Short  was  Lewis  Gregory,  the  well-known  town  clerk  of 
Barnstaple ;  he  also  styles  himself  seneschal ;  the  first  record 
of  his  court  now  existing  is  that  of  the  Court  Baron  of 
1717.  At  this  the  homage  sworn :  "  Coram  Ludovicus 
Gregory  seneschall  ibm."  were  "Petrus  Squire  Johes  Knight 
Johes  Vellacott  Petrus  Hooper  Johnes  Crocombe  David 
Eichards  David  Hill  Willus  Vellacott  Walterus  Knight 
Henricus  Griffith  Lancellott  Ellis." 

The  records  of  Gregory's  court  are  very  brief;  he  died 
29  June,  1733,  and  was  succeeded  by  William  Hill,  an 
attorney  from  South  Molten,  who  gives  fuller  particulars. 
At  his  court  held  13  George  II  (1740),  the  free  tenants 
were  Thomas  Dyer  Stock,  John  Webber,  of  Dean,  and 
the  impropriators  of  the  rectory;  the  conventionary 
tenants  twenty  in  number,  of  whom  nine  appeared. 
John  Knight  was  reeve  of  the  manor  from  1735  to 
1756,  when  William  Litson  was  appointed,  and  continued 
in  office  many  years,  and  was  succeeded  by  another 
William  Litson,  whose  successor  was  a  third  William 
Litson. 

At  the  Court  Leet  a  jury  were  sworn,  who  made  their 
presentments,  which  were  very  numerous,  the  main  subjects 
being  trespass,  enclosures,  throwing  dirt  near  pot-water, 
nuisances,    roads,   cutting    seaweed   without    licence,   and 


THl  PAKI8HKS  OF  LYNTON  AND  OOUNTISBURY.         147 

leaving  turfs  on  the  common  to  rot.  The  officers  appointed 
were  a  constable  and  an  ale-taster. 

The  courts  continue  still  to  be  held,  though  their  busi- 
ness is  merely  formal,  and  an  ale-taster  is  no  longer 
appointed,  though  in  these  days  of  complaint  as  to  the 
quality  of  beer  and  a  demand  for  pure  ale  an  assize  of  beer 
might  be  advantageous.  During  the  period  the  manor  was 
in  the  hands  of  the  Short  family,  very  exact  accounts 
of  everything  were  kept,  and  frequent  surveys  of  the  manor 
were  made.  The  earliest  is  one  in  1697;  another  was  made 
at  the  end  of  the  long  litigation  in  1715,  the  valuer  being 
a  Mr.  Tomkins.  There  are  also  ones  of  1739  and  1774,  but 
as  at  the  date  of  the  last  the  manor  had  been  almost  entirely 
dismembered,  it  is  of  little  interest. 

I  have  given  that  of  1717,  as  it  gives  full  particulars 
of  every  holding  on  the  manor,  the  date  of  lease,  name  of 
tenant,  high  rent  and  heriot,  and  also  the  estimated  yearly 
value  of  every  holding  at  that  time.  In  this  Ust  BB  stands 
for  best  beast  (see  pages  148,  149). 

The  descents  of  the  largest  holdings  on  the  manor  of 
Ljmton  after  they  were  alienated  are  as  follows : — 

Ley  and  North  Grounds, 

1735,  14  February.  Assigned  by  John  Short  to  John 
Knight,  of  Ley,  in  trust  for  William  Knight  for  residue  of 
term  of  a  thousand  years. 

1760,  7  May,  and  1763,  25  April.  Agnes  Knight  mort- 
gages  to  Bennet  and  Snow. 

1784,  29  March,  and  1785,  25  March.  Mortgaged  to 
John  Clarke,  and  assigned  to  John  Clarke  with  release 
of  equity  of  redemption. 

Six  Acre, 

1735,  17  March.  Assigned  by  John  Short  to  William 
Squire  for  residue  of  term  of  thousand  years.  And  at 
same  date  mortgaged  by  Squire  to  Philip  Eogers  and 
others. 

1759.  Mortgage,  and  ultimately  estate  passed  to  Miss 
Francis  Incledon. 

1761.  Paul  Orchard,  Esq.,  and  others  assigned  to  John 
Knight,  who  at  same  time  mortgaged  it  to  Charles  Marshall. 

1769.    Mary  Knight  assigned  to  John  Thome. 
1769.  1772.    Assignment  of  moieties  to  John  Budd. 
1797.     Budd  assigned  to  John  Clarke. 

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148         THE  PASISHB  OF  LT3STQK  AKD  OOUXTIBBUXr. 


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THE  PABISHIS  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 


149 


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150         THE  PABISHBS  OF  LTNTON  AND  OOUlHiaBUBT. 

Both  Ley  and  North  Grounds  and  Six  Acre  passed  by  sale 
from  Clarke  family  to  Mr.  Charles  Bailey  in  the  year  1841, 
and  are  now  in  the  possession  of  his  son,  Mr.  C.  F.  Bailey, 
of  Ley,  Lynton. 


II.      MANOR  OF  WOOLHANGEB. 
(a)    BXTBNT   AND  DESCENT. 

The  manor  of  Woolhanger  or  Willanger,  as  it  was 
generally  called  till  the  last  century,  is  practically  identical 
with  the  "  Domesday  "  manor  of  Incrinton.  Incrinton  is  a 
variant  of  Ilkerton,  a  holding  which  formed  the  principal 
part  of  the  manor;  but  later,  as  Ilkerton  became  much 
subdivided,  the  name  of  Willanger  was  given  it  from  the 
then  largest  holding.  It  lies  in  the  angle  formed  by  the  stream 
that  comes  down  through  Eanscombe  to  Cheribridge  and  the 
Fursehill  stream  to  Cheribridge,  though  part  of  Sparhanger, 
which  lies  on  the  other  side  of  Fursehill  water,  was  also 
part  of  the  manor.  The  members  of  it  being  Great 
Willanger,  Little  Willanger,  East  Ilkerton,  West  Ilkerton, 
Barham,  High  BuUen,  Low  Bullen,  Thornworthy  or  Thorn- 
hay,  Eadespray  now  Ratsbury,  and  Sparhanger. 

In  the  time  of  King  Edward  it  was  held  as  a  separate 
manor  by  Algar,  but  on  being  given  by  William  to  William 
Capra  it  was  annexed  to  Lynton  manor,  and  the  "Domesday" 
description  of  it  will  be  found  under  the  head  of  Lynton 
Manor. 

From  William  Capra  it  was  escheated  to  the  Crown. 
There  is  nothing  to  show  as  to  whether  it  came  with  Lynton 
into  the  hands  of  Tracy  or  not,  but  it  afterwards  formed 
part  of  the  Earl  of  Cornwall's  honour  of  Braneys,  being 
held  under  him  by  several  free  tenants. 

In  "  Testa  de  Neville "  we  find  William  Fauvel,  Mauger 
de  Sprang,  and  Marioth  de  Eadespree  held  ith  knight's  fee 
in  Hiltington  (i.e.  Ilkerton),  William  Fauvel  ^th  knight's 
fee  in  Welonger.  Sp'ang  and  Eadespree  are  names  evidently 
taken  from  Sparhanger  and  Eadespray,  and  the  name  of 
the  two  largest  members,  Ilkerton  and  Willanger,  both 
appear. 

In  1286  David  de  Furshill,  Geoffery  de  Pyn,  and 
William  de  Eadespraye  held  Jth  knight's  fee  of  the  Earl  of 
Cornwall  of  the  honour  of  Braneys,  and  Geoffery  de  Pyn 
Jth  knight's  fee  in  Welhangre  and  Thorneworth  of  the 
Earl  of  Cornwall  ("Feudal  Aids,"  pp.  336,  337).    In  1303 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    151 

Ralph  Pyne  held  -^th  knight's  fee  in  Ilryngton  (Ilkerton), 
T^th  knight's  fee  in  Welhangre,  Ralph  de  ForshuU  ^th 
knight's  fee  in  Estilryngton  and  Westilryngton  ("Feudal 
Aids,"  p.  36).  In  the  inquisition  p.m.  (28  Edward  I)  of 
Edmund,  Earl  of  Cornwall,  the  manor,  under  the  name 
of  Welhangre,  is  mentioned  among  the  fees  pertaining  to 
the  honour  of  Braneys. 

In  1346  Richard  Lovering  held  yV^h  fee  in  Estileryngton 
and  Westileryngton,  which  Richard  Forshill  aforetime 
held,  and  it  is  part  of  the  two  fees  for  which  John  de 
Weston  was  charged ;  William  Fyn  held  ^^^th  knight's  fee  in 
Ilcrynton,  which  Ralph  Pyn  before  time  held  ("Feudal 
Aids,"  p.  417). 

Soon  after  this  Ilkerton  also  came  into  the  hands  of  the 
Pynes  or  Pyns ;  they  were  the  same  family  who  afterwards 
held  the  manor  of  East  Downe:  a  pedigree  of  them  is 
given  by  Vivian  and  in  the  "  Visitations  of  Devon,"  but  it 
does  not  altogether  agree  with  the  names  that  appear  as 
holding  Woolhanger. 

In  A.D.  1434  Elizabeth,  daughter  and  heiress  of  Richard 
Hankford,  had  one  messuage  and  three  ferlingates  in 
Welhangre  (Inq.  p.m.,  12  Henry  VI,  No.  40). 

In  A.D.  1485  Edward,  Prince  of  Wales,  held  ^th  of  a 
fee  in  Welhangre. 

In  A.D.  1516  Thomas  Pyne,  who  in  Vivian's  pedigree 
is  stated  to  be  second  son  of  John  Pyne,  of  Ham,  in  Corn- 
wall, settled  40  acres  of  land  and  pasture,  10  acres  of 
meadow,  and  100  acres  of  furze  and  heath  in  Willanger, 
as  well  as  lands  in  Lyn,  on  Joan  his  wife.  He  had  also 
in  demesne  two  messuages,  40  acres  of  land  and  pasture, 
10  acres  of  meadow,  and  200  acres  of  furze  and  heath  in 
Thomworthy  and  Ilkerton  (see  Appendix  No.  20). 

This  Thomas  Pyne  died  2  February,  1523,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Augustus  Pyne,  who  was 
twenty-one  and  more  in  1526.  From  Augustus  Pyne  the 
manor  passed  to  the  elder  branch;  as  in  the  Inq.  p.m.  of 
Nicholas  Pyne,  14  April,  1575,  it  is  stated  that  he  held  the 
manor  of  Wilhanger  of  the  Queen  as  of  her  manor  of 
Bradnych  by  the  ith  part  of  one  knight's  fee,  and  it  was 
worth  £3  15s.  10  Jd.  (see  Appendix  No.  21).  Philip  Pyne, 
his  grandson,  then  aged  sixteen,  was  his  heir;  this  Philip 
Pyne  was  buried  at  East  Down  19  October,  1600  (see 
Appendix  No.  22),  his  heir  being  Lewis  Pyne,  b,  1587, 
who  died  without  issue  in  January,  1607-8  (Inq.  p.m., 
6  Jas.,  No.  144),  Edward,  his  brother,  then  a  ward  to  the 


162         THE  PABI8HBS  OF  LTKTON  AKD  00UNTISBX7BY. 

king,  being  his  heir.  He  died  July,  1663,  and  the  manor 
passed  to  his  son  Edward,  buried  2  April,  1691 — ^will  dated 
10  March,  1690-1,  proved  17  June,  1692,  P.C.C.— leaving 
the  manor  to  his  son  Edward,  buried  22  March,  1689 :  this 
was  the  Pjme  who  married  Dorothy  Cofl&n.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  John  Pyne,  buried  21  February,  1769,  whose  son, 
John  Pyne,  and  his  trustees,  James  Eowe  and  Francis 
Bassett,  sold  on  10  October,  1772,  the  manor  of  Woolhanger 
to  the  Eev.  Eichard  Harding,  of  Marwood,  who  by  his  will 
dated  2  November,  1773,  with  various  codicils  of  dates  up 
to  1782,  left  the  manor  to  his  nephew  Philip  Harding,  of 
Mount  Sandford,  Barnstaple,  in  trust  for  Philip  Hardmg's 
two  younger  sons,  John  and  Robert  Harding,  who  were  to 
hold  it  jointly  (see  Appendix  No.  23).  Robert  Harding, 
the  survivor,  sold  the  manor  in  1801  to  Charles  Pugsley, 
and  in  1803  it  was  sold  by  Pugsley  to  Walter  Lock,  and 
by  the  Locks  settled  on  Mrs.  Roe  and  her  children,  and 
came  by  this  settlement  to  Frances  Gertrude,  youngest 
daughter  of  Robert  Roe,  who  married  Sir  Henry  Palk- 
Carew,  Bt.,  and  it  has  recently  been  sold  by  them  to  a 
Mr.  Slater. 

(6)   OOURTB   OP  MANOR   OF  WOOLHANGEB. 

The  Courts  Baron  of  the  manor  of  Woolhanger  appear  to 
have  been  regularly  held  from  an  early  date,  but  rolls  of 
the  courts  during  the  period  it  was  held  by  the  Pynes  have 
either  disappeared  or  are  in  Portledge  archives.  The  earliest 
roll  I  have  seen  is  that  of  1775,  when  the  manor  had  passed 
into  the  hands  of  Rev.  Richard  Harding,  John  Sydenham 
being  the  steward,  and  the  following  were  sworn  as  the 
homage :  Richard  Richards,  William  Lock,  Richard  Hooper, 
John  Jones,  Hugh  Vellacott,  and  William  Curtis.  It  records 
heriots  on  East  Ilkerton  and  Cherrybridge  having  been 
paid  to  the  late  lord,  John  Pyne,  Esq. ;  there  were  then  four 
free  tenants  of  the  manor  and  twelve  customary  tenants ; 
also  the  lord  of  Lynton  manor  paid  2s.  6d.  or  a  pound 
of  pepper  for  tying  his  headweir  to  the  lands  belonging  to 
the  lord  of  the  manor  of  Woolhanger. 

The  names  of  the  tenants  and  their  holdings  were : — 

Free  Tenants, 

1.  Samuel  Musgrave,  m.d.          .  .  Rawles  Tenement 

2.  Richard  Almsworthy     .         .  .  Sparhanger 

3.  Edward  Nicholls,  clerk,  andl  ^           Tenement 
Richard  Crocombe                 /  '  ^^^^®®  lenement 

4.  Heirs  of  John  Knight  .         .  .  Part  of  Lyne  Wood 


THE  PAKI8HES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  153 

Chistomary  Tenants, 

1.  Joseph  Limebear,  gent  .  Higher  Wilhanger 

2.  Richard  Richards  .         .  Lower  Wilhanger 

3.  Samuel  Musgrave,  m.d.  .         .         .  West  Ilkerton 

4.  Richard  Crang      ....  East  Ilkerton 

5.  John  Jones East  Ilkerton 

6.  Richard  Hooper  and  Hugh  Bale    .  Lower  Barham 

7.  Hugh  Vellacott    ....  High  Bullen 

8.  John  Jones  .....  Lower  Bullen 

9.  Anne  Courtis         ....  Cheribridge 

10.  William  Courtis  ....  Part  of  Lyne  Wood 

11.  Edward  Nicholls,  clerk,  and)  rpi       i 
Richard  Crocombe                 ]          '  Thornbay 

12.  Edward  Pine,  clerk       .         .         .  Broomholmes 

The  presentments  of  the  courts  refer  to  encroachments, 
wastes,  tenements  out  of  repair,  and  as  to  what  farlieus 
or  heriots  were  due.  The  courts  continued  to  be  held  down 
to  quite  recently  and  perambulations  of  the  manor  made, 
but  the  business  was  only  formal.  On  the  manors  of 
Lynton,  Woolhanger,  and  Lyn  coming  into  the  same  hands 
a  combined  court  of  all  three  was  held. 

Henry  Drake  was  the  last  steward  of  the  manor  of 
Woolhanger  when  its  court  was  held  separately. 

Ilkerton  was  at  an  early  date  subdivided  into  several 
tenements,  which  were  known  by  the  names  of  the  various 
holders  for  the  time  being,  such  as  Crangs  Ilkerton,  Jones 
Ilkerton,  etc.  I  am  unable  to  give  the  dates  of  the  dis- 
memberment of  the  manor,  but  from  the  Chancery  Pro- 
ceedings of  30  Elizabeth  (a.d.  1587)  I  find  that  William 
Morell  and  Elizabeth  his  wife  were  seized  in  their  demesne 
as  of  fee  as  in  the  right  of  the  said  Elizabeth  of  a  tenement 
in  Estylkerton  in  the  parish  of  Lynton,  and  of  certain 
houses,  lands,  meadows,  leasues,  pastures,  furze,  and  heath 
thereto  belonging,  and  so  seized  had,  by  indenture  dated 
6  September,  2  Edward  VI  (1549),  granted  them  to  John 
Clowman,  weaver,  James  Morell,  of  Dulverton,  and  Christian 
Grenslade,  of  Luxborowe. 

About  1645  East  Ilkerton  and  a  moiety  of  Sparhanger, 
Radispray,  and  North  Fursehill  were  the  property  of  Adam 
Lugg,  of  Barnstaple,  and  were  afterwards  sold  by  him  to 
John  Levering,  of  Barnstaple,  who  by  his  will  (he  died 
1686)  left  them  to  his  two  surviving  daughters  Dorothy 
and  Susanna,  who  married  Samuel  RoUe  and  Richard 
Acland,  of  Fremington,  and  from  them  descended  to  RoUes 


154    THB  PARISHES  OF  LTNTOK  AND  GOUNTISBUBT. 

and  Barbors,  of  Fremington,  by  whom  they  were  sold  in 
parcels,  and  by  various  purchases  came  about  the  year  1800 
into  the  possession  of  James  Lean,  tailor  and  draper,  of 
Wiveliscombe,  in  the  hands  of  whose  descendants  they  now 
are. 

It  is  noticeable  that  both  Sir  William  Pole  tuid  Bisdon 
locate  the  Ilkertons,  Badispray,  etc.,  as  being  in  the  parish 
of  Parracombe,  and  owing  to  this  they  have  often  been 
treated  of  by  successive  writers  as  being  in  that  parish. 
The  county  directories  in  their  accounts  of  ancient  estates 
still  refer  to  them  in  their  Parracombe  section. 


III.      MANOR   OF  LYN. 
(a)   EXTENT   AND   DESCENT. 

The  manor  of  Lyn  comprised  that  portion  of  the  parish 
of  Lynton  that  lay  between  the  East  Lyn  and  Combe  Park 
water  on  one  side,  and  the  West  Lyn  and  Fursehill  water 
on  the  other — with  the  exception  of  Fursehill,  Sparhanger, 
and  part  of  Stock  and  Hoar  Oak. 

The  manor  was  latterly  divided  into  East  and  West  Lyn. 
The  notice  of  it  in  Exon  "  Domesday  "  is : — 

William  has  a  manor  called  Line,  which  Algar  held  on  the  day 
on  which  King  Edward  was  alive  and  dead,  and  it  rendered  geld 
for  three  virgates.  These  can  be  ploughed  by  seven  ploughs.  Of 
it  William  has  in  demesne  one  virgate  and  a  half  and  two  ploughs, 
and  the  villeins  have  one  virgate  and  a  half  and  five  ploughs. 
There  William  has  nine  villeins  and  five  bordars  and  five  serfs 
and  two  swineherds,  who  render  by  the  year  twenty  swine,  and 
thirty-three  head  of  cattle,  and  seven  swine,  and  fifty  sheep,  and 
twenty  goats,  and  one  new  mill,  and  a  wood  half  a  leuga  in 
length  and  half  a  leuga  in  breadth,  and  it  is  worth  by  the  year 
four  pounds,  and  it  was  worth  forty  shillings  when  William 
received  it. 

In  1243  ("  Testa  de  Neville  ")  Cecilia  de  Lyn  and  Henry 
Lovet  held  Jth  knight's  fee  in  Lyn.  The  Hundred  BoU 
1274  has  a  statement  which  has  been  copied  by  all  successive 
writers,  that  Henry  Lovet  and  Beginald  de  Lyn  had  assize 
of  bread  and  beer  in  the  manor  of  Lyn,  likewise  gallows  by 
ancient  tenure  from  the  Conquest;  but  the  Ex  Placita 
cmd  Quo  Warranto  Bolls  state  explicitly  that  they  claimed 
no  such  right,  but  that  it  was  Bichard  de  Beaumont  who 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT.    155 

had  the  right  (see  Appendix  Nos.  2,  3),  Lyn  forming 
part  of  the  honour  of  Braneys  held  by  the  Earl  of  Cornwall. 
Reginald  de  Lyn  s  part  had  in  1284  gone  to  Henry  Lovet, 
who  held  all  the  ^th  fee,  another  ^th  fee  in  Lyn  being  held 
by  Pyne.  Galfridus  de  Pyn  tenet  quartam  partem  feodum 
in  Lyn  de  Comite  Cornubie  et  idem  comes  de  Eege 
("F.A.,"  p.  335).  HenricuB  Lovet  tenet  quartam  partem 
feodum  in  Lyn  de  comite  Cornubie  et  idem  comes  de  R^e 
("F.A.,"p.  336). 

In  1303  Walter  Lovet  held  ^th  fee  in  East  and  West  Lyn, 
and  Sparhanger  and  Ralph  Pyne  ^th  fee  in  East  and  West 
Lyn  ("F.A./'p.  361). 

In  1346  Lo vet's  land  had  passed  to  Henry  de  Halles- 
worthy,  and  Ralph  Pyne's  to  WilHam  Pyne  ("  F.A.,"  p.  417). 
Dr.  Cooper  states  that  Hallesworthy's  land  passed  to  the 
Crown,  in  whose  possession  it  continued  until  the  reign 
of  Charles,  since  which  it  has  passed  through  the  hands  of 
Chichester  and  of  Bassett,  of  Scoare  and  Umberleigh. 
This  statement  is  a  strange  jumble,  and  probably  arose  from 
a  confusion  with  the  honour  of  Braneys,  held  by  the  Earl 
of  Cornwall.  Scoare  was  a  person,  not  a  place — a  purchaser 
of  land  from  Bassett,  whose  North  Devon  property  came 
mainly  from  Beaumont's. 

It  would  seem  that  Hallesworthy's  portion  passed  to 
Despencer,  as  in  1350  Hugh  le  Despencer  and  Elizabeth 
his  wife,  relict  of  Giles  de  Badlesmere,  held  Jth  knight's 
fee  in  Lyn  (Inq.  p.m.,  23  Edward  III,  No.  169),  it  being 
held  under  them  by  Guy  de  Brian,  and  attached  to  the 
manor  of  Chittlehampton.  The  heir  of  Hugh  le  Despencer 
was  a  minor. 

In  1380  this  portion  of  Lyn  was  in  the  possession  of 
John  Beaumont. 

From  this  period  the  manor  of  Lyn  remained  for  a  long 
period  in  the  hands  of  the  two  families  of  Beaumont  6uid 
Pyne. 

Pyne's  portion  remained  in  their  hands  till  1772,  and  its 
descent  is  that  already  given  of  the  manor  of  Woolhanger. 
During  the  greater  part  of  the  seventeenth  century  it  was 
held  under  them  on  a  lease  by  the  family  of  Popham,  who 
resided  at  East  Lyn ;  on  the  expiration  of  this  lease  much 
of  it  was  sold  ott'  in  parts  and  parcels,  and  the  remainder 
was  sold  in  1772  to  the  Rev.  Richard  Harding,  of  Marwood, 
who,  by  his  will,  left  it  to  his  great-nephew  with  a  certain 
sum  to  repair  the  mansion  house  of  East  Lyn  so  as  to  fit 
it  for  a  residence.    From  Harding  it  passed  in  1803  into 


154         TEE  PASSES  rj§  ZXSTOS  ASKI*  ONrSIISBCBT. 

hsA  hhTVjT^.  cf  Fr»3±2z;o::i,  17  whosi  ihcy  were  sold  in 
jAiT^lr.  4ii  i  Vj  Tfcrio:!-  p::rthasK  eanie  aconx  the  year  1800 
inVj  T'-e  po55e5£::ii  of  Janes  Lean,  tailor  and  draper,  of 
WjveI:=5Co::-be  in  iLe  La::i=  :f  whose  iescendantB  they  now 

It  is  notioealk  that  lo:h  Sir  William  Pole  and  Bisdon 
KxaUj  the  Ilkenons.  Ea^iisp-ray.  etc,  as  beii^  in  the  pariah 
of  Parrauy>:iifA,  and  '.-win^  to  this  they  have  often  been 
trt^at'.-'l  of  by  succeafive  writers  as  being  in  that  parish. 
Tlio.  r:/iurjty  directories  in  their  accounts  of  ancient  estateB 
Htill  refer  to  them  in  their  Parracombe  section. 


III.      MANOR  OF  LYy. 
{a)   EXTENT   AND   DESCENT. 

The  laanor  of  Lyn  comprised  that  portion  of  the  parish 
of  Lynloii  that  lay  between  the  East  Lyn  and  Combe  Park 
water  on  one  side,  and  the  West  Lyn  and  Fursehill  water 
on  the  other — with  the  exception  of  Fursehill,  Sparhanger, 
and  purl  of  Stock  and  Hoar  Oak. 

The  manor  was  latterly  divided  into  East  and  West  Lyn. 
The  notice  of  it  in  Exon  **  Domesday  "  is : — 

William  huH  a  manor  called  Line,  which  Algar  held  on  the  day 
on  which  Kin^  P^lward  was  alive  and  dead,  and  it  rendered  geld 
for  thn^o  virgatoH.  These  can  be  ploughed  by  seven  ploughs.  Of 
it  William  has  in  demesno  one  virgato  and  a  half  and  twoploughfli 
aiul  tlio  villi'ins  have  one  virgate  and  a  half  and  five  plougha 
Tlierv  William  has  nine  villeins  and  five  boidais  and  five  aezfB 
and  twii  swint'honla,  who  render  by  the  year  twenty  swinei  and 
thirtY-thi'i'o  head  of  cuttle,  and  seven  swine,  and  fifty  sheep,  and 
twenty  goats,  and  one  new  mill,  and  a  wood  half  a  leuga  in 
length  ami  lialf  a  leuga  in  hmulth,  and  it  is  worth  by  the  yew 
four  poumls,  and  it  was  worth  forty  shillings  when  William 
rtHvived  it. 

In  124:5  (-  Tost^  de  Neville")  Cecilia  de  Lyn  asdH^iy^ 
liovot  liold  Jth  knight's  ft^  in  Lvn.  The  Hundred  KoU 
1274  has  a  statouieut  whicli  has  iWn  copied  by  all  BUOoeaBi?e 
writers,  that  Hourv  Lovet  and  Keginald  de  Lyn  bad  msmm 
of  bitvivl  and  Un^r  lu  tlio  manor  of  Lvn,  likewise  gallows  bv 
anoiont  tenure  frvnu  the  Conqu^t;  but  the  Ex  PVv  * 
and  guo  \\armuto  KolU  state  expikiay  thai  they  th 
uo  auoh  right,  but  that  it  was  Kichani  de  Beattmo*^*       ~ 


THE  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    157 

His  widow  Mathie  remarried  John  Carew  and  died  10  Jiine, 
1491;  being  seized  at  her  decease  of  Lyn  and  East  Lyn, 
held  of  Thomas  Pyne  as  of  his  manor  of  East  Lyne  by 
fealty  for  all  manner  of  services  (Inq.  p.m.,  Henry  VII, 
series  III,  Vol.  VI,  p.  88). 

The  feudal  lord  at  this  time  was  Edward  Earl  of  Warwick, 
as  I  find  by  an  Inq.  13  November,  4  Henry  VII,  that 
Thomas  Beaumont  held  the  manor  of  Lyn  of  Edward  Earl 
of  Warwick,  who  is  now  in  king's  custody  as  of  the  honour 
of  Gloucester  by  service  of  Jth  of  a  knight's  fee. 

On  the  death  of  Mathie  Carew,  Lyn  passed  quietly  to 
Hugh  Beaumont,  who  married  Thomazine,  daughter  of 
Oliver  Wise,  and  died  25  March,  1507  (Inq.  p.m.,  22 
Henry  VII),  leaving  a  daughter,  Margaret,  aged  thirty, 
married  to  John  Chichester,  who  succeeded  to  his  estates. 
A  claim  was,  however,  put  forward  to  them  by  John 
Bodrugan  als  Beaumont,  claiming  as  the  son  William 
Beaumont.  John  Bassett,  who  had  married  Joan,  whole 
sister  in  blood  to  Philip  Beaumont,  also  laid  claim  imder 
the  terms  of  Philip  Beaumont's  enfeoffment  and  wilL  Amidst 
these  three  claimants  long  and  protracted  litigation  arose. 
According  to  Sir  William  Pole,  Bassett  enlisted  the  services 
of  Giles,  Lord  Daubeny,  afterwards  created  Earl  of  Bridg- 
water, on  his  side,  promising  to  hand  over  the  greater  part 
to  Lord  Daubeny  if  successful;  and  owing  to  Lord  Dau- 
beny's  efforts  the  suit  was  decided  in  Bassett's  favour. 
Chichester  to  have  Youlston  and  Sherwell,  Bodrugan  Gittis- 
ham,  and  Bassett  the  rest,  on  which  Bassett  gave  the 
greater  part  to  Lord  Daubeny — which  returned  to  Bassett 
on  the  death  of  the  Earl  of  Bridgwater.  The  whole  account, 
he  says,  is  written  in  a  fair  book  in  the  hands  of  Sir  Eobert 
Bassett.  According  to  legal  documents,  however,  it  appears 
that  some  of  the  Beaumont  estates  came  into  the  hands  of 
the  Crown  on  accoimt  of  defective  title,  and  by  the  Crown 
were  granted  to  Edward,  Duke  of  Somerset,  and  on  his 
attainder  to  the  Crown  again.  In  the  Patent  EoUs,  3  and  4 
Philip  and  Mary,  there  is  a  record  of  a  grant  of  some  of 
them  to  James  Bassett,  Esq.,  including  much  of  North 
Devon  property,  also  of  dealings  with  and  grants  of  former 
Beaumont  manors  in  the  Patent  Bolls,  7  Elizabeth,  and  in 
the  records  of  a  special  commission  dated  23  June,  1613, 
as  to  manors  supposed  to  be  escheated  to  the  Crown  on 
account  of  defective  title  that  the  late  queen  had  granted 
to  Arthur  Bassett. 

This  Arthur  Bassett  had  issue,  according  to  an  inquisition 


158         THE  PARISHES  OF  LTinX)N  AND  COUMTISBOBT. 

taken  at  Exeter  7  October,  1613,  Eobert,  Arthur,  William, 
Francis,  and  John,  besides  daughters;  and  it  states  that 
Bobert,  now  a  knight,  and  all  his  sons  and  daughters  survive 
at  Barnstaple.  I  am  unable  to  find  any  mention  of  the 
manor  of  Lyn  in  any  of  the  proceedings,  but  there  is  no 
doubt  that  the  Beaumont  portion  of  the  manor  descended 
to  this  Sir  Robert  Bassett  and  that  he  was  seized  of  it  in 
1630,  and  that  in  1632  it  was  sold  by  him  to  John  Knight 
the  younger  (see  Appendix  No.  24). 

In  the  deed  conveying  the  property,  it  is  described  as 
lands  in  West  Lyn,  Metticombe,  and  Lynham.  Thirty 
manors  and  other  lands  are  said  to  have  been  sold  by  Sir 
Robert  Bassett  at  this  time  to  find  money  to  pay  the  heavy 
fine  he  had  incurred  by  his  absurd  pretensions  to  the 
crown. 

John  Knight,  the  purchaser  of  West  Lyn  (for  whom  see 
section  on  Lynton  Families),  settled  it  on  his  son  and  heirs 
male,  and  it  came  with  other  portions  of  Lyn  to  his  grand- 
son, John  Knight,  bom  1651,  who  by  his  will,  dated 
24  January,  1732,  conveyed  it  to  John  Richards,  Rector 
of  Kentisbury,  and  his  kinsman,  Richard  Knight,  in  trust 
for  his  son,  Richard  Knight,  and  his  heirs  (see  Appendix 
No.  25).  From  this  Richard  Knight  it  descended  in  direct 
line  (see  Knight  pedigree)  to  Richard  Knight,  bom  in  1788, 
who  sold  West  Lyn  to  Mr.  Charles  Bailey,  who  resold  it 
to  Mr.  Lean,  various  portions  of  the  former  Knight  property 
having  been  previously  sold  out  in  parts  and  parcels.  Part 
of  Stock  came  in  1731  into  the  hands  of  a  yeoman  family 
named  Dyer,  of  whom  there  are  wills  from  1601,  and 
passed  in  succession  through  Ley,  Spurrier,  Forest,  and 
Keal,  the  last  named  of  whom  sold  it  to  the  Roe  family 
in  1850.  Another  part  of  Stock  was,  however,  in  the  hancfa 
of  the  Knight  family  down  to  the  last  century.  Shorta- 
combe,  Combe  Park,  and  Hillsford,  formerly  parts  of  Ljm 
manor,  were  about  the  year  1740  in  the  hands  of  another 
Knight  family,  distinct  from  the  West  Lyn  one.  There 
were  so  many  of  this  name  in  the  parishes  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  that  it  is  most  difiicult  to  distinguish  them 
and  unravel  the  tangle  of  the  different  branches.  Mrs. 
Izett  Knight,  of  Combe  Park,  sold  it  to  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Scott, 
who  should  be  remembered  as  the  builder  of  the  road  from 
Lynmouth  to  Watersmeet.  And  from  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Scott 
it  passed  to  a  Mr.  Collard,  who  in  1858  sold  it  to  Mr. 
Robert  Roe,  the  father  of  the  present  owner. 

There  is  no  record,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  of  any  separate 


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160    THB  PABISHBS  OF  LTNTOK  AND  OOUNTISBUBT. 

manorial  courts  ever  being  held  of  Lyn.  On  portionB  of 
East  Lyn  coming  into  the  hcmds  of  the  Lock  family  a  court 
was  held  first  with  the  Woolhanger  Court 

BICHEORDIN. 

In  "  Domesday "  there  is  a  mention  of  a  small  holding 
called  Bicheordin,  held  by  Fulcoid  imder  William  Capra, 
which  is  added  to  Line.  Mr.  Whale  has  su^ested  this  is 
Kibsworthy,  the  Eectory  of  Lynton  Glebe,  but  the  im- 
propriator of  the  glebe  was  a  free  tenant  of  the  manor 
of  Lynton.  In  "  Testa  de  Neville  "  it  appears  as  Bykeworth, 
and  in  1286  as  Bykeworthy.  Mr.  Whale's  other  sugges- 
tion of  Bagworthy  is  more  probable. 


IV.      MANOR  OF  HKANTON. 

This  lies  at  the  extreme  west  of  the  parish,  and  is  now 
more  commonly  known  as  Caffyn's  Heanton,  which  is  a 
corruption  of  CofiPyn's  Heanton,  the  manor  having  been 
held  for  many  years  by  various  members  of  the  Cofiyn 
family.     The  notice  of  it  in  Exon  "  Domesday  "  is : — 

Radulf  has  a  manor  called  Hantona  which  Ulf  held  on  the 
day  on  which  King  Edward  was  alive  and  dead,  and  it  rendered 
geld  for  one  virgate.  This  can  be  ploughed  by  three  ploughs  and 
Helgod  holds  it  of  Radulf.  Of  it  Helgod  has  in  demesne  half  a 
virgate  and  one  ploupjh,  and  the  villeins  have  half  a  viigate  and 
one  plough.  There  Helgod  has  3  villeins  and  2  serfs  and  13  head 
of  cattle  and  8  swine  and  50  sheep  and  20  goats  and  12  acres  of 
wood  and  30  acres  of  pasture,  and  it  is  worth  by  the  year  37s., 
and  it  was  worth  20s.  when  he  received  it. 

This  would  give  an  estimated  acreage  of  282  acres.  The 
present  acreage  of  Cofityn's  Heanton  is  212  acres  3  roods 
17  perches  of  enclosed  land,  38  acres  of  wood,  and  112  acres 
of  common,  so  the  manor  may  have  originally  included 
Crosscombe,  which  is  partly  in  Martinhoe  and  partly  in 
Lynton,  187  acres  being  in  Lynton. 

Eadulf,  who  is  mentioned  in  "Domesday"  as  holding 
Heanton,  is  better  known  as  Ealph  de  Pomeroy,  tmd  the 
manor  formed  part  of  the  honour  of  Berry.  In  A.D.  1243 
we  find  from  "  Testa  de  Neville  "  that  it  was  held  by  Hugh 
Cofifyn.  In  the  Hundred  Roll  of  1274  William  Coflfyn  is 
mentioned,  and  in  1284  this  William  Coffyn  held  two  parts 
of  half  a  knight's  fee  in  Heanton  Coffyn  of  Gilbert 
St.  Albjm,  and  the  same  Gilbert  held  a  third  part  of  half 


.THE  PAEI8HES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT.    161 

a  fee  in  La  Worth  Kynetete  and  La  Brunctheochene,  and 
the  same  Gilbert  half  a  fee  of  Mauger  St.  Albyn  and 
Mauger  of  the  heirs  of  Henry  de  Pomeroy  ("  Feudal  Aids." 
pp.  336-7).  La  Brunctheochene,  mentioned  in  this  extract, 
is,  without  doubt,  Brendon  or  Bagworthy,  as  in  the  Per- 
ambulation of  Exmoor,  26  Edward  I,  A.D.  1298,  the  Brendon 
district  is  called  Bruntenesworthy.  In  A.D.  1303  Hugh 
Cofifyn  held  Jth  fee  in  Heanton  ("  Feudal  Aids,''  p.  367).  In 
A.D.  1346  Eoger  Crok  held  ^th  fee  in  Heanton  which  Hugh 
Cofifyn  aforetime  held  ("Feudal  Aids,"  p.  417).  In  A.D. 
1380  John  Beaumont  and  Joan  his  wife  held  half  a  carucate 
of  land  in  Heanton  Coffyn  (luq.  p.m.,  3  Eichard  II,  No.  9). 
In  A.D.  1428  Thomas  Beaumoimd  held  Jth  fee  in  Heanton 
which  Roger  Croke  aforetime  held  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  p.  497). 

From  these  extracts  we  can  trace  that  the  manor  was 
held  under  the  Pomeroys,  first  by  Cofifyns  till  about  1340, 
then  by  Eoger  Crok,  and  after  him  by  John  Beaumont. 
This  John  Beaumont,  who  married  Joan,  daughter  of  John 
de  Stockley,  of  San  ton,  and  died  12  March,  1379-80,  was 
the  heir  of  Beaumonts  by  failure  of  the  elder  line :  his  son, 
William  de  Beaumont,  who  married  Isabel,  daughter  of  Sir 
John  Willington,  died  in  1416,  and  was  succeeded  by  his 
son,  Sir  Thomas  Beaumont,  mentioned  in  the  "Feudal 
Aids  "  of  1428;  he  was  born  1401 ;  died  17  November,  1450. 
By  his  first  marriage  with  Philippa  Dinham  he  had  two 
sons,  William  and  Philip,  and  by  his  subsequent  marriage 
with  Alice,  daughter  of  Hugh  Stucley,  of  Afifeton,  three 
sons,  Thomas,  Hugh,  and  John.  The  descent  of  Heanton 
Cofifyn  through  these  various  brothers  is  exactly  similar 
to  that  of  Lyn,  and  will  be  found  under  the  head  of  that 
manor ;  and  I  would  note  here  that  in  the  inquisition  on 
the  death  of  Mathie  Carew  it  is  stated  that  she  held  one 
hundred  acres  and  a  messuage  in  Cofifyn's  Heanton,  by  gift 
and  enfeofifment  of  Thomas  Beaumont,  held  of  Eichard 
Pomeroy,  knight,  as  of  the  manor  of  Berry  Pomeroy  by 
fealty  for  all  services.  The  manor  of  Heanton  Cofifyn 
appears  in  the  list  of  the  lands  that  fell  to  Bassett  as  the 
result  of  the  litigation  (of  which  an  account  is  given  in  the 
Descent  of  the  Manor  of  Lyn),  under  the  name  of  Heanton 
Foryn,  and  Sir  William  Pole  mentions  it  under  this  name 
and  says  it  descended  from  Beaumont  to  Bassett. 

Westcote  (p.  251)  wrongly  places  the  manor  in  the  parish 
of  Coimtisbury,  and  says,  "Coflftns  Heanton  ye  land  of 
Bassett,  now  of  Scoare,  who  being  a  verderer  of  ye  Forest 
hath  thereby  freely  a  lees  heifer  in  ye  forest."    The  name 

VOL.  xxxvm.  L 


162         THB  PARISHES  OF  LYin:ON  AND  COUNnSBUBT. 

Score  frequently  appears  in  Lynton  parish ;  there  is  a  will 
of  John  Score,  of  Lynton,  21  October,  1575.  The  possessor 
of  CoflSns  Heanton,  of  whom  Westcote  speaks,  was  probably 
the  John  Score  who  was  sidesman  of  Lynton  Church  in 
1630,  and  it  came  into  his  hands  by  purchase  at  the  time 
when  a  large  number  of  the  Bassett  manors  and  lands  were 
sold  by  Sir  Robert  Bassett  to  raise  money  to  pay  the  heavy 
fine  that  was  laid  on  him  as  the  result  of  his  absurd 
pretensions  to  the  crown  and  throne  in  the  reign  of  K^ing 
James  I. 

I  am  unable  to  trace  the  exact  descent  from  Score,  but  in 
1800  it  was  held  by  John  Cutcliffe,  in  1830  by  Charles 
Cutcliffe,  and  in  A.D.  1888  the  Misses  Cutclifife  sold  it  to 
C.  F.  Bailey,  Esq.,  of  Ley,  the  present  owner.  Mr.  Bailey 
tells  me  the  deeds  went  back  to  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth, 
and  would  therefore  have  shown  the  descent  from  Bassett, 
but  he  did  not  know  the  whereabouts  of  the  deeds,  as  he 
was  called  on  to  give  them  up  to  the  solicitors  of  Miss 
Cutclifife  on  the  plea  that  they  also  related  to  a  small 
property  at  Combemartin  not  then  sold. 

There  are  no  records  of  any  courts  being  held  in  this 
manor ;  being  small,  it  was  probably  annexed  by  Beaumonts 
to  another.  The  present  owner  informed  me  that  he  had 
been  under  the  impression  that  it  formed  part  of  Wiche- 
halse's  manor  of  Lynton. 

V.      CROSSCOMBE. 

This  is  a  farm  on  the  border  of  the  parish,  partly  in 
Lynton  and  partly  in  Martinhoe — the  acreage  being  187 
acres  in  Lynton,  160  in  Martinhoe — and  was  held  as  a 
reputed  manor  for  many  years  by  the  family  of  Berry,  who 
were  a  branch  of  the  Berry  family  of  Berrjmarbor.  John 
Berry  held  it  a.d.  1428,  and  various  of  the  name  appear  as 
owners  of  it  down  to  a.d.  1604,  when  it  was  held  by  a  John 
Berry  who  married  first  a  daughter  of  Anthony  Kelly, 
Eector  of  North  Tawton  (1561-1603),  and  second  Frances, 
daughter  of  Eoger  Wikes,  of  North  Wike,  leaving  no 
issue  by  either  marriage.  His  brother,  Eichard  Berry, 
married  in  1612,  at  Parracombe,  Margaret,  daughter  of 
Nicholas  Wichehalse,  and  left  a  son,  Hugh  Berry,  so  called 
after  his  great-grandfather,  Hugh  Acland,  of  Acland,  who 
mentions  him  in  his  will. 

Westcote  states  that  "Croscombe  be  Berrys,  who  after 
residing  there  several  generations  sold  it  to  Chichester" 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    163 

— the  seller  was  probably  the  John  Berry  married  in 
1604,  as  an  inquisition  taken  at  Barnstaple,  22  August,  3 
Charles  I,  states  that  Sir  Eobert  Chichester,  knight,  was 
seized  of  Croscombe  alias  Welcombe,  and  that  it  had  been 
settled  by  an  indenture  of  a.d.  1624  (see  Appendix  No.  28). 
From  Chichester  it  passed  to  Barbors,  George  Barbor 
being  owner  in  a.d.  1800 ;  from  Barbors  to  Yeo;  and  William 
Arundell  Yeo  sold  it  in  a.d.  1848  to  Charles  Bailey,  the 
father  of  the  present  owner.  The  Barbor  descent  is  given 
in  the  account  of  Countisbury  manor.  A  small  holding  of 
Ealph  de  Pomeroy  called  Estandona  has  been  placed  by 
Mr.  Whale  in  Lynton  parish.  "Domesday"  states  it  was 
held  by  Algar  the  priest,  T.R.E. ;  there  were  there  one  villein, 
and  thirty  acres  of  pasture,  and  it  was  worth  three  shillings. 
After  "  Domesday  "  it  disappears  and  was  probably  absorbed 
in  another  holding ;  possibly  it  was  Bonhill. 


VI.      FURSBHILL. 

The  first  notice  we  have  of  this  is  in  the  EoUs  of  1  John, 
A.D.  1199,  when  Henry  de  Tracy  granted  the  service  of  the 
lands  of  Fursehill  to  the  church  of  St.  Mary  of  Forde. 

In  "  Testa  de  Neville  "  Richard  de  Fursehill  held  ^Vth  of 
a  fee  in  Fursehill. 

In  A.D.  1286  Richard  Thorger  held  ^j^th  of  a  knight's  fee 
in  Fursehill  of  the  Earl  of  Cornwall  of  the  honour  of 
Braneys  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  p.  336). 

In  A.D.  1303  Richard  Thorger  held  i^th  of  a  knight's  fee 
in  Fursehill  and  Stock  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  p.  36). 

In  A.D.  1346  Richard  Levering  held  ^^^h  of  a  knight's 
fee  in  Fursehill  and  Stock  which  Richard  Thorger  afore- 
time held  ("Feudal  Aids,"  p.  417). 

Later  Fursehill  became  divided  into  two  portions  known 
as  North  Fursehill  and  South  Fursehill. 

South  Fursehill  and  part  of  Sparhanger  came  before 
A.D.  1390  into  the  hands  of  Walter  Marwood,  of  Westcote, 
and  were  attached  to  that  manor.  North  Fursehill  and  the 
other  moiety  of  Sparhanger  to  Richard  Pasmore. 

South  Fursehill  and  the  part  of  Sparhanger  remained 
in  the  hands  of  the  Marwood  family,  and  formed  part  of 
the  manor  of  Westcote;  they  passed  by  the  marriage  of 
Elizabeth,  eldest  daughter  and  coheiress  of  John  ^Marwood, 
of  Westcote,  to  John  Chichester,  of  Hall,  who  held  them 
as  part  of  the  manor  of  Westcots.  The  tenants  of  Furse- 
hill had  to  attend  and  do  suit  and  service  to  the  court 

l2 


IM         THE  PJLKZaHIS  OT  LTWrOS  XSD  OOC^mSBCTT. 

ci  the  manor  oi  Wes^kioce  ijee  Appendix  Xo.  27).  It 
Tir^sxAined  m  nbe  hazL-is  of  nhe  Chirfw^cer?.  o<  HaD,  as  part 
c*f  the  mAnor  of  Westeote  MAr«rooii  till  the  year  A-Dl  1857, 

when  it  was  aoH  to  Jlr.  K*:cert  Boe. 

Xorth  FriraehilL  ani  the  ocher  moiety  of  Sparfaanger 
|i<wfte»i  :hro^zh  virioa^  hanis:  in  a»d  looO  chey  bdon^ied 
to  Lria^s,  who  ?H'jIi  th^riL.  :o  John  L^veriaz.  merdiaiit,  of 
Barrj»taple.  A  m.-irry  »'.t  :hese  priperries  was  settled  on 
the  r.iArna;ze  of  hj;  el  ie*:  iau^hrer  Iv-n^thy  with  Samuel 
RoiL»  in  A.D.  1700:  :he  o:r.er  ni-jiecy  went  to  her  sister. 
Savanna  Loverln:?.  who  marrie-i  in  A.D.  17Ch)  Richard 
AcLinI,  of  FreiAin^on.  Rjth  p>rr:on5  were  afterwards 
sold  to  the  Vellacotts.  a  family  wh  :•  came  in  the  early  part 
of  the  -'leventeenth  c-enturv  from  Combemartin  to  LTnton. 


VIL      MANOR   or  C0L>T1SBUEY. 

The  manor  of  Countisbury  comprised  the  whole  of  the 
pari-»h  of  Countisbury.  The  notice  of  i:  in  Exon  "'  Domes- 
rlay  "  is  :— 

William  lias  a  manor  called  Contesberia,  which  Ailmer  held  on 
the  rlay  on  which  King  E•lwa^l  was  alive  an'l  dead,  and  it  rendered 
geld  for  half  a  hide.  Thi^  can  l»e  ploughed  by  ten  ploughs  ;  of  it 
William  ha.s  in  demesne  one  virgate  and  four  ploughs  and  the 
villein-i  have  one  virgate  and  six  ploughs.  Tht^re  William  has 
twelve  villein.s.  six  Ir-rdars  and  fifteen  serfs  and  one  swineherd 
who  render.^  ten  swine  by  the  year,  and  one  jiackhorse  and  thirty- 
two  hearl  of  cattle  and  twenty-four  swine  and  three  liundred  sheep 
leH=5  tliirteen  and  twenty-five  g'^ats  and  fifty  acres  of  wood  and  two 
acres  of  nieadr>w,  and  pasture  one  leuga  in  length  and  one  furlong 
in  breadth,  and  it  is  worth  by  the  year  four  pounds,  and  it  was 
worth  twenty  shillings  when  he  received  it. 

The  William  mentioned  is  William  Capra,  who  held  the 
Lynton  manors,  and  the  history  of  Countisbury  manor  is 
80  much  mixed  up  with  Lynton  manor  that  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  separate  them.  They  were  held  together 
practically  as  one  manor  from  the  Conquest  to  the  year 
A.D.  1G79,  and  till  that  date  the  descent  of  it  may  be  seen 
in  the  section  that  treated  of  Lynton  manor. 

By  an  indenture  dated  about  7th  day  of  January,  1679, 
John  Wichehalse  did  bargain,  sell,  and  convey  the  manor 
of  Countisbury  to  John  Lovering,  of  Barnstaple,  merchant, 
saving,  however,  and  excepting  out  of  this  sale  the  Royalty 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT.    165 

of  fishing  for  Herrings  in  the  sea  thereto  adjoining,  and 
as  far  out  into  the  river  of  Severne  as  middle  thread  or 
jUum  aquae  between  Countisbury  and  the  Welsh  shore; 
€^80  excepting  and  saving  the  custom  and  Benefit  of  Keel- 
age in  Leymouth  Harbour,  all  which  rights  were  reserved 
by  the  said  John  Wichehalse.  The  woods  attached  to  certain 
tenements  on  Lynton  manor  were  also  excepted. 

On  31  January,  1679,  John  Levering  conveyed  to  John 
Wichehalse,  Mary  his  wife,  and  Mary  his  daughter,  for  the 
term  of  their  lives  a  portion  of  the  manor  of  Countisbury, 
consisting  of  East  Leymouth  with  the  Fishery  there  called 
Leymouth  East  Weare  and  a  willey  in  the  fresh  water  with 
sufficient  frith  and  stakes  to  be  taken  in  Countisbury  Wood 
between  the  Great  Tor  and  the  East  end  of  the  sea 
Chamber,  together  with  the  Fishery  in  the  Fresh  water  as 
far  as  the  upper  bridge  and  the  Burning  Gar.  Two  addi- 
tional lives,  Grace  Westcot  and  John  Knight,  were  sub- 
sequently added  to  the  lease  by  Levering. 

This  portion  was  on  24  September,  1685,  mortgaged  to 
Jasper  Radcliffe,  of  Exeter,  and  was  by  him  transferred 
30  September,  1693,  to  John  Short,  who  held  the  lease  of 
the  Lynton  manor.  At  the  expiration  of  this  lease  it 
reverted  to  Lovering's  estate,  but  some  of  the  rights  con- 
nected with  it,  as  well  as  certain  manorial  rights  appertain- 
ing to  the  manor  of  Countisbury,  would  seem  to  be  still 
vested  in  the  representatives  of  the  Wichehalses. 

The  remaining  portions  of  Countisbury  manor  passed  at 
the  death  of  John  Levering  (19  April,  1686),  under  the 
trusts  of  his  will  dated  13  May,  1685,  to  his  two  daughters, 
Dorothy  and  Susanna,  his  two  sons,  John  Levering  and 
Venner  Levering,  having  predeceased  him.  Susanna  married 
in  1699  Eichard  Acland,  of  Fremington.  By  the  marriage 
settlement,  dated  20  May,  1699,  Susanna  agreed  when  she 
came  of  age  to  convey  her  moiety  of  Countisbury  with  her 
other  lands,  excepting  the  Dodderidge  estates,  to  her  intended 
husband  for  life,  then  for  her  own  use  for  life,  and  then  to 
trustees  for  one  hundred  years,  to  raise  certain  specified  sums 
for  their  younger  children  in  case  there  should  be  a  son  and 
heir.  Gf  this  marriage  there  was  issue  a  son,  John,  and 
three  daughters,  but  Mrs.  Acland  neglected  to  carry  out  the 
terms  of  the  settlement ;  but  after  her  husband's  death  she, 
on  15  February,  1741,  conveyed  her  moiety  to  William 
Barbor  and  Charles  Hill  for  a  term  of  three  hundred  years, 
in  trust  for  her  use  for  life,  then  to  her  son,  John  Acland, 
and  his  heirs,  with  remainder  to  her  three  daughters,  and 


166    THE  PABISHBS  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 

also  by  sale  or  mortgage  to  raise  certain  sums  for  her 
daughters*  portions. 

This  son,  John  Acland,  succeeded  at  his  mother's  death, 
2  June,  1747,  but  was  a  lunatic  and  died  intestate  in  April, 
1767,  and  the  moiety  of  Countisbury  fell  to  his  sisters, 
Maria,  a  spinster ;  Frances,  married  to  Rev.  Hugh  Fortescue ; 
and  the  representative  of  Susanna,  who  had  married  William 
Barbor  and  predeceased  him,hereldest  son  was  William  Barbor 
(ii),  to  whom  the  whole  moiety  fell  ultimately  on  the  death  of 
his  two  aunts  without  issue,  by  their  wills.  William  Barbor 
left  no  issue,  and  by  his  will  dated  2  February,  1797, 
proved  20  June,  1801  (P.C.C),  he  left  his  lands  to  his  only 
surviving  brother,  George  Barbor,  and  at  his  death  in  1817 
they  descended  to  his  only  son,  George  Acland  Barbor  (27 
April,  1800). 

The  Kolle  moiety  descended  to  Samuel  EoUe,  only  son  of 
Samuel  Rolle  and  Dorothy  Levering,  who  by  his  will  left 
it  to  his  cousin,  Dennis  Rolle,  who  sold  all  his  Countisbury 
lands  in  parts  and  parcels  chiefly  to  the  occupying  tenants. 
East  Lynmouth  being  sold  in  1759  to  Peter  Hooper,  and 
the  rest  at  various  dates  up  to  1782.  At  the  same  period 
the  trustees  of  Mrs.  Acland  leased  the  other  moiety  for  the 
remainder  of  the  term  of  three  hundred  years,  so  that 
every  farm  in  the  parish  was  held  under  the  somewhat 
peculiar  circumstance  that  an  undivided  moiety  was  free- 
hold, and  the  other  moiety  leasehold  for  three  hundred 
years.  George  Acland  Barber's  reversionary  rights  to  a 
moiety  passed  by  his  will,  dated  15  October,  1830,  proved 
27  August,  1839,  to  his  cousin,  William  Arundell  Yeo  and 
his  heirs,  with  remainder  to  Beaple  Yeo,  and  were  sold 
by  W.  A.  Yeo,  19  June,  1848.  to  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Halliday. 

The  following  list  of  the  principal  holdings  and  their 
owners  in  1790  and  1835  will  show  into  whose  hands  the 
various  farms  passed  (see  opposite  page). 

The  commons,  comprising  about  1320  acres,  are  still 
undivided,  and  the  portions  of  wood  attached  to  the  diflferent 
tenements  in  Lynton  manor  are  about  forty-four  acres,  in 
addition  to  that  now  held  with  East  Lynmouth,  about 
twenty-four  acres.  The  brothers  Lysons  say  there  is  now 
no  manor  of  Countisbury,  and  no  manorial  courts  appear  to 
have  been  held  since  the  division  of  the  manor  between  the 
daughters  of  John  Levering,  though  part  of  the  manorial 
rights  would  seem  to  be  in  the  hands  of  the  heirs  of 
Wichehalse,  whoever  they  may  be.  The  Rev.  W.  S.  Halli- 
day,   shortly    after    purchasing    Coscombe,    renamed     it 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 


167 


>>  >^  >* 


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168         THS  PABISHB8  OF  LTITrON  AND  COUimSBUBT. 

Glenthome  and  erected  a  mansion  for  himself  there,  and 
made  a  drive  nearly  three  miles  in  length  from  the  road  to 
the  house,  and  since  1835  gradually  bought  up  all  the 
farms  in  the  parish  with  the  exception  of  East  LynmoutlL 
The  property  was  left  by  him  to  William  Halliday  Cosway, 
who  thereupon  took  the  surname  of  Halliday,  and  it  is  now 
in  the  possession  of  his  daughters,  one  of  whom  is  married 
to  Mr.  S.  A.  Sanders,  Master  of  the  Staghounds. 

There  are  in  existence  several  surveys  of  the  manor  of 
Countisbury  between  1700  and  1750,  but  I  have  not  been 
able  to  have  access  to  them,  but  I  believe  they  are  entitled 
"  Surveys  of  the  Manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,"  a  relic 
of  the  many  ages  when  they  formed  one  manor ;  and  they 
refer  also  to  the  lands  in  Lynton  held  by  the  descendants  of 
John  Lovering.  I  have  given  a  pedigree  of  Barbor  and 
Acland  as  the  only  families  of  interest  connected  with 
Countisbury,  except  the  yeoman  ones  of  Slocombe  and 
Rawle. 


29  May,  1695  (BanisUple). 
liaibor,  M.i).-— Petronel  Pointz. 


iista]»le.      Imr. 
y,  1718  (Harn- 


biir.  11  May,  172 
(Barnstaple). 


William  Barbor=  Elizabeth, 


.  26  March,  1701  tBarn- 
.le);  bur.  21  Nov.,  1767 
i-iistij)le). 


»or,  M.B., 
tlchuinp- 
17    Feb., 
iple). 
1. 


daii.  of  George  Wood  Powell, 
of Kittisford, Somerset  Mer- 
chant,    bur.  2  Dec,  1780. 


iBarl 


John  Barbor.         Joan  Huxtable= George  Barbor, 
A  captain  in  the  barrister-at-law. 

Army ;  died  abroad  bur.     29     March, 

without  issue.  1788  (Barnstaple), 

2ud  son.  without  issue. 

3rd  son. 


3  Nov.,  1788. 
if  ary^  George   Barbor  =Jane, 


.CO,  born  22  Nov., 
ton.  1765 ;  baj>.  9 
Sept.,  1756 
(Fremington); 
died  27  March, 
1817  (M.I.  Fre- 
niington) ;  bur. 
1  April,  1817 
(Fremington). 
4  th  sun. 

o  A  eland  Barbor, 

^hslilc,  Fremiiigloii. 
April,  1800  (Barn- 
Will  dated  15  Oct, 

roved  27  Aug.,  1839. 

\  died  7  July,  1839. 


dau.  of  Gabriel  Barnes. 
Alive  in  1830. 


} 


<^ 


THE   PARISHES   OF   LYNTON  AND 
COUNTISBURY.   11. 

FAMILY  AND  ECCLESIASTICAL  HISTORY,  AND  LOCAL  LEGENDS. 

BY   REV.    J.    P.    CHANTER,    M.A. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


VI. 

FAMILY   HISTORIES. 

I.      THE   WICHEHALSE   FAMILY. 

Arms. — Per  pale  argent  and  sable,  six  crescents  two  and  two, 
all  countercharged. 

Crest. — A  stag's  head  erased,  per  pale  arg.  and  sa.,  charged  on 
neck  with  two  crescents,  holding  in  its  mouth  an  olive-branch 
slipped  of  Ist. 

One  family  stands  out  above  all  others  in  connexion  with 
Lynton — that  of  Wichehalse — for  around  it  all  the  legends 
and  romances  of  the  neighbourhood  have  gathered.  The 
story  of  Jennifred,  her  father,  Sir  Edward  Wichehalse,  and 
her  false  lover.  Lord  Auberley,  is  to  the  present  day  gravely 
told  with  variations  in  "  Murray's  Handbook "  and  other 
guides  to  Lynton  as  part  of  its  historical  lore,  and  is  asso- 
ciated in  the  minds  of  all  visitors  with  Duty  Point.  Yet, 
sad  to  say,  there  never  was  a  Jennifred  or  a  Sir  Edward 
Wichehalse.  The  story  of  her  sad  fate  is  but  a  perverted 
nineteenth-century  rendering  of  the  misfortunes  that  befell 
Mary  Wichehalse,  the  only  daughter  of  the  last  Wichehalse 
who  was  lord  of  Lynton  manor.  E.  D.  Blackmore,  in 
"Loma  Doone,"  introduces  a  Baron  Hugh  de  Wichehalse 
and  his  son  Mar  wood.  The  former  is,  of  course,  Hugh 
Wichehalse,  Esq.,  whose  tomb  may  still  be  seen  in  Lynton 
Church;  but  though  the  Marwoods  were  connected  with 
another  branch  of  the  family,  there  was  never  a  Wichehalse 
named    Marwood.     Blackmore,    in   his  account  of    them, 


170    THE  PAKISHE8  OF  LYNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BUBY. 

adapting  the  Rev.   Matthew   Mundy's   rendering    of    the 
Wichehalse  legends,  says : — 

The  first  De  Wichehalse  had  come  from  Holland,  where  he 
had  been  a  great  nobleman,  being  persecuted  for  his  religion 
when  the  Spanish  power  was  everything.  He  fled  to  England  with 
all  he  could  save,  and  bought  large  estates  in  Devonshire,  where 
his  descendants  intermarried  with  Cotwells,  Marwoods,  Welshes,  of 
Pylton,  Walronds,  and  Chichester,  of  Hall. 

This  paragraph  is  but  an  illustration  of  the  mingling  of 
fact  and  fiction  which  continually  occurs  in  the  fascinating 
pages  of  "  Lorna  Doone,"  for  the  alliances  are  to  a  certain 
extent  correct,  though  mainly  of  other  branches  of  the 
Wichehalse  family.  The  alliances  of  the  Lynton  branch 
were  with  Welsh  of  Pylton,  Acland,  Pomeroy,  Venner,  and 
Chichester  of  Youlston ;  but  the  Dutch  descent  is-  entirely 
fiction,  as  also  are  the  character  and  name  of  Marwood 
de  Wichehalse.  And  where  so  much  legendary  lore  has 
gathered  round  a  family,  in  seeking  to  give  an  historical 
account  of  them  it  is  very  necessary  to  sift  most  carefully 
the  chaff  from  the  grain.  I  have  in  this  account  based 
everything  on  documentary  evidence  (some  of  which  I  have 
given  in  the  Appendix),  and  what  can  be  gathered  from  their 
letters,  wills,  and  deeds,  and  if,  with  very  imperfect  materials, 
it  is  but  bare  skeletons  which  come  before  you — for  I  must 
leave  my  readers  to  clothe  them  with  their  own  imaginative 
details — yet  it  is  at  least,  as  far  as  it  goes,  true  and  accurate ; 
and  if  neither  exciting  nor  dramatic,  I  trust  that  some 
glamour  of  romance  will  still  cling.  For  the  story  of  this 
family  is  but  the  old,  old  one  of  rise  and  decay — a  family 
springing  from  oblivion,  first  to  be  a  gentle  family,  then  a 
wealthy  one,  of  riches  amassed  by  care  and  industry,  of 
noble  alliances  formed,  an  honoured  position  and  name ;  and 
then  a  gradual  decline,  a  struggle  to  keep  their  heads  high 
and  then  overwhelmed  by  misfortunes,  a  sinking  out  of 
sight  and  a  total  disappearance  of  the  race  and  name ;  and 
now — like  Bonvilles,  Ealeighs,  and  hosts  of  other  honoured 
Devon  names — they  are  only  part  of  the  old,  old  past,  and  a 
legend. 

The  Wichehalses,  then,  were  an  old  Devonshire  family, 
springing  and  taking  their  name  from  a  hamlet  called 
Wych,  on  the  south  side  of  the  parish  of  Chudleigh.  The 
hamlet  is  said  to  have  derived  its  name  from  a  large 
wych,  or  whych  elm  that  grew  in  its  centre.  The  spelling 
of  the  family  name  has  varied  tremendously.     There  are 


THE  PAKISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    171 

over  twenty  variations,  but  all  medieval  spelling  was  fear- 
fully and  wonderfully  done.  The  simplest  form  of  it  was 
Wichalls,  which  was  largely  used.  The  form  Wichehalse, 
which  I  have  adopted,  is  the  one  mainly  used  by  the  Lynton 
branch  in  their  signatures. 

From  Chudleigh  they  overflowed  not  merely  to  neigh- 
bouring parishes  and  Exeter,  but  in  Elizabethan  days  all 
over  the  county.  There  was  a  Bennet  Wichalse,  bailift*  of 
Exeter  in  a.d.  1440,  and  churchwarden  of  St.  Petrock's  in 
1443  and  1451 ;  a  Henry  Wichehalse.  also  bailiff  of  Exeter 
and  churchwarden  in  a.d.  1469.  They  are  found  at  Chud- 
leigh and  Ashcombe  as  far  back  as  the  registers  go,  and  on 
to  A.D.  1770  at  Ashcombe.  There  are  wills  of  a  Bennet 
Wichehalse,  of  Hatherleigh,  merchant,  in  A.D.  1682;  of  a 
Thomas  Wichehalse,  of  Otterton,  gentleman,  in  1592 ;  also 
of  various  Wichehalses  at  St.  Mary  Church  and  Powderham ; 
one  of  the  family  migrated  to  Lewisham,  and  founded  a 
branch  there  which  recorded  a  pedigree  at  a  Kentish 
visitation. 

The  earliest  ancestor  of  the  Lynton  Wichehalses  to  whom 
we  can  go  back  with  certainty  is  a  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  of 
Chudleigh,  who  married  first  Alicia,  daughter  of  a  Peverell, 
by  whom  he  had  one  daughter,  and  by  a  second  wife,  name 
unknown,  a  son,  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  of  Chudleigh.  This 
Nicholas  the  Second  died  14  December,  1552  (Inq.  p.m., 
1  Mary,  No.  18),  leaving  three  sons — John,  then  aged  46, 
and  who  would  therefore  have  been  bom  in  1506,  married 
to  Joan,  co-heiress  of  Cotwell ;  William,  married  to  Ellen, 
daughter  of  Humphrey  Walrond,  and  widow  of  Anthony 
Fortescue ;  and  Nicholas,  to  whom  I  shall  refer  later ;  also 
two  or  three  daughters.  The  inquisition  gives  no  particulars 
of  the  younger  children,  but  only  mentions  the  son  and 
heir.  The  ancestral  property  of  Wych  went  to  John, 
thence  to  his  eldest  son  Eobert,  and  was  taken  by  Robert's 
only  daughter  and  child  to  Trevanion,  of  Caerhayes. 
William,  the  second  son,  also  settled  at  Chudleigh,  where 
his  only  son  was  buried  in  1606 ;  while  Nicholas,  the  third 
son,  following  the  custom  of  many  younger  sons  of  county 
families,  moved  to  a  town  and  entered  a  mercantile  business. 
He  settled  at  Barnstaple  about  A.D.  1530,  and  started  in 
business  in  the  woollen  trade,  at  that  time  one  of  the  most 
prosperous  businesses  in  the  west  of  England.  Here  his 
business  brought  him  the  acquaintance  and  friendship  of 
the  Salisburys,  one  of  the  leading  merchant  families  at 
Barnstaple,  who  had  taken  for  some  years  a  leading  part  in 


172    THE  PARISHES  OP  lYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

the  town  affairs ;  and  after  the  death  of  Mr.  Robert  Salis- 
bury, in  1551,  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  then  a  prosperous 
merchant,  married  the  widow  Mary,  who  was  the  only 
daughter  of  Eichard  Welsh,  of  Pylton.  By  this  marriage 
he  not  only  acquired  considerable  property,  but  was  also 
brought  into  relationship  with  the  principal  families  in 
Barnstaple  and  its  neighbourhood.  These  relationships  are 
somewhat  difficult  to  follow,  as  both  Mrs.  Wichehalse  and 
her  mother  had  married  twice  and  had  children  by  both 
marriages.    It  is  best  explained  by  the  following  pedigree : — 

John  Dart=Katherine   =Richar<i  Welsh, 


of  Barnstaple, 
merchant. 


Wm  dated  27  Dec., 
1554;  proved  28 
May,  1565. 


of  Pylton.  WiU  dated 
24  Dec,  1550;  proved 
29  April,  1551. 


I  1st.  I  24  April,  1552. 

John  Dart,  Robert  Salisbury=  Mary  Welsh  ==Nichola8  Wichehalse 

of  Barnstaple,  bur.  9  Aug.,  1551. 

Mayor  in  1657, 1568. 

L 


I  1  I 

Dorothy.  Joan.  Katherine  Salisbury, 

m.  Philip  Pyne,  Esq.,  m.  George  Pyne,  m.  John  Wichehalse, 

of  Eastdowne.  Mayor  of  Barnstaple,  1571. 

i  1586.  i 


Joan  Wichehalse.  Nicholas  Wichehalse. 

m.  Robert  Prowse,  m.  Margaret  Acland. 
Mayor  1588,  4- 

M.P.  1584. 

From  this  it  will  be  seen  that  many  of  his  new  relatives 
occupied  important  positions  in  the  municipal  life  of  the 
town,  and  were  in  a  position  to  push  him  on;  he  was 
elected  a  capital  burgess  in  1556,  appointed  churchwarden 
in  1558,  and  became  mayor  in  1561,  and  in  conjunction 
with  his  brother-in-law,  John  Dart,  and  his  friend,  Eobert 
Apley,  he  took  up  a  mortgage  of  the  manor  of  Barnstaple, 
with  a  view  of  getting  possession  of  it  for  the  corporation. 
His  residence  was  in  Crock  Street,  or  Cross  Street  as  it 
is  now  called,  some  of  the  houses  in  which  still,  with  their 
carved  fire-places,  moulded  ceilings,  and  oak  panelling, 
bear  witness  to  the  prosperity  and  magnificence  of  the  mer- 
chants of  those  days.  His  continued  prosperity  is  shown  by 
the  extensive  landed  property  he  purchased  in  North  Devon. 
Besides  the  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  he  held  the 


THB  PARISHES   OF  LYXTON  AKD  COUNTISBURY.         173 

manor  of  Maydenford,  Barnstaple,  the  Watermouth  estate  in 
Berrynarbor,  Combe  in  Loxhore,  Overfoldhay  and  Netherfold- 
hay  in  Parracombe,  the  Barton,  and  several  other  estates  in 
Fremington  and  Bickington. 

His  brother,  John  Wichehalse,  the  head  of  the  family, 
had  died  in  1558,  leaving  six  sons  and  three  daughters,  who 
became  the  care  of  their  uncle  at  Barnstaple.  Through  his 
influence  Robert,  the  eldest  and  heir  of  Wych,  had  married 
a  North  Devon  heiress,  Elinor,  daughter  of  John  Marwood, 
of  Westcote.  John  Wichehalse,  the  youngest,  entered  the 
service  of  his  uncle  Nicholas,  as  also  did  a  Nicholas  Wiche- 
halse, but  whether  this  was  a  nephew  or  a  great-nephew  I 
feel  uncertain. 

By  his  marriage  with  Mary  Salisbury,  Nicholas  Wiche- 
halse had  two  children,  Joan,  born  in  1554,  who  married 
Robert  Prowse,  mayor  and  member  of  Parliament  for  the 
town ;  and  a  son  Nicholas,  born  some  twelve  years  after  his 
sister,  shortly  after  which  long-desired  but  long-deferred 
event  the  father  died.  In  his  will  he  left  the  care  and 
wardship  of  his  young  son  to  his  wife,  and  desired  his 
nephew  and  servant,  John  Wichehalse,  to  marry  his  step- 
daughter, Katherine  Salisbury  (see  Appendix  No.  12). 

His  only  son,  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  who  in  the  ''Barn- 
staple Records  "  is  styled  "  gentleman,"  and  sometimes  "  the 
younger,"  to  distinguish  him  from  his  cousin,  the  merchant, 
was  brought  up  by  his  mother  at  Barnstaple,  and  was  edu- 
cated first  at  the  High  School,  Barnstaple,  under  Humphrey 
Jeffert,  and  afterwards  at  Exeter  College,  Oxford,  where  he 
matriculated  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  and  soon  afterwards  set 
up  housekeeping  for  himself  in  a  house  described  as  being  on 
the  Quay,  Barnstaple.  The  result  was  that  his  studies  did 
not  progress  very  much,  and  soon  after  he  was  seventeen  he 
left  Oxford  without  taking  any  degree. 

The  immediate  cause  of  this  was  his  mother's  death,  which 
terminated  his  wardship,  as  by  her  will  she  left  him  the 
wardship  of  his  "  })odye  and  lands,"  and  constituted  him  her 
sole  executor  (see  Appendix  No.  13).  In  compliance  with 
her  request  he  handed  over  his  establishment  on  the  Quay 
to  his  sister  and  her  husband,  and  himself  took  up  his  resi- 
dence in  the  family  mansion  in  Crock  Street,  and  at  the  early 
age  of  nineteen  married  Margaret,  daughter  of  Hugh  Acland, 
of  Acland,  by  Mary,  daughter  of  Thomas  Monk,  of  Potheridge. 
His  two  cousins  were  both  married  men,  living  at  Barn- 
staple. John  Wichehalse  had,  in  accordance  with  his 
uncle's    wish,    married    Katherine    Salisbury,    the    young 


174    THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

Nicholas's  half-sister,  and  had  by  her  a  family  of  seventeen 
children,  several  of  whom  died  young,  and  none  appear  to 
have  left  any  issue,  while  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  the  mer- 
chant, carried  on  the  business  established  by  his  uncle, 
though  without  his  uncle's  capital  it  had  sunk  to  be  more  a 
retail  one,  such  as  would  now  be  described  as  a  woollen 
draper's.  He  had  married  Lettice,  daughter  of  John  Dea- 
mond,  mayor  of  Barnstaple  in  1561,  1566,  and  1581.  There 
appears  to  have  been  some  dispute  over  this  marriage,  which 
is  told  in  the  minutes  of  a  court  held  at  Barnstaple  26  May, 
31  Eliz.  (see  "  Barnstaple  Eecords,"  Vol.  I,  page  48).  How- 
ever, the  marriage  took  place  in  1582,  the  issue  of  which 
was  a  son  Nicholas,  who  died  an  infant,  and  a  daughter 
Lettice,  who  afterwards  married  Hugh  Fortescue,  a  nephew 
of  Sir  Faithful  Fortescue.  This  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  the 
merchant,  died  in  A.D.  1607.  The  inventory  of  his  goods  is 
of  some  interest  as  showing  of  what  the  stock-in-trade  and 
domestic  furniture  of  a  woollen  draper  of  the  period  con- 
sisted :  the  following  are  a  few  selections  from  it,  for  it  is 
somewhat  lengthy  to  give  in  extenso. 

In  the  shop,  among  other  goods,  were  182  yd.  of  coloured 
bayes,  priced  at  Is.  4d.  the  yard ;  49  yd.  of  kersey,  at  28.  4d. 
a  yard ;  broadcloth,  at  8s.  a  yard ;  14  yd.  of  **  coarse  graie 
fifrize,"  at  lid.  a  yard;  certain  bufifyns  in  remnants,  worth 
£1.  9s.  4d. ;  a  piece  of  white  bayes;  also  lace,  silk,  black 
velvet,  ell  broad  taffeta,  leaven  taffeta,  and  five  small  boxes  of 
marmalade.  This  last  word  is  uncertain,  but  I  can  make  it 
nothing  else,  though  marmalade  certainly  seems  out  of  place 
in  such  surroundings. 

Among  his  domestic  furniture  were  two  goblets  or  bowls 
of  silver  parcel  gilt,  a  silver  salt  gilted,  silver  spoons,  a  stone 
cup  bound  and  covered  with  silver  gilt,  a  scriptorie,  a  table- 
board,  a  square  board,  six  gilt  cushions,  six  cushions  of  arras 
and  six  other  cushions,  spruce  chests,  little  chests,  a  cipris 
chest,  pewter,  glass,  etc.  The  chambers  mentioned  are 
"  the  Shope,"  the  "  hall  howse,"  higher  buttrie,  two  higher 
chambers,  the  chamber  within,  the  hall,  the  kitchen,  the 
lower  buttrie,  courtlages,  and  cellars,  where  there  were  forty- 
five  bushels  of  salt  valued  at  £3.  58.,  an  iron  beam,  scales  and 
weights,  wool  and  yarn. 

Nicholas  Wichehalse,E8q.,  on  coming  of  age,  obtained  seizin 
of  his  property  22  June,  1588  (see  Appendix  No.  14).  He 
resided  entirely  at  Barnstaple,  taking  no  part  in  public 
affairs.  His  life  appears  to  have  been  that  of  the  country 
gentleman   of  the  times,  his  companions  and  friends  the 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON   AND   COUNTISBURY.         175 

Aclands,  Pynes,  and  Chichesters  of  the  younger  generation 
who  dwelt  around  Barnstaple,  joining  in  their  pleasures 
and  also  involved  in  their  quarrels.  We  find  him  in  1590 
presented  at  a  court  with  Gregorie  Chichester  for  drawing 
his  dagger  and  making  an  assault  on  Arthur  Champemon 
and  hurting  him  in  the  thigh  (Presentments  12  October, 
32  Eliz.).  Perhaps  this  was  at  a  carousal  of  the  young 
gentlemen  of  the  neighbourhood  on  the  return  of  one  of 
the  reprisal  ships  with  rich  booty.  The  "Prudence,"  we 
know,  came  home  this  year  with  four  great  chests  of  gold 
worth  £16,000,  and  other  things  of  great  value.  Mr. 
Edward  Chichester  was  wounded  in  the  same  brawl. 
Nicholas  Wichehal^e  sold  his  father's  lands  in  Berrynarbor, 
Loxhore,  and  Parracombe,  and  purchased  the  manor  of  Lin- 
combe,  in  the  parish  of  Ilfracombe,  formerly  part  of  the 
possessions  of  the  Abbey  of  Dunkeswell.  Five  sons  and 
three  daughters  were  born  to  him,  his  wife  dying  at  the 
birth  of  her  youngest  son,  and  in  1598  he  enfeoffed  all  his 
lands  to  Hugh  Acland,  Esq.,  and  Philip  Pyne,  Esq.,  in  trust 
for  his  eldest  son  Hugh,  with  remainder  to  his  other  four 
sons,  and  died  at  his  mansion  in  Crock  Street,  Barnstaple, 
on  31  October,  1603,  at  the  age  of  thirty -eight  (see  Appendix 
No.  15).  The  registers  of  Barnstaple,  however,  do  not 
record  his  burial 

Hugh  Wichehalse,  the  eldest  son,  was  just  seventeen,  and 
continued  to  reside  at  the  family  mansion  in  Crock  Street, 
and  on  1  February,  1613,  married  at  Bickington  Dorothy, 
daughter  of  Thomas  Pomeroy,  of  Ilsington;  the  two  next 
brothers  died  young;  Eobert,  the  fourth  son,  entered  the 
service  of  the  Earl  of  Bath  at  Tawstock,  where  he  remained 
during  his  life,  marrying  in  1625  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Coles,  a 
lady  attached  to  the  same  establishment;  they  are  both 
mentioned  in  the  EarFs  will,  and  both  were  buried  at 
Tawstock.  Philip,  the  youngest,  carried  on  a  merchant's 
business  at  Barnstaple,  residing  at  Pilton,  where  he  married 
Mary  Chaldon,  by  whom  he  had  three  children. 

Hugh  Wichehalse,  Esq.,  after  his  marriage,  continued  to 
reside  at  Barnstaple,  where  nine  children  were  bom  to  him ; 
but  in  1627  there  was  a  rumour  of  the  Plague  drawing  near 
the  town  again,  and  the  fear  of  it  drove  most  of  the  gentle 
families  residing  there  to  their  country  seats,  but  the 
Wichehalses  had  no  residence  on  either  of  their  manors, 
and  Hugh,  thinking  it  desirable  to  have  another  residence, 
both  on  account  of  the  Plague  and  also  of  the  party  spirit 
which  ran  so  high  in  his  native  town,  which  he  felt  very 


176         THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNnSBURT. 

averse  to  mixing  with,  decided  to  repair  and  enlarge  the 
old  grange  farm  at  Ley  in  the  manor  of  Lynton,  as  a  place 
where  he  would  be  at  safe  distance  from  the  Plague  and 
free  from  the  danger  of  infection,  and  in  the  summer  of 
1628  decided  to  remove  there  with  his  wife  and  children. 
It  was  a  difficult  journey  to  make  with  small  children,  for  in 
those  days  for  part  of  the  way  there  was  no  road,  only  a 
rough  track  over  the  moors;  there  was  no  possibility  of 
wagons  or  wheels,  the  only  conveyance  was  a  string  of 
pack-horses  on  which  master,  mistress,  children,  servants, 
baggage,  furniture,  and  all  had  to  be  carried.  Some  of  their 
Lynton  retainers,  including  John  Babb  and  Lancelot  Ellis, 
had  come  over  overnight,  and  in  the  early  morning  a  start 
for  Lynton  was  made  after  a  long  delay  to  get  the  packs 
and  pillions  all  settled.  Their  way  led  them  up  to  High 
Cross  and  then  down  to  the  north  gate  over  Pilton  Causeway, 
and  then  a  long  steady  rise  up  to  Sherwell,  then  down  by 
Sherwell  Church  to  the  valley  of  the  Yeo,  which  was 
crossed  at  Loxhore  Cot,  then  up  Loxhore  Long  Lane,  and 
along  the  top  of  the  hill  for  a  mile  or  more  till  they  came 
to  Westland  Pound  and  its  little  solitary  inn  lying  in  a 
hollow  on  the  edge  of  the  Black  Moors,  with  the  great  wilds 
and  solitudes  of  Exmoor  beyond.  Here  a  halt  was  made 
to  refresh  man  and  beast,  for  beyond  it  was  a  choice  of 
tracks  over  furze  and  heath,  one  track  leading  down  to  the 
village  of  Parracombe,  the  other  keeping  to  the  high  ground 
and  joining  the  South mol ton  track  which  led  by  Moles 
Chamber,  Woodburrow,  and  Ilkerton  Ridge  into  Lynton. 
The  former  was  chosen  as  the  nearest  to  Ley,  and  the  long 
string  of  pack-horses  being  counted  over,  with  a  Lynton 
retainer  as  guide  leading,  a  start  was  made  again.  About  a 
mile  and  a  half  of  moorland  track  brought  them  to  the 
enclosures  on  the  top  of  Parracombe  Hill,  and  then  down 
through  the  hamlet  of  Parracombe  Mill,  past  the  old  forti- 
fications of  Holwell,  then  called  South  Stock,  with  its  in- 
scribed stone,  and  up  and  on  open  Exmoor  once  again,  where 
a  track  led  over  Parracombe  Common,  Martinhoe  Common, 
and  Lynton  Common  to  the  top  of  the  hill  above  Sixacre, 
Endown  as  it  was  called,  whence  Lydiates  Lane  led  them 
down  to  the  Denes,  or  Valley  of  Eocks  as  we  call  it,  and 
down  through  it  on  to  Ley,  where  many  of  the  tenants 
were  assembled  to  welcome  the  first  squire  to  take  up  his 
abode  among  them.  And  so  the  Wichehalses  came  to  Lynton, 
with  which  their  name  has  ever  since  been  associated. 
Ley  was  then  not  the  present  pile  of  walls  and  buildings. 


g 


1 


THE  PAKISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    177 

with  its  gateway,  which  visitors,  deceived  by  the  name  Ley 
Abbey  which  is  sometimes  given  it,  take  to  be  the  remains 
and  ruins  of  an  old  abbey,  though  it  dates  back  no  further 
than  1850,  but  merely  a  farmhouse  with  gabled  ends,  a 
gabled  long  porch  in  the  centre,  inside  of  which  were  two 
loi^;  benches  fixed  in  the  thickness  of  walls,  such  as  is  still 
to  be  seen  in  many  parts  of  Devon,  and  covered  with  thatch. 
An  addition  with  extra  chambers  had  just  been  built,  but 
poor  it  must  have  seemed  after  the  Crock  Street  mansion 
with  its  fire-places  and  moulded  ceilings. 

Lynton  itself  they  found  but  a  tiny  village,  lying  in  a 
little  hollow  between  moor  and  sea :  on  the  top  of  the  hill 
to  seaward  was  the  church  with  west-end  tower,  nave,  and 
chanoel ;  below  on  the  shore  there  were  a  few  small  cottages, 
sheds,  and  pits,  where  the  herring -curing  industry  was 
carried  on ;  to  the  landward  of  the  church  a  little  alehouse, 
and  down  in  the  hollow  the  cottage  where  the  curate  Nicholas 
Morrice  dwelt,  with  its  small  herb  garden,  and  about  eight 
or  nine  more  cottages,  each  with  several  small  enclosures  and 
fields  attached  to  them  known  by  the  names  of  the  different 
occupiers'  tenements ;  one,  a  little  bigger,  was  a  small  farm- 
house to  which  a  larger  acreage  of  land  was  attached  known 
as  the  Home  Tenement.  Some  idea  of  this  old  Lynton  may  be 
gathered  from  the  views  published  in  1802  by  T.  H.  Williams, 
of  Plymouth.  Further  away  on  the  moor  side,  nestling  in 
the  hollows  on  the  sides  of  the  combes,  lay  some  larger 
farms  in  the  midst  of  wild  stretches  of  moorland,  in  some 
of  which  families  of  gentle  blood  were  carrying  on  the 
agricultural  industry.  At  East  Lyn  were  the  Pophams,  who 
had  come  from  Porlock;  at  Crosscombe,  or  Welcombe  as 
they  called  it  then,  were  Berrys,  a  branch  of  the  Berry- 
narbor  family,  where  Hugh  Wichehalse's  sister  was  living, 
being  wife  of  Eichard  Berry,  who  also  had  a  farm  at  Parra- 
combe;  at  West  Lyn  were  the  yeoman  family  of  Knight, 
then  rising  to  some  prominence  in  local  affairs.  In  none  of 
the  neighbouring  parishes  was  there  a  resident  squire,  but  a 
raoe  of  yeomen  was  springing  up  as  the  manors  were  being 
gradually  dismembered. 

Here  Hugh  Wichehalse  lived  the  rest  of  his  days  a  quiet 
and  retired  life  with  his  family.  Arthur,  his  eldest  son, 
and  two  or  three  daughters,  had  died  before  he  left  Barn- 
staple, but  three  more  were  bom  after  he  took  up  his 
residence  at  Ley.  He  took  a  deep  interest  in  all  parish 
affairs,  serving  the  office  of  churchwarden  in  his  turn,  and 
interested  himself  also  in  Martinhoe,  where  he  purchased 

VOL.  xxxvra.  M 


178  THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  GOUNnSBUBT. 

some  lands,  and  where  his  youngest  daughter  Bridget  was 
baptized  in  A.D.  1631.  He  seems  to  have  been  a  gentle  and 
amiable,  yet  learned  man,  and  following  the  steps  of  his 
forefathers,  a  devoted  son  of  the  Chutch,  and  in  the  troub- 
lous times  that  were  arising  he  was  rejoiced  to  be  able  in 
the  seclusion  of  Lynton  to  stand  aloof  from  the  party  strife 
that  was  waxing  so  strong  in  his  native  town.  His  energies 
were  devoted  to  the  care  and  education  of  his  younger 
children  and  the  welfare  of  the  poor  on  his  estates,  and  to 
seeking  amidst  the  rising  troubles  to  preserve  peace,  friend- 
ship, and  charity  with  all  men. 

But  if  the  squire  stood  aloof  from  politics,  his  eldest 
surviving  son  was  of  another  mind.  During  his  school-days 
at  Barnstaple  he  had  formed  some  strong  friendships  with 
boys  whose  parents  were  strong  Parliamentarians,  as  the 
majority  of  the  townsmen  were ;  and  chafing  at  the  dullness 
of  country  life,  he  betook  himself  to  the  half -shut-up  house 
in  Crock  Street,  and  while  there  made  the  acquaintance  of 
William  Venner,  of  Hudscott,  Chittlehampton,  who  was 
afterwards  so  strongly  to  influence  his  life.  The  Venners 
belonged  to  the  militant  section  of  the  Puritan  party,  and 
were  strong  Independents,  and  through  their  influence  John 
Wichehalse  threw  himself  with  zest  into  the  struggles  of 
the  period,  and  became  not  only  a  militant  Parliamentarian, 
but  notorious  as  one  of  the  chief  persecutors  of  the  malig- 
nants  or  loyalist  clergy  of  North  Devon.  The  influence  was 
strengthened  by  the  marriages  of  John  Wichehalse  in  1649 
to  Mary,  daughter  of  John  Venner,  of  Eoborough,  by  Susan, 
stepdaughter  of  Eoger  Fortescue,  and  of  William  Venner  to 
Mrs.  Wichehalse's  sister,  Elizabeth  Venner.  It  would  seem 
that  Hugh  Wichehalse  on  his  son's  marriage  transferred  his 
estates  to  him,  or  it  may  have  possibly  been  done  to 
escape  being  scheduled  as  a  delinquent;  but  it  is  certain 
that  the  son  was  in  possession  of  some  of  the  estates  before 
his  father's  death,  as  on  20  September,  1653,  he  sold  the 
manor  of  Lincombe  to  John  Cutcliffe,  of  Damage  (Sir 
William  Drake's  "  Devonshire  Notes  and  Notelets  ").  This 
also  may  account  for  there  being  no  will  discoverable  or 
administration  of  the  goods  of  Hugh  Wichehalse,  who  died 
on  Christ-tide  Eve,  1653,  and  was  buried  at  Lynton.  where  a 
monument  erected  to  his  memory  by  his  wife  still  speaks  of 
his  many  virtues  and  the  love  borne  to  him  by  all.  She 
survived  him  nearly  nine  years,  and  was  also  buried  at 
Lynton.  Of  his  children,  Edward  had  died  at  Lynton  in 
A.D.  1645  at  the  age  of  twenty-three;  Robert  settled  at 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    179 

Glastonbury,  where  he  married;  Thomas  acted  as  steward 
for  his  father,  and  afterwards  for  his  brother,  living  at  what 
was  known  as  the  Home  Tenement,  at  Lynton,  a  life  lease 
of  it  being  settled  on  him  on  his  marriage  with  Mary 
Smale,  widow,  of  Chittlehampton.  On  retiring  from  his 
duties  he  went  to  Chittlehampton,  where  he  died.  Nicholas, 
the  youngest  son,  was  provided  for  by  being  settled  at  New 
Mill.  This  was  the  lord's  mill,  and,  as  every  tenant  on  the 
estates  was  bound  to  grind  there,  it  was  a  fairly  prosperous 
afiTair.  Here  he  brought  up  a  family  of  seven  children,  was 
churchwarden  of  Lynton  in  a.d.  1678,  and  died  in  a.d.  1682. 
John  Wichehalse,  the  eldest  son  and  heir,  already  in  posses- 
sion of  some  of  the  estates  before  his  father's  death,  was,  as 
I  have  said  before,  of  another  kind  to  his  father.  He  had, 
while  residing  first  at  Roborough  and  afterwards  at  Dolton, 
become,  in  conjunction  with  his  brother-in-law,  the  terror  of 
the  North  Devon  clergy.  There  was,  however,  no  inter- 
ference with  the  Lynton  clergy,  perhaps  out  of  respect  to 
his  father,  though  the  Rev.  John  Browning,  Vicar  of  Lynton 
in  A.D.  1698,  said  it  was  "  rather  because  the  poverty  of  the 
living  made  it  a  less  tempting  prey  for  the  greedy  malice  of 
the  religious  vultures  of  those  times  "  (Walker  MSS.).  He 
had  obtained  the  appointment  of  a  commissioner  for  eject- 
ing "ignorant,  scandalous,  insufficient  or  negligent  clergy 
and  schoolmasters  in  the  county  of  Devon,"  and  by  his 
activity  in  manufacturing  cases  of  such  soon  became  one  of 
the  most  dreaded  of  this  obnoxious  commission.  The  Rev. 
T.  Lewis,  Rector  of  Chumleigh,  writing  of  the  sufiFerings  of 
his  predecessor.  Rev.  Christopher  Baitson,  says :  "  The  then 
commissioners  that  Mr.  Baitson  most  feared  were  Mr. 
Venner,  of  Chittlehampton;  Mr.  Witchalse,  of  Lynton; 
Mr.  Hacche,  of  Saturley ;  and  Mr.  Blackmore,  of  Buckland  " 
(Walker  MSS.,  Vol.  II,  p.  337).  Another  of  the  North 
Devon  clergy,  the  Rev.  George  Westcott,  Rector  of  Berry- 
narbor,  to  secure  himself,  proposed  marriage  to  and  was 
accepted  by  Grace  Wichehalse,  a  younger  sister  of  the 
Squire  of  Lynton,  and  married  her  at  Berrynarbor  16  April, 
A.D.  1657.  That  this  was  the  motive  is  shown  by  the 
following  letter  of  Rev.  Henry  Chichester,  which  is,  how- 
ever, unfortunately  torn.  The  words  in  brackets  are  conjec- 
tural restorations : — 

My  predecessor  in  the  Rectory  (of)  Berrynarbor  lying  in 
Sher(well  Deanery)  within  the  Archdeaconry  of  B(arn8taple)  was 
the  Reverent  Mr.  George  (Westcott)  who  was  inducted  in  the 
year  of  (our  Lord)   1630  and  continued  there  untill  (the  year) 

m2 


180  THB  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  C0X7NTI8BUB7. 

1675,  when  he  departed  this  (life).  I  have  been  infonned  by 
persons  of  (good)  credite  that  he  continued  in  his  (living  in) 
those  troublesome  times  not  w(ithstanding)  his  great  loyalty,  but 
that  h(e  was)  threatened  to  be  turned  out  a(nd  for)  the  better  to 
secure  himself  m(arried)  Mrs.  Grace  Wicchalls  of  Linton  (in  this) 
county  whose  brother  was  (commissioner)  under  the  Parliament 
and  a  (friend)  by  whose  means  and  favour  he  (escaped)  being 
sequestered  (Walker  MSS.,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  161). 

The  Restoration,  however,  put  a  stop  to  his  activity  in  this 
direction,  and  with  somewhat  diminished  reputation  and 
shrunken  fortunes — ^for  the  estates  now  only  consisted  of 
Lynton  and  Countisbury  manors,  and  some  property  at 
South  Molton  and  High  Bickington,  inherited  from  the 
Venners — he  came  to  Lynton  in  the  autumn  of  A.D.  1662, 
his  mother's  death  leaving  Ley  available  as  a  residence. 
Here  his  two  youngest  children  were  bom,  and  his  wife  died 
a  few  weeks  after  the  birth  of  her  child  Hugh.  John 
Wichehalse  married  again  within  a  year.  His  second  wife 
was  the  very  opposite  of  his  first,  being  of  a  good  Church  and 
Royalist  connexion,  while  the  Venners  were  all  strong  Puri- 
tans; and  freed  from  this  influence  the  old  Wichehalse 
Church  and  Royalist  spirit  seems  to  have  revived  in  him. 
He  contracted  a  friendship  with  Nicholas  Dennis,  of  Barn- 
staple, one  of  the  members  for  that  town  in  the  Restoration 
Parliament,  son  of  the  Thomas  Dennis  who  had  been  captain 
of  the  Train  Bands  during  Sir  Allan  Apsley's  governorship, 
and  one  of  the  few  Royalists  then  on  the  corporation,  under 
whose  advice  he  seems  to  have  acted  during  the  last  ten 
years  of  his  life,  which  were  spent  in  quiet  retirement  at 
Lynton,  where  he  died  in  a.d.  1676  at  the  age  of  fifty-six, 
leaving  two  sons  and  four  surviving  daughters,  three  of 
whom  had  married  and  settled  in  the  neighbourhood.  By 
his  will  he  charged  his  estate  with  a  somewhat  considerable 
sum  for  his  daughters,  and  left  his  South  Molton  property  to 
his  younger  son  Hugh  (see  Appendix  No.  17). 

John  Wichehalse,  the  eldest,  who  succeeded  to  the  Lynton 
and  Countisbury  manors — with  his  stepmother's  jointure 
and  the  legacies  to  his  sisters  charged  on  them — soon  found 
himself  in  financial  difficulties,  which  were  increased  by  his 
marriage,  the  year  after  his  father's  death,  to  Mary, 
daughter  of  Sir  John  Chichester,  Bart.,  of  Youlston,  for  the 
young  couple  were  somewhat  extravagant,  and  finding  life 
in  the  seclusion  of  Ley  somewhat  dull  and  tedious,  had 
removed  to  Chard,  in  Somersetshire.  In  their  troubles 
they  applied  to  the  squire's  maternal  relatives,  the  Venners, 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUEY.     181 

and  on  their  advice  the  manor  of  Countisbury  was  sold, 
7  January,  1679,  to  John  Lovering,  a  Barnstaple  merchant, 
who  had  married  Elizabeth  Venner,  the  only  surviving 
child  of  Wichehalse's  uncle,  William  Venner,  and  who  was 
also  related  to  Mr.  Saunders,  the  first  husband  of  Wiche- 
halse*s  grandmother,  Susan  Venner.  The  short  pedigree 
(on  the  next  page)  will  explain  best  the  various  relation- 
ships, and  also  show  the  owners  of  Countisbury  after  Wiche- 
halse. 

By  this  sale  the  legacies  were  paid  off,  and  to  make  some 
provision  for  a  child,  named  Mary  Wichehalse,  just  born  to 
the  young  couple,  John  Lovering  gave  them  a  lease  for  their 
lives  and  that  of  the  child  of  East  Leymouth,  and  advised 
them  to  return  to  Lynton.  After  some  negotiations  they 
agreed  to  do  this  on  Lovering  lending  them  a  sum  of  £450. 
As  security  for  this  Wichehalse  gave  Lovering  a  lease  for  one 
thousand  years  by  way  of  mortgage  of  part  of  Lynton 
manor.  Accordingly  they  returned  to  Lynton  in  a.d.  1681, 
where  their  eldest  son  John  wets  bom  soon  after  their 
arrival.  But  before  returning  the  Wichehalses  mortgaged 
the  other  part  of  the  manor  to  a  Somersetshire  gentleman. 
The  Venners  on  hearing  of  this  were  greatly  annoyed,  but 
once  more  John  Lovering  stood  their  friend,  and  got  the 
mortgage  of  the  Ley  portion  of  the  manor  assigned  to  him- 
self, and  for  the  next  three  years  things  went  on  quietly, 
varied  by  the  addition  of  three  more  sons  to  the  young 
couple.  But  in  1685  the  Monmouth  rising  took  place.  The 
Venners  were  all  deeply  interested,  for  they  were  strong 
Puritans.  An  Independent  meeting  was  regularly  held  at 
Hudscott,  William  Venner's  house,  and  a  relative  of  the 
family,  a  Colonel  Venner,  was  in  command  of  a  regiment  of 
the  Duke  of  Monmouth,  in  which  Wade  was  major.  Venner 
was  wounded  at  Bridport,  and  Wade  succeeded  him  in  com-' 
mand ;  but  John  Wichehalse's  sympathies  were  entirely  on 
the  other  side.  After  Sedgemoor,  Wade,  in  company  with 
Fergusson,  a  dissenting  preacher,  and  a  party  of  about 
twenty,  had  made  their  way  down  the  coast  from  Bridg- 
water to  Ilfracombe,  where  they  seized  a  vessel,  victualled 
her,  and  went  up  Channel  with  the  intention  of  picking  up 
Captain  Hewling  and  others  of  their  party,  but  being  forced 
ashore  by  a  frigate,  they  scattered,  and  secreted  themselves 
in  the  woods  around  Lynton.  On  news  of  this  reaching 
John  Wichehalse,  he  armed  several  of  his  servants,  and  with 
them  set  out  in  search  of  the  rebels. 

The  story  of  the  discovery  of  Wade  at  Brendon,  his  cap- 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUEY.     183 

ture  by  Wichehalse,  and  how  John  Babb,  Wichehalse's  ser- 
vant, shot  Wade  as  he  was  running  away,  is  told  at  length 
in  the  State  Papers  and  Harleian  MSS.,  and  as  most  of 
them  have  been  printed  in  Dr.  Cooper's  book  they  need  not 
be  given  here ;  but  a  Lynton  report,  which  I  have  taken 
from  an  MS.  of  about  a.d.  1780,  adds  that  another  of  the 
insurgents  wa^  killed  by  Wichehalse's  servants  in  Bonhill 
Wood,  and  that  the  body  was  quartered  and  the  dififerent 
parts  hung  on  a  paled  gate  at  the  bottom  of  the  wood  across 
the  road  opposite  Ley.  This  action  of  Wichehalse  caused 
a  certain  amount  of  friction  with  his  wealthy  Puritan  rela- 
tives, and  to  escape  it  he  left  Lynton  once  more  and 
journeyed  to  London,  hoping  to  advance  his  fortunes  by  the 
credit  he  expected  to  have  gained  by  his  action  in  the 
Monmouth  rising.  In  the  neighbourhood  the  blame  was 
put  on  his  servant,  John  Babb,  who  was  said  to  have  in- 
cited his  master  to  kill  every  rebel  they  could  find,  and 
local  tradition  has  it  that  the  Babbs,  who  had  been  the 
favourite  retainers  at  Ley,  never  prospered  after.  When 
their  master  left  Lynton  they  moved  to  West  Leymouth, 
as  the  modern  Lynmouth  was  called  then,  and  employed 
themselves  in  the  herring  -  curing  industry,  which  the 
cottagers  said  failed  because  Babb  was  engaged  in  it ;  and 
years  after  his  granddaughter,  Ursula  Babb,  was  pointed 
out  as  the  last  of  the  race  with  the  curse  on  it,  and  as  she 
was  reported  to  possess  the  evil  eye,  became  a  great  object 
of  fear  to  all  around.  She  afterwards  married  a  wandering 
Dutch  sailor,  named  Eichard  Johnson,  who  soon  fell  over- 
board in  a  voyage  between  Lynton  and  Ilfracombe,  and 
their  only  son  John  disappeared  and  was  never  heard  of 
again.  Old  Ursula  lived  to  a  great  age  near  the  limekilns, 
and  it  was  from  her  tales  of  the  great  family  and  their  sad 
misfortunes  that  all  the  local  legends  in  connexion  with  the 
Wichehalse  family  arose,  her  tales  forming  the  basis  of  the 
stories  and  Lynton  legends  collected  by  the  Kev.  M.  Mundy 
which  were  printed  in  "  Cooper's  Guide." 

In  A.D.  1686  John  Lovering,  who  had  been  such  a  good 
friend  to  the  Wichehalses,  died,  and  their  means  were  still 
more  straitened.  Most  of  the  land  was  let  out  on  long 
leases  with  a  fine  and  a  nominal  rent,  and  so  the  yearly 
income  was  small.  The  royalty  of  fishing  and  harbour 
rights,  which  had  been  reserved  when  Countisbury  was  sold, 
brought  in  little  and  was  very  variable,  so  East  Leymouth, 
the  provision  the  Venner  family  had  made  for  Mary  Wiche- 
halse, was    also   mortgaged.      Life   in    London  was  very 


184    THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

different  from  life  in  Lynton,  but  far  more  costly,  and  their 
extravagances  seem  to  have  worn  out  the  Venners.  His 
cousin,  Elizabeth  Levering,  had  married  a  second  husband, 
Joseph  Bailer,  of  Barnstaple,  who  thought  it  would  be  best 
to  have  done  with  the  Wichehalses  altogether,  and  accord- 
ingly he  transferred  the  mortgages  (the  interest  on  which 
had  never  been  paid)  with  all  arrears  to  John  Short,  a  fuller, 
of  Kenn,  near  Exeter,  and  Wichehalse,  being  short  of  money 
as  usual,  borrowed  another  £400  of  Short  on  the  same 
security.  But  he  soon  found  the  Shorts  dififerent  men  to 
deal  with  than  Venners  or  Loverings ;  they  wanted  to  see 
the  interest  of  their  money.  Wichehalse  had  never  troubled 
about  that  with  Levering,  and  let  it  run  in  arrears  as  before. 
Shorts,  finding  they  got  no  interest,  took  legal  proceedings  by 
filing  a  bill  in  Chancery  in  July,  1694,  and  a  long  course  of 
legal  proceedings  took  place  which  involved  the  Wichehalses 
deeper  and  deeper.  Mrs.  Wichehalse*s  brother,  Henry  Chiches- 
ter, died  in  this  year,  leaving  her  some  money  and  reversions, 
but  Sir  Arthur,  their  brother,  fearing  it  would  disappear  at 
once,  would  not  pay  her,  so  Chancery  proceedings  were  com- 
menced against  him,  and  bit  by  bit  the  inheritances  of  the 
Wichehalses  were  frittered  away,  the  mortgages  were  fore- 
closed, and  the  equity  of  redemption  barred  by  a  decree  of 
Chancery  in  a.d.  1696.  Wichehalse,  having  the  idea  that 
his  legal  agent,  Thomas  Northmore,  had  arranged  matters 
with  Short,  practically  let  judgment  go  by  default,  and  at 
the  end  of  the  year  A.D.  1705  died  somewhat  suddenly  in 
London,  where  he  had  been  residing,  leaving  by  his  will  his 
lands  and  mansion  to  his  wife,  with  the  exception  of  East 
Leymouth,  which  was  left  to  his  daughter  Mary.  They 
were,  however,  but  empty  bequests,  for  all  had  practically 
gone.  On  the  death  of  her  easy-going  husband,  Mrs.  Wiche- 
halse, indeed,  bestirred  herself  to  see  what  could  be  done  to 
get  back  the  lost  inheritance,  out  of  which  she  said  the 
lawyers  had  cheated  her.  Bills  were  filed  in  Chancery 
against  the  Lynton  fishermen  for  not  paying  their  royalties 
and  dues  to  her ;  the  judgment  of  the  Chancery  Court  was 
appealed  against,  the  case  being  ultimately  carried  to  the 
House  of  Lords,  her  plea  being  that  the  former  judgments 
had  been  obtained  by  collusion  with  her  husband's  legal 
agent,  Thomas  Northmore.  Her  appeals,  however,  were 
dismissed  with  costs  in  July,  a.d.  1713,  and  the  estates 
finally  lost. 

Of  the  family  of  the  last  Squire  Wichehalse  there  is 
little  to  be  said.  The  eldest  and  youngest  of  the  three  sons  took 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.     185 

to  the  profession  of  arms.  Charles  rose  to  the  rank  of  captain 
in  the  regiment  of  Lord  Gorges,  and  was  killed  in  a.d.  1707,  in 
that  colossal  blunder  of  Lord  Galway,  the  battle  of  Almanza, 
where  in  a  few  hours  eighteen  thousand  men  and  all  the 
artillery  and  baggage  were  lost.  John,  the  eldest  and  head 
of  the  family,  was  a  captain  in  Colonel  Charles  Oatway's 
foot  regiment,  and  died  while  on  garrison  duty  at  Port 
Mahon,  Minorca,  in  A.D.  1721,  leaving  a  widow  but  no 
children.  Henry  settled  with  his  mother's  relatives  at 
Sherwell,  and  died  there  in  a.d.  1736,  the  last  male  of  the 
family. 

Around  the  fate  of  Mary,  the  only  daughter  of  the  last 
Squire  Wichehalse,  some  mystery  hangs ;  she  seems  to  have 
married  at  Caerleon  a  Mr.  Henry  Tomkins,  and  had  an  only 
son  named  Chichester  Tomkins,  born  about  a.d.  1711,  but 
after  a  while  insisted  on  returning  to  Lynton,  the  old  home 
of  her  family,  and  wandered  about  by  the  cliffs  gazing  on 
the  lost  inheritance  of  her  race,  under  the  care  of  a  faithful 
retainer  of  the  family,  Mary  Ellis,  and  according  to  one 
accoimt  fell  off  the  cliffs  at  Ley,  or  by  another  was  washed 
off  the  rocks  by  the  tide,  the  body  never  being  found. 

And  the  sad  fate  of  "  The  Last  of  the  Wichehalses,"  as 
she  was  called,  over  which  old  Ursula  the  Witch  of  Leymouth 
used  to  moan  and  babble  to  the  cottagers  on  the  beach,  was 
the  foundation  of  the  Rev.  Matthew  Mundy's  tale  which  he 
called  "  The  Legend  of  Jennifred,"  his  insufficient  knowledge 
of  the  Wichehalses  causing  him  to  antedate  it,  or  perchance  it 
was  merely  a  desire  to  cast  the  story  in  what  seemed  a 
more  romantic  period  than  Georgian  days,  and  the  story  of 
the  Dutch  origin  of  the  family  may  have  arisen  from  some 
confusion  with  the  Dutch  husband  of  old  Ursula. 

Mary  Wichehalse's  8on,Chichester  Tomkins,  went  to  Oxford 
and  matriculated  at  Jesus  College  3  November,  1729,  and 
took  his  B.A.  from  Wadham  College  in  1733.  He  was  after- 
wards Eector  of  Brendon,  1743  to  1758,  from  whence  he 
removed  to  St.  Mary  Major,  Exeter,  1758  to  1767,  and  died 
at  St.  Winnow  in  1781,  leaving  a  son  and  two  daughters. 
This  Mr.  Tomkins  and  his  sisters  visited  Lynton  in  the 
summer  of  a.d.  1815,  and  inquired  among  the  old  people  as 
to  their  grandmother  and  her  family,  and  by  chance  they  came 
across  the  descendants  of  Mary  Ellis,  their  grandmother's 
maid,  who  showed  them  a  certificate  of  the  marriage  of 
Mary  Ellis,  with  the  name  of  her  mistress  as  a  witness, 
Mary  Tomkins,  formerly  Mary  Wichehalse ;  on  which  they 
said  that  they  did  not  even  know  their  grandmother's  name 


186    THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BUBY. 

was  Mary,  only  that  she  was  a  Wichehalse,  as  their  father 
would  never  say  anything  about  her  on  account  of  her 
misfortunes.  The  last  of  these  descendants,  Miss  Tomkins,  on 
her  death  in  a.d.  1845,  left  a  legacy  of  £100  for  the  poor 
of  Brendon.  And  now  the  very  name  of  Wichehalse,  which 
for  four  hundred  years  occupied  a  conspicuous  place  in  Devon, 
seems  to  have  totally  disappeared. 

I  have  given  a  full  pedigree  of  the  family,  and  in  the 
Appendix  will  be  found  many  of  the  wills  and  documents 
relating  to  them. 


2.      POPHAM,  OF  EAST  LYN. 

Arms. — On  a  chief,  gules,  a  plate  between  two  stags'  heads 
caboshed  or,  a  crescent  for  difference. 

The  Pophams  of  East  Lyn  were  a  Porlock  family  descended 
from  John  Popham,  second  son  of  Richard  Popham,  of 
Alfoxton,  County  Somerset;  a  pedigree  of  the  family  is 
given  in  Collinson's  "  History  of  Somerset."  This  John 
Popham's  son,  John  Popham,  settled  at  Porlock,  where  he 
held  land  in  West  Chantock;  his  son,  Walter  Popham, 
married  Agnes,  daughter  of  William  Hatch,  of  AUer,  both 
of  whom  were  buried  in  the  chapel  of  St.  Mary  in  the 
south  aisle  of  the  church  of  Porlock.  Their  son  Walter, 
who  married  15  June,  1562,  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Nicholas 
Berry,  of  Berrynarbor,  died  at  Porlock  in  1582.  By  his 
will  dated  27  October,  1579,  he  desires  to  be  buried  near 
his  parents  in  "  our  Lady  He  in  the  Churche  of  Porlock,"  and 
leaves  his  lands  in  West  Chantock  and  Huish  Champflower, 
and  all  his  other  lands,  to  his  widow  as  long  as  she  remained 
unmarried,  and  six  score  pounds  to  his  three  children,  Eichard, 
Walter,  and  Eglyn,  and  mentions  his  nephew,  John  Trott, 
minister,  Sarah  his  god-daughter,  wife  of  John  Trott,  and 
William  their  son  (P.C.C.  Tirwhitte.  35). 

The  eldest  of  these  three  children,  Richard,  came  to 
Lynton  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  having  a  lease 
of  the  manor  of  East  Lyn  from  Pyne.  Sir  William  Pole 
also  states  the  family  had  the  patronage  of  Brendon.  He 
married  Jane,  daughter  of  Hugh  Osborne,  of  Iddisleigh, 
who  had  just  before  become  the  second  husband  of  his 
mother.  He  was  churchwarden  of  Lynton  in  a.d.  1615, 
and  was  buried  at  Lynton  7  April,  1628. 

His  son  Hugh,  born  at  Lynton,  baptized  6  July,  1599, 
married  into  a  local  family,  Rawles,  of  Countisbury  and  Care. 


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188    THE  PABI8HES  OF  LTNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BUBT. 

The  Countisbury  regiaters  are  lost  till  1678,  so  there  is  no 
record  of  it.  but  the  marriage  licence  was  issued  2  October, 
1630.  He  had  a  family  of  nine  children  born  at  Lyntbn,  and 
was  several  times  churchwarden  of  the  parish.  The  family, 
besides  farming,  also  engaged  in  the  local  herring  industry  ; 
Hugh  Popham,  his  second  son,  being  owner  of  barques  and 
boats  trading  and  resorting  to  the  harbour  in  A.D.  1710. 

This  Hugh  Popham  died  in  A.D.  1717,  which  is  the  last 
reference  made  to  the  family  I  can  find  in  Lynton.  The 
elder  brother,  Eichard  Popham,  did  not  reside  at  Lynton, 
but  went  early  in  life  to  Barnstaple,  and  with  the  expiration 
of  the  East  Lyn  lease  the  connexion  of  the  family  with 
Lynton  ceased. 

On  the  preceding  page  is  a  pedigree  of  the  various 
members  of  this  family. 

8.      BERRY,  OF  CROSSCOMBE. 

Anns, — Or,  three  bars,  gules. 

Crest — A  griffin's  head  erased,  party  per  pale  or  and  gules. 

The  family  of  Berry,  of  Crosscombe,  was  a  branch  of  Berry. 
of  Berrynarbor,  one  of  the  most  ancient  in  the  county.  In 
the  Visitation  of  1620  two  sets  of  quarterings  of  this 
family  are  given,  and  over  the  old  house  of  the  family  at 
Berrynarbor  the  arms  of  Bonville  and  Plantagenet  can  still 
be  seen.  There  were  also  branches  of  the  family  at  Chittle- 
hampton  and  Northam  and  elsewhere. 

The  Crosscombe  branch  were  settled  there  in  A.D.  1428, 
and  remained  till  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
A  pedigree  of  this  branch  is  given  by  Westcote  and  also  by 
Vivian,  which  differ  to  some  extent.  Where  they  diiBfer, 
such  documentary  evidence  as  I  have  seen  points  to 
Westcote  being  the  more  correct.  I  have  made  a  few  addi- 
tions to  theirs  in  the  annexed  pedigree. 


4.      KNIGHT,   OF  WEST  LYN. 

Amis, — None  recorded. 

Knights  of  West  Lyn  might  rather  be  styled  a  yeoman 
than  a  gentle  family,  though  old  Westcote  says  the  Devon- 
shire yeomen  and  farmers  of  his  day  were  mostly  of  gentle 
blood,  being  the  younger  sons  and  descendants  of  the 
younger  sons  of  knights  and  gentlemen.    Any  account  or 


TBI  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT. 


189 


BERRY,  OF  CROSSCOMBE,  PEDIGREE, 


Jenkin  Berry,  of  Berrynarbor=. 


Richard  Berry,  of  Cro8scombe==dau.  of  a  Spaniard. 
8rd  son. 


John  (Westcote)  or  Thomas  (Colby)  Berry  =j=. 
of  Crosscombe. 


Richard  Berry,  of  Cro88Combe= John  Berry,  of  Chittlehampton. 

Berry,  of  Chittlehampton. 

John  Berry —Frances,  dau.  of  Nicliolas      Robert  Berry.        John  Berry. 


of  Croescombe. 


Berry,   of  Berrynarbor, 
wid.  of  Edward  Hensley. 


d.  8.p, 


d.  8.p, 


Richard  Berry = 
of  Crosscombe.  "Will 
proved  7  Nov.,  1690. 
(Archd.  Barum.) 


Jane,  dau.  of  Edward    Anthony  Berry. 
Hensley,  of  Berrynar- 
bor. 


d.  8,p. 


I  7  March,  1612  (Parracombo). 

John  Berry=  (i)  dau.  of  Anthony       Richard  Berry =Margaret,  dau. 
of  Crosscombe.  Kelly,  Rector  of    of  Parracombe. 

North  Tawton. 
=(ii)  22  March,  1604 
(NorthTawton), 
Frances,  dau.  of 
Roger  Wikes,  of 
North  Wike. 


of     Nicholas 
Wichehalse, 
of  Barnstaple. 


Mara;aret  Berry.  Hugh  Berry. 

Named  in  will  of  her  Named  in  will  of 

great-grandfather,  Hugh  Aclaud,  1620. 
Hugh  Acland  (1620). 


190    THE  PAEI8HI8  OF  LTNTON  AND  GOUNTISBUBT. 

pedigree  of  this  family  is  most  difficult  to  draw  up,  on 
account  of  there  being  several  families  of  the  same  name  in 
the  parish.  The  earliest  record  of  the  name  in  Lynton  is 
in  the  Subsidy  Rolls,  34,  35  Henry  VIII,  when  there  were 
a  Roger  Knight,  a  David  Knight,  of  Dean,  and  a  David 
Knight,  sr.  The  earliest  entries  in  the  register  are  a 
Thomasine  Knight,  buried  11  January,  1590;  John  Knight, 
married  1591 ;  and  John  Knight,  buried  1595.  The  earliest 
will  of  a  Knight  of  Lynton  I  have  seen  is  1580.  There 
are  over  fifty  wills  of  Lynton  Knights  proved  in  the  Court 
of  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple.  They  were  settled  at  West 
Lyn  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  purchased  the 
freehold  from  Sir  Robert  Basse tt  in  A.D.  1632.  The  an- 
nexed pedigree  gives  only  names  from  deeds  down  to  John 
Knight,  born  1651,  from  which  period  I  have  given  all  the 
descendants.  The  last  of  the  name  of  this  family,  Miss 
Frances  Knight,  died  at  Lynmouth  11  December,  1905. 


VII. 

ECCLESIASTICAL   HISTORY   AND   CHARITIES. 

There  is  no  evidence  as  to  when  or  by  whom  the  first 
church  in  Lynton  was  built.  The  entries  concerning 
Lynton  and  Countisbury  in  the  Episcopal  Records,  for 
reasons  that  will  be  hereafter  explained,  are  excessively 
scanty.  There  is  no  mention  of  the  church  or  its  patronage 
in  Henry  de  Tracy's  grant  of  the  manors  to  Ford,  though 
without  doubt  it  existed  at  the  time.  The  Rev.  0.  J. 
Reichel,  however,  informs  me  that,  owing  to  William 
de  Tracy's  share  in  the  murder  of  Archbishop  Thomas, 
there  are  peculiar  circumstances  in  connexion  with  the 
ecclesiastical  patronage.  In  the  Calendar  of  Documents  in 
France,  circ,  a.d.  1185-91,  there  is  mention  of  a  charter  of 
Hugh  de  Coterva,  notifying  that  he  has  granted  the  gift 
which  his  uncle,  William  de  Tracy,  made  to  Alan  de  Tracy, 
clerk,  before  his  crime  against  St.  Thomas,  of  all  the 
churches  on  his  land  to  Thomas,  the  clerk,  who  is  in  posses- 
sion, paying  Alan  an  annual  pension.  He  has  therefore 
presented  the  said  Alan  before  John,  Bishop  of  Exeter,  and 
ratifying  what  his  lord,  William  de  Tracy,  has  done,  he 
grants  Alan  all  the  churches  of  his  land  to  be  possessed  by 
him  after  the  death  of  Thomas,  the  vicar  (p.  194).  From 
this   it  would  seem   that  the  patronage   of  Lynton  and 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.     191 

Countisbury  was  separated  from  the  manor  before  a.d. 
1170  ;  that  circ,  1185  it  was  held  by  Thomas,  the  vicar,  and 
at  his  death  passed  to  Alan  de  Tracy,  clerk;  there  is  no 
record  of  any  institution  of  a  rector ;  but  on  28  November, 
A.D.  1259,  there  is  a  mention  of  Eichard  de  Sancto  Gorono 
de  Lintone  de  Toritone  et  Avetone,  rector  (Bronescombe, 
p.  257).  I  had  thought  this  Lintone  might  possibly  refer  to 
the  chantry  of  Lintone,  or  Lynetone,  in  the  church  of 
Avetone  ( Aveton  Gifford) ;  but  Canon  Hingeston-Eandolph 
informs  me  that  Rde.  Sancto  Gorono  was  certainly  Rector  of 
Lynton  in  that  year,  and  he  is  the  only  Eector  of  Lynton 
whose  name  is  known.  The  churches  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  are  both  mentioned  in  the  Taxatio  of  Pope 
Nicholas  (1288-1291).    The  entries  are  :— 

Ecc  de  Countesbyre  .  iiij*     iiij** 

Ecc  de  Lyntone        ....     iiij"* 

Dec.  viij 

So  they  were  both  of  them  then  ordinary  benefices,  and  not 
appropriated. 

But  very  shortly  after  this  date,  between  1290  and  1326, 
both  rectories  were  annexed  to  the  Archdeaconry  of  Barn- 
staple, as  in  the  "Eegistrum  Commune"  of  Bishop  Grandisson 
there  is  the  statement,  speaking  of  the  Archdeacon  of  Barn- 
staple, "Cui  quidem  archidiaconatui  sunt  Ecclesise  Paro- 
chiales  de  Lyntone  et  Contesbury  Exoniensis  Diocesis  taxate 
ad  X  marcos  sterlingorum  ab  antique  unite  et  annexe" 
(Grandisson,  "Eegistrum  Commune,"  anno  40°,  p.  1259). 
The  use  of  the  term  "  ab  antique  "  in  a.d.  1366  shows  that  it 
must  have  been  very  soon  after  the  Taxatio  of  Pope 
Nicholas,  but  there  is  no  evidence  of  the  exact  date  or  by 
whom  granted,  though  there  is  an  earlier  reference  to  their 
being  annexed  to  the  Archdeaconry  in  1330  (Grand., 
p.  547). 

The  two  benefices  continued  to  be  annexed  to  the  Arch- 
de€kconry  of  Barnstaple  till  a  quite  recent  date,  and  the 
livings  have  been  served  by  perpetual  curates  licensed  on 
the  nomination  of  the  archdeacon,  though  the  patronage 
has  lately  been  transferred  to  the  bishop,  and  the  title  of  vicar 
given  to  the  perpetual  curate,  who  is  still,  however,  licensed, 
and  not  instituted  as  rectors  and  vicars  are.  And  it  is 
owing  to  this  fact  that  there  is  scarcely  any  mention  of 
Lynton  or  Countisbury  in  the  Episcopal  Eecords,  no  record 
being  kept  of  these  perpetual  curates  till  A.D.  1689. 

To  give  the  names  of  the  patrons  and  rectors  would  be, 


192  THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AKD  COUMnSBUBT. 

therefore,  merely  to  record  the  names  of  the  suooessive 
archdeacons  of  Barnstaple,  which,  as  they  have  often  been 
printed,  it  is  not  necessary  to  insert  here ;  but  from  various 
sourcgs  I  have  put  together  a  list  of  perpetual  curates  from 
A.D.  1568  to  the  present  day  which,  I  think,  is  complete 
(before  that  date  I  have  been  unable  to  find  any),  with  brief 
notes  on  each,  and  also  a  list  of  assistant  curates  who  served 
the  living  during  the  non -residence  or  absence  of  the  per- 
petual curate. 

1568.    Hugh  Lewis. 
He  signs   the  registers   1568,   1583,  1598,  but   as  the 
register  1568-82  is  only  a  copy,  his  date  may  not  be  till 
nearly  1583. 

1599.     COPLESTONE  Hawkeridge, 
Described  as  Curate  of  Lynton  in  will  of  David  Dyer,  of 
Lynton,  dated  19  April,  1601. 

1603.    John  Brooke. 

In  1584  Curate  of  Iddisleigh. 

"Sir  John  Brooke,  mster,  was  married  unto  Margaret 
Knight,  27  April,  1584"  (Idds.  Reg.).  Curate  of  Swym- 
bridge  1590-1601,  where  he  frequently  signs  registers. 
Signs  Lynton  register  1603,  and  transcripts  1606, 1610  as 
Minister  of  Lynton,  and  parish  boundaries  in  1613 ;  buried 
at  Lynton.  "John  Brooke,  Minister  of  Lynton  16  March. 
161f." 

1614.    EOBERT  Kebbye. 

Licensed  26  September,  1614.  "Emat  Lnia  deserviendi 
ecctia  poch  de  Lynton  concess  Rob^  Kebbye  clico "  (Act 
Book). 

Transcripts  for  1614  are  signed  "per  me  Robertum 
Kebbye  vicarium  Lintoniae."  There  was  a  Jasper  Kebbye, 
Rector  of  Brendon  at  this  date,  perhaps  his  brother.  Jasper 
Kebbye,  of  Somerset,  pleb.,  matriculated  St.  Edmund's  Hall, 
Oxon.,  14  February,  1605-6,  «t.  20;  B.A.,  from  All  Souls 
College,  5  July,  1611. 

1621.  Nicholas  Morrice. 
Son  of  John  Morrice,  Vicar  of  Ilfracombe,  and  Grace 
fFosse) ;  baptized  24  November,  1596  (Ilfracombe);  married 
Elizabeth  Dyamond  24  November,  1619  (Ilfracombe). 
Seems  to  have  had  no  university  degree;  remained  un- 
disturbed at  Lynton  through  Civil  Wars,  his  successor  said 
"  on  account  of  poverty  of  living."     Signed  Declaration  of 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  193 

Conformity  9  September,  1662 ;  probably  age  and  distance 
prevented  his  doing  it  at  proper  time.  In  1665  presented 
**  qui  matrimonium  solemnizat  absque  licencise  aut  bannis," 
at  Visitation  1671  marked  "senex  et  dominus  excusat." 

Nicholas,  son  of  Nicholas  Morrice  and  Elizabeth,  baptized 
27  July,  1620  (Ilfracombe). 

John,  son  of  Nicholas  Morrice,  Curate  of  Lynton,  baptized 
14  September,  1626  (Lynton). 

Marye,  daughter  of  Nicholas  Morrice,  Curate  of  Lynton, 
baptized  27  January,  1628  (Lynton). 

Thomas,  son  of  Nicholas  Morrice,  baptized  2  March, 
163f  (Lynton). 

Eichard,  son  of  Nicholas  Morrice,  baptized  18  May,  1635 
(Lynton). 

Joan,  daughter  of  Mr.  Nicholas  Morrice,  minister,  buried 
17  April,  1659  (Lynton). 

Nicholas  Morrice,  Clerk,  buried  13  August,  1672  (Lyn- 
ton). 

Elizabeth  Morris,  buried  14  June,  1679  (Lynton). 

1672.    Anthony  Williams. 

For  nearly  forty  years  previously  Curate  of  Countisbury. 
For  further  particulars  see  "  Countisbury  Curates."  Held 
the  two  together  1672-8.  At  Visitation  1677  excused 
"valde  senex."     Died  in  1678,  and  buried  at  Countisbury. 

Anthony  Williams,  Clerk,  buried  14  November,  1678 
(Countisbury). 

1678.    Robert  Triggs. 

Licensed  11  October,  1678  (Act  Book).  Held,  as  all  his 
successors  till  1860,  both  Lynton  and  Countisbury. 

Son  of  Robert  Triggs,  Vicar  of  Chittlehampton,  by  his 
first  marriage  with  Anne  Darley ;  baptized  19  April,  1652, 
at  Sydenham  Damerell,  where  his  grandfather,  Erissy 
Triggs,  was  vicar;  matriculated  Exeter  College,  Oxon., 
4  March,  1669-70,  set.  17;  Batteler  22  February,  1669-70, 
to  20  December,  1672 ;  took  no  degree.  Appeared  as  Curate 
of  Lynton  at  the  Visitation  12  September,  1680,  when  he 
was  stated  to  ha\^  been  in  arrears,  and  signs  terrier  of 
Lynton,  1680,  "curat  ib";  held  also  rectory  of  Stoke 
Rivers  1682-4,  for  the  Carpenter  family;  appeared  as 
Curate  of  Lynton  at  the  Visitations  1683,  1689,  1692 ;  was 
instituted  to  the  vicarage  of  Ermington  17  January,  169^; 
is  mentioned  in  a  Lynton  lease  of  1707  as  of  Ermington, 
and  that  his  daughter  Ann  was  married  to  Rev.  James  Ivie, 
and  his  son  Robert  was  an  apothecary  of  Plymouth. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  N 


194    THE  PARI8HSS  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUKTISBUBT. 

Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Mr.  Bobert  Triggs,  baptized  21 
September,  1692  (Lynton). 

Ann,  daughter  of  Mr.  Bobert  Triggs,  baptized  28  August, 
1693  (Lynton). 

Robert,  son  of  Mr.  Robert  Triggs,  Clerk,  baptized  29  June, 
1695  (Lynton). 

John,  son  of  Mr.  Robert  Triggs,  Clerk,  and  Elizabeth, 
baptized  2  February,  1697  (Lynton). 

Rev.  Robert  Triggs  buried  at  Ermington  10  September, 
1722. 

1695.    John  Browning,  b.a. 

Although  the  Curates*  Licence  Book  begins  in  1689,  no 
licence  of  John  Browning  is  recorded,  but  he  appeared  at 
the  Visitation  22  August,  1699  as  Curate  of  Lynton,  and  I 
find  he  made  his  subscription  27  November,  1695  (Subscrip- 
tion Book). 

Son  of  George  Browning,  of  Exeter,  and  younger  brother 
of  George  Browning,  Vicar  of  Barnstaple  1687-1702 ;  matri- 
culated Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  8  March,  167|,  aet.  15 ;  Bat- 
teler  30  January,  1671,  to  13  March,  168};  B.A.  19  June, 
1682 ;  Rector  of  Brendon  8  July,  1700,  and  resigned  1705 ; 
Rector  of  Landcross  12  December,  1705. 

By  his  will,  dated  18  November,  1729,  proved  7  August, 
1730,  he  gave  20s.  to  the  poor  of  Lynton  and  10s.  to  the 
poor  of  Countisbury.  There  is  a  memorial  tablet  to  him  in 
the  church  in  which  he  is  called  Rector  of  Linton.  An  error 
— it  should  be  Rector  of  Landcross. 

Honor,  wife  of  Mr.  John  Browning,  Clerk,  buried  19 
November,  1712  (Lynton). 

John  Browning,  Clerk,  and  Janifred  Pedlar,  widow, 
married  13  April,  1714  (Lynton).  (She  was  Janifred, 
daughter  of  David  Hill,  of  Lynton,  and  widow  of  Edmund 
Pedlar.) 

Rev.  Mr.  John  Browning  buried  30  March,  1730  (Lynton) ; 
died  25  March,  1730,  M.I.,  Lynton. 

G^nefrid  Browning,  widow,  buried  19  June,  1736  (Lyn- 
ton). 

1730.    John  Shbrgold,  b.a. 

He  was  licensed  10  July,  1730.  I  have  no  particulars 
of  him  except  that  he  was  B.A.,  Queens'  College,  Cambridge, 
1714. 

Mr.  John   Shergold  was  buried  2  May,  1734  (Lynton 

Reg.). 


the  parishes  of  lynton  and  countisbury.       195 

1734.    Thomas  Steed,  b.a. 

Licensed  11  September,  1734,  on  the  nomination  of  the 
Eev.  John  Grant,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple. 

Son  of  Benjamin  Steed,  of  Launceston,  and  Ann,  and 
grandson  of  Ezekiel  Steed,  of  Exeter,  who  married  Frances 
Kekewich :  matriculated  Pembroke  College,  Oxon.,  14  May, 
1719,  age  16;  B.A.  1723;  Curate  of  Veryan  20  December, 
1725,  where  he  married  Zenobia  Fincher,  of  Veryan ;  Curate 
of  Ruan  Langhorn  1732 ;  Vicar  of  Barnstaple  17  September, 
1734 ;  resided  entirely  at  Barnstaple. 

Anne,  daughter  of  Thomas  Steed,  Clerk,  and  Zenobia, 
baptized  1  July,  1735  (Barnstaple).  She  married  Jonathan 
Ivie,  of  Exeter.  The  trustees  of  her  marriage  settlement, 
27  June,  1753,  were  John  Boyce,  Barnstaple,  and  Eev.  E. 
Nicholls,  Lynton. 

Thomas,  son  of  Thomas  Steed,  Vicar,  and  Zenobia,  baptized 
5  April,  1737  (Barnstaple). 

John,  son  of  Thomas  Steed,  Vicar,  and  Zenobia,  buried  11 
December,  1740  (Barnstaple). 

Mrs.  Ann  Steed,  buried  19  December,  1761  (Barn- 
staple). 

Thomas,  son  of  Thomas  and  Zenobia  Steed,  buried  13 
July,  1763  (Barnstaple). 

Rev.  Mr.  Thomas  Steed,  late  Vicar,  buried  28  November, 
1764  (Barnstaple). 

Zenobia,  relict  of  Mr.  Steed,  buried  1 2  June,  1774  (Barn- 
staple). 

The  parish  was  served  during  Mr.  Steed's  incumbency  by 

1734.    John  Rake. 

Son  of  Samuel  Rake,  of  Penselwood ;  matriculated  Hart 
Hall,  Oxon.,  29  November,  1723,  set.  17. 

1735.    John  Hartnoll,  b.a. 

Son  of  John  Hartnoll,  of  East  Buckland,  Devon ;  matri- 
culated Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  11  March,  1730-1;  B.A.  12 
October,  1734 ;  married  at  Roseash,  25  October,  1735,  to 
Mrs.  Joan  Buckingham,  of  East  Buckland;  licensed  to 
Lynton  29  June,  1735.  He  died  in  1756  at  Torrington 
(Adiiin.,  Exeter). 

1738.    Thomas  Colley,  m.a. 

Son  of  Rev.  James  Colley,  Rector  of  Parracombe,  by 
Mary,  daughter  of  Rev.  J.  Blackmore,  Rector  of  Parracombe ; 

n2 


196    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT. 

baptized  6  March,  171f  (Martinhoe) ;  matriculated  Exeter 
College,  Oxon.,  11  March,  173f ;  B.A.  1737;  M.A.  Gonville 
and  Caius,  Cambridge,  1741 ;  Deacon  15  January  173i,  He 
signs  Lynton  registers  1737  and  1738 ;  was  also  Cimte  of 
Sherwell,  afterwards  Eector  of  Arlington  1741-5,  and  Vicar 
of  Chittlehampton  1743;  married  Eachel,  daughter  of 
Csesar  Gififard,  of  Brightleigh,  26  May,  1746;  died 
24  February;  buried  26  February,  1762;  M.I.  (Chittle- 
hampton). His  niece,  Susanna  Colley,  was  mother  of  the 
well-known  Dr.  Clarke,  of  Lynton. 

1740.    Edward  Nioholls. 

There  was  an  Edward  Nicholls,  m.a.,  King's  CoU^e, 
Cambridge,  1734,  but  I  have  not  been  able  to  ascertain  his 
parentage ;  he  was  licensed  to  Lynton  5  December,  1740 ; 
he  married  12  September,  1742,  at  Martinhoe,  Joan,  widow 
of  John  Knight,  of  West  Lyn.  Residing  at  West  Lyn,  he 
occupied  for  over  forty  years  the  most  prominent  position 
at  Lynton,  was  most  highly  esteemed,  and  the  guide,  adviser, 
and  friend  of  all  the  parishioners ;  he  championed  the  cause 
of  the  fishermen  and  mariners  in  the  disputes  with  the 
lord  of  the  manor.  The  registers  note  the  presentation  to 
him  of  a  silver  cup  engraved  "  the  Fisherman's  gift "  (this 
cup  is  now  in  the  possession  of  C.  E,  Eoberts  Chanter,  Esq., 
of  Broadmead,  Barnstaple).  He  was  executor  of  the  will 
of  Eev.  T.  Steed ;  also  at  times  served  parishes  of  Countis- 
bury,  Brendon,  and  Parracombe. 

William,  son  of  Edward  Nicholls,  Clerk,  and  Joan,  baptized 
3  August,  1743  (Lynton).  This  William  Nicholls  matric- 
ulated Queen's  College,  Oxon.,  1762,  and  was  afterwards 
Rector  of  Martinhoe,  1771. 

Edward,  son  of  Edward  Nicholls,  Clerk,  and  Joan,  baptized 
15  March,  1745  (Lynton);  Mary,  daughter  of  Edward 
Nicholls,  Clerk,  and  Joan,  baptized  8  March,  1746  (Lynton) ; 
Joan,  wife  of  Eev.  Edward  Nicholls,  buried  18  May,  1780 
(Lynton) ;  Rev.  Edward  Nicholls  buried  5  April,  1785 
(Lynton). 

1765.    Joshua  Holb,  m.a. 

Licensed  25  May,  1765,  on  the  nomination  of  Rev. 
William  Hole,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple ;  was  nephew  of  the 
Archdeacon,  and  son  of  Joshua  Hole,  of  South  Molton, 
apothecary,  by  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Rev.  Lewis  South- 
combe  ;  bom  26  February ;  baptized  2  April,  1733  (South 
Molton);  matriculated  Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  23  May,  1751; 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  OOUNTISBURY.  197 

B.A.  7  February,  1755;  M.A.  1  July,  1762;  Rector  Nymet 
Eowland,  1763-6 ;  Eector  of  Belston,  1767-85 ;  also  Rector 
of  Woolfardisworthy ;  married  6  March,  1759,  Anne, 
daughter  of  Rev.  W.  Radford,  of  Lapford ;  buried  at  Wool- 
farcUsworthy,  20  April,  1793.  He  was  non-resident  at  Lynton 
the  whole  of  his  incumbency ;  the  curates-in-charge  being 

1765.    Rev.  Edward  Nicholls. 
Curate-in-charge   during   the   whole  of  Rev.   J.   Hole's 
incumbency.     In  his  old  age  he  had  as  assistants 

1770.    Thomas  West. 
Licensed  to  Countisbury  and  Brendon,  afterwards  Vicar 
of  Wear  GifiFord.     See  note  on  him  in  "  Devon  Notes  and 
Gleanings"  (Wear  Gifford). 

1774.    Thomas  Clement. 

Licensed  to  Countisbury  and  Brendon,  7  July,  1774; 
signs  Lynton  Register  1777  and  1782;  was  also  Curate 
of  Parracombe. 

1782.    John  Dovell,  b.a. 

Son  of  John  Dovell,  gentleman,  of  Parracombe,  by  Mary, 
daughter  of  John  Knight,  of  Lynton ;  baptized  19  December, 
1755  (Parracombe);  matriculated  Exeter  College,  Oxon., 
20  May,  1776;  B.A.  1780;  Curate  of  Egloskerry  1780; 
Curate  of  Parracombe  1785;  Rector  of  Martinhoe  1790; 
C.  Shebbeare ;  buried  at  Petrockstowe,  A.D.  1839,  aet.  84. 

1784.    William  Robbins. 
Son  of  Walter  Robbins,  mercer,  of  Barnstaple,  and  Eliza- 
beth his  wife ;  baptized  24  September,  1760  (Barnstaple) ; 
matriculated  Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  1  March,  1779;  B.A. 
1783 ;  C.  Milton  Damerell,  1783. 

1785.  Richard  Hole,  b.c.l. 
Licensed  15  July,  1785,  on  nomination  of  Rev.  William 
Hole,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple;  was  son  of  Archdeacon 
Hole  by  Thomazine,  daughter  of  Richard  Evans; 
baptized  2  June,  1746  (Exeter  Cathedral);  matriculated 
Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  23  March,  1764 ;  B.C.L.  3  May,  1771 ; 
C.  Sowton,  1777 ;  V.  Buckerell,  1777 ;  Rector  of  Farring- 
don  and  Inwardleigh,  1792 ;  married  Wilhelmina,  daughter 
of  Hermann  Katencamp,  of  Exeter,  28  October,  1776 
(Holy  Trinity,  Exeter) ;  was  a  poet  (see  sketch  of  his  life 


198    THE  PAEISHBS  OF  LTKTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 

by  Bartholomew  Parr,  Exeter,  1803,  and  **  Dictionary  of 
National  Biography");  buried  28  May,  1792  (Littleham), 
leaving  two  daughters,  Wilhelmina,  bom  1782,  married 
25  August,  1804,  Eobert  Lovell  Jenkins,  Captain  Boyal 
Cornish  Miners ;  and  Charlotte  Anne,  baptized  1787 ; 
was  non-resident  at  Lynton.     His  curates-in-chai^e  were 

1785.    William  Robbins. 
See  above.     Appeared  at  Visitation  28  July,  1785,  as 
Curate  of  Lynton;  he  died  1798;  will  proved  as  William 
Robbins,  Clerk,  of  Barnstaple. 

1788.    Richard  Knight,  b.a. 

Son  of  John  Knight,  of  West  Lyn,  Lynton,  by  Mary 
( Vellacott) ;  baptized  2  February,  1762  (Lynton) ;  matricu- 
lated Magdalen  Hall,  Oxon.,  9  May,  1780;  B.A.  1784; 
married  7  January,  1785  (St.  Mary  Redcliffe,  Bristol), 
Elizabeth  Crocombe,  of  Brendon ;  afterwards  Rector  of 
Huish  and  Petrockstowe,  1799-1811 ;  buried  13  September, 
1825  (Petrockstowe);  a  member  of  a  well-known  Lynton 
family. 

Richard,  son  of  Rev.  Richard  Knight  and  Elizabeth, 
baptized  17  June,  1788  (Lynton).  John,  son  of  Rev. 
Richard  Knight  and  Elizabeth,  baptized  20  July,  1789 
(Lynton);  matriculated  Magdalen  Hall,  Oxon.,  30  May,  1808; 
B.A.  1812;  M.A.  1815;  Rector  of  Petrockstowe,  1825; 
buried  at  Petrockstowe,  1844;  William,  son  of  Rev.  Richard 
Knight  and  Elizabeth,  baptized  2  July,  1792  (Lynton). 

1792.  Thomas  Ley,  b.a. 
Licensed  15  June,  1792,  on  the  nomination  of  Roger 
Massey,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple,  son  of  Rev.  Thomas 
Ley,  Rector  of  Doddiscombleigh ;  matriculated  Merton 
College,  Oxon.,  23  February,  1768,  aet.  18;  B.A.  1772; 
Curate  of  Shobrooke  1777;  Rector  of  Bratton  Clovelly 
1807 ;  died  29  February,  1816  ;  was  non-resident  at  Lynton 
the  whole  of  his  incumbency ;  curates-in-charge, 

1792.    Richard  Knight,  b.a.    (See  above.) 

1801.    Francis  I'Ans.    V.  Cruwys  Morchard  1839. 

1805.    Thomas  Roe. 

Well  known  as  Rector  of  Brendon  1831-55 ;  married  Mary 
Lock,  who  inherited  manor  of  Lynton  ;  buried  at  Brendon  ; 
died  3  January,  1855,  set.  79 ;  M.I.  (Brendon). 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  199 

1808.    Charles  Kekewich,  b.a.    (See  below.) 

1815.    John  Franklin  Squire,  m.a. 

Licensed  to  Lynton  15  November,  1815;  son  of  Eev. 
John  Squire,  Eector  of  Lavenham ;  Siz.  Gonville  and  Caius, 
Cambridge,  4  October,  1758,  set.  18 ;  Scholar  1758 ;  B.A. 
1763;  M.A.  1766;  Fellow  1764;  Dean  1767;  Eegistrar 
1776;  Steward  1778;  Rector  of  Bratton  Fleming  1780; 
Rector  of  Arlington  1801 ;  died  2  August,  1818. 

1816.  Charles  Kekewich,  b.a. 
Licensed  15  May,  1816,  on  nomination  of  Thomas  Johnes, 
Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple ;  was  seventh  son  of  William 
Kekewich  by  Susanna  (Johnson),  and  younger  brother  of 
Samuel  Kekewich,  of  Peamore;  matriculated  Balliol  Col- 
lege, Oxon.,  11  April,  1796,  a^t.  26;  B,A.  1800;  was  the 
first  resident  incumbent  of  Lynton  since  1734.  The  old 
vicarage  being  in  a  very  dilapidated  state,  he  resided  in  a 
house  he  built  for  himself  at  Lynmouth.  He  became  Vicar 
of  Grendon  1832,  but  continued  to  live  at  Lynmouth  till  his 
death  on  27  March,  1849,  and  was  buried  at  Lynton,  where 
there  is  a  tablet  to  his  memory. 

1832.  Matthew  Mundy,  m.a. 
Licensed  30  November,  1832,  on  nomination  of  George 
Barnes,  d.d.,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple,  son  of  Matthew 
Mundy,  R.N.,  by  Mary  (Carwithen) ;  baptized  21  May,  1797 
(East  Budleigh);  matriculated  Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  26 
May,  1797 ;  B.A.  1817 ;  M.A.  1823 ;  Curate  of  St.  Andrew's, 
Plymouth,  1823,  George  Nympton  1825;  married  Mary, 
daughter  of  James  Patch,  of  Topsham ;  Vicar  of  Eockbeare 
2  February,  1860;  died  1  September,  1864;  M.L  (Venn 
Ottery) ;  built  the  new  vicarage  at  Lynton  on  the  curates' 
glebe ;  had  several  assistant  curates  for  Countisbury,  one  of 
whom — Eev.  W.  H.  Thornton,  Rector  of  Bovey  since  1866 — 
has  in  his  "  Reminiscences  of  an  Old  Westcoimtry  Parson  " 
given  some  account  of  Lynton  and  its  people  at  this  period. 

1835.  Rev.  J.  J.  Scott,  of  Combe  Park. 

1845.  Rev.  W.  C.  Olack. 

1848.  Rev.  Richard  Harding. 

1850.  Rev.  K  H.  Powell. 

1854.  Rev.  W.  H.  Thornton. 

A  short  accoimt  of  Rev.  M.  Mundy  is  given  by  Mrs.  Rose 
Troup  in  "Transactions  Devonshire  Association,"  VoL  XXVI, 
p.  332. 


200       the  pari8hks  of  ltnton  and  c0ukti8bury. 

1862.    William  Tanner  Davy,  m.a. 

Was  second  son  of  Richard  Davy,  of  Chumleigh ;  matricu- 
lated Exeter  College,  Oxon.,  12  May,  1826,  set.  17;  BA. 
X830 ;  M.A.  1831 ;  Curate  of  Rockbeare  1861.  His  position 
at  Lynton  appears  somewhat  irregular,  as  there  is  no  record 
of  his  having  been  licensed  to  Lynton  at  all.  He  signs  the 
registers  in  1862  as  officiating  minister,  but  as  curate  from 
1864  to  1866 ;  yet  for  the  six  years  1860  to  1866,  when 
Mr.  Tanner  Davy  was  licensed  to  the  perpetual  curacy 
of  Stoke  Canon,  vacant  by  the  resignation  of  Thomas 
Henry  Knight,  the  incumbency  was  legally  vacant;  yet 
there  was  no  nomination  by  the  Crown  on  lapse ;  the  next 
nomination  in  1866  was  by  cession  of  Mundy. 

1866.    William  Lipsett  Lawson,  m.a. 

Licensed  23  April,  1866,  on  cession  of  Mundy;  Trinity 
College,  Dublin ;  B.A.  1850 ;  M.A.  1862 ;  ordained  deacon 
1851,  priest  1852,  by  Bishop  of  Limerick.  I  have  as  yet 
received  no  answers  to  my  inquiries  as  to  ancestry,  etc. ;  but 
this  incumbent  deserves  to  be  remembered  for  the  large 
addition  made  to  the  value  of  the  living  through  his  instru- 
mentality, and  the  exquisite  chapel  of  St.  John  the  Baptist 
he  built  at  Lynmouth,  as  well  as  the  mission  chapel  at 
Barbrook  and  new  chancel  to  parish  church.  Was  non- 
resident during  the  latter  portion  of  his  incumbency,  when 
cure  was  served  by 

1882.    Herbert  Edwin  Ayre,  b.a. 

1883-5.     H.  M.  BoBiNSON,  d.d. 

1885-7.    W.  Scott. 

1887.    Walter  Eustace  Cox,  m.a. 

Licensed  to  the  perpetual  curacy  of  Lynton  13  January, 
1887,  on  the  resignation  of  W.  L.  Lawson,  youngest  son  of 
the  Rev.  Alfred  Cox,  Rector  of  Askerswell,  Dorset ;  matri- 
culated Jesus  College,  Cambridge,  October,  1869;  B.A.  1873; 
M.A.  1877;  Curate  of  Chittlehampton  1877;  Perpetual 
Curate.  Chittlehamholt,  1882;  Rector  of  Georgeham  1882; 
married  29  March,  1883  (Kingsnympton),  Fanny  Eliza, 
daughter  of  Newell  Connop,  Esq.,  of  Kingsnympton  Park ; 
the  present  incumbent. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  201 


PARISH   CHURCH   AND   ITS   RECORDS. 

The  parish  church  is  dedicated  to  St.  Mary  the  Virgin ;  it 
has  been  so  many  times  altered,  enlarged,  and  repaired  that 
scarcely  anything  remains  of  the  ancient  structure  except 
part  of  the  tower :  this  is  mainly  thirteenth-century.  The 
walls  are  four  feet  thick,  and  it  has  a  newel  staircase  in  the 
north-west  angle  without  any  external  projection,  and  only 
a  very  slight  encroachment  on  the  internal  space.  It  opens 
to  the  church  by  a  pointed  arch,  and  has  a  doorway  on  the 
west  face  with  characteristic  mouldings  and  window  over  it. 
Dr.  Fairbanks,  who  wrote  several  articles  on  Lynton  Church 
in  the  local  papers,  says  the  original  tower  terminated 
about  four  feet  below  the  present  top  window,  at  a  line 
which  can  be  made  out  externally  by  an  alteration  in  the 
arrangement  of  the  angle  stones,  those  of  the  original  part 
being  set  on  edge  alternately,  while  those  of  the  more 
recent  period  are  laid  flat.  Internally  the  addition  can  be 
more  easily  distinguished,  the  walls  being  little  more  than 
half  the  thickness  of  the  lower  part.  This  statement  is 
incorrect.  Examination  shows  that  the  whole  of  the  tower 
is  of  the  same  date,  though  the  present  windows  date  only 
from  1892.  The  church  originally  consisted  of  chancel,  nave, 
tower,  and  south  porch,  and,  like  most  of  the  moorland 
churches  of  North  Devon,  was  small  and  of  little  character, 
as  the  illustration  of  it,  which  is  of  the  date  of  1802,  shows. 
The  nave  was  rebuilt  in  1741,  and  the  south  wall  of  this  re- 
building still  exists  and  part  of  the  still  more  ancient  roof ; 
but  on  Lynton  becoming,  at  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  a  place  of  resort  for  visitors,  the  then  existing 
structure  was  found  too  small,  and  in  1817  an  aisle  was 
added  on  the  north  side ;  but  with  an  increase  in  summer 
visitors  even  this  was  insufficient,  and  in  1838  anbther 
aisle  was  added  on  the  north  side,  and  the  two  aisles  were 
carried  eastward  to  the  line  of  the  old  chancel,  the  older 
aisle  being  made  the  nave,  and  a  small  space  railed  off  for  a 
sacrarium.  The  funds  were  raised  by  allowing  every  sub- 
scriber of  £5  and  upwards  a  life  sitting,  and  a  sum  of  £150 
was  lent  by  a  then  resident.  Sir  William  Herries,  to  be  paid 
off  in  instalments  from  the  pew  rents.  Other  repairs  and 
rebuildings  were  carried  out  in  1851  and  1862,  and  during 
the  incumbency  of  the  Rev.  W.  L.  Lawson  plans  were 
drawn  by  Mr.  E.  Dalby  for  the  rebuilding  of  the  whole 
edifice  in  the  Early  English  style.  A  start  was  made  by 
the  building  of  a  new  chancel  which,  though  small,  was  a 


202  THE  PABISHBS  OF  LTNTON  AND  GOUNnSBUBY. 

well-proportioned  and  exquiaitely-designed  structure.  The 
old  chancel  was,  at  the  same  time,  partially  rebuilt  as  a 
south  chancel  aisle.  No  further  parts  of  these  plans  were, 
however,  carried  out,  for  soon  after  the  commencement  of 
the  Rev.  W.  E.  Cox's  incumbency,  Mr.  J.  D.  Sedding  was 
called  on  to  draw  up  fresh  plans,  and  from  his  designs  a  new 
nave  and  north  aisle  were  built,  the  old  nave  or  south 
aisle  restored,  the  old  roof  being  re-exposed  and  restored^ 
and  a  new  north  porch  built.  The  design  is  somewhat 
peculiar,  the  windows  being  very  low  for  their  breadth;  the 
leading  of  them,  illustrating  the  Benedicite,  is  somewhat 
striking.  The  masonry  is  limestone,  with  Hamhill  dress- 
ings. This  work  was  completed  in  1904  Mr.  Sedding 
having  died,  and  left  only  outlined  and  incomplete  designs 
for  the  chancel,  his  pupil,  Mr.  H.  Wilson,  varied  them,  and 
under  his  direction  the  present  chancel,  of  a  Romanesque 
style,  new  south  chancel  aisle,  and  vestries  were  built,  the 
Early  English  chancel  being  removed,  and  rebuilt  at  the 
end  of  the  north  aisle  to  form  a  morning  chapeL  A  balda- 
chin was  also  designed,  without  which  the  proper  effect  of 
the  east  window  cannot  perhaps  be  properly  judged. 

In  the  tower  there  are  now  six  bells,  two  medieval,  one 
recast  in  1703  and  again  in  1902,  and  three  new  ones  added 
at  the  latter  date,  cast  by  Mears  and  Stainbank.  The  in- 
scriptions on  them  are  : — 

I.     Cuthbert,    Eustace,    Michael,   Cyril,    Stephen,    Patrick, 
Denys  Cox. 
"  We  brothers  seven  give  thanks  to  heaven.     1902." 

II.     Fear  God,  honour  the  King.     1902. 

III.  Sancta  Barbara  ora  pro  nobis. 

[In  small  black  letters  with  no  capitals.     This  bell  is 
29  in.  in  diameter.] 

IV.  lo  Browning  Vicor  of  Lye.     David  Knight, 

John  Knight  Ch.  Wardens  R.P.  1703.     Recast  1902. 

V.     Sancta  Maria     t    g 

[In  small  black  letters;  no  capitals.    This  bell  is 
36  in.  in  diameter.] 

VI.  Lord  may  this  bell  for  ever  be 

A  tuneful  voice  o'er  land  and  sea 
To  call  thy  people  unto  thee. 
W.   E.   Cox,  Rector;    W.    Hume,   J.   W.   Holman, 

Churchwardens.     1902. 
[The  weight  of  this,  the  tenor,  is  about  10^  cwt] 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    203 

The  font  consists  of  a  large  stone  bowl  octagonal  extem- 
allv,  having  sixteen  plain  semicircular-headed  panels  cut 
half  an  inch  deep,  two  on  each  of  the  eight  sides.  This  is 
of  Norman  date.  It  is  supported  on  a  central  shaft,  sur- 
rounded by  eight  smaller  detached  shafts,  all  of  which 
formerly  had  neither  capitals  nor  bases,  but  foliated  capitals 
and  bases  have  been  added  lately;  the  whole  rests  on  a 
stone  block  forming  the  foot.  The  canopy  is  also  a  later 
addition  of  Jacobean  oakwork  with  modern  brass  additions. 
With  so  many  patchings  and  additions  it  is  difidcult  to  say 
what  is  ancient  and  what  modem. 

A  detailed  account  of  the  plate  is  given  in  the  first  report  of 
the  Committee  on  Church  Plate  ("  Trans.  Devonshire  Associa- 
tion," VoL  XXXVII,  pp.  163, 164).    All  the  other  ornaments 
and  fittings  of  the  church,  with  the  exception  of  the  monu- 
ments, are  modem,  and  therefore  unnecessary  to  describe  here. 
Of  the  monuments  by  far  the  most  interesting  is  that  of 
Hugh  Wichehalse,  Esq.,  which  is  just  undergoing  restoration. 
It  consists  of  a  slate  slab  with  an  irregular-shaped  alabaster 
border  containing  four  coats-of-arms :  (i)  Wichehalse,  per 
pale  argent  and  sable,  six  crescents  per  pale  countercharged ; 
(ii)  Wichehalse,  as  above ;  (iii)  Pomeroy,  or,  a  lion  rampant, 
within   a  bordure   engrailed,  gules;  (iv)  Wichehalse  and 
Pomeroy,  impaled  as  above.     The  whole  is  surmounted  with 
the  Wichehalse  crest :  a  stag's  head  erased,  per  pale  arg.  and 
sable,  the  neck  charged  with  two  crescents,  holding  in  its 
mouth  an  olive  branch  slipped  of  the  first.     Inscription  is : — 
To  I  the  memory  of  |  Hugh  Wichehalse  of  Ley  |  Esq.  who  de- 
parted this  life  I  on  Christide  Eve  1653  |  ^Etatis  suae  66 
No  not  in  silence,  least  those  stones  belowe 
That  hide  such  worth  should  in  spiffht  vocall  grow 
We'el  rather  sob  it  out  our  grateful!  teares 
Congealed  to  marble  shall  vy  threnes  with  theirs 
This  weeping  marble  then  drops  this  releife 
To  draw  fresn  lines  to  fame  and  ease  to  greife 
To  greife  \^^^  groanes  sad  losse  in  him  t'us  all 
Whose  name  was  Wichehalse — twas  a  cedars  fall 
For  search  this  urn  of  learned  dust  you'le  find 
Treasures  of  'virtue  and  piety  enshnnd 
Rare  pattern  of  blest  peace  and  amity 
Modetis  of  grace  emblems  of  charity 
Rich  talents  not  in  nig^rd  napkins  layd 
But  piously  dispenced  justly  payd 
Chast  spousal  1  love  t'his  consort,  to  children  nine 
Surviving  th'  other  foure  his  care  did  shine 
In  pious  education,  to  neighbours  friends 
Love  sealed  with  constancy  which  knows  no  end 
Death  would  have  stolen  this  treasure  but  in  vaine 
It  stung  but  could  not  kill,  all  wrought  his  gaine 
His  life  was  hid  with  Christ,  Death  only  made  this  story 
Christ  call'd  him  hence  his  Eve  to  feast  with  him  in  glory. 


204    THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BUBT. 

Among  the  other  monumentB  the  most  interesting  are  :— 

Rev.  John  Browning. 
Here  lyeth  in  hope  of  a  |  joyful  resurrection   the  |  hody  of 
Mr.  John  Browning  |  Rector  of  this  parish  who  |  departed  this 
life  the  25th  day  |  of  March  in  ye  yere  of  |  our  Lord  1730  in  the 
72  year  of  |  his  age  |  The  great  the  good  |  the  nohle  all  suhmit  | 
when  God  at  his  f  appointed  time  thinks  fit. 

POPHAM. 

On  a  stone  slab  the  initials  "  R.  P."  with  the  arms  of 
Popham.  ("  Richard  Popham,  gent.,  bur.  7  Ap.  1628."  Par. 
Register.) 

Rev.  Charles  ELekewich. 

In  memory  of  |  Charles  Kekewich  |  minister  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  |  from  June  1808  to  December  1832  |  and  a  resident 
in  this  parish  |  for  nearly  forty-one  years  |  He  died  at  Lynmouth 
March  27th  1849  aged  79  years. 

Grose. 
A  wooden  board  painted  in  oil  colours,  on  a  circular  top 
fifteen  angels,  and  at  the  sides  figures  of  Time  and  Eternity. 
Some  years  ago  there  was  also  a  circular  bottom  with  a 
boat  in  a  storm,  but  this  has  now  disappeared.  The  paint- 
ing was  done,  Dr.  Cooper  says,  by  Phelps,  of  Porlock. 
"Thomas,  son  of  John  Grose,  of  Limmouth,  nephew  of 
Richard  Bale,  of  Limmouth,  who  gave  him  a  libercJ  educa- 
tion and  kept  him  as  a  child  of  his  own  until  he  exchanged 
this  life  for  a  better,  which  was  17th  day  of  December,  1734, 
in  19th  of  his  age." 

When  boisterous  winds  and  seas  did  roar, 
Our  vessel  just  got  off  the  shore  ; 
But  the  raging  storm  came  on  so  fast, 
That  life  and  vessel  then  was  lost. 
Now  all  my  friends  that's  left  on  shore, 
Pray,  grieve  for  me,  and  weep  no  more  ; 
For  1  am  blest  with  glorious  gain, 
And  with  my  Saviour  to  remain. 

There  are  also  tablets  to  John  Fry,  clerk  of  this  parish, 
27  October,  1754;  Alexander  Vellacott,  parish  clerk,  1780, 
died  16  August,  1843,  in  eighty-fourth  year  of  his  age; 
Knights  of  West  Lyn,  Locks,  Roe,  and  Herries. 

In  the  churchyard  the  oldest  inscription  is  : — 

Here  lyeth  the  body  of  Elizabeth  Squire  late  wife  to  Peter 
Squire  of  Parracombe  who  departed  this  life  the  third  day  of 
January  1645. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    205 

Poetioal  eflFosions  are  very  plentiful.  The  most  striking 
is  to  Eobert  Hill,  "  buried  ye  9th  day  of  August  a.d.  1726." 

Tho'  Boras  blasts  on  Neptune's  wave, 

Hath  tost  me  to  and  fro ; 
But  yet  at  last  by  God's  decree, 

I  harbour  here  below. 
And  at  an  anchor  I  do  ride. 

With  many  of  our  fleet ; 
Yet  once  again  I  must  set  sail, 

Our  general  Christ  to  meet. 

The  registers  of  the  parish  commence  5  November,  1569, 
for  baptisms;  5  November.  1568,  burials;  14  Nov.,  1569, 
marriages;  but  are  very  fragmentary  up  till  1582,  the 
previous  entries  being  a  few  fragments  copied  in  in  1582. 
There  are  several  gaps  from  1650  to  1660,  and  one  page 
contains  entries  from  1602  to  1621,  which  appear  to  be 
omissions  copied  in  later. 

The  inventory  taken  by  the  special  commissioners  in 
6  Edward  VI,  under  an  order  dated  15  February,  1549,  is 
excessively  scanty  in  the  hundred  of  Sherwell.  With 
regard  to  Lynton  the  entry  is : — 

Hundr.  de  Sherwell. 
fo  35 :  pochia  de  Linton 

iij  bells  in  the  towre  their  and  one  chalice  committed  to  the 
custody  of  John  ffrye  John  Dier  John  Scoory  David  Knyght 
and  other  the  pisshefls  their  by  indenter. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts,  now  in  the  iron  chest,  do 
not  commence  till  1774,  and  they  are  of  no  particular 
interest.  In  1779  there  were  briefs  for  Wandsworth  Church 
and  Honiton  fire.  The  church  ales  were  discontinued  by 
resolution  of  the  vestry  in  1792.  In  1795  a  sun-dial  was 
fixed  at  a  cost  of  £1.  Is.  There  are  several  payments  for 
toits,  and  a  toit  for  the  minister  (hassocks  as  we  call  them 
now),  salaries  of  clerk  and  sexton,  repairs,  strings  for  violin 
and  base  viol,  a  violoncello  bow,  cleaning  plate,  washing 
surplices,  a  box  of  lemons  (probably  salts  of  lemon),  pay- 
ments to  the  singers;  the  organ  dated  from  1823,  when 
£2.  98.  6d.  was  paid  for  carriage  qf  it,  and  we  find  that  the 
vestry  meeting  occasionally  adjourned  to  John  Litson*s  at 
the  "  Sign  of  the  Crown." 

The  old  parish  records  seem  to  have  laid  great  stress  on 
keeping  a  fist  of  churchwardens,  and  for  this  reason  they 
can  be  recorded  in  nearly  any  parish.  The  Lynton  list, 
however,  does  not  begin  till  1751,  but  by  means  of  the 
registers  and  transcripts  I  have  taken  it  back  with  some 


206 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 


gaps  to  1583,  as  the  list  may  be  of  some  local  interest.   Th 

names  down  to  1836  are  given. 

1583  .  William  Meine,  Thomas  Maior. 

1598  William  Meine,  Thomas  Maior. 

1606  .  William  Gill,  John  Stevens. 

1610  .  .  John  Hill,  John  Vellacott. 

1611  .  John  Slee,  Peter  Hundell. 

1612  .  .  William  Gill,  Davie  Sende. 

1613  .  John  Knight,  John  Cottes. 

1614  .  David  Boode. 

1615  .  Richard  Popham,  David  Bromham. 

1616  Bartholomew  Maine,  John  Berrie. 
1618  .  Hugh  Popham,  Thomas  Dier. 
1621  John  Broomham,  William  Periam. 
1625  David  Broomholme. 

1629  .  .  John  Vellacott,  Anthony  HilL 

1630  Hugh  Bromholme,  ward.,  John  Scoare,  side* 

1631  .  .  Gabriel  Lichton,  David  Huxtable. 
1636  .  Bartholomew  Mayne,  John  Berrie. 

1645  .  .  William  Squire,  John  Berrie. 

1646  .  Hugh  Wichehalse,  Esq.,  Hugh  Brooke. 

1650  John  Groase,  Edward  Bromholm. 

1651  .  John  Knight,  jun.,  Edward  Tooker. 

1652  .  .  John  Knight,  Michael  Earns. 

1653  .  .  Mr.  Hugh  Popham,  John  Knight. 

1654  John  Dyer,  Geoflfery  Gaming. 

1655  Edward  Broomham,  John  Shore. 

1656  .  .  Alexander  Burgess,  William  Lang. 

1657  .  David  Dyer,  Thomas  Rail. 

1659  William  Bromham,  Ann  Burgess. 

1660  .  Anthony  Hodge,  Edward  Bromholme. 

1661  .  .  William  Squire,  John  Slee. 

1662  .  .  John  Score,  David  Bale. 

1663  .  .  Richard  Vellacott,  John  Cotes. 

1664  .  .  James  Bromholme,  John  Litson. 

1665  .  John  Crocombe,  Richard  Latham. 

1666  .  .  Hugh  Popham,  Thomas  Crocombe. 

1667  .  .  Hugh  Bromholme,  John  Groase. 

1668  .  .  Hugh  Popham,  Hugh  Bromholme. 

1669  .  .  John  Knight,  jun.,  Michael  Earns, 

1670  .  .  John  Knight,  sen.,  John  Berry. 

1671  .  John  Dyer,  Hugh  Bromholme. 

1672  ,  .  John  Knight,  Jeffery  Gamen. 

1673  .  .  Philip  Squire,  Edmond  Lang. 

1674  .  .  John  Crocombe,  Steven  Squire. 

1675  .  .  David  Dyer,  Alexander  Rudd. 

1676  .  .  David  Sloly,  John  Knight,  jun, 

1677  .  .  Walter  Fry,  George  Pile. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND   COUNTISBURY. 


207 


1678 

1679 

1680 

1681 

1682 

1683 

1684 

1685 

1686 

1687 

1688 

1689 

1690 

1691 

1692 

1693 

1694 

1695 

1696 

1697 

1698 

1699 

1700 

1701 

1702 

1738 

1739 

1740 

1745 

1751 

1752 

1753 

1754 

1755 

1756 

1757-8 

1759 

1760 

1761-2 

1763 

1764 

1765 

1766 

1767 

1768-9 

1770 

1771 

1772 


Mr.  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  Barthol.  Delbridge. 

Mr.  Alexander  Robinson,  John  Courtice. 

Nathaniel  Hardy,  John  Burgess. 

Stephen  Squire,  Thomas  Pearce. 

Anthony  Holland,  John  Vellacott. 

John  Crocombe,  John  Parrett. 

John  Crocombe,  Gabriel  Litson. 

Hugh  Bromholme,  Thomas  Crocombe. 

Hugh  Popham,  Hugh  Bromholme. 

Hugh  Popham,  John  Knight. 

John  Groase,  jun.,  John  Prous,  jun. 

John  Knight,  John  Dier. 

John  Knight,  Hugh  Bromham. 

Philip  Squire,  Edmund  Lang. 

William  Knight,  Jeffery  Gamin. 

John  Crocombe,  John  Knight. 

Thomas  Dier,  Robert  HiU. 

John  Knight,  Alexander  Rudd. 

George  Pile,  Walter  Fry. 

George  Pile,  sen. 

Nicholas  Pugsley,  John  Burgess. 

Peter  Squire,  Anthony  Berry. 

David  Bale,  Hugh  Bale. 

John  Vellacott,  Hugh  Courtice. 

John  Knight,  David  Knight. 

Amos  Gamin,  Richard  Vellacott. 

John  Knight,  Richard  Vellacott. 

John  Knight. 

David  Widden. 

Edward  NichoUs,  Richard  Vellacott. 

John  Knight,  John  Fry. 

Richard  Crocombe,  David  Knight. 

Richard  Crocombe,  Richard  Vellacott. 

Richard  Crocombe,  Andrew  Richards. 

Richard  Crocombe,  John  Groase. 

Edward  Nicholls,  William  Litson. 

Edward  Nicholls,  David  Hill. 

Edward  Nicholls,  Richard  Crocombe. 

Edward  Nicholls,  John  Knight. 

Richard  Richards,  Dorcas  Spurrier. 

Philip  Squire,  Thomas  Bar  wick. 

Richard  Vellacott,  John  Knight. 

Richard  Vellacott,  John  Punchard. 

Richard  Vellacott,  John  Groase. 

Richard  Vellacott,  David  Hill. 

Richard  Vellacott,  John  Groase. 

Richard  Vellacott,  David  Hill. 

Philip  Squire,  Alexander  Vellacott. 


208 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  GOUNnSBUBT. 


1773 

1774 

1775 

1776 

1777 

1778 

1779 

1780 

1781 

1782 

1783-4 

1785 

1786 

1787 

1788 

1789 

1790 

1791-2 

1793 

1794-5 

1796 

1797 

1798-1800 

1801-3 

1804-5 

1806-7 

1808 

1809 

1810-11 

1812 

1813-15 

1816-17 

1818 

1819-20 

1821 

1822 

1823-31 

1832 

1833-4 

1835-6 


David  Hooper,  John  Jones. 
David  Ejiight^  Richard  Jones. 
William  Litson,  Richard  Jones. 
Edward  Nicholls,  Richard  Yellacott. 
David  Knight,  John  Jones. 
David  Knight,  Richard  Yellacott. 
David  Knight,  £lizaheth  Oliver. 
David  Knight,  John  Litson. 
Hugh  Yellacott,  Richard  Litson. 
John  Knight,  Hugh  Yellacot. 
John  Knight,  Edward  Nicholls. 
John  Hooper,  William  Richards. 
John  Hooper,  John  Delbridge. 
Richard  Yellacott,  John  Knight. 
Richard  Yellacott,  John  Yellacott. 
Richard  Ward. 

William  Squire,  William  Hill. 
Richard  Hooper,  Richard  Yellacott. 
Richard  Jones,  John  Rawle. 
John  Ix>ck,  sen.,  John  Lock,  jun. 
Richard  Lord,  Thomas  Jones. 
William  Litson,  Richard  Litson. 
John  Clarke,  William  Litson. 
Richard  Ward  William  Hill. 
David  Knight,  Timothy  Wilkin?. 
Richard  Delbridge,  John  Keal. 
Robert  Thomas,  John  Lord. 
John  Yellacott,  Robert  Thomas. 
Richard  Jones,  John  Yellacott. 
John  Squire,  Thomas  Jones. 
David  Jones,  John  Ridd. 
John  Delbridge,  John  Ridd. 
Charles  Hooper,  John  Ridd. 
Charles  Hooper,  Richard  Jones. 
John  Keal,  Richard  Jones,  jun. 
John  Keal,  John  Crick. 
Thomas  Baker,  Timothy  Wilkins. 
John  Clarke,  Richard  Tucker. 
Richard  Knight,  Richanl  Tucker. 
Richard  Knight,  Richard  Jones. 


CHAPELS,    ANCIENT   AND   MODERN. 

There  seem  to  have  been  anciently  several  chapels  of 
ease  in  the  parish.  The  wording  of  the  entries  concerning 
them  in  the  Episcopal  Records  is  somewhat  uncertain  on 
account  of  the  Latin  contractions,  but  there  were  probably 


^A  LL 


A 

1      1 

V 

M        • 

1  ; 

A 

1 
i 

I-Tlt 

=r^ 

/ 

y 

PLAN 


ELEVATION 


SECTION 
A 


.ST(X:)P  FROM  CHAI'EL  OF  ST.  JOHN  THE  IJAPTI8T, 
FURSEIIILL. 


liYNTON.  — To  jai-jf.  p.  209. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  209 

three,  possibly  four.  The  only  one  of  which  the  site  can  be 
fixed  with  any  certainty  is  the  chapel  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist  It  lay  on  the  north  side  of  South  Furzehill  Farm- 
house in  a  field  now  called  Chapel  Close,  and  parts  of  its 
walls  are  still  standing  incorporated  into  a  shed.  On  ex- 
amining the  remains  of  it  last  year,  in  company  with 
Mr.  R.  Hansford  Worth,  we  found  what  was  probably  the 
stoop,  with  some  perpendicular  work  still  showing  on  it, 
used  as  a  fowls'  trough.  Colonel  Ramsay,  the  present 
occupier  of  South  Furzehill,  kindly  took  charge  of  it,  and 
has  placed  it  in  front  of  his  house. 

The  licence  for  celebrating  in  it  was  granted  30  May, 
1390,  to  Walter  Marwood,  Esq.,  of  Westcote  Manor,  Mar- 
wood,  the  owner  of  South  Furzehill,  and  Richard  Pasmere, 
of  North  Furzehill.  The  entry  of  it  in  the  Episcopal 
Register  is : — 

Item  penultimo  die  ejusdem  mensis  apud  Ilferdycombe 
Dominus  concessit  Licenciam  Waltero  Merwode  et  Ricardo 
Pasmere,  quod  possint  facere,  celebrari  Divina,  etc.,  in  Capella 
Sancti  Johannis  Baptiste  de  Forshylle  in  Parochia  de  Lyntone 
situata,  in  singulis  Festis  ejusdem  Sancti :  per  unum  annum 
doraturam  (Brantyngham,  Reg.,  Vol.  I,  fol.  207b). 

The  Walter  Marwood  mentioned  here  had  previously, 
25  August,  1385,  a  licence  for  himself  and  Margery,  his 
wife,  to  celebrate  in  the  chapel  or  oratory  in  their  mansion 
of  West  Marwood,  in  the  parish  of  Marwood  (Brant., 
VoL  I,  fol.  144). 

There  were  also  in  Lynton  parish  a  chapel  of  St.  Mary  the 
Virgin,  and  probably  two  others,  one  dedicated  to  St. 
Euman,  the  other  to  St.  Dionisius.  Licence  was  granted 
14  April,  1402,  for  celebrating  in  these  on  the  festivals  of 
the  saints  to  whom  they  were  dedicated.  The  entry  in  the 
Episcopal  Register  is : — 

Item  xiiij  die  Mensis  predicti  ibidem  Dominus  concessit 
licenciam  ut  in  Capella  Beate  Marie  Virginia  infra  parochiam 
de  Lyntone  Exoniensis  Diocesis,  etc.,  in  festivitatibus  ejusdem 
Viiginis  ac  in  capet]  [contraction  for  capellis. — F.C.H.R.]  Sanc- 
torum Johannis  Baptiste,  Dionisii  et  Romani  [i.e.  Ruman. — 
F.C.H.R.]  eciam  infra  eandem  parochiam  situar  [Le.  situatis. — 
F.C.H.R.]  in  festivitatibus  dcorum  scorum  Divina  per  quoscumque 
presbiteros  ydoneos  absque  prejudicio  matricis  ecctie  valeant 
celebrari  ad  beneplacitum,  etc.  (Stafford,  Vol.  I,  fol.  606). 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  O 


210  THE  PARISHKS  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

I  have  given  this  extract  in  full  instead  of  the  shortened 
form  in  which  it  appears  in  the  published  edition  of  Bishop 
Stafford's  Begister,  p.  240,  and  also  with  it  notes  on  the 
abbreviations  kindly  furnished  me  by  Canon  F.  C.  Hingeston- 
Bandolph,  as  there  is  some  ambiguity  as  to  whether  the 
latter  part  refers  to  three  distinct  chapels.  He  also  informs 
me  none  of  them  were  private  or  domestic  chapels,  nor  was 
any  of  them  a  capella  curata — simply  chapels  licensed  for 
general  use  and  convenience — chapels  of  ease  as  we  call 
them  now.  I  am  unable  to  hazard  any  statement  as  to  the 
exact  sites,  but  probably  one  was  at  Ilkerton,  another  at 
Lyn. 

There  are  at  present  chapels  of  ease  at  Lynmouth  and 
Barbrook,  both  of  which  were  built  by  Eev.  W.  L.  Lawson, 
curate  from  1866  to  1886.  The  chapel  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist  at  Lynmouth  has  since  1886  been  annexed  with 
Lynmouth  to  the  parish  of  Countisbury.  It  was  built  in 
1870,  from  plans  by  Mr.  E.  Dalby,  at  a  cost  of  £1800 ;  and 
the  chapel  of  St.  Bartholomew  at  Barbrook,  served  by  the 
Lynton  clergy,  built  in  1875. 

There  are  also  places  of  worship  of  the  Independents  and 
Wesleyans.  The  first  Independent  chapel  was  founded  by 
Mr.  Jope,  son-in-law  of  Mr.  CoUard,  who  owned  Combepark 
for  a  short  time,  in  a.d.  1850,  but  there  had  been  an  Inde- 
pendent meeting  from  1835.  A  new  building  has  lately 
been  erected  for  the  use  of  this  body  in  the  Valley  of  Rocks 
Eoad  by  Sir  George  Newnes.  The  Wesleyan  body  dates 
from  A.D.  1869,  and  was  founded  by  Mr.  W.  P.  Stapledon 
and  Mr.  John  Gliddon,  of  Williton,  the  school  chapel  at 
Barbrook  being  built  shortly  after. 


PARSONAGE,   GLEBE,    AND   TERRIERS. 

The  old  parsonage  was  a  small  cottage  near  the  National 
School.  In  the  terrier  of  1680  Robert  Triggs,  the  then 
curate,  describes  it  as  having  become  "uninhabitable  by 
reasons  of  dilapidations  and  demolishments."  John  Brown- 
ing, curate  in  1698,  speaks  of  it  as  "a  sorry  house" 
(Walker  MSS.).  Neither  of  them  had  thought  it  fit  for 
habitation,  and  consequently  Mr.  Triggs  built  a  house  for 
himself,  which  Mr.  Browning  purchased  of  him.  The  par- 
sonage being  repairable  by  the  lessees  of  the  glebe  and 
rectory,  had  been  scandalously  n^lected  by  them  then.     It 


THE  OLD  PARSONAGE,  LYXTON. 


LVNTON.-ro/uC^  p.    211 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.     211 

seems  afterwards  to  have  been  put  in  some  order,  as  I  find 
in  the  "  Penny  Magazine "  for  1844,  an  article  called 
"Illustrations  from  Second  Volume  of  Old  England/'  de- 
scribing it,  says : — 

It  is  a  representation  of  one  of  the  smallest,  quaintest,  and 
most  picturesque  of  parsonage  houses.  The  parsonage  house  was 
built  in  1560,  and  continued  to  be  used  till  the  commencement  of 
the  18th  century,  when  the  incumbent,  a  man  of  some  property, 
erected  a  larger  house.  That  in  so  doing  his  heart  was  not 
puffed  up  with  unseemly  pride  is  tolerably  evident  from  his  cus- 
tom of  riding  about  the  lanes  of  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Valley 
of  Stones  on  a  Sunday  before  service  to  collect  his  flock  together. 
Since  his  death  the  little  parsonage  house  has  been  again  used,  but 
a  later  vicar  having  built  a  still  handsomer  residence  than  the 
house  we  have  mentioned  (which  has  been  pulled  down),  we  see 
the  new  standing  in  striking  contrast  with  the  old  parsonage  house 
beside  it,  which  is  now  called  Ivy  Cottage,  and  with  its  stone  stair- 
case and  diminutive  windows,  has  an  air  of  great  antiquity  inside ; 
outside,  geraniums  in  full  blossom  have  been  seen  flourishing 
beneath  its  shade  in  the  month  of  December. 


Accompanying  these  words  is  a  small  illustration  of  the 
old  parsonage,  Fig.  1617.  I  do  not  know  if  this  passage  is 
to  be  taken  seriously,  or  what  is  the  authority  for  giving 
1560  as  the  date  of  its  erection.  But  it  is  full  of  inaccu- 
racies,  as  Nicholas  Morrice,  curate  from  1619-72,  was  the 
last  curate  who  resided  in  it.  His  successor,  Anthony 
Williams,  resided  at  Countisbury.  Eobert  Triggs  built  a 
house  for  himself,  which  he  sold  to  John  Browning,  his  suc- 
cessor. From  1734  to  1816  there  was  no  resident  perpetual 
curate  (Edward  Nicholls  and  Eichard  Knight,  curates-in- 
charge,  the  former  for  thirty  years,  the  latter  till  1800,  both 
resided  at  West  Lyn). 

Charles  Kekewich,  curate-in-charge  and  perpetucJ  curate 
1808-32,  resided  in  a  house  of  his  own  at  Lynmouth,  now 
called  Bonnicott,  the  new  parsonage  being  built  by  the  Eev. 
Matthew  Mundy,  curate  from  1832-62,  on  a  piece  of 
land  called  The  Acre,  which  with  the  long  close  and  The 
Grazy  was  the  curate's  glebe,  as  distinct  from  the  rectory 
glebe. 

The  old  parsonage  was  for  many  years  the  residence  of 
the  parish  clerk,  and  was  pulled  down  when  the  National 
School  was  built  on  its  site  by  the  Eev.  Matthew  Mundy  in 
1844.  The  Grazy  was  added  to  the  churchyard  in  a.d. 
1857. 

o2 


212  THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  OOUNTISBURY. 

There  are  terriers  of  the  following  years : — 

1610.  Lynton  and  Countisbury  glebe  lands. 

1613.  Boundaries  of  glebe  and  parishes. 

1680.  Lynton  and  Countisbury. 

1727.  Very  much  a  copy  of  1680,  but  a  little  fuller. 

1745.  Exact  copy  of  1727. 

The  terrier  of  1727  is  as  follows : — 

A  true  and  perfect  terrier  of  the  rectories  and  parsonages  of 
Lynton  and  Countisbury,  of  the  parsonage  houses  and  glebe  lands 
belonging  to  them  respectively,  together  with  the  curates  stipends 
how  pay*d  and  otherwise  the  tithes  how  payable.  Taken  the  26*** 
day  of  March  1727  by  the  Curate  and  Churchwardens  of  the 
same  parish. 

The  parsonages  and  rectories  aforesaid  are  a  corps  belonging  to 
the  Archdeaconry  of  Barnstaple.  The  right  of  nomination  of 
Curate  or  Curates  belonging  unto  the  Archdeacon  of  the  said 
Archdeaconry  the  patron  thereof.  The  approbacon  of  the  said 
Curate  or  Curates  to  the  ordinary  of  the  diocese  for  the  time 
being.  The  Curates  stipend  antiently  eight  pounds  p'  ann  for 
Lynton,  the  parsonage  house  there  and  three  closes  of  land  lying 
in  Lynton  Towne,  and  the  herbage  and  shear  of  the  Churchyard. 
The  Curate's  stipend  of  Countisbury  was  antiently  six  pounds 
p'  ann  the  parsonage  house  and  all  the  glebe  lands  containing  by 
estimacion  about  fifty  acres  of  ground  as  by  the  deed  the  lessees 
hold  the  Rectory  by  may  appear,  but  now  remains  not  above 
nineteen  acres  by  computation.  There  is  an  augmentation  of 
thirty-one  pounds  fifteen  shillings  per  annu  together  with  the 
moyety  of  the  fishing  tythe  as  it  shall  happen  to  become  due  to 
be  taken  by  the  curate  or  curates  of  the  said  parish  or  rectories  for 
the  time  being  by  decree  of  the  Commissioners  for  pious  uses, 
which  decree  was  afterwards  confirmed  by  the  High  Court  of 
Chancery. 

LYNTON. 

The  ancient  parsonage  house  lying  in  Lynton  towne  is  become 
uninhabitable  by  reason  of  some  dilapidations  and  demolishments 
which  ought  to  be  repaired  by  the  lessees  as  by  their  deed  doth 
appear.  There  are  three  closes  of  land  belonging  thereunto 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Longclose,  the  Acre,  and  the  Grazy  all 
of  which  together  with  the  Churchyard  are  iDy  estimacion  two 
acres  and  a  small  herb  garden.  The  house  that  is  now  standing 
consists  part  of  stone  part  of  mudd  and  the  floor  of  earth  and 
stone  all  covered  with  thatch.  There  is  another  tenement  belong- 
ing to  the  lessees  called  by  the  name  of  Kebsworthy  lyeing  in 
Lynton  parish  aforesaid.      The  antient  house  being  utterly  ruined 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    213 

by  fire  and  dilapidations.  There  are  four  dwelling  houses  still 
belonging  to  it  and  three  out  houses  the  floors  partly  paved  and 
partly  earth,  several  small  herb  gardens  and  three  meadows  and 
sevend  pieces  of  land  all  round  together  containing  by  estimacion 
about  one  hundred  acres  of  ground  hedged  partly  by  stone  -wall 
and  partly  by  frith  and  stakes  all  entirely  within  itself  and 
bounded  on  the  East  side  by  the  river  Lyne  on  the  West  side  by 
the  lands  of  the  tenement  of  Dean  on  the  North  with  the  Lyne 
town  comon  and  on  the  North  East  with  lands  formerly  belonging 
to  Thomas  Wichehalse  Gent  and  Mary  Bromholm  widow.  There 
belongs  also  to  the  said  lessees  three  acres  of  wood  in  Lyne  wood 
distinct  and  separate  from  the  other.  The  tythe  all  payable  in 
kind  and  mortuaries  payable.  The  furniture  of  the  Communion 
Table  consists  of  a  broadcloth  carpet  with  a  silk  fringe  a  holland 
table  cloth  and  a  holland  napkin  a  pewter  basin  and  a  small 
pewter  dish  a  small  silver  paten  and  of  late  a  large  silver  flagon 
containing  Ave  pints  this  inscription  lohannes  Knight  Ecclesise 
Lyntoniensis  D.D.D.  1725. 

The  Clerk  and  Sextons  wages  are  to  be  payd  and  the  fences  of 
the  Churchyard  to  be  repaired  by  the  Churchwardens  for  the 
time  being. 

John  Browning  curate. 


COUNTISBURY. 

The  parsonage  house  hath  in  it  three  rooms  known  by  the  name 
of  a  Hall,  a  Chamber  and  a  Kitchen,  the  walls  part  stone  and  part 
mudd,  the  floors  part  paved  and  part  earth  one  out  house  knowne  by 
the  name  of  a  stable  and  a  very  small  herb  garden.  Tythes  all 
payable  in  kind  and  mortuaries  payable.  The  Glebe  land  belong- 
ing thereunto  tho  mencioned  in  the  lessees  deed  to  be  by  estimacon 
about  fifty  acres  of  ground  is  not  now  by  estimacon  above  nineteen 
acres  at  most,  bounded  now  by  stone  wall  and  joining  on  the  North 
and  East  sides  with  the  common  on  the  south  with  the  highway 
and  on  the  west  with  the  ground  formerly  belonging  to  Thomas 
Thome  and  William  Fry. 

The  furniture  of  the  Communion  Table  consists  of  a  Pewter 
Flagon  a  small  silver  patin  and  a  two  handled  silver  cup  a  broad 
cloth  carpet  with  a  silke  fringe  a  holland  table  cloth  and  a  holland 
napkin. 

The  Clerk  and  Sexton's  wages  are  to  be  payd  and  the  fences  of 
the   Churchyard  repaired   by   the   Churchwardens  for  the  time 


being. 


John  Browning  Curate 
Walter  Kelly  Churchwarden 
Richard  Slocombe. 


214    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BURT. 

The  terrier  of  1680  is  signed  "Ro  Triggs  curat  ibid 
Nath  Hardy  Jo  Burgess  Chw  of  Lynton  William  Parkman 
Chwarden  of  Countisbury."  that  of  1745  "Ed  Nicholls 
Curate  David  Widden  Chwarden  *' 

There  are  several  leases  of  the  rectory  recorded  in  the 
Bishops*  Act  Books.  The  first  I  can  find  is  that  of  1580, 
when  Henry  Squire,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple,  leased  the 
rectories  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  to  Hugh  Osbom,  of 
Iddsley,  with  consent  of  William,  Bishop  of  Exeter,  for  the 
lives  of  John  Osborn,  Jane  Osbom,  and  Julian  Osbom,  and 
the  survivors  of  them.  Osbom's  connexion  with  Lynton  arose 
from  his  marriage  with  Elizabeth,  widow  of  Walter  Popham, 
and  his  daughter  Jane's  marriage  with  Hugh  Popham. 

The  lease  was  for  a  reserved  rent  of  £17,  and  the  lessee 
was  at  his  own  charges  to  provide  a  sufficient  curate  or 
curates,  who  were  to  say  divine  service,  and  to  administer 
the  sacraments  and  sacramentals  to  all  parishioilers. 
R.  Almadge,  clerk,  and  John  Stephyn  were  appointed  to 
give  the  said  Hugh  Osbom  seizin. 

The  words  "to  say  Divine  Service  and  administer  the 
sacraments  and  sacramentalls  "  are  interesting  as  showing 
the  medieval  terms  employed  in  Elizabethan  days. 

The  next  lease  is  in  1609,  when  by  an  indenture  dated 
8  April,  1609,  between  William  Hellier,  clerk,  Archdeacon 
of  Barnstaple,  and  Jasper  Bridgman,  and  John  Stofford, 
gentleman,  William  Hellier,  reasonable  considerations  him 
moving,  demises  and  grants  all  the  rectories  and  parsonages 
of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  with  all  manner  of  messuages, 
lands,  tenements,  etc.,  to  the  said  Jasper  Bridgman  and 
John  Stafiford,  gentleman,  to  have  and  to  hold  for  the  lives 
of  Hugh  Popham,  Agnes  Popham,  children  of  Richard 
Popham,  gentleman,  and  Hugh  Mallet,  son  of  Oliver  Mallet, 
gentleman,  and  the  longest  liver,  yielding  and  paying  to  the 
said  William  Hellier  and  his  successors  £14  at  the  four 
usual  feasts  at  the  south  porch  of  the  Parish  Church  of  Lynton; 
the  lessees  to  repair  the  chancels,  mansions,  houses,  etc., 
to  find  two  able  and  sufficient  curates  for  the  cures  of  the 
said  parishes  as  shall  by  the  ordinary  be  admitted  and 
allowed,  the  curate  of  Lynton  to  be  paid  £8,  and  to  have  the 
house,  court,  and  garden,  and  three  closes  of  land  in 
Lynton;  one  house,  where  Edward  Woode  now  dwelleth, 
and  herbage  of  the  churchyard ;  the  curate  of  Countisbury 
£6,  and  the  parsonage  house  and  glebe  land  of  fifty  acres 
and  shear  of  the  churchyard;  lessees  also  to  provide  a 
preacher  once  a  quarter. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.     215 

In  the  "  Valor  Eoclesiasticus,"  temp.  Henry  VIII,  the  tithe 
and  glebe  were  estimated  as  worth  £12  per  annum. 

Dignitates  in  Eccria  CatheT  p  diet : 

Aich'm  Baz 

Unde  Thomas  BrerewoJe  est  archius  val*  coibz  a"  videlit. 

In  dec  &  p  fie  eccliaz  de  Lynton  et  Contysbery  in  pdco  com* 
Devon  appriat*  eidm  archio  p  an.  £XII. 

This  system  of  leasing  the  rectory  on  lives  was  continued 
till  quite  lately,  the  last  being  that  granted  by  Archdeacon 
Barnes  to  his  own  family.  The  result  of  this  system  was 
that  the  representatives  of  one  archdeacon  went  on  receiving 
the  benefit  of  the  glebe  and  tithe  often  for  fifty  or  sixty 
years  after  his  death,  while  successors  in  the  archdeaconry 
got  nothing  but  the  small  reserved  rent;  for  instance, 
Archdeacon  Hole  granted  a  lease  on  three  lives  to  his  son 
the  Eev.  Eichard  Hole,  in  1776,  for  a  nominal  consideration, 
and  in  1804  his  descendants  sold  the  remainder  of  their 
lease  for  £2000  to  Mr.  John  Lock,  of  Lynton. 

On  the  expiration  of  Archdeacon  Barnes's  lease  the  glebe 
and  tithe,  which  had  been  commuted  for  £270  for  Lynton 
and  £105  for  Countisbury,  came  into  the  hands  of  the 
Ecclesiastical  Commissioners,  and  through  the  efiforts  of  the 
Bev.  W.  L.  Lawson  the  Lynton  part  was  given  as  an 
endowment  for  the  perpetual  curacy  or  vicarage  of  Lynton, 
the  nomination  of  the  incumbent  being  transferred  to  the 
bishop  of  the  diocese. 

In  the  terrier  there  is  a  notice  of  an  augmentation  of 
£31.  15s.  and  a  moiety  of  the  fishing  tithe.  This,  I  find,  was 
given  in  1662,  when  James  Smith,  D.D.,  who  had  been 
appointed  to  the  vacant  archdeaconry  at  the  Eestoration,  by 
deed  dated  20  February,  14  Charles  II,  demised  to  George 
Potter,  of  Exeter,  merchant,  the  rectories  and  parsonages  of 
Lynton  and  Countisbury,  with  all  their  lands,  messuages, 
tenements,  etc.,  estimated  then  as  being  of  the  yearly  value 
of  £120,  for  the  lives  of  Giles  Mallett,  Mary  Bale,  and 
John  Popham,  at  a  yearly  rent  of  £17,  the  said  George 
Potter  to  repair  premises,  pay  curate  of  Lynton  £8  per 
annum,  who  was  also  to  have  use  of  curate's  house,  closes 
of  land,  and  house  lately  in  possession  of  Edward  Wood, 
etc.,  and  the  curate  of  Countisbury  £6  per  annum  and  all 
the  Countisbury  glebe,  containing  fifty  acres  and  parsonic 
house,  which  land  and  house  were  then  estimated  at  £5.  lOs. 
per  annum ;  and  also  before  the  making  of  the  deed  James 
Smyth,  D.D.,  agreed  with  George  Potter  that  one  moiety  of 


216    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYKTON  AND  COUNTISBUBT. 

the  benefit  of  the  said  rectories  should  be  yearly  paid 
to  such  persons  as  should  be  lawfully  appointed  to  serve 
the  said  cures  by  way  of  augmentation  of  their  stipend. 

It  appears  that  George  Potter  sold  his  lease  to  Giles 
Mallett,  Gawen  Evans,  John  Bale,  and  John  Slee,  who 
refused  to  pay  this  augmentation  to  the  then  curate,  Robert 
Triggs.  On  this  Mr.  Triggs  took  proceedings  to  enforce  his 
rights,  and  on  11  September,  1679,  a  writ  was  issued  by  the 
Commissioners  for  Pious  Uses  to  Thomas  Lamplugh,  Bishop 
of  Exeter,  Sir  Edward  Seymour,  Sir  Henry  Hele,  Sir 
Courtney  Poole,  and  others  to  inquire  into  the  matter ;  and 
an  inquisition  was  held  at  Exeter  on  23  June,  1680,  before 
the  Bishop,  Sir  Arthur  Northcote,  John  Copplestone,  D.D., 
Thomas  Long,  clerk,  and  Eichard  Lee,  Esq.,  who  awarded 
that  there  was  due  to  Robert  Triggs  £31.  ISs.  per  annum 
and  £35.  7s.  2d.  arrears.  And  at  a  court  held  at  the  Castle 
of  Exeter  the  Bishop  and  others  ordered  Giles  Mallett  and 
the  other  lessees  to  pay  the  sums  mentioned  above,  as  well 
as  the  stipends,  to  Robert  Triggs,  and  the  augmentation  of 
£31.  15s.  to  all  other  curates  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  as 
long  as  they  were  there  C"  Charitable  Uses,"  Devon,  32  Chas. 
II,  Inq.  Bundle  39,  n.  1).  At  the  same  time  the  moiety  of 
fishing  tithes  was  granted  to  the  curate,  and  Mr.  Triggs  seems 
to  have  found  difficulty  in  collecting  them,  as  two  years 
after  (34  Chas.  II)  he  filed  an  exchequer  bill  respecting  them 
against  Richard  Whiddon.  John  Reed,  William  Zellack.  Hugh 
Coats,  David  Knight,  Marian  Zachary,  and  David  Bale. 

Although  Mr.  Triggs  was  somewhat  contentious  for 
his  rights  he  should  be  remembered  with  gratitude,  as  it 
was  owing  to  his  action  that  the  moiety  of  the  glebe  and 
tithe  was  secured  for  the  curate,  and  this  right  formed  the 
basis  of  the  Rev.  W.  L.  Lawson's  successful  appeal  to  the 
Ecclesiastical  Commissioners  nearly  two  hundred  years  after. 

I  had  hoped  that  from  Lynton  having  been  associated 
with  the  Archdeaconry  of  Barnstaple  for  nearly  six  hundred 
years,  there  might  have  been  several  documents  in  the 
archives  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Exeter  that  might 
have  shed  some  light  on  the  Lynton  ecclesiastical  history 
between  1300  and  1500,  but  a  search,  kindly  made  by  Mr. 
Mugford,  shows  there  are  only  the  following : — 

No.  1 2 1 1 .  A.D.  1 426.  Dean  and  Chapter  to  Thomas  Baxter,  Rector 
of  Countisbury,  and  others  lease  of  tithes  for  tliree  years. 

No.  2846.  A.D.  1662.  Bond  of  George  Potter,  of  Exeter,  mer- 
chant, to  James  Smyth,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple,  for 
augmentation  of  livings  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury. 


THE  PABISHE8  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    217 
COUNTISBURY. 

The  ecclesiastical  history  of  Countisbury,  like  the 
manorial,  is  so  mixed  with  that  of  Lynton  that  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  separate  them,  and  most  of  it  has  been  given 
under  the  head  of  Lynton,  with  which  it  was  so  long 
united. 

It  appears,  however,  that  Countisbury  had  a  separate 
curate  or  vicar  of  its  own  till  the  year  1672,  when  it  became 
united  to  Lynton,  to  be  separated  again  in  1858,  when,  by 
an  Order  in  Council  dated  7  May,  the  incumbent  of  Lynton, 
Rev.  M.  Mundy,  having  consented,  it  was  made  a  separate 
living,  the  patronage  having  been  vested  in  John  Bartholo- 
mew, in  right  of  his  archdeaconry.  This  order  was  regis- 
tered at  the  registry  of  the  diocese  on  2  June,  1858,  and 
forthwith  came  into  operation :  the  perpetual  curacy  of 
Countisbury  being  then  vacant,  the  Rev.  John  Henry  Wise, 
B.A,,  was  licensed  on  1  November.  The  following  is  as 
perfect  a  list  of  the  perpetual  curates  of  Countisbury  as  it  is 
possible  to  give : — 

1606.    John  Parkmann. 

All  I  can  find  of  him  is  that  he  signs  the  transcripts  of 
the  registers  in  1607,  1610,  1624,  1633,  and  also  the  parish 
boundaries  of  Countisbury  in  1613;  appeared  at  Visitations 
1622, 1631. 

William,  son  of  John  Parkmann,  baptized  10  April,  1633. 

1635(?).    Anthony  Wiluams. 

Signs  the  transcripts  in  1638,  and  appeared  at  the  Visita- 
tion that  year.  Does  not  appear  to  have  been  a  graduate  of 
any  university.  He  remained  at  Countisbury  all  through 
the  Civil  War.  John  Browning  speaks  of  him  as  "  a  man 
of  very  obscure  note.'*  Became  also  Curate  of  Lynton  on 
the  death  of  Nicholas  Morrice.  His  orders  seem  to  have 
been  considered  doubtful,  as  there  is  a  memorandum  against 
his  name  in  the  "  Visitation  List,"  to  call  for  orders  within 
about  three  weeks  at  Exeter,  it  being  dubious,  and  also  the 
further  note  "  afterwards  appeared  and  showed  orders  " ;  he 
signed  the  Declaration  of  Conformity  10  September,  1662 ; 
excused  at  Visitation  1677,  "valde  senex";  died  in  1678, 
and  buried  at  Countisbury. 

Anthony  Williams,  Clarke,  buried  14  November,  1678. 

1679.    ROBEBT  Triggs  (see  Lynton  curates). 


218  THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  CX)UNTISBUBT. 

1698.  John  Bbowninq,  bjl  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1730.  John  Shbrgold,  ra.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1734  Thomas  Steed,  b.a.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1765.  Joshua  Hole,  m.a.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1785.  Richard  Hole,  b.c.l.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1792.  Tho>us  Ley,  b.a.  (see  Lynton  curates), 

1816.  Charles  Kekewich,  b.a.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1832.  Matthew  Mundy,  m.a.  (see  Lynton  curates). 

1858.  John  Henry  Wise,  b.a. 

Licensed  1  November,  1858,  on  the  nomination  of  John 
Bartholomew,  M.A.,  Archdeacon  of  Barnstaple;  bom  at 
Blandford  Forum  20  June,  1818 ;  St.  Peter's  College,  Cam- 
bridge; B.A.  1840;  Curate  Thorpse-cum-Aldeburg  1842, 
Hankerton,  Wilts,  1844;  Rector  of  Brendon  1855;  married 
5  December,  1850,  Frances  Ann,  daughter  of  Eev.  Charles 
Tripp,  D.D.,  Rector  of  Silverton ;  died  12  December,  1883 ; 
buried  at  Brendon. 

1886.  Albert  Richards  Hockley. 
Licensed  to  Countisbury,  with  Lynmouth,  27  July,  1886, 
on  the  nomination  of  the  Crown,  by  lapse,  the  living  having 
been  vacant  for  three  years,  Lynmouth,  part  of  the  parish 
of  Lynton,  having  been  annexed  to  Countisbury  by  an 
Order  in  Council  dated  26  June,  1886;  Vicar  of  Clyst 
Honiton,  1902. 

1902.    Walter  Allen  Lewis,  m.a. 

Licensed  to  Countisbury,  with  Lynmouth,  17  September, 
1902,  on  the  nomination  of  the  Bishop;  son  of  Henry 
Lewis,  of  Clifton;  Trinity  College,  Dublin;  B.A.  1875; 
M.A.  1886 ;  Curate,  St.  Luke's,  Sheffield,  1876,  Kirk  Ella 
1877,  Wakefield  1878 ;  Vicar  of  Thomes,  1886 ;  Vicar  of 
St.  Mark's,  Ford,  1891 ;  Vicar  of  Uffculme,  1897 ;  married 
9  July,  1889  (Yeadon,  Yorks),  Annie  Phoebe  Campbell, 
daughter  of  A.  N.  Briggs,  Esq.,  Eawden  Hall,  Yorks. 

Margaret  Campbell,  daughter  of  Eev.  W.  A.  Lewis  and 
Annie  Phoebe  Campbell  his  wife,  baptized  22  October,  1892 
(St.  Mark's,  Ford). 

Arthur  Milton,  son  of  Eev.  W.  A.  Lewis,  baptized  6  Feb- 
ruary, 1895  (Ford). 

John  Walter,  son  of  Eev.  W.  A.  Lewis,  baptized  June, 
1896  (Ford). 


THB  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  219 

COUNTISBURY   PARISH   CHURCH   AND   ITS   RECORDS. 

The  parish  church  of  Countisbury  is  stated  by  Colonel 
Harding,  on  the  authority  of  Rev.  George  Oliver,  to  be 
dedicated  to  St.  John  the  Baptist.  It  consists  of  a  chancel, 
nave,  north  aisle,  and  tower.  The  present  building  is  of 
little  interest,  and  has  no  ancient  architectural  features,  the 
oldest  part  of  it  only  dating  from  1796. 

Owing  to  its  exposed  situation  the  old  building,  in  spite 
of  the  frequent  repairs  to  which  the  churchwardens'  accounts 
bear  witness,  became  so  dilapidated  that  the  parishioners,  in 
vestry  assembled  on  1  June,  1796,  decided  to  pull  down  the 
nave  and  rebuild  it.  The  specifications  state  that  the  roof 
was  to  be  new  timbers  and  slates ;  the  inside  of  roof  to  be 
arched,  lath  and  plastered ;  the  walls  to  be  rebuilt  as  far  as 
was  necessary  ;  two  new  windows  to  be  fixed,  one  on  the 
south  side  and  one  on  the  north.  This  was  apparently  done 
without  any  architect  by  local  workmen  under  the  super- 
vision of  the  chief  parishioners — Richard  Slocombe.  of 
Ashton  and  Hall ;  John  Fry,  of  Wilsham ;  William  Lock, 
of  East  Limmouth ;  and  Richard  Crocombe,  of  Windgate — 
the  money  being  raised  by  seventy-four  church  rates.  The 
expenses  included  £4.  4s.  paid  to  Nicholas  Parkin  for  "  New 
drawing  the  Commandments."  and  shortly  after  a  further 
sum  of  £7.  9s  9d.  was  paid  to  Mr.  Nickals  for  '*  painting  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  the  Commandments,  and  the  Belief."  And  in 
1835-6  the  tower  also  was  taken  down  and  rebuilt  in  the 
same  manner  at  an  expense  of  about  £150,  which  was  raised 
by  church  rates.     Its  height  is  thirty-six  feet. 

The  chancel  was  re-erected  and  the  north  aisle  added  in 
1846  by  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Halliday  at  his  own  expense. 

In  the  tower  there  are  three  bells,  the  same  number  as 
are  recorded  to  have  been  there  at  the  taking  of  the  inven- 
tory by  the  commissioners  in  the  reign  of  Edward  VI.  They 
have,  however,  all  been  recast  since  that  date. 

The  inscriptions  on  the  present  ones  are : — 
(i)  I  K  1826. 
(ii)  John  Kingston  B.  Water.     1790. 

(iii)  Christopher  Slocombe  C  Warden  W  ^  E.     1733. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  for  1732  record : — 

£  s.  d. 
Pd  for  carrying  up  and  down  the  Bell  at  Bristol  .  .086 
Pd  for  carges  and  expenses  there  concerning  the  bell  .060 
Pd  William  Evans  for  casting  of  ye  bell  and  for  mettel  14  7  6 
Pd  for  ale  when  ye  bell  was  carried  up  .         .046 


220    THE  PARISHES  OF  LTNTON  AND  C0UNTISBUE7. 

And  in  1733  various  entries  for  stocking  the  bells  and 
making  "ye  wheels  and  carpenters  work  to  right  ye 
frame." 

And  on  5  April,  1825,  it  was  agreed  between  the  in- 
habitants of  Countisbury  and  Mr.  John  Kingston,  of  Bridg- 
water, bellfounder — Mr.  Kingston  agrees  to  recast  the  two 
smallest  bells,  paying  one  shilling  per  pound  for  the  old 
metal,  and  he  to  charge  one  shilling  and  sixpence  per  pound 
for  the  new.  The  old  metal  to  be  delivered  at  Bridgwater 
and  the  new  bells  to  be  taken  from  thence  at  the  expense  of 
the  parish. 

And  in  the  accounts  for  1827  are  the  entries : — 

£  8.  d. 
Paid  John  Kingstone  for  two  new  belU  and  hanging  .  27  19  6 
Carring  the  Bells  from  Bridgewater  to  Minehead.  .10  0 
John  Smith  going  to  Minehead  after  the  Bells  .0134 

Also  several  sums  for  work  and  timber  on  the  frames. 

A  previous  recasting  of  a  bell  is  mentioned  in  the  church- 
wardens' accounts  for  1681. 

A  detailed  account  of  the  church  plate  is  given  in  the 
report  of  the  Church  Plate  Committee  (**  Transactions 
Devonshire  Association,"  Vol  XXXVII,  p.  160). 

In  the  church  there  are  tablets  to  Hugh  Slocombe,  died 
1  March,  1691,  aged  80;  Eichard  Slocombe,  13  August, 
1692,  aged  30  ;  John  Slocombe,  5  September,  1772,  aged  61 
(the  Slocombes  were  a  yeoman  family  residing  at  Hall  and 
Ashton);  Sir  Simon  Stuart,  1813 ;  and  Ann,  wife  of  F.  Bard- 
well,  1850. 

The  registers  commence  for  baptisms,  marri^^es,  and 
burials  in  1676,  and  there  are  transcripts  of  earlier  entries 
for  1607,  1608,  1610,  1614,  1624,  1633,  and  1638. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  commence  in  1678.  There 
is  nothing  particularly  striking  in  these,  except  that  beer 
was  an  indispensable  adjunct  to  every  parochial  function. 
For  instance : — 

1703.  Pd  when  one  fox  was  killed  for  beer 

Pd  more  for  beare  when  one  fox  was  killed     . 
Pd  for  bear  when  two  foxes  were  killed 
Pd  when  the  ware  a  fox  himting  for  beare 
Pd  when  the  ware  a  fox  hunting  another  time 

1718.  Pd  for  bear  to  drinke  ye  king's  helth  on  the  Crowna 
tion  day  ...... 

Pd  for  ale  ye  fift  of  November 
Pd  for  ale  for  the  foxhunters 

1721.  Pd  f or  Beer  for  ye  Dean  Ruler 


«. 

d. 

.     2 

0 

.     2 

6 

.     7 

6 

.     1 

0 

.    0 

6 

I- 

.     1 

0 

.     2 

6 

.    2 

0 

.    0 

6 

THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.    221 

Also  beer  when  "ye  Dean  Euler  visited/'  and  beer  when  the 
parish  went  to  view  the  tower.  It  is  interesting  to  note 
that  ale  for  vestry  meetings  appears  down  to  1861,  after 
which  £1  per  annum  is  allowed  out  of  the  churchwardens' 
funds  for  the  expenses  of  the  Lady-day  vestry  down  to  1884. 
These  expenses  were  the  cost  of  a  dinner  at  the  Blue  Ball 
Inn,  at  which  the  curate  presided,  supported  by  the  church- 
wardens and  all  the  ratepayers. 

The  accounts  for  1681,  when  £5  was  paid  the  bellfounder 
for  casting  the  bell  and  £3  for  metal,  show  that  it  was  cast 
in  Countisbury,  as  among  the  various  beer  entries  is : — 

Paid  for  beer  when  the  bell  founder  talk  with  the  parishioners 
for  casting  the  bell,  and  beer  when  the  bell  was  cast,  and  beer 
when  the  bell  was  taken  out  of  the  peet.  Pd  for  six  seemes  of 
clay  and  bringing  it  from  Laymouth. 

Also  a  payment  for  taking  away  the  stones  and  filling  the 
"  peet "  in  the  churchyard. 

From  these  accounts  we  gather  that  in  1679  the  clerk's 
wages  were  10s.  and  the  sexton's  4s.  These  were  gradually 
raised,  the  clerk's  to  £1.  lis.  6d.  and  the  sexton's  to  £1 ;  the 
fox-catcher's  wages  were  15s.  and  the  dog-whipper's  48. 
Other  payments  of  interest  are  for  killing  wild  cats,  greys, 
and  hedgehogs ;  a  toit  for  minister,  keeping  the  ornaments 
of  the  church,  salaries  of  dog-whipper,  fox-hunter,  etc.,  and 
repairs  to  the  base  viol  appear  down  to  1866;  the  har- 
monium appeared  in  1869. 

The  ornaments  of  the  church,  recorded  by  the  commis- 
sioners of  1549,  are  very  scanty.    The  entry  is : — 

f 0  36  pochia  de  Countisbery. 
iij  bells  in  the  Towre  their,  and  one  chalice  comitted  to  the 
custody  of  Eichard  ffrye  John  Buston   David  Rail  and 
others  the  pisshen)  their  by  indenter. 


The  following  is  a  list  of  the  churchwardens  of  the  parish. 

compiled  from  various  sources 

J.     It  seems  to  have  been  the 

custom  to  have  one  only : — 

1607.         Thomas  Rawle. 

1615. 

Walter  Moggis. 

1608.         Anthony e  Knight. 

1624. 

John  Rawle. 

1609.         Anthonye  Ward. 

1625. 

Henry  Kebbye. 

1610.         John  Thorne. 

1633. 

Walter  Kelley. 

1611.         Robert  Whitfill. 

1634. 

John  Blackmore. 

1613.         George  Bale. 

1638. 

William  Fry. 

1614.         Robert  Bushton. 

1678. 

John  Fry. 

222 


THE  PABISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUMTISBUBT. 


1679. 

William  Fry. 

1739-40. 

Richard  Bale. 

1680-1. 

William  Parkmann. 

1741-2. 

Richard  Litson. 

1682. 

Thomas  Crocombe. 

1743-5. 

David  Widden. 

1683. 

John  Crocombe. 

1746. 

Richard  Bale. 

1684-5. 

Hugh  Slocombe. 

1747. 

John  Thomas. 

1686. 

Hugh  Knight. 

1748-9. 

Henry  Litson. 

1687-8. 

Walter  Thome. 

1750-1. 

John  Fry. 

1689. 

Mr.  Hugh  Popham. 

1752-3. 

Richard  Bale. 

1690-1. 

John  Fry. 

1754-5. 

William  Thomas. 

1692. 

Richard  Bale. 

1756-8. 

Richard  Litson. 

1693. 

William  Parkmann. 

1759. 

Richard  Kelley. 

1694. 

John  Vellacott. 

1760-1. 

Richard  Crocombe 

1695. 

Richard  Bale. 

1762-4. 

Christopher      Slo- 

1696. 

John  Kelly. 

combe. 

1697-8. 

Richard  Slocombe. 

1765. 

William  Moggridge 

1699. 

Hugh  Rawle. 

1766-7. 

Richard  Bale. 

1700. 

Walter  Thome. 

1768-9. 

William  Bale. 

1701-2. 

Nicholas  Thome. 

1770-1. 

William  Hooper. 

1703. 

Thomas  Fry. 

1772-4. 

Thomas  Smith. 

1704-5. 

Richard  Bale. 

1775-6. 

William  Thomas. 

1706-9. 

Walter  Thome. 

1777-9. 

John  Fry. 

1710. 

Walter  Kelly. 

1780-1. 

William  Moggridge 

1711-13 

Richard  Slocombe. 

1782. 

William  Lock. 

1714. 

David  Knight. 

1783-5. 

William  Bale. 

1715. 

Richard  Slocombe. 

1786-9. 

William  Hooper. 

1716. 

'1  homas  Thome. 

1790-3. 

William  Fry. 

1717. 

William  Bale. 

1794-5. 

William  Bromham. 

1718. 

Hugh  Street. 

1796-1800.     John  Fry. 

1719. 

John  Fry. 

1801-2. 

Joseph  Sloggett. 

1720. 

Richard  Bale. 

1803-6. 

John  Bale. 

1721. 

Thomas  Fry. 

1807-20 

John  Fry. 

1722. 

Richard  Bale. 

1821-3. 

William  Bale. 

1723. 

Peter  Hooper. 

1824-30. 

John  Fry. 

1724-5. 

Thomas  Fry. 

1831-5. 

John  Litson. 

1726. 

Walter  Kelley. 

1836-7. 

John  Palfreman. 

1727-8. 

Richard  Slocombe. 

1838-9. 

William  Fry. 

1729. 

David  Knight. 

1840-1. 

John  Litson. 

1730. 

Richard  Slocombe. 

1842-8. 

John  Palfreman. 

1731-3. 

Christopher      Slo- 

1849. 

John  Litson. 

combe. 

1850  1 

1734-5. 

Peter  Hooper. 

to    I 

John  Jones. 

•      1736-8. 

William  Knight, 

1890.) 

The  glebe  and  other  particulars  and  terriers  have  been 
dealt  with  under  the  head  of  Lynton. 


THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  223 

CHARITIES. 

LYNTON. 

I.  William  Litson  by  will  bearing  date  20  March,  1763, 
gave  to  the  poor  of  Lynton  not  having  parish  relief  £5.  lOs 
per  annum,  to  be  distributed  in  bread  on  Good  Friday, 
excepting  2s.,  which  for  twenty-one  years  was  to  be  given 
to  the  family  of  Robert  Graham.  This  charity  was  carried 
on  till  1814,  when  the  Litson  family  discovered  it  was  void 
under  the  Mortmain  Act,  being  charged  on  his  real  estate. 

II.  Knight,  of  West  Lyn,  gave  £5  for  the  poor  to  be 
paid  into  the  parish  stock;  this  has  disappeared  since 
1803. 

III.  John  Groves  gave  by  his  will  dated  1769  a  rent  charge 
of  £5  per  annum  for  a  school,  and  on  7  December,  1770,  a 
trust  deed  for  the  appointment  of  a  schoolmaster  was 
enrolled,  the  Rev.  Edward  Nicholls  and  others  being 
appointed  trustees  (Close  Roll,  10  George  III,  Pt.  5,  No.  1). 
This  bequest  was  also  afterwards  held  invalid  under  the 
Mortmain  Act. 

IV.  John  Clarke,  surgeon,  of  Lynton,  by  his  will  in  1877 
left  twenty  £5  shares  in  the  Lynton  Water  Company,  the 
interest  of  which  was  to  be  annually  distributed  among  the 
poor  of  Lynton  at  Christmas.  It  is  now  vested  in  trustees, 
and  the  interest  (£8)  distributed  by  them  in  accordance  with 
the  trusts. 

COUNTISBURY. 

V.  The  poor  have  the  interest  of  £500,  which  was 
left  by  the  will  of  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Halliday,  of  Glenthorne, 
in  1871. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  first  school  for  the  poor  was  founded  by  the  Rev. 
Edward  Nicholls,  Curate  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  1740 
to  1785 ;  at  his  death,  and  owing  to  failure  of  the  trust  of 
1770,  it  was  dropped.  Another  was  started  in  1818  by  the 
Rev.  Charles  Kekewich,  curate,  assisted  by  the  Hon.  Mrs. 
Knight,  wifeof  John  Knight,  Esq.,  who  had  purchased  Exmoor. 
On  the  Rev.  Matthew  Mundy  becoming  curate  in  1832,  the 
old  vicarage  was  pulled  down  and  a  school-house  built  on  its 
site,  the  work  being  completed  in  1844,  Mr.  Mundy  having 
made  a  grant  of  the  glebe  and  ground  to  trustees  for  that 
purpose  in  1843  ;  it  was  supported  entirely  by  voluntary  con- 
tributions raised  by  Rev.  Matthew  Mundy.   In  1867  a  house 


224    THE  PARISHES  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURT. 

for  the  master  was  added ;  in  1871  the  school  was  enlarged 
by  Rev.  W.  L.  Lawson ;  and  in  1901  a  large  new  room  was 
added  by  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Cox. 

A  school  was  also  opened  in  Lydiate  Lane  in  1835  by 
members  of  the  Independent  body.  On  the  parish  school 
being  opened  at  Lynmouth  it  was  closed,  the  staflF  being 
transferred  to  Lynmouth  school. 

The  school  at  Countisbury  was  erected  in  1845  by  the 
Rev.  J.  J.  Scott,  of  Combe  Park. 


ON  CERTAIN  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE 
HISTORY  OF  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY. 

BT   RET.    J.    F.    CHANTER,   H.A. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


APPENDIX. 

No.  1. 
ROTULI  CURIiE  REGIS,  HILARY  TERM,  1  JOHN. 

Memb.  7  (a).  Pleas  of  the  term  of  St.  Hilary  in  the  first 
year  of  Kin<4  John.  .  .  . 

Memb.  11  (a).  Pleas  in  three  weeks  after  the  feast  of  St. 
Hilary.  .  .  . 

Memb.  12  (a).  Devonshire.  Henry  de  Traci,  son  of  William 
de  Traci,  came  into  the  court  of  the  Lord  the  Eling  and  made 
his  charter  to  the  abbey  and  convent  of  Ford,  the  tenor  of 
which  is  that  the  same  Henry  for  the  health  of  his  soul  and 
(the  souls)  of  his  father  and  mother  and  all  his  ancestors  and 
successors  gave  and  granted  unto  God  and  the  church  of  St. 
Mary  of  Ford,  and  the  monks  there  serving  God  in  pure  and 
perpetual  alms,  the  land  of  Countisbury  with  the  land  of 
Leoford  and  all  other  its  appurtenances  and  all  his  right 
which  he  had  in  the  land  of  Clistwick,  which  was  the  mar- 
riage portion  of  his  mother ;  and  moreover  he  granted  to  the 
same  monks  those  lands  which  they  held  of  the  Fee  of  Bra- 
hancis  before  he  recovered  his  inheritance,  to  wit  the  land  of 
Linton  with  the  service  of  the  lands  of  Furssil  and  the  Land 
of  Colebroc  with  common  of  pasture  of  Brahancis  for  three 
hundred  sheep  and  twenty  beasts  free  and  quit  of  all  secular 
services  and  exaction  as  pure  alms,  and  that  he  will  demean 
himself  peacibly  toward  the  same  monks,  and  that  he  will 
not  disturb  them  or  their  men  or  their  tenements,  and  this 
he  took  oath  and  swore  that  he  would  faithfully  observe. 

To  these  witness 
H.  Arbp.  Cantuar.    Lord  G.  Fitzpeter.    Walter  de  Bocland. 
Endorsed  Roll  12.  (S.M.) 

VOL.  XXXVHL  P 


226  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

No.  2. 

HUNDRED  ROLL,  3  EDWARD  I  (A.D.  1274-6). 

Inquisition  made  by  precept  of  the  Lord  the  King  in  the 
County  of  Devon  concerning  rights  and  liberties,  etc. 

No.  31,  Verdict  of  the  Hundred  of  SyrewelL 

The  Jurors,  Henry  Lovett,  William  Cofifyn,  John  Sorel, 
Philip  de  Hole,  Reginald  de  Lipi,  Robert  de  Wellecumbe, 
Walter  de  Hole,  William  Banel,  Hugh  de  la  Byrche,  Walter 
Bregge,  Walter  de  Sebrescote,  and  William  de  Stakescote  say 
upon  their  oath  ... 

They  say  that  Richard  de  Bellomonte  holds  the  Manor  of 
Syrewell,  etc.,  etc.,  and  they  say  also  that  the  aforesaid 
Richard  de  Bellomonte  has  assize  of  bread  and  beer  and 
gallows  in  his  aforesaid  Manor  of  Syrewell,  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 
And  the  Abbot  of  Ford  has  assize  of  bread  and  beer  in  his 
Manor  of  Countisbury ;  also  Robert  Beapel  has  assize  of  bread 
and  beer  and  gallows  at  Brendon,  and  Henrjr  Lovet  and 
Reginald  de  Lyn  have  assize  of  bread  and  beer  in  the  manor 
of  Lyn,  and  likewise  gallows  by  ancient  tenure  from  the 
Conquest,  etc.,  etc. 

Also  they  say  that  Alexander  the  BailiflF  of  the  Lord  Earl 
of  Cornwall  distrained  the  men  of  the  Abbot  of  Ford  of 
Lynton  to  do  a  certain  suit  at  the  Earl's  court  of  Braneys, 
and  to  have  peace  took  eight  shillings  and  one  ox  value  six 
shillings  and  iron  value  three  shillings  two  pence  and  one 
halfpenny  of  the  aforesaid  men  unjustly  when  no  suit  used 
to  be  done  at  the  court  aforesaid.  Concerning  the  other 
chapters  they  know  nothing.  (S.M.) 

No.  3. 

ASSIZE  AND  QUO  WARRANTO  ROLLS,  9-10  EDWARD  I 

(A.D.  1281-2). 

Pleas  of  the  crown  before  Salomon  de  Rofife  and  his  fellow 
Justices  itinerant  at  Exeter  in  the  County  of  Devon  on  the 
Octave  of  St.  Martin  on  the  9th  and  beginning  of  the  10th 
year  of  the  reign  of  King  Edward. 

Roll  11.  The  Hundred  of  Shyrewell  comes  by  twelve 
jurors ;  concerning  those  who  claim  liberties  they  say  that  the 
hundred  belongs  to  Richard  de  Beaumont,  in  the  same  he 
claims  to  have  gallows,  assize  of  bread  and  beer,  tumbrel, 
view  of  Frankpledge  and  weyf,  etc.,  etc.  And  the  Abbot  of 
Forde  claims  to  have  the  same  liberties  in  his  manor  of 
Lynton,  and  the  aforesaid  Richard  come  and  say  they  have 


LYNTON  AiJD  COUNTISBURY.  227 

fully  used  the  same  liberties,  etc.,  etc.  And  the  Abbot 
comes  not,  therefore  let  the  liberties  aforesaid  be  taken  into 
the  hands  of  the  Lord  the  King  so  that  they  should  use  them 
not  until,  etc.,  etc.  (S.M.) 


EX   PLACITA  DE  QUO  WARRANTO  (9  EDWARD  I), 
p.  168,  County  of  Devon  (Eec.  Comm.). 

The  Abbot  of  Ford  was  summoned  to  answer  to  our  Lord 
the  King  touching  a  plea  by  what  right  he  claims  to  have 
view  of  Frankpledge,  gallows,  fines  for  breach  of  the  assize  of 
bread  and  beer  in  Countisbury  (Kentisbury)  and  Thorncombe 
without  licence. 

And  the  Abbot  appearing  by  his  attorney  says  that  as 
regards  view  of  Frankpledge  and  gallows  in  Countisbury  he 
makes  no  claim,  and  as  to  fines  for  breach  of  the  assize  of 
bread  and  beer  in  the  same  manor  (villa),  and  as  to  fines  for 
breach  of  the  assize  of  bread  and  beer  broken  and  view  of 
frankpledge  and  gallows  in  Thorncombe,  he  says  that  he  and 
all  his  predecessors  time  out  of  mind  have  had  the  fines  of 
the  assize  of  bread  and  beer  in  Countisbury  and  view  of 
frankpledge  and  fines  of  assize  of  bread  and  beer  and  gallows 
in  Thorncombe,  and  he  asks  that  this  may  be  inquired  into. 

And  Walter  de  Giselham,  etc.,  says  that  liberties  of  this 
kind  especially  belong  to  the  crown  of  our  Lord  the  King, 
and  on  the  ground  that  he  does  not  show  any  warrant  from 
our  Lord  the  King,  he  asks  for  judgment.  A  day  was  fixed 
for  the  hearing  (ei)  before  the  King  one  month  after  Easter, 
wherever  the  King  might  be,  etc.,  for  hearing  his  decision, 
etc. 

pp.  172,  173.  Henry  Lovet  and  Eoger  de  Lyn  were  sum- 
moned to  answer  to  our  Lord  the  King  touching  a  plea  by 
what  right  they  claim  to  have  gallows,  view  of  frankpledge, 
fines  for  breach  of  the  assize  of  bread  and  beer  in  Lyn  with- 
out licence,  etc. 

And  Henry  and  Eoger  appear  and  say  that  Lyn  is  within 
the  precinct  of  Scherewell  hundred,  which  is  Eichard  de 
Beaumont's. 

And  as  to  view  of  frankpledge,  they  say  they  have  nothing 
therefrom,  nor  do  they  make  any  claim  thereto,  because  the 
same  Eichard  has  that  liberty. 

And  as  to  fines  of  the  assize  of  bread  and  beer  in  Lyn,  they 
say  that  Lyn  is  within  the  precinct  of  the  hundred  of  the 
aforesaid  Eichard,  where  nothing  can  accrue  to  the  King,  and 
they  ask  for  judgment  if  they  must  answer  him  thereanent. 

p2 


228  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

And  Walter  de  Giselham,  who  follows  on  the  King's  be- 
half, asks  for  judgment  against  the  aforesaid  Henry  and 
Koger  as  having  no  defence  on  the  ground  that  they  show 
no  warrant  therefor.  Afterwards  the  aforesaid  Henry  and 
Roger  did  not  appear.  Whereupon  order  was  given  to  the 
sheriff  to  distrain  them  by  all  writs,  etc.,  and  as  to  the 
issue,  etc.,  and  to  produce  their  bodies  before  our  Lord  the 
King  one  month  after  Eawter,  wherever  the  King  might  be, 
etc.,  for  hearing  his  decision,  etc.  (0.  J.  R) 

No.  4. 

INQ.    P.M.,   9   HENRY   IV,    No.    42  (A.D.    1408). 
[Abstract.] 

Inq.  taken  at  Exeter  on  Wednesday  next  before  feast  of 
Nativity  B.V.M.,  9  Hen.  IV.,  before  Nicholas  Bromford,  es- 
cheator  of  the  Lord  King  in  co.  Devon,  by  the  oath  of  John 
Dauney,  John  Vautort  and  others,  who  say  that  William 
Bonevyle,  chevaler,  held  on  the  day  that  he  died  in  the  said 
county  the  Manors  of  Leveneston,  Woodbury  and  ...  to- 
gether with  the  advowson  of  the  said  town  of  Leveneston  by 
the  law  of  England  after  the  death  of  Margaret,  late  his  wife, 
of  the  inheritance  of  William,  son  of  John,  son  of  the  said 
William  Bonevyle  and  Margaret.  .  .  . 

The  said  William  Bonevyle  held  on  the  day  that  he  died, 
jointly  with  Alice  his  wife  who  still  survives,  the  Manors  of 
Lynton  and  Countisbury  with  appurtenances  for  the  term 
of  their  lives  and  the  survivor  of  them  of  the  grant  of 
William  Abbot  of  the  monastery  of  Ford  and  the  convent 
of  the  same  place,  paying  yearly  to  the  said  Abbot  and  his 
successors  £6.  13s.  4d.  at  Christmas  and  Midsummer  for  all 
services  as  by  a  certain  indenture  under  seal  of  said  Abbot 
and  convent  is  shown,  and  after  decease  of  said  William 
Bonevyle,  chevaler,  and  Alice,  manors  shall  remain  to  William, 
son  of  said  William  Bonevyle,  knight,  to  hold  for  the  term  of 
his  life.  The  said  manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbury  are 
held  of  the  said  Abbot  by  the  said  rent  and  are  worth  per 
ann.  clear  40s. 

William  Bonevyle,  knight,  died  on  the  feast  of  St.  Valentine 
last  p6Lst  without  heirs  by  the  said  Alice  his  wife ;  the  said 
William,  son  of  John,  is  his  kinsman  and  next  heir,  viz.  son 
of  John,  son  of  said  William  Bonevyle,  chevaler,  and  on 
the  morrow  of  St.  Michael  last  past  was  aged  16  years  and 
more. 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  229 

No.  5. 

RECORDS  OF  COURT  OF  AUGMENTATIONS:   MINISTERS' 

ACCOUNTS,   81-32  HENRY  VIII,  No.  89,   M.   72. 

The  late  monastery  of  Ford. 

The  accounts  of  all  and  singular  the  Baili£fs,  Keeves, 
farmers  and  others  accountable,  of  all  and  singular,  the  Lord- 
ships, manors,  lands  and  tenements  and  other  the  possessions 
whatsoever  as  well  spiritual  as  temporal  to  the  same  late 
monastery  pertaining  or  belonging,  to  wit  from  the  feast  of 
St  Michael  the  Archangel  in  the  31st  year  of  the  reign  of 
King  Henry  the  8th  to  the  same  feast  of  St.  Michael  the 
Archangel  thence  next  following  in  the  32nd  year  of  the 
same  King,  to  wit  for  one  whole  year  as  below. 

Inter  alia. 

Lynton  and  Countyshurys,  The  account  of  the  aforesaid 
John  Chidly,  Bailiff  there  for  the  time  aforesaid. 

Arrears,  none,  as  is  more  fully  contained  in  the  foot  of  the 
last  account  next  preceeding.  g^^^  ^^^ 

Rents  of  the  free  tenants  in  Lynton. 

But  he  renders  account  of  7s.  Id.  of  all  the  rents  of  free 
tenants  there,  yearly  payable  at  the  feast  of  St.  Michael  the 
Archangel  as  appears  by  divers  accounts  thereof  examined 
upon  this  account.  ^^^^  7g  ^^ 

Bents  of  Customary  tenants  in  Lynton. 

And  of  £4.  3s.  2d.  Of  all  the  rents  of  customary  tenants 
there  yearly  payable  at  the  four  principal  terms  of  the  year 
by  equal  portions,  as  appears  by  divers  accounts  thereof 
examined  upon  this  account.  gmj^  £4^  3g^  2d. 

Rents  of  Customary  tenants  in  Countisbury. 

And  of  £9.  Os.  8d.  of  all  the  rents  of  customary  tenants 
there  yearly  payable  at  the  aforesaid  terms  as  appears  by  the 
accounts  aforesaid.  ^^^^  ^^  0^^  gj 

Perquisites  of  courts. 

Of  any  profit  happening  or  giving  of  perquisites  of  courts 
held  there  this  year  he  does  not  render  account,  because  no 
courts  were  held  there  for  the  time  of  this  account  by  the 
oath  of  the  said  accountant.  ^^^  ^^^^ 

Total  sum  of  Receipts,  £13.  10s.  lid., 

of  which 
Stipends.    The  same  accounts  in  the  stipend  of  the  auditor's 
clerk  writing  this  account  as  it  is  accustomed  to  be  allowed 


230  DOCUMENTS  RXLATXKO  TO  THK  BISTORT  OF 

to  the  auditors  clerks  of  the  Lord  the  King  of  his  duchy  of 
Lancaster,  to  wit  in  the  like  allowance  as  it  is  allowed  in  the 
preceeding  years,  28.  Sum,  2a 

Delivery  of  money.  And  in  money  by  the  said  accountant 
delivered  to  Thomas  Arundel,  knight,  Receiver  of  the  Lord 
the  King  there,  of  the  issues  of  his  office  of  this  year  without 
bill,  but  only  by  his  acknowledgement  upon  this  account, 
£12.  12s.  3d. 

Sum  of  allowances  and  deliveries  aforesaid,  £12.  148.  3d. 
And  he  owes  16s.  8d.,  which  is  allowed  to  him  for  one  new 
mill-stone  bought  this  year  by  the  said  accountant  and 
provided  for  the  mill  of  Countisbury  by  his  oath  upon  this 
account. 

And  it  is  even 

No.  6. 
MINISTERS*  ACCOUNTS,  36  &  36  HENRY  VIII,  No.  183,  M.  68. 

Similar  to  last. 

John  Chidley  is  still  Bailiflf. 
Arrears,  none.    Free  tenants  Lynton,  7s.  Id. 
Customary  tenants,  £4  3s.  2d. 
Customary  tenants  Countisbury,  £9  Os.  8d. 
Perquisites  of  Courts. 

And  of  the  468.  lid.  of  perquisites  of  courts  held  there 
this  year  with  20s.  of  the  fine  of  the  land  of  John  Sloley, 
20s.  of  heriots,  Ss.  4d.  of  farleus,  and  3s.  7d.  of  other  per- 
quisites, as  appears  by  the  rolls-  of  the  same  shown  and 
examined  upon  this  account.  Sum,  46s.  lid. 

Sum  total  of  the  charge  aforesaid,  £15.  7s.  lOd.,  of  which 
there  is  allowed  2s.  for  the  stipend  of  the  Auditor's  Clerk 
writing  this  account,  as  it  is  allowed  in  the  preceeding  year. 
And  to  the  same  6s.  8d.  for  the  expenses  of  the  Steward, 
clerk  of  the  Court,  and  other  officers  of  the  Lord  the  King 
being  at  the  Court  aforesaid  this  year  holden,  as  appears  by 
the  rolls  of  the  same,  shown  and  examined  upon  this  account, 
and  he  owes  £15.  9s.  2d.,  of  which  he  delivered  to  Thomas 
Arundell,  knight,  Receiver  of  the  Lord  the  King  thereof,  the 
issues  of  his  office  this  year  without  bill,  but  only  by  his 
acknowledgement  by  this  account,  £14.  9s.  2d. 

And  he  owes  20s. 

The  whole 
upon  John  Sloley  for  his  fine  made  with  him  this  year,  being 
still  in  arrear  unpaid,  because  he  has  a  day  of  payment 
thereof  until  the  next  account.  208. 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  231 

No.  7. 

OOUET  OF  EXCHEQUER:  MINISTERS*  ACCOUNTS,  6-6  PHILIP 
AND  MARY,  1  ELIZABETH,  No.  9,  M.  16  DORSO. 

The  County  of  Devon. 

The  accounts  of  all  and  singular  the  Bailififs,  Eeeves, 
Farmers,  and  Collectors  of  all  and  singular  the  Honours, 
Castles,  Lordships,  manors,  hundreds,  lands,  and  tenements 
and  other  the  possessions  and  hereditaments  whatsoever  in 
the  county  aforesaid,  lately  in  the  governance  of  the  late 
court  of  the  Augmentations  and  Revenues  of  the  Eoyal 
Crown,  to  wit  from  the  feast  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel  in 
the  5th  and  6th  years  of  the  Reigns  of  Philip  and  Mary  to 
the  same  feast  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel  in  the  first  year 
of  our  most  dear  Lady  the  Queen  that  now  is,  to  wit  for  one 
whole  year  as  below. 

To  wit,  Fourd,  late  Monastery. 

The  account  of  John  Chidleighe,  Bailiflf,  there  for  the  time 
aforesaid. 

Arrears,  None,  as  in  the  foot  of  the  last  year  for  the  time 
preceeding.  Sum,  none. 

Rent  of  the  free  Tenants  in  Lynton, 

But  he  answers  of  Ts.  Id.  of  all  the  rent  of  assize  of  all  the 
free  tenants  there  yearly  payable  at  four  terms  of  the  year 
equally.  Sum,  7s.  Id. 

Rent  of  Customary  Tenants  there. 

And  of  £4.  3s.  2d.  of  all  the  rents  of  customary  tenants 
there  yearly  payable  at  four  terms  of  the  year  equally. 

Sum,  £4  3s.  2d.,  examined. 

Rent  of  customary  Tenants  in  Oountisbye. 

And  of  £9.  Os.  8d.  of  all  the  rent  of  the  customary  tenants 
there  yearly  payable  at  four  terms  of  the  year  equally. 

Sum,  £9.  Os.  8d.,  examined. 

Perquisites  of  Court. 

And  of  20s.  lOd.  of  perquisites  of  courts  there  held  as 
appears  by  the  estreats  thereof  delivered  by  John  Chudley, 
Steward  there.  Sum,  20s.  lOd.,  examined. 

Sum  of  the  charge  aforesaid,  £14.  lis.  9d.,  examined,  ofl 
which  there  is  allowed  to  him  73s.  4d.  for  the  fee  of  John 
Chudleighe,  Bailiffe  there,  and  of  the  Manor  of  Thornecombe, 
with  other  things  so  to  him  granted  for  the  term  of  his  life 


232  DOOUICENTS  RBIATINO  TO  THE  HI8T0BT  OF 

by  letters  patent  as  it  is  said,  to  wit  in  the  like  allowance  in 
this  year  as  in  the  preceeding,  and  to  the  same  28.  for  the 
stipend  of  the  Auditor's  Clerk  writing  this  account  this  year 
as  in  the  preceeding.  And  he  owes  £10.  16s.  5d.  (examined), 
which  he  delivered  to  John  Ayleworthe,  Esquire,  receiver 
there  by  the  acknowledgement  of  the  said  receiver  upon  this 

*^"°^-  And  he  is  quit. 


No.  8. 

COURT  OF  EXCHEQUER:  MINISTERS'  ACCOUNTS,  1-2  ELIZABETH, 
No.  7,  M.  16  DORSO. 

County  of  Devon. 

The  accounts  of  all  and  singular  the  BailifiFs,  Beeves, 
Farmers,  Collectors  and  Bedels  of  all  and  singular  the 
Honors,  castles,  lordships,  manors,  hundreds,  lands,  tene- 
ments and  others  the  possessions  and  hereditaments  what- 
soever in  the  county  aforesaid  lately  in  the  governance  of 
the  late  Court  of  the  Augmentations  and  revenues  of  the 
Royal  Crown,  to  wit  from  feast  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel 
in  the  Ist  year  of  the  reign  of  the  Lady  Elizabeth  by  the 
grace  of  God  of  England,  France,  and  Ireland,  Queen,  Defender 
of  the  Faith,  etc.,  unto  the  same  feast  of  St.  Michael  the 
Archangel  in  the  second  year  of  the  said  Lady  the  Queen,  to 
wit  for  one  whole  year  as  below 

to  wit 
Fourd,  late  Monastery. 


Lynton  and  Countisbury. 

Of  £13.  10s.  lid.  late  arising  and  growing  of  the  rent  and 
farm  of  the  whole  manor  aforesaid,  to  wit  by  the  time  of  this 
account  he  does  not  answer,  because  the  Lady  Queen  Eliza- 
beth by  her  letters  patent  dated  the  5th  day  of  July  in  the 
second  year  of  her  reign  gave  and  granted  to  John  Har- 
rington and  George  Burden  all  that  Lordship  and  Manor 
of  Lynton  and  Countesbury  with  all  its  rights,  members  and 
appurtenances  to  have  to  the  same  John  and  George  and 
their  assigns  for  ever,  together  with  the  issues  thereof,  from 
the  feast  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel  last  past  until  this 
time  arriving  and  growing. 

And  so  in  discharge  of  the  sum  above.  Sum,  none. 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  233 

No.  9. 

PATENT  ROLL,  2  ELIZABETH,   P.   16,  M.  17. 

For  John  Harrington  and  George  Burden. 
A  grant  to  them  and  their  heirs. 

The  Queen  to  all  to  whom,  etc. 

Whereas  our  very  dear  father,  Lord  Henry  VIII,  formerly 
King  of  England,  by  his  indenture  under  his  seal  of  the  late 
court  of  the  Augmentations  of  the  revenues  of  his  crown, 
bearing  date  the  12th  day  of  July  in  the  37th  year  of  his 
reign,  gave,  granted,  and  to  farm  let  to  one  John  Scott,  clerk, 
the  Rectory  of  Islyngton,  in  the  County  of  Norfolk,  etc.,  etc., 
formerly  belonging  and  pertaining  to  the  late  priory  Blewjk- 
borowe  in  the  said  county  of  Norfolk  then  suppressed.  To 
have  and  to  hold  the  said  Rectory,  etc.,  for  a  term  of  21  years, 
etc.,  the  reversion  and  reversions  of  all,  etc.,  to  us  our  heirs 
and  successors  in  full  right  belonging  and  pertaining.  Know 
ye  that  we  for  a  sum  of  one  thousand  five  hundred  and  eight 
pounds  two  shillings  and  three  pence  of  lawful  money  of 
England  at  the  receipt  of  our  Exchequer  to  the  hands  of 
Roger  Alford,  Esquire,  one  of  the  tellers  in  the  same  receipt 
of  our  exchequer,  to  our  use  by  our  beloved  John  Harrington, 
gentleman,  and  George  Burden,  gentleman,  in  hand  well  and 
faithfully  paid,  whereof  we  acknowledge  ourselves  to  be  duly 
satisfied  and  paid,  etc.,  etc. 

Of  our  special  grace  and  our  certain  knowledge  and  mere 
motion  we  have  given  and  granted  and  by  these  presents  for 
us  our  heirs  and  successors  do  give  and  grant  to  the  aforesaid 
John  Harrington  and  George  Burden  the  reversion  and  re- 
versions of  the  aforesaid  Rectory,  etc.,  etc.  We  have  given 
also  and  granted  and  for  the  consideration  aforesaid  by  these 
presents  for  us  our  heirs  and  successors  do  give  and  grant  to 
the  aforesaid  John  Haryngton  and  George  Burden  all  that 
our  Lordship  and  Manor  of  Lynton  and  Countesbery  and  all 
those  our  Lordships  and  Manors  of  Lynton  and  Countesberic' 
with  all  their  rights,  members,  liberties,  privileges  and  appur- 
tenances in  our  County  of  Devon  late  parcel  of  the  possessions 
and  revenues  of  the  late  Monastery  of  Forde  in  our  said 
county  of  Devon  now  dissolved.  And  all  our  Rectory  and 
our  Church  of  Ilsyngton,  etc. 

And  all  our  Rectory  and  our  church  of  Wygenhall  Saint 
Mary  in  our  County  of  Norfolk  formerly  parcel  of  the  pos- 
sessions and  revenues  of  the  late  monastery  of  Westacre  in 
the  County  of  Norfolk  and  all  the  scite  of  the  late  house  and 


234  DOCUMENTS  RBLATINQ  Ta  THE  HISTORY  OF 

priory  of  the  late  Friars  called  Le  Blackefryers  in  the  city 
of  Canterbury  and  all  the  land  called  Le  Churcheyard  and 
all  the  garden,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.,  late  parcel  of  the  possessions 
of  the  late  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  are  now  in  our 
hands.  And  also  all  that  capital,  messuage,  etc.,  called 
Stoughton  Grange,  etc.,  in  county  of  Leicester,  etc.,  parcel 
of  possessions  of  Henry,  late  Duke  of  Suffolk,  also  our  por- 
tion  of  tithes,  etc.,  in  Medboume,  in  county  of  Leicester, 
parcel  of  possessions  of  late  monastery  of  Saint  Albans,  etc., 
and  advowson,  etc.,  of  Rectory  and  parish  Church  of  Rothinge, 
etc.,  Manor  and  Lordship  of  Stanton,  co,  Derby,  etc.,  parcel 
of  possessions  of  late  Monastery  of  Dale,  etc.,  etc. 

And  also  all  and  singular  messuages,  burgages,  miUs, 
houses,  buildings,  tofts,  cottages,  barns,  stables,  dovecotes, 
yards,  gardens,  orchards,  lands,  tenements,  meadows,  feedings, 
pastures,  commons,  ways,  footpaths,  wastes,  furzes,  heaths, 
moors,  marshes,  ponds,  weirs,  fishponds,  waters,  fisheries, 
fishings,  water-courses,  woods,  underwoods,  rents,  reversions, 
services,  pasturages  of  sheep  and  courses  and  foldings  of 
sheep,  and  all  works,  rents  and  customs  as  well  of  free  as 
of  customary  tenants,  and  all  lands,  glebes,  tithes,  oblations, 
obventions,  pensions  and  portions  whatsoever,  all  courts  leet, 
views  of  frankpledge  and  lawdays  and  perquisites  of  courts 
and  leets  and  all  things  which  to  courts  leet  and  views  of 
frankpledge  and  to  lawdays  pertain  or  in  future  may  belong, 
and  goods  and  chattels  waived,  estrays,  free  warrens,  goods 
and  chattels  of  felons  and  fugitives,  and  of  felons,  of  them- 
selves and  of  persons  put  in  exigent,  also  knights'  fees  and 
wardships,  marriage,  escheats,  reliefs,  heriots,  fines,  amerce- 
ments, rents,  charges,  rents  sec,  assize  and  assay  of  bread, 
wine  and  beer  and  all  stock,  as  well  alive  as  dead,  all  other 
our  rights,  jurisdictions,  franchises,  liberties,  privileges,  profits, 
commodities,  emolumeifts  and  hereditaments  whatsoever,  with 
all  their  appurtenances  in  the  said  city  of  Canterbury  and  in 
Lynton  and  Countesbury  in  our  said  County  of  Devon  and  in 
etc.,  etc.,  as  fully,  freely  and  wholly  and  in  as  ample  and  the 
like  manner  and  form  as  any  abbot  or  priors  of  the  said  late 
monasteries  or  priories,  etc.,  etc.,  had,  held  or  enjoyed  or  oi^ht 
to  have  had,  held  or  enjoyed  them,  and  as  fully,  freely,  and 
wholly  and  in  as  ample  a  manner  as  the  aforesaid  Lordship 
and  Manors,  etc.,  by  reason  or  pretext  of  the  several  dissolu- 
tions of  the  said  monasteries  and  priories,  etc 

Except  always  nevertheless  out  of  this  present  grant 
altogether  reserved  all  advowsons  of  Churches  and  all  bells, 
and  all  the  lead  being  of  and  in  and  upon  the  said  premises, 


LYNTON  AND  00UNTI8BURY.  235 

except  the  lead  in  the  gutters  and  windows  and  except  the 
said  advowson  of  the  Church  of  Rothinge  Beacharape  afore- 
said, To  have,  hold  and  enjoy  the  said  reversions,  etc.,  and 
the  aforesaid  Lordships,  Manors,  etc.,  etc.,  to  the  aforesaid 
John  Harryngton  and  George  Burden,  their  heirs  and  assigns 
for  ever,  etc.  To  hold  the  aforesaid  Manor  of  Lynton  and 
Countesbery  with  appurtenances  of  us  our  heirs  and  suc- 
cessors in  capite  by  the  service  of  one  hundredth  part  of  one 
knighf  8  fee.     And  to  hold  aforesaid  rectories,  etc.,  etc. 

And  further  of  our  more  ample  special  grace  and  of  our 
certain  knowledge  and  mere  motion  and  for  the  consideration 
aforesaid  have  granted  and  for  us  our  heirs  and  successors 
and  by  these  presents  do  grant  to  the  aforesaid  John  Har- 
ryngton and  George  Burden  their  heirs  and  assigns  that  they 
may  hold  and  enjoy  in  the  aforesaid  Lordships,  manors,  etc., 
the  same,  the  like,  the  similar  courts  leet,  views  of  frankpledge, 
and  all  things,  etc.,  etc.,  as  fully,  freely,  and  wholly  as  .  .  . 
any  abbots  or  priors  of  the  said  late  monasteries,  etc.,  etc., 
ever  held,  etc.,  by  reason  or  pretext  of  any  charter,  gift,  grant 
or  confirmation,  etc.,  or  by  reason  or  pretext  of  any  prescrip- 
tive use  or  custom  heretofore  had  or  used,  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 

In  witness  thereof  the  King  at  Westminster  the  fifth 
day  of  July. 

By  writ  of  the  Privy  seal. 

No.  10. 
COURT  OF  CHANCERY  CLOSE  ROLL,  2  ELIZABETH,  PART  9. 

Of  a  writing  indented  between  John  Harrington,  George 
Burden  and  Nicholas  Wychehalse. 

To  all  the  faithful  in  Christ  to  whom  this  present  writing 
indented  shall  come.  John  Harrington  and  George  Burden 
of  London,  gentlemen,  greeting  in  the  Lord  everlasting: 
Whereas  our  most  famous  and  illustrious  Lady  Elizabeth, 
Queen  of  England,  by  her  letters  patent  sealed  with  her 
great  seal  of  England,  bearing  date  at  Westminster  the  fifth 
day  of  July  in  the  second  year  of  her  reign,  among  other 
things  gave  and  granted  to  us  the  aforesaid  John  Harrington 
and  George  Burden  all  that  her  Lordship  and  manor  of 
Lynton  and  Countesbye  with  all  their  rights,  members, 
liberties,  privileges  and  appurtenances  in  the  County  of 
Devon,  late  parcel  of  the  possessions  and  revenues  of  the 
late  Monastery  of  Fourde  in  the  said  County  of  Devon  now 
dissolved.  And  also  all  and  singular  messuages,  burgages, 
mills,  houses,  buildings,  tofts,  cottages,  bams,  stables,  dove- 


236  D0CUMKKT8  RKLATINQ  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

cotes,  yards,  orchards,  gardens,  lands,  tenements,  meadows, 
feedings,  pastures,  commons,  ways,  wastes  of  furzes,  heaths, 
moors,  marshes,  ponds,  weirs,  fishponds,  waters,  fisheries, 
fishings,  watercourses,  woods,  underwoods,  rents,  reversions, 
services,  pasturages  of  sheep  and  courses  and  foldings  of 
sheep,  and  all  works,  rents  and  customs,  as  well  of  free  as 
of  customary  tenants,  also  courts  leet,  views  of  frankpledge, 
lawdays  and  perquisites  of  Courts  and  Leets  and  all  things 
which  to  Courts  leet  and  view  of  frankpledge  and  lawdays 
pertain  or  in  future  may  belong,  and  goods  and  chattels 
waived,  estrays,  free  warrens,  goods  and  chattels  of  felons 
and  fugitives  and  of  felons  of  themselves,  and  of  persons  put 
in  exigent,  knights'  fees,  wardships,  marriages,  escheats, 
reliefs,  heriots,  fines,  amercements,  rent  charges,  rents  sec, 
assize  and  assay  of  bread,  wine  and  beer,  and  all  stock  as  well 
live  as  dead,  and  all  other  her  rights  or  jurisdictions,  fran- 
chises, privileges,  liberties,  profits,  commodities,  emoluments 
and  hereditaments  whatsoever,  with  all  their  appurtenances 
in  Lynton  and  Countesbery  aforesaid  in  the  said  County 
of  Devon  to  the  said  Lordship  and  Manors  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbury  in  any  manner  belonging  or  pertaining.  And 
the  reversion  and  reversions  whatsoever  of  all  and  singular 
the  premises  and  of  every  parcel  thereof,  etc.,  etc.  Except 
and  altogether  reserved  all  Advowsons  of  Churches  and  all 
Bells  and  all  the  lead  being  of  and  in  and  upon  the  premises 
except  the  lead  in  the  gutters  and  windows.  To  have,  hold 
and  enjoy  the  aforesaid  Lordships  and  Manors,  messuc^es, 
lands,  tenements  and  other  all  and  singular  the  premises 
above  expressed  and  specified  with  all  their  aforesaid 
appurtenances  to  us  the  aforesaid  John  Harrington  and 
George  Burden  our  heirs  and  assigns  to  the  sole  and  proper 
use  and  behoof  of  us  John  and  George  and  our  heirs  and 
assigns  for  ever,  as  by  the  same  Letters  Patent  among  other 
things  more  fully  is  shown  and  appears. 

Know  ye  that  we  the  aforesaid  John  Harrington  and 
George  Burden  for  and  in  consideration  of  a  certain  sum  of 
money  to  us  by  Nicholas  Wychehalse  of  Barnstaple,  in  the 
said  county  of  Devon,  Merchant,  well  and  faithfully  paid, 
whereof  we  acknowledge  ourselves  to  be  fully  satisfied  and 
paid,  and  the  same  Nicholas  Wychehalse,  his  heirs,  executors, 
and  administrators  to  be  thereof  acquitted  and  discharged 
by  these  presents,  have  sold,  bargained,  given,  enfeoffed, 
delivered,  and  by  this  our  present  writing  confirmed  to  the 
aforesaid  Nicholas  Wychehalse  the  aforesaid  Lordship  and 
Manor  of  Lynton  and  Countesbie,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.    To  hold  of 


LYNTON   AND  OOUNTISBURY.  237 

the  Chief  Lord  of  that  fee  by  the  service  thereof  first  doe 
and  of  right  accustomed.  And  we  also,  the  aforesaid  John 
Harrington  and  George  Burden,  do  covenant  and  grant,  etc., 
etc.,  that  the  aforesaid  Nicholas  Wychehalse,  his  heirs  and 
assigns,  shall  receive  and  have,  etc.,  etc.,  all  rents,  etc.,  etc., 
from  the  Feast  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel  last  past  to 
this  time  growing,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.  Robert  Wychehalse 
and  Thomas  Sterte,  Gentlemen,  appointed  attornies  to  enter 
upon  and  take  possession,  and  after  such  possession  and 
seizin  to  deliver  possession  and  give  seizin  to  Nicholas 
Whycehalse  or  his  Attorney.     In  Witness,  etc. 

Dated  seventh  day  of  July  in  the  second  year  of  the 
reign  of  the  Lady  Elizabeth  by  Grace  of  God  of  England, 
France  and  Ireland  Queen,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  etc. 

And  be  it  remembered  11th  July  in  the  present  year 
John  Harrington  and  George  Burden  came  before  the  said 
Lady  the  Queen  in  her  Chancery  and  acknowledged  the 
aforesaid  writing  indented,  etc. 


No.  11. 

RECORDS  COURT  OF  CHANCERY. 

INQUISITION  POST  MORTEM,   12  ELIZ.,  No.  20. 

Elizabeth  by  grace  of  God,  etc. 

To  her  escheator  in  the  County  of  Devon  greeting. 

Because  Nicholas  Wichehalse  who  held  of  us  in  capite 
died  as  we  have  heard  we  command,  etc.,  etc. 

Witness  myself  at  Gorambury  the  sixteenth  day  of 
September  in  the  twelfth  year  of  our  reign.  Ludlowe. 

Delivered  to  the  Court  the  Twenty-ninth  day  of  October 
in  the  year  underwritten  by  the  hand  of  John  Marwood, 
(jentleman. 

DEVON.  Inquisition  indented  taken  at  Chidley  in  the 
County  aforesaid  the  second  day  of  October  in  the  Twelfth 
year  of  the  reign  of  the  Lady  Elizabeth  by  the  grace  of  God 
of  England,  France  and  Ireland  Queen  etc.,  etc. 

Before  Bartholomew  Pope,  Esq.,  Escheator  of  the  said 
Lady  the  Queen  in  the  county  aforesaid  by  virtue  of  a  writ 
of  the  said  lady  the  Queen  of  "diem  clausit  extremum*' 
after  the  death  of  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  senior,  of  Barnstaple, 
in  the  county  aforesaid.  Gentleman,  to  the  same  escheator 
directed  and  to  this  inquisition  shown  by  the  oath  of  Emanuel 


238  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

Drewe,  Esquire,  Thomas  Huyt,  gentleman,  John  Furseland, 
gentleman,  Thomas  Hunt,  gentleman,  John  Geyre,  gentleman, 
William  Willes,  Kichard  Renolds  alias  Bennett,  John  Soper, 
Richard  Lutton,  gentleman,  John  Whitborne,  John  Woolcott, 
Nicholas  Cove,  William  Lang,  Richard  Waltham,  Humphrey 
Boringdon  and  John  Ball  of  Northwood : 

Who  say  upon  their  oath  that  the  aforesaid  Nicholas 
Wichehalse  in  the  aforesaid  writ  named,  long  before  his 
death  and  on  the  day  on  which  he  died,  was  seized  in  his 
demesne  as  of  fee  of  and  in  the  Manors  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbye,  otherwise  Countisbery,  with  appurtenances  and 
of  and  in  Thirty  messuages.  Two  corn  mills,  thirty  gardens, 
Four  hundred  acres  of  land,  one  hundred  acres  of  meadow, 
two  hundred  acres  of  pasture,  one  hundred  acres  of  wood, 
one  thousand  acres  of  furze  and  heath,  and  twenty  shillings 
of  rent  with  appurtenances  in  Lynton  and  Countisbye, 
otherwise  Countisbery,  in  the  County  aforesaid,  and  of 
common  of  pasture  for  all  animals  on  Exmoor  in  the  said 
county  of  Devon. 

And  of  and  in  the  Manor  of  Maydenford  with  appurten- 
ances, and  of  and  in  three  messuages,  three  gardens,  three 
orchards,  Twenty  acres  of  land,  ten  acres  of  meadow,  twenty 
acres  of  pasture,  four  acres  of  wood,  ten  acres  of  furze  and 
heath,  and  6s.  8d.  of  rent  with  appurtenances  in  Maydenford 
and  Barnstaple  aforesaid.  Also  of  and  in  one  other  messuage, 
one  stable,  two  solars,  and  one  garden,  with  appurtenances  in 
Barnstaple. 

And  of  and  in  one  messuage,  one  garden,  twenty  acres  of 
land,  ten  acres  of  meadow,  twenty  acres  of  pasture,  ten  acres 
of  wood,  and  twenty  acres  of  furze  and  heath  called 
Overfoldhay  and  Netherfoldhay,  lyeing  and  being  within  the 
parish  of  Parracombe  in  the  county  aforesaid. 

And,  etc.,  garden,  orchard,  20  ac.  land,  10  ac.  meadow,  20  ac. 
pasture,  40  ac.  furze  and  heath,  etc.,  called  Watermoutii,  etc, 
within  the  parish  of  Berianarber. 

And,  etc.,  garden,  orchard,  40  ac.  land,  10  ac.  meadow,  20  ac. 
pasture,  and  100  ac.  furze  and  heath,  etc.,  called  Combe,  etc, 
parish  of  Loxford. 

And  further  the  Jurors  aforesaid  say  that  the  aforesaid 
Nicholas  on  day  before  his  death,  etc.,  was  seized  of  one 
capital  messuage,  garden,  orchard,  20  ac.  land,  10  ac.  meadow, 
100  ac.  pasture,  20  ac.  marsh,  etc.,  called  Barton  of  Fremyng- 
ton  within  parish  of  Fremyngton,  etc.,  and  four  closes  of  land 
called  Newecourte  grene,  Childpark,  otherwise  Underchild 
park,  containing  by  estimation  24  ac.  land  and  pasture,  etc.,  in 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  239 

Fremyngton,  late  in  tenure  and  occupation  of  Alexander 
Beaple,  gent.,  and  eight  messuages,  etc.,  100  ac.  land,  40 
meadow,  200  pasture,  20  wood,  40  marsh,  100  furze,  etc., 
Knyghtacottes,  Collacottes,  Lake,  Buckyngton,  Westnorthpill, 
Eastnorthpill,  with  clay  pittes,  and  with  certain  lands  not 
measured,  etc.,  in  Fremyngton,  in  tenures  and  occupation  of 
John  Hill,  James  Haywood,  Simon  Barwicke,  Thomas  Toppe, 
John  Thomas,  Alice  Parker,  widow,  William  Wilkes,  Agnes 
Sage,  widow,  and  Richard  Nielde.  Also  20  ac.  land,  2  wood, 
12  Furze,  etc.,  called  Bukyngton  in  Fremington  aforesaid  in 
tenure  of  Agnes  Sage,  10  ac.  land,  10  meadow,  20  pasture, 
20  furze,  called  Eastnorthpill,  Newbanches  all  the  old  porte  as 
f ar  as  Baggepoole — were  in  Fremyngton,  in  occupation  of  Agnes 
Sage.  And  the  aforesaid  Nicholas  Wichehalse  so  being  seized 
of  aforesaid  Manors,  Lands,  etc.,  etc,  on  28  day  of  August 
in  12  year  Elizabeth,  etc.,  at  Barnstaple,  made  his  testament 
and  last  will  in  writing,  and  by  the  same  will  gave,  etc.,  to 
Mary  his  wife  all  and  singular  his  aforesaid  Manors,  lands, 
etc.,  Lynton,  Countesbury,  Maydenford,  Barnstaple,  Parra- 
combe,  Loxefford,  Berenaber,  Fremyngton,  in  County  of 
Devon,  to  have  and  to  hold,  etc.,  etc.,  for  the  term  of  her 
life,  etc.,  pay  debts  and  legacies,  etc.,  and  fulfill  the  will,  etc., 
bearing  date  28  Aug.,  1570,  etc.,  as  more  fully  appears  by 
these  English  words  following : 

"Item.  I  give,  bequeath,  dispose  and  devise  all  my 
messuages,  lands,  tenements  and  hereditaments  lyeing  and 
being  in  the  towns  and  parishes  of  Lynton,  Countesby, 
Parracombe,  Loxeford,  Beryuarber,  Fremyngton,  and  Barn- 
staple, unto  Mary  my  wife  to  have  and  to  hold  to  the  same 
Mary  for  the  term  of  her  life  to  and  for  the  satisfaction  of 
my  debts  and  legacies  and  performance  of  this  my  testament 
and  will." 

Aod  further  the  Jurors  on  their  oath  say,  etc. : 
Manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbye  are  held  of  the  Queen 
by  Knight  service  in  capite,  to  wit  by  one  hundredth  part  of 
one  Knight's  Fee,  worth,  etc.,  £10.  Maydenforde,  etc.,  in 
Barnstaple  held  of  John  Chichester,  Esq.,  as  of  his  Borough 
of  Barnstaple,  by  fealty  and  rent  of  3d.,  worth  £4,  etc.     In 

Parracombe,   held  of  Vawter,  gent.,  by  fealty,  etc., 

worth  20s.,  etc.  In  Berynarber,  held  of  John  Jule,  gent.,  by 
fealty,  ete.,  worth  8s.  8d.  In  Loxford.  held  of  John  Marwood, 
Esq.,  by  fealty,  etc.,  worth  13s.  4d.  In  Fremyngton,  held  of 
Lady  the  Queen,  as  Manor  of  East  Grenwich  in  County  of 
Kent  in  free  soccage  and  worth  nothing  during  lives  of 
aforesaid  Alexander  Beaple,  etc.,  etc. 


240  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

And  further  Jurors,  etc.,  say :  Aforesaid  Nicholas  Wiche- 
halse  held  no  other  manors,  messuages,  etc,  in  County  afore- 
said, etc.,  that  Nicholas  Wichehalse  died  28  Aug.,  and  that 
Nicholas  Wichehalse,  junior,  is  his  son  and  heir,  and  was  of 
the  age  of  3  years,  14  weeks,  and  4  days  on  28th  Aug.,  etc. 

In  witness,  etc. 

No.  12. 

ABSTRACT  OF  WILL  OF  NICHOLAS  WICHEHALSE  OF  BARNSTAPLE 

(D.  1670).     P.C.C.  (28  Lyon). 

28  Aug.,  1570.  Nicholas  Weichalsce  of  perfect  memory 
and  good  remembraunce.  To  be  buried  in  the  Churche  of 
Barnstaple.  Unto  the  Vicar  of  Barnstaple  for  tythes  for- 
gotten, Unto  Hunte  the  Gierke,  unto  John  Wicchalse  my 
kinsman,  in  consideraCon  that  he  doe  marrye  withe  Katherine 
Salisburye,  my  wyfes  daughter,  to  Johan  Wicchalse  my 
daughter,  To  Nicholas  Wichalse  my  sonne  at  21,  To  Nicholas 
Wichalcee  my  kinsman  and  svaunte,  To  Piers  Wicchallsee 
my  kynsmanne,  To  Anthonye  my  negarre,  Bequeath  all  my 
lands  in  the  Townes  and  pisshes  of  Lynton  and  Counseberye, 
Peracombe,  Loxford,  Berynarber,  ffrementon  and  Barnstaple, 
to  Marye  my  wyfe  for  life,  and  for  the  sattisfacon  of  my 
debtes  and  legacyes  and  pformaunce  of  this  my  wyll.  I  do 
make  said  Marye  my  wife  hole  Executrixe,  And  for  overseers 
I  ordaine  Mr.  Robert  Appelye  and  my  brother  John  Darte. 

Proved  P.C.C.  23"*  Sep.,  1570,  by  procurator  of  Mary  the 
relict. 

No.  13. 
ABSTRACT  OF  WILL  OF  MARY  WICHEHALSE. 

24^**  Sept^  1584.  Mary  Wichehalse  of  Barnestaple,  widowe. 
To  be  buried  in  the  pishe  churche  of  Barnestaple,  To 
my  dau.  Katherine  Wichehalse  £200.  To  Johan  Prowsse 
my  dau.  £200  and  all  my  household  stuflfe  in  Nattsonne  in 
the  par.  of  Tawstock.  Whereas  Nicholas  Wichehalse  my 
Sonne  and  heir  apparant  is  seised  in  his  demesne  as  of  fee  of 
and  in  one  mansion  housse  and  tenement,  etc.,  neare  or  upon 
the  Kaye  of  Barnestaple,  sometymes  the  landes  and  tenements 
of  one  Richard  Webber  of  Pilton.  He  is  within  3  years  of 
accomplishing  his  full  age  of  21  to  demise  and  lease  the  s^ 
mansion  house  to  Robert  Prowsse  and  Johan  his  wife  my 
daughter,  and  the  latter  are  to  suffer  the  s^  Nicholas  my  son 
and  his  heires  peaceably  to  occupye  and  enjoye  the  mansion 
howsse  and  tenement  wherein  I  now  dwell  in  Crockestreite 


LYNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BURY.  241 

in  Bamestaple.  My  sonne  Nicholas  Wichehalse  and  bis 
beires  to  confirm  any  leases  or  grantes  I  have  made  or  here- 
after shall  make  by  copy  of  courte  roUe  of  the  Mannor  of 
Lynton  and  Cantisburie.  To  Christopher  W.,  sonne  of  my 
8^  dau.  Katberine  W.,  at  21.  To  Mary  W.,  dau.  of  my  s** 
daiL  Katberine  W.,  at  marriage,  and  to  Joban  and  Prudence 
•W.,  dau*.  of  my  s**  dau.  Katberine  W.,  at  21  or  marriage. 
To  Lewis  Knyll  and  James  Mayne  my  servants.  I  give  unto 
y*  saide  Nicholas  W.,  my  sonne,  the  wardshippe  of  his  bodye 
and  landes,  together  with  all  the  rest  of  my  goods  and 
chattells,  and  constitute  him  my  sole  ex*^',  and  appoint  as 
overseers  M'  George  Wyot  and  M'  Humfrie  Coplestone, 
Gentlemen. 

To  John  Wichehalse,  my  sonne  in  lawe,  all  such  debts 
as  he  doth  or  shall  owe  unto  me. 

To  Katberine  Wichehalse,  my  dau.,  all  my  messuages  and 
tenements,  etc.,  in  Westdowne  for  life. 

To  Humfrey  Prowsse,  sonne  unto  my  dau.  Jobane  Prowse, 
at  the  age  of  21. 

(Witnesses)  George  Wyott,  Humfrey  Coplestone,  George 
Pyne,  William  Palmer,  Lewis  Knyll. 

Proved  25  June,  1585,  by  Alfred  Gierke,  notary  public, 
procurator  of  Nicholas  Wichehalse,  the  ex*^'.  , 


No.  14. 
FINE  ROLL,   30  ELIZABETH,  PART  1,  M.  21. 

Concerning  land  to  be  delivered  to  Nicholas  Wichehalse. 

The  Queen  to  her  escbeator  in  the  County  of  Devon  greet- 
ing. Whereas  by  a  certain  inquisition  lately  taken  before 
Bartholomew  Pope,  Esq.,  late  our  escbeator  in  the  county 
aforesaid,  by  our  command  after  the  death  of  Nicholas 
Wichehalse,  senior,  late  of  Barnstaple  in  our  County  afore- 
said, Gentleman,  deceased  and  returned  into  our  Chancery, 
among  other  things  it  is  shown  that  the  aforesaid  Nicholas 
Wychebalse  in  the  said  mandate  named  was  seized  on  the 
day  of  his  death  in  his  demesne  as  of  fee  of  and  in  the 
Manors  of  Lynton  and  Countisbye  otherwise  Countesbye, 
etc.,  etc.,  and  of  and  in  manor  of  Maydenforde,  etc.,  and  also 
of  and  in  one  other  messuage,  one  stable,  two  solars,  etc.,  in 
Barnstaple,  etc.,  Overfoldhay,  Netherfoldhay,  Parracombe, 
Watermouth,  Berrynarbor,  Combe  in  parish  of  Loxeford,  etc., 
etc.,  etc. 

And  that  Nicholas  Wychebalse,  junior,  is  his  son  and  next 
heir,  and  because  the  aforesaid  Nicholas  has  attained  the  full 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  Q 


242  DOCUMENTS  RBLATING  TO  THB  HISTORY  OF 

age  of  twenty-one  years  and  has  well  and  faithfully  paid  all 
the  issues  and  profits  of  aforesaid  manors,  etc,  etc.,  from  the 
time  of  his  full  age  until  the  eighteenth  day  of  this  present 
month  of  June  to  us  due,  etc..  We,  etc,  have  respited 
homage,  etc.,  until  feast  of  the  Purification  of  the  Blessed 
Mary  next  to  come,  etc,  etc. 

We  therefore  command  without  delay  that  thou  cause  the 
said  Nicholas  to  have  full  seizin  of  the  aforesaid  Manors,  etc, 
etc. 

Witness  the  Queen  at  Westminster  the  Twenty-second  day 
of  June. 

By  bill  of  the  Court  of  Wards  and  Liveries. 


No.  15. 

INQUISITION  POST  MORTEM,   3  JAMES  I,   PART  2,   No.   116. 

James  by  the  grace  of  God,  etc.,  to  his  escheator  in  the 
County  of  Devon  greeting.  Because  Nicholas  Wichehalse, 
gentleman,  who  held  of  us  in  capite,  died  as  we  have  heard 
we  command  thee  that  without  delay  thou  takest  into  our 
hand  all  the  lands  and  tenements  of  which  the  same  Nicholas 
was  seized. 


Witness  myself  at  Westminster,  26  Nov.,  in  the  year  of 
our  reign  of  England,  France,  and  Ireland,  the  3rd,  and  of 
Scotland  the  39th.  Conyers. 

Delivered  to  the  court  10  Feb.  in  within  written  3rd  year 
by  the  hand  of  the  Escheator.  John  Ratenbury. 

DEVON.  Inquisition  indented  taken  at  Oakhampton  in 
the  county  aforesaid  25  Jan.  in  the  reign  of  our  Lord  James, 
etc.,  the  3rd,  etc,  before  John  Eatenbury,  gentleman,  Es- 
cheator of  the  said  Lord  the  King  in  the  County  aforesaid, 
by  virtue  of  a  writ,  etc.,  to  inquire  after  the  death  of  Nicholas 
Wichehalse,  late  of  Barnstaple,  in  the  County  aforesaid, 
gentleman  deceased,  to  the  same  Escheator  directed,  and  to 
this  inquisition  shown  by  the  oath  of  William  Newcombe, 
gentleman,  Henry  Underden,  gent.,  Eobert  Webbery,  gent, 
John  Woode,  gent.,  Andrew  Trigges,  gent.,  Peter  Ratenbuiy, 
gent.,  John  Holmes,  gent.,  Kobert  Cole,  William  Growden, 
Kichard  Babb,  Eobert  Dawe,  John  Brownson,  Thomas  Speare, 
Henry  Bychlake,  and  John  Drewe:  Who  say  upon  their 
oath  that  the  aforesaid  Nicholas  Wichehalse  in  the  aforesaid 
writ  named  long  before  his  death  was  seized  in  his  demesne 


LYNTON  AND   COUNTISBURY.  243 

as  of  fee  of  and  in  the  Manor  of  Lynton  and  Countisbye, 
otherwise  Countisberye,  with  appurtenances,  and  of  and  in 
thirty  messuages,  two  corn  mills,  thirty  gardens,  40  ac.  of 
knd,  100  ac.  meadow,  200  ac.  pasture,  100  ac.  wood,  1000  ac. 
furze  and  heath  and  20s.  of  rent  with  appurtenances  in 
Lynton  and  Countisbye,  otherwise  Countisberye,  in  the 
county  aforesaid  and  common  of  pasture  for  all  animals  in 
Exmore  in  the  said  county  of  Devon.  And  of  and  in  the 
manor  of  LinkcoH[ibe,otherwise  Lincombe,  with  appurtenances, 
and  of  and  in  20  messuages,  3  Tofts,  3  mills,  2  Dovecotes, 
20  gardens,  20  orchards,  50  ac.  land,  100  ac.  meadow,  500  ac. 
pasture,  100  ac  wood,  100  ac.  furze  and  heath  and  40s.  rent, 
with  appurtenances  in  Lincombe  and  Ilfordcombe  in  the 
aforesaid  County  of  Devon ;  1  messuage,  one  stable,  2  solars  and 
one  garden,  etc.,  in  Barnstaple,  etc. ;  8  messuages,  8  gardens, 
100  ac.  land,  40  ac.  meadow,  200  ac.  pasture,  20  ac.  wood, 
40  ac.  marsh,  100  ac.  furze  and  heath,  etc.,  called  Knighacott, 
Collacott,  Lake,  Bukington,  Westnorthpill,  Eastnorthpill,  with 
Le  Clay  pittes  and  certain  lands  not  measured  in  Fremington 
aforesaid  and  now  or  late  in  several  tenures  and  occupations 
of  Hugh  Hill,  Simon  Hawleigh,  William  Sherland,  Arnold 
Evans  in  right  of  Beaton  his  wife,  William  Norman,  Joan 
Parker,  John  Tawton  and  Agnes  Westlake.  And  of  and  in 
20  ac.  land,  4  ac.  meadow,  20  ac.  pasture,  2  ac.  wood,  12  ac.  furze 
and  heath,  etc.,  called  Bukington,  in  parish  of  Fremington, 
now  or  late  in  tenure  and  occupation  of  Agnes  Sage ;  10  ac. 
land,  10  ac.  meadow,  20  ac.  pasture,  20  ac.  furze  and  heath 
called  Eastnorthpill,  Newbank,  all  the  old  park  as  far  as 
Bagpoole  weare  in  Fremyngton  in  tenure  and  occupation  of 
Agnes  Saige ;  and  the  aforesaid  Nicholas  Wichehalse  so  being 
seized  on  20  Jan.,  40th  year  of  Elizabeth,  etc.  (1598),  by  his 
deed  indented  dated  same  day  and  year  for  the  natural  love 
and  affection  borne  towards  one  Hugh  Wichalse  his  son  and 
heir  apparent  and  for  continuance  of  his  lands  and  tenements 
in  the  name  and  blood  of  the  same  Nicholas,  gave,  granted  and 
enfeoffed  to  certain  Hugh  Acland,Esq.,  and  Philip  Pyne,  Gent., 
all  and  singular  the  Manors,  lands  and  tenements  aforsaid, 
etc.,  etc.,  and  also  by  the  name  of  all  that  his  mansion  house 
in  Barnstaple,  etc.,  to  have  and  to  hold,  etc.,  etc.,  to  the  uses, 
intents  and  purposes  in  the  same  indenture  mentioned,  etc., 
etc.  That  is  to  say,  to  use  of  said  Nicholas  Whichehalse  for 
life,  etc.,  etc.,  and  to  grant  for  1,  2,  or  3  lives  at  old  accus- 
tomed rents  and  services,  etc.,  etc.,  then  for  use  of  aforesaid 
Hugh  Wichehalse  and  heirs  male  of  his  body,  etc.,  etc.,  re- 
mainders to  Nicholas  Wychehalse,  2nd  son  and  heirs  male, 

q2 


244  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF 

Arthur  Wichehalse,  3rd  son,  etc.,  Robert  Wichehalse,  4th 
son,  etc.,  Philip  Wichehalse,  5th  son,  etc.,  and  assigns  of 
Nicholas  Wichehalse,  etc.,  etc.  And  further  the  Jurors  afore- 
said say  upon  their  oath  aforesaid  Manors  of  Lynton  and 
Countisbey  are  held  of  the  said  Lord  the  King  by  Knight 
service  in  capite  by  ^-J^  Knight's  Fee,  etc.,  and  are  worth 
per  annum  £10.  Lyncombe  held  of  Lord  King  in  capite 
^  Knights  Fee,  worth  £H  per  annum.  Messuage,  etc.,  in 
Barnstaple  of  Robert  Chichester,  Knight,  as  of  his  borough 
of  Barnstaple  by  fealty  and  rent  of  3d.,  etc.,  worth  10s.  per 
annum.;  messuages,  etc.,  in  Fremyngton  of  Lord  the  King 
as  of  his  manor  of  East  Greenwich  in  free  soccage  and  not 
in  capite  by  fealty  and  rent  yearly  of  £21,  worth  nothing 
during  lives,  etc.,  and  after  determination  worth  5s.,  etc.,  etc 

Jurors  say  held  none  other  in  said  County,  and  aforesaid 
Nicholas  Wichehalse  died  about  last  day  of  October  before 
the  taking  of  this  inquisition,  and  that  aforesaid  Hugh 
Wichehalse  is  his  son  and  next  heir  and  is  at  the  time  of  the 
taking  of  this  inquisition  of  the  age  of  17  years,  10  montlis, 
and  22  days,  etc.,  etc  John  Ratenbury,  Escheator. 

Examined  by  Humfrey  Were,  feodary. 

Transcripts  sent  to  Courts  of  Wards  and  Exchequer  by 
W.  Ravenscrofte. 

No.  16. 

RECORDS  COURT  OF  CHANCERY. 

FINE  ROLL,   7  JAMES   I,   M.   28,   No.   9. 

Concerning  lands  to  be  delivered  to  Hugh  Witchehalse, 
the  King  to  his  escheator,  in  the  county  of  Devon.  Recites 
inquisition  3  James  I,  etc.,  etc. 

And  because  the  aforesaid  Hugh  Wichehalse  has  attained 
his  full  age  of  21  years,  and  has  well  and  faithfully  paid  all 
the  issues  and  profits  of  aforesaid  Manors,  etc,  etc.,  from 
the  time  of  his  full  age  until  10  Feb.,  to  us  due  in  the 
Courts  of  our  Wards  and  Liveries,  etc.,  etc,  we,  for  half  a 
mark  to  us  on  our  Hanaper  paid,  have  respited  the  homage 
of  the  said  Hugh  Wichehalse  to  us  in  this  behalf  due  until 
the  feast  of  All  Saints  next  to  come,  and  have  taken  the 
fealty  of  the  said  Hugh  Wichehalse  to  us  in  this  behalf  like- 
wise due,  and  have  yielded  up  to  him  the  aforesaid  manors, 
etc.  We  therefore  command  that  without  delay  thou  cause 
the  same  Hugh  Wichehalse  to  have  full  seizin  of  the  afore- 
said manors,  etc.,  etc. 

Witness,  the  King  at  Westminster,  22  Feb. 

By  bill  of  the  Court  of  Wards  and  Liveries,  etc 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  245 

No.   \7. 
ABSTRACT  OF  WILL  OF  JOHN  WICHALSE  OF  LYNTON. 

Dated  4  May,  1676;  proved  3  May,  1677,  by  John  Smith, 
of  Dulverton,  gent.,  power  reserved  to  Richard  Blackford  of 
Danster,  gent.;  Eichard  Parminter  of  Barnstaple,  mercer, 
and  cosen  Mrs.  Mary  Steevens.  No  inventory  attached. 
(Princ.  Registry,  Bp.  of  Exon.) 

Directs  all  expensive  funeral  solemnities  should  be  avoided. 
Gives  to  poor  of  Lynton  £3.  Four  daughters,  Dorothy, 
Susanna,  Grace,  and  Elizabeth,  £250  each  at  21,  and  £12  per 
annum  for  maintenance  till  then ;  and  if  said  Dorothy  did 
not  within  six  weeks  of  Testator's  death  convey  to  person 
to  whom  testator  had  devised  his  land  of  inheritance  all  her 
estate  in  tenement  called  Coombe  in  Countisbury,  said  legacy 
and  maintenance  not  to  be  paid. 

Son  Hugh  £200  at  21  or  marriage  and  £15  per  annum, 
and  to  be  apprenticed  to  some  laudable  profession  as  soon  as 
he  should  be  capable ;  also  to  Hugh  estate  called  Kings- 
ground,  adjoining  Bartaine,  of  Blackpool,  in  South  Molton. 

Wife  Susanna  various  gifts,  including  implements  of  hus- 
bandry at  his  house  called  Ley,  where  he  lived;  Brother 
Nicholas'  servants,  5s.  each. 

Son  John  or  such  as  should  be  Testator's  heir  at  law 
certain  furniture,  £30  per  annum  for  maintenance,  on  con- 
dition not  to  disturb  testator's  wife  in  quiet  enjoyment  of 
hereditaments  conveyed  to  her  for  jointure  ;  to  son  John  all 
moneys  owing. 

Children,  books  equally,  board  and  lodging  at  Ley  for  6 
months  after  death  at  cost  of  wife.  Exors.  all  heredita- 
ments at  Lynton  and  elsewhere  on  trust  to  pay  debts, 
legacies,  and  convey  to  heir  at  law.  Disputes  between 
Trustees  and  heir  at  law  to  be  settled  by  worthy  and  well- 
beloved  friend  Nicholas  Dennis,  of  Ijarnstaple,  Esq. 

Witnesses,  Nicholas  Cooke  and  William  Meddow. 

No.  18. 

[Abstract'] 

Indenture  dated  24  May,  1680,  between  John  Wichehalse, 
of  Chard,  Esq.,  and  John  Lovering,  of  Wear  Gifford, 
merchant. 

John  Wichehalse  in  consideration  of,  etc.,  did  demise, 
grant,  etc.,  to  John  Lovering,  etc,  all  that  his  manor  and 
lordship  of  Linton,  with  the  rights,  members'  liberties,  etc., 


246  DOCUMENTS  BBLATINO  TO  THB  HISTORY  OF 

and  all  messuages,  etc.,  belonging  to  said  manor,  etc.,  and 
also  all  common  of  pasture  in  the  Forest  or  great  Common 
called  Ex  moor  and  elsewhere,  common  of  Turbary,  and  all 
other  commons,  wastes,  etc.,  rents  and  customs,  as  well  of 
Free,  customary,  and  other  tenants,  and  also  courts  leet,  view 
of  frankpledge,  etc.,  wrecks  of  sea.  Fishing,  fowling,  etc. 

And  all  such  woods  and  wood  grounds  as  were  then 
granted  and  enjoyed,  with  any  of  the  messuages,  cottages 
and  tenements,  which  woods  and  undergrounds  did  hereto- 
fore belong  unto  or  was  or  were  parcel  or  reputed  parcel  of 
the  Manor  of  Countisbye,  als.  Countisbury,  adjoining  to  the 
said  Manor  of  Lynton,  etc. 

Except  and  always  reserved  unto  the  said  John  Wiche- 
halse  Ley  and  North  Ground,  containing  about  20  acres,  and 
the  late  enclosed  ground,  about  16  acres,  lately  used  with 
Ley,  etc.,  to  hold  same  for  term  of  1000  years,  under  yearly 
rent  of  Id.,  and  services  due  to  the  King.  In  Covenants 
against  encumbrances  are  excepted  estates  by  leases  and 
copy  of  court  roll,  etc.,  and  such  estates  as  should  before 
default  of  payment  be  granted  by  John  Wichehalse. 

No.  19. 
[Abstract,] 

Indenture  dated  27  April,  1700,  between  Samuel  EoUe,  of 
the  Middle  Temple,  London,  Esq.,  of  one  part;  Dorothy 
Levering,  eldest  daughter  and  one  of  the  coheirs  of  John 
Levering,  late  of  Hudscott,  Co.  Devon,  Esq.,  2nd  part; 
Rt.  Hon.  Hugh  Boscawen,  of  Trego thnan ;  Samuel  Eolle,  of 
Heanton,  Esq. ;  Nicholas  Hooper,  of  Inner  Temple,  Esq. ; 
Joseph  Bailer,  Barnstaple,  gent. ;  Richard  Parmynter,  Barn- 
staple, merchant ;  and  Thomas  Nott,  of  Mariansleigh,  gent, 
3rd  part. 

Whereas  a  marriage  is  intended  to  be  solemnized  between 
said  Samuel  Rolle  and  Dorothy  Lovering,  etc.  Trustees 
named  are  enfeofifed  of  various  lands  of  Samuel  Rolle,  and 
also  of  lauds  of  Dorothy  Lovering,  viz.  Manor  of  St.  Peter 
Hays,  in  parish  of  St.  Thomas,  lauds  granted  to  Elizabeth 
Bailer,  mother  of  said  Dorothy,  for  jointure,  Higher  Hud- 
scott, Lower  Hudscott,  East  Dennington,  West  Dennington, 
Lerwill,  Row  Park,  ChappePs  Tenement,  Whetstone,  all  in 
Chittlehampton  ;  Chuggaton,  Brealey's  Tenement  and  Small- 
ridge's  in  Swymbridge ;  messuages  and  closes  in  S.  Molton, 
messuages  in  occupation  of  Richard  Salisbury  at  Barnstaple; 
moiety  of  Huxhill  Barton,  Weir  Gififord ;  moiety  of  Manor 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  247 

of  Countesbury,  in  parishes  of  Countesbury  and  Linton,  with 
all  its  lioyalties,  Rights,  members,  and  appurtenances; 
moiety  of  N.  Furshill,  Lynton;  moiety  Eadspry,  Linton; 
one  quarter  of  Spiranger,  Linton;  moiety  of  tenement  in 
East  Ilkerton,  in  possession  of  Alexander  Reed,  Lynton; 
moiety  of  Manor  of  Curry  Revel ;  moiety  of  manor  of  Five- 
head,  and  all  other  manors,  lands,  of  Dorothy  Lovering  in 
Devon  and  Somerset  in  trust,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.  Children  of 
marriage,  etc. 

No.  20. 

INQ.  P.M.,  CHANCERY,  VOL.  45,  No  121. 

[Abstract] 

Inquisition  taken  at  Colompton  in  Co.  Devon,  9  November, 
18  Henry  VIII  (a.d.  1526),  after  the  death  of  Thomas 
Pyne,  by  the  oath  of  John  Sanford,  Edward  Ford,  John 
Hake,  John  Manning,  Humphrey  Edgbastyn,  Robert  Facy, 
William  Mostyn,  Roger  Cadbery,  John  Pitte,  William  May, 
Henry  Hurdyng,  Philip  Herd,  and  John  Hill,  who  say  upon 
oath  that  the  said  Thomas  Pyne  was  seized  of  a  messuage, 
40  acres  of  land  and  pasture,  10  acres  of  meadow,  and  100 
acres  of  furze  and  heath  in  Lyne  in  the  parish  of  Lynton,  co. 
Devon,  in  his  demesne  as  of  fee,  and  so  thereof  seized  long 
before  his  death  he  enfeoffed  John  Body  and  John  Roke  the 
elder  of  the  said  premises  during  the  life  of  Joan  his  wife  to 
hold  to  them  for  her  use  in  the  name  of  her  dower  and 
jointure  of  the  chief  lords  as  appears  by  a  charter  dated 
7  July,  2  Henry  VIII  (a.d.  1510).  The  said  John  Body  and 
John  Roke  the  elder  are  still  seized  of  the  said  premises  to 
the  use  aforesaid. 

The  said  Thomas  Pyne  was  also  seized  in  his  demesne  as 
of  fee  of  2  messuages,  40  acres  of  land  and  pasture,  10  acres 
of  meadow,  and  200  acres  of  furze  and  heath  in  Thornworthy 
and  Ilkerdon  in  the  same  parish  of  Lynton,  the  same  are  held 
of  the  King  as  of  his  manor  of  Bradnynch  and  are  worth 
22  shillings  yearly  clear. 

The  said  Thomas  Pyne  died  2nd  February,  14  Henry  VIII 
(a.d.  1523).  Augustus  Pine  is  his  son  and  next  heir,  and 
is  now  aged  21  years  and  more. 

No.  21. 

INQ.   P.M.   SER.    II,   CHANG. ,   VOL.   170,  No.   16. 

[Abstract] 

Inquisition  taken  at  Exeter  Castle  14  April,  17  Eliz. 
(A.D.   1575),  after  the   death   of  Nicholas   Pyne,  Esquire. 


248  D0CUM£KT8  BKLATINO  TO  THK  HISTORY  OF 

The  jurors  find  that  he  was  seized  of  the  Manor  of  Est 
Downe,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.,  also  of  the  Manor  of  Wilhanger,  in 
the  Parish  of  Ljnton,  and  other  premises  in  co.  Devon. 

By  deed  dated  1  March,  17  Eliz.,  he  enfeoffed  John 
Chichester  and  others  of  all  the  said  premises  to  the  uses  of 
his  will.  The  said  Manor  of  Wilhanger  is  held  of  the 
queen  as  of  her  manor  of  Bradnych  by  the  fourth  part  of 
one  Knight's  fee,  and  is  worth  yearly  758.  lOJ.  The  said 
Nicholas  Pyne  died  1  Sept.  last  past.  Philip  Pyne  is  his 
son  and  next  heir,  and  at  the  date  of  his  lather's  death  was 
16  years  of  age  and  more. 

Nicholas  Pyne*s  will  is  recited  in  this  inquisition  and  his 
property  in  King's  Heanton. 

No.  22. 

INQ.   P.M.,  CHANCERY,  VOL.   260,   No.   187. 

[Abstract] 

Inquisition  taken  at  31  Oct.,  42  Eliz.  (A.D.  1600), 

after  death  of  Philip  Pyne. 

The  jurors  say  upon  oath  that  lie  was  seized  (inter  alia)  of 
the  Manor  of  Wilhanger,  co.  Devon,  and  by  indenture  dated 
3  Aug.,  41  Eliz.,  he  demised,  and  to  farm  let  to  his  sons 
Edward  and  Philip  all  that  tenement  called  Wilhanger,  in 
the  parish  of  Lynton,  with  a  wood  called  Greenwill  wood  in 
the  same  parish  for  90  years,  they  paying  to  the  said  Philip 
the  accustomed  rents  and  services. 

The  same  Manor  of  Wilhanger  is  held  of  the  queen  as  of 
her  manor  of  Bradnych  for  the  fourth  part  of  one  Knight's 
fee,  and  is  worth  yearly  clear  £3.  15s.  lOid. 

The  said  Philip  Pyne  died  at  Eastdowne  17  Oct.,  42  Eliz. 
(a.d.  1600),  and  Lewis  Pyne  is  his  son  and  next  heir,  and 
was  aged  13  years  and  14  days  at  the  date  of  his  father's 
death. 

No.  23. 
WILL  OF  REV.   RICHARD  HARDING,   OF  MARWOOD. 

Dated  2  Nov.,  1773;  proved  20  May,  1782,  by  John 
Fosse,  clerk,  sole  executor. 

[A  bstract] 

To  my  nephew  Philip  Harding  all  that  my  manors  of 
Willanger,  East  Line,  and  Shortacombe,  in  the  parish  of 
Linton,  together  with  all  lands,  etc.,  which  I  lately  purchased 
of  John  Pine,  Esq.,  upon  trust  during  minority  of  his  two 
younger  sons  John  and  Bobert,  to  apply  rents  in  affordiog 


LYNTON  AND  CX)UNTISBURT.  249 

and  giving  them  the  benefit  not  only  of  reading,  writing, 
and  arithmetick,  but  also  of  grammatical  and  classic  learn- 
ing, and  chiefly  and  above  all  instructions  or  causing  them 
to  be  instructed  in  the  grounds  and  principles  of  the 
Christian  religion,  and  all  commendable  and  good  behaviour 
as  is  likely  to  beget  in  them  a  virtuous  and  holy  life,  and  to 
render  them  useful  members  of  human  society. 

On  their  coming  of  age  East  Line  and  Shortacombe  to 
John  Harding.  Broomholmes,  part  of  Willanger,  to  Kobert 
Harding.  Eest  of  Willanger  to  John  and  Kobert  as  tenants 
in  common. 

Codicil.  Speaks  of  John  Pine,  Esq.,  now  John  Pine, 
Clerk,  and  dispute  as  to  chief  rents  of  Willanger  Manor. 

Further  Codicil.  To  Robert  Harding  £120,  to  be  laid  out 
in  repairing  mansion  of  East  Line. 

Rev.  R.  Harding  died  7  May,  1782. 

No.  24. 

[Abstract.] 

Indenture  made  3  Dec,  1632,  between  Sir  Robert  Bassett 
of  Heanton  Drewgarden  in  the  county  of  Devon,  Armiger, 
Andrew  Bassett,  Esq.,  son  and  heir  apparent  of  the  said  Sir 
Robert  Bassett  and  Eleanor  Bassett,  daughter  of  the  said 
Sir  Robert  Bassett,  of  the  one  part,  and  John  Knight  the 
younger,  of  Linton  in  the  said  County  of  Devon,  yeoman, 
of  the  other  part.  After  reciting  deed  8  May,  15  King 
James,  selling  and  granting  to  Sir  Edward  Chichester  and 
Arthur  Hatche,  Esq.,  certain  lands  in  Linton  for  term  of 
1000  years,  etc.,  etc.,  Transfer  part  to  John  Delbridge,  etc., 
Transfer  to  Eleanor  Bassett  5  Nov.,  20  James  I,  also 
reciting  deed  13  Nov.,  18  James  I,  granting  and  selling  to 
Joseph  Delbridge  and  Matthew  Tooker  certain  lands,  etc., 
reciting  death  of  John  Delbridge,  and  that  Matthew  Tooker 
by  deed  dated  17  Feb.,  20  James  I,  granted  to  Arthur  Bassett, 
also  reciting  deed  6  July,  6  Charles  I,  Sir  Robert  Bassett 
and  Arthur  Bassett  to  Eleanor  Bcussett, 

Sir  Robert,  Arthur,  and  Eleanor  Bassett  grant,  enfeoff, 
bargain  and  sell  to  John  Knight  the  younger,  his  heirs  and 
assigns  for  ever,  the  messuages,  lands,  and  tenements  called 
West  Lyne,  in  parish  of  Linton,  and  certain  other  lands 
called  Mettecombe  and  Lynham  then  in  tenure  of  John 
Knight  the  elder,  Northlake  in  parish  of  Lynton,  in  tenure 
of  John  Davie  and  Henry  Davie,  tenement  at  Babbrooke 
Mill  in  occupation  of  Richard  Rooke  and  Beaton  his  wife,  to 


250  D0GUICENT8  RIELATING  TO  THS  BISTORT  OF 

be  bolden  of  Chief-Lord  of  the  fee  by  rents  and  services  due 
and  by  right  accustomed.  Covenants  as  to  free  of  encum- 
brance and  Warranty  of  Title  and  power  to  John  Grease  and 
Bichard  Eooke  to  deliver  seizin. 


No.  25. 
WILL  OF  JOHN   KNIGHT,   OF  WEST  LYNE,   LYNTON. 

Dated  24  June,  1732  ;  proved  5  Dec,  1735  (Archdeacon's 
Court  of  Barnstaple). 

[Abstract,] 

Gives  West  Lyn,  Barbrook  Mill  Tenement,  Stock  Tene- 
ment and  all  other  his  lands  of  inheritance  to  John  Richards, 
Bector  of  Kentisbury,  and  to  his  kinsman  Kichard  Knight 
in  trust  for  his  son  Eichard  Knight  for  life,  remainder  to 
heirs  male  of  Testator's  son  Richard  Knight,  remainder  to 
heirs  female. 

No.  26. 
[Abstract,] 

Deed,  14  and  15  June,  1791. 

Lease  and  Release.  Mary  Knight,  widow,  relict  of  John 
Knight,  Rev.  Richard  Knight  of  Linton,  clerk,  eldest  son 
and  heir  at  law  of  said  John  and  Mary  Knight,  and  Elizabeth 
his  wife  of  1st  part,  William  Devon,  Esq.,  2nd  part,  and 
John  Palfreman  of  3rd  part.  Barring  entail,  right  of  dower, 
granting  West  Lyne,  Mettecombe,  Lynliam,  N.  Stock,  Babrook 
tenement  and  Babrook  Mill  and  Berry's  tenement  to  William 
Devon  that  he  might  become  a  perfect  tenant  till  recovery, 
recovery  to  be,  North  Stock  for  use  of  John  Palfreman  for 
lives  of  Mary  and  Elizabeth  Knight  to  pay  them  annuities, 
remainder  to  use  of  Richard  Knight  for  life  and  then  to  his 
heirs  and  in  Trust,  expiration  of  term  to  use  of  Richard 
Knight,  his  heirs  and  assigns,  etc. 

Recovery  Trinity  Term,  3  George  III. 

Described  as  16  Messuages,  1  Mill,  13  Gardens,  550  acres 
of  land,  40  meadow,  400  pasture,  100  wood,  10  Furze  and 
Heath  and  common  of  pasture  for  all  manner  of  cattle  and 
turbary  in  West  Lyn,  Mettecombe,  Lynham,  North  Stock, 
Babrook. 

No.  27. 

INQ.  P.M.,  6  JAMES  I,  P.   1,  No.  188. 

[Abstract,] 

Inquisition  taken  at  Tiverton,  11  July,  6  James  I  (A.D. 
1608),  on  death  of  John  Chichester,  gent.,  say  that  John 


LYNTON  AND  C0UNTI8BURY.  251 

Chichester,  father  of  the  above,  and  Elizabeth  his  wife,  were 
seized  in  their  demesne  as  of  fee  tail  with  reversion  to  right 
heirs  of  John  Marwood  of  Manor  of  Westcott  amongst  it. 
Moiety  of  one  messuage,  100  acres  of  land,  4  ac.  meadow, 
100  ac.  of  down  in  Furshill  in  p'sh  of  Lynton,  also  one 
messuage,  40  acres  in  Westmeyddon  and  Estmeyddon  in 
p'sh  of  Parracombe,  formerly  the  inheritance  of  said  John 
Marwood. 

No.  28. 

INQ.   P.M.,  3  CHARLES  I,  P.  129. 

[Abstract.] 

Inquisition  taken  at  Barnstaple,  22  Aug.,  3  Charles  I,  on 
death  of  Eobert  Chichester,  Knight  of  Order  of  the  Bath, 
amongst  other  possessions  was  seized  of 

Capital  Messuage  of  Croscombe  als.  Welcombe  in  parishes 
of  Mattinhoe  and  Lynton. 

Recites  that  by  indenture  dated  20  Sep.,  21  Jas.  I,  Cros- 
combe als.  Welcombe  was  settled,  etc.,  etc. 

No.  29. 
EXCHEQUER  BILL. 
Mary  Wichehalse  of  Lynton,  widow,  complt.,  and  Popham 
and  Knight  defd^. 

[Abstract,] 

John  Wichehalse,  Esq.,  her  late  husband,  was  in  lifetime 
seized  of  fee  of  Manors  and  Lordships  of  Lynton  and  Countis- 
bury,  with  all  rights  and  appurtenances  which  by  several 
descents  or  remainders  came  to  him  from  Nicholas  Wiche- 
halse of  Barnstaple,  merchant.  That  from  time  immemorial 
the  manors  being  parcell  of  the  possessions  of  the  Monastery 
of  Ford  in  Devon  had  a  certain  royalty  or  franchise  or  liberty 
of  fishing  within  the  river  of  Seveme  adjoining  unto  the 
several  shores  and  coasts  thereof,  which  said  fishery  the 
Abbots  did  ever  possess  and  enjoy  and  have  the  sole  right 
of  fishing  therein  by  such  persons  only  to  whom  they 
granted  licences.  Fishery  extended  from  Ley  Mouth,  the 
most  westward  point  of  Lynton  Manor,  all  along  the  shore 
and  coast  and  spreading  to  the  middle  current  and  thred  of 
water  running  or  flowing  in  River  Severn  and  up  the  said 
channel  to  eastern  part  of  Countisbury  Manor,  and  so  far 
into  the  breadth  of  the  channel  as  to  be  half  way  between 
Lynton  and  Countesbury  aforesaid  and  Wales.  That  time 
out  of  mind  there  hath  been  due  unto  the  Lords  of  Lynton 
and  Countisbury  a  certain  due  called  Keelage  for  all  barks. 


252  D0GUMKNT8  BELAHNO  TO  THK  HISTORY  OF 

boats  or  vessels  coming  into  Leymouth  harbour,  which  is 
formed  by  Leymouth  river  and  hath  the  soil  of  Lynton  on 
west  side  and  soil  of  Countisbury  on  east  side,  which  duty 
for  bark  or  larger  vessell  was  two  shillings  per  time,  toties 
quoties  any  such  bark  did  anchor  keel  or  moare  within 
harbour,  whereof  one  shilling  was  payable  in  respect  of 
Lynton  manor  and  the  other  shilling  in  right  of  Countisbury 
manor.  And  for  smaller  boats  rate  of  keelage  was  fourpence 
or  some  such  sum,  one  half  in  right  of  Lynton  and  other  half 
in  right  of  Countisbury,  which  rates  owners  or  masters  of 
every  bark,  boat  or  craft  did  always  pay — not  only  on  account 
of  royalty,  but  on  account  of  the  said  John  Wichehalse  and 
his  ancestors  and  predecessors  being  Lords  of  several  Lord- 
ships aforesaid  did  set  up  posts  of  great  substance  and  at 
great  expense  of  setting  up  and  maintaining  same,  to  which 
vessels  are  moored  to  save  them  from  ground  sea,  very  rowle- 
ling  and  dangerous  there. 

That  John  Wichehalse  by  indenture  bearing  date  7  Jan., 
1679,  did  bargain  and  sell  and  convey  manor  of  Countis- 
bury unto  John  Levering  of  Wear  Gifford,  gent.,  saving 
always  and  except  thereout  the  royalty  of  iSshing  for  herrings 
in  the  sea  thereto  adjoining  and  the  custom  or  benefit  of 
keelage.  That  on  or  about  ...  day  of  Sept.,  1705,  John 
Wichehalse  did  sign  and  seal  his  last  will  and  testament,  and 
did  thereby  give  and  bequeath  his  lands,  manors  and  tene- 
ments in  Lynton,  High  Bickington  and  S.  Molton  to  Mary 
his  wife,  her  heirs  and  assigns  for  ever,  and  did  further  give 
and  bequeath  unto  Mary  his  daughter  and  her  assigns  for 
ever,  after  the  decease  of  Mary  his  wife,  East  Leymouth, 
and  made  Mary  his  wife  sole  executrix,  soon  after  which  he 
died. 

That  Hugh  Popham,  David  Knight  and  Walter  Knight 
being  owners  of  several  barks  and  other  boats  trading  and 
resorting  to  and  lying  within  Leymouth  Harbour,  for  which 
keelage  hath  been  due. 

And  said  Mary  Wichehalse  also  claims  all  wreck  in  and 
upon  the  Eiver  Severn  by  right  of  prescription  so  far  as 
middle  current  or  filum  aquse  which  divides  the  English  and 
the  Welsh  coast  fronting  Lynton  and  Countisbury,  and  that 
defendants  ought  to  have  paid  your  oratrix  the  sums  due  for 
keelage,  of  which  her  said  husband  had  no  account,  by  living 
for  some  years  at  London  for  their  business,  so  far  from 
Lynton  and  Countisbury,  that  your  oratrix  having  proved 
said  will  in  due  form,  and  taken  out  letters  of  administra- 
tion in  the  P.C.C.,  is  entitled  to  account  of  wrecks;  that 


LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBURY.  253 

defendants  have  intruded  into  and  usurped  her  right  and 
royalty  to  the  loss  of  your  oratrix's  inheritance,  the  value 
whereof  very  greatly  depends  on  the  profit  and  benefit  of 
the  same,  and  refuse  to  come  to  account,  pretending  that 

Jour  oratrix's  husband  never  had  any  right,  or,  if  he  had, 
ad  sold  it  away. 
Prays  that  defts.  shall  show  what  exemption  they  have  or 
pretend  to  have,  etc.,  etc. 

No.  30. 

WICHEHALSE  WILLS   IN  COURT  OF  ARCHDEACON  OF 
BARNSTAPLE. 


John  Wichalls 

.  bond. 

.  Barnstaple,  4  May,  1604. 

Nicholas  Wichehalse 

.will 

.  Barnstaple,  5  Feb.,  1607. 

Nicholas  Wichehalse 

.  a/c 

.  Barnstaple,  24  March,  1611. 

John  Wichehalse 

.  Barnstaple,  3  Nov.,  1619. 

Robert  Wichehalse,  gent.  .  will 

.  Tawstock,  7  Oct.,  1643. 

Dorothy  Wichehalse 

.ad. 

.  Lynton,  5  June,  1663. 

EHzabeth  Witchalse  . 

.  will 

.  Tawstock,  2  Dec,  1664. 

Bridget  Witxihalse 

.ad. 

.  Lynton,  5  June,  1668. 

Thomas  Witchalse 

.will 

.  Chittlehampton,  June  4,  1686 

Mary  Wichalse 

.  ^^'ill 

.  Chittlehampton,  2  Feb.,  1693 

Hugh  Witchalse 

.ad. 

.  Lynton,  10  Jan.,  1695. 

No.  31. 

INQUIS.   P.M.,   6   HENRY  VII,   SERIES   II,  VOL.   6. 

[Abstract] 

Mathia,  late  wife  of  John  Carewe.  Writ  dated  12  Oct., 
Inq.  13  Nov.,  6  Hen.  VIL 

That  Thomas  Wode,  Thomas  Greynevyle,  Richard  Chi- 
chester, John  Denys  of  Orlegh,  John  More  of  Columpton, 
Robert  Yeo,  Esq.,  and  John  Yeo  of  Braunton,  being  seized, 
etc.,  by  deed  dated  24  May,  4  Hen.  VII,  demised  to  Mathia, 
etc.,  for  the  term  of  her  natural  life  in  dower,  which  they 
had  by  gift  and  enfeoffment  of  Thomas  Beaumont,  Esq., 
deceased,  that  said  Mathia  died  10  June  last,  and  Thomas 
Mogeford,  aged  40  and  more,  is  her  brother  and  next  heir. 

DEVON.  Manor  of  Lyne  worth  40s.  held  of  Thomas 
Pyne,  as  of  manor  of  East  Lyne  by  fealty  for  all  services. 
A  messuage  and  100  acres  in  Coffyns  Heanton,  held  of 
Kichard  Pomery,  Knight,  as  of  the  manor  of  Bury  Pomeroy, 
by  fealty  for  all  manner  of  services. 


254    DOCUMENTS  RKLATINO  TO  LYNTON  AND  COUNTISBUBY. 

No.  32. 

INQ.   P.M.,  4  HKNRY  VII,  SERIES  II,  VOL.   I,  No.   8. 

Thomas  Beaumont,  dated  13  Nov.,  4  Hen.  VII,  seized  of 
Mainor  of  Lyne,  held  of  Edward  Earl  of  Warwick,  who  is 
now  in  king's  custody,  as  of  honor  of  Gloucester,  by  service 
of  ifii  a  Knight's  Fee. 

No.  33. 

Deed  dated  19  May,  2  Richard^  III.  Thomas  Beaumont 
enfeofifed  John  Dennys  of  Orleigh,'etc.,  as  in  No.  31,  Manor 
of  Lyne,  Coffyns  Heanton,  etc. 


NOTES   ON  NORTH  DEVON  POTTERY  OF  THE 

SEVENTEENTH,  EIGHTEENTH,  AND 

NINETEENTH   CENTURIES. 


BY   T.    CHARBONNIER. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  Jiily,  1906  ) 


Among  the  specimens  of  clay  in  the  Museum  of  Practical 
Geology,  was  one  labelled,  "Potter's  clay.  Post  Tertiary, 
Fremington,  near  Barnstaple."  And  the  catalogue  added : 
"  Extensively  used  in  North  Devon  for  the  manufacture  of 
common  pottery  fired  at  a  low  heat :  at  a  high  temperature 
the  ware  becomes  vesicular,  and  expands  to  such  an  extent 
that  bricks  made  of  it  when  overfired  will  float  in  water/' 

Around  this  bed  of  clay,  which  lies  between  Barnstaple 
and  Bideford,  numerous  potteries  have  risen,  flourished,  and 
mostly  disappeared — the  earliest  dating  back  to  an  unknown 
distance  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Two  of  these  old  pot- 
works — the  North  Walk  Pottery  at  Barnstaple  and 
Crocker's  old  pottery  at  Bideford — have  vanished  during 
the  last  few  years.  The  kilns  of  the  latter  bear,  or  lately 
bore,  a  seventeenth-century  date. 

Tradition  only  remains  of  pot-works  at  Fremington  and 
Instow.  The  pot-works  established  at  Muddlebridge  by 
George  Fishley  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century  have 
been  moved  to  Combrew,  where  a  pottery  already  existed, 
and  no  traces  of  the  works  at  Muddlebridge  remain.  George 
Fishley  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Edmond,  and  Mr.  E.  B. 
Fishley,  the  present  proprietor,  is  the  third  generation  of  a 
family  of  potters.  Robert  Fishley  worked  at  the  pottery  in 
1836,  and  resided  in  a  cottage  at  the  works.  John  Pidler 
was  wheelman  there  a  century  ago,  and  "  John  Pidler  his 
hand  "  is  inscribed  on  a  jug.  George  Fishley  was  the  first 
Fremington  potter  to  use  coal  in  firing  his  ware. 

At  Crocker's  old  pottery,  Bideford,  established  1668,  two 
jugs  in  the  collection  were  made  by  George  Dennis,  who 
worked  for  Crocker.  Dennis's  daughter  married  Mr.  Milton, 


256         NOTES  ON  NORTH  DEVON  POTTKBY. 

who  succeeded  to  the  works,  and  finally  closed  them  in  1896. 
I  repeatedly  visited  the  works  during  his  management  and 
found  some  quaint  shapes,  now  extinct,  but  Milton  was  not 
a  successful  potter  and  only  made  the  commonest  warea 
The  potter's  signature,  "  John  Hoyle,  1860/*  is  on  a  harvest 
pitcher  probably  made  at  these  works;  "John  Phillip 
Hoyle,  1852,"  on  another,  and  "John  Hoyle"  on  a  money- 
box. 

There  is  an  old  pottery  at  East-the-Water,  Bideford, 
which  produces  only  coarse  plain  ware,  but  a  dozen  yean 
ago  produced  some  decorated  ware.  Henry  Phillips,  who 
died  in  1894,  was  partner  with  the  present  Mr.  BadcliflTe^ 
the  potter  still  at  work  at  East-the-Water,  where  only  the 
commonest  ware  is  now  produced;  some  quaint  old  shapes 
are  still  sometimes  made,  but  in  the  sixties  and  eighties 
H.  Phillips  made  handsome  jugs  and  dishes  deeorated  in 
sgratlito. 

l^arnstaplc  had  fiot-works  in  Litchdon  Street  worked  by 
Levering  about  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  after- 
wards by  a  potter  named  Bendle,  and  later  by  Mr.  Brannam, 
father  of  the  present  proprietor,  who  still  carries  on  the 
works  as  an  extensive  and  successful  manufactory  of  Boyal 
Barum  "Ware.  The  North  Walk  Pottery,  now  pulled  down, 
was  formerly  owned  by  Rendle  &  Son,  later  by  Mr.  Brannam ; 
and  evidence  obtained,  on  or  near  the  site,  is  conclusiye  that 
here  was  one  of  the  oldest  pot-works  at  the  beginning  of 
the  eighteenth  century  and  probably  far  back  into  the 
seventeenth  century. 

I  have  never  heard  of  any  Eoman  or  early  British  pottery 
being  found  in  North  Devon.^  Two  or  three  pieces  of  late 
medieval  ware  have  come  from  the  Eiver  Taw,  but  there  is 
nothing  to  show  that  they  are  of  local  manufacture. 

Burton,  the  British  iluseum  Catalogue,  and  other  author- 
ities scarcely  refer  to  North  Devon,  and  only  incidentally  as 
a  locality,  among  others,  where  coarse  peasant  pottery  was 
made,  but  probably  not  before  the  eighteenth  century. 

Wrotham,  Statibrdshire,  the  Metropolis,  Derbyshire,  and 
other  localities  are  well  represented  by  their  pottery  in 
museums  and  other  collections,  but  examples  of  North 
Devon  ware  are  very  few.  A  fine  harvest  jug  in  the  British 
Museum,  dated  1708 ;  another  in  Hodgkin's  book  on  "Early 
English  Pottery"  (No.  210),  "  said  to  be  of  Devonshire  manu- 

^  This  paper  being  concerned  with  pottery  of  the  seventeenth  and  subse- 
quent centuries,  my  notes  are  confined  to  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Frcming- 
ton  clay  beds. 


Bll>EFORI\     HAHVKST   PITCHFR. 


Notes  on  North  Devos  roTTERY. — To  ftut  p.  256. 


BARNSTAPLE,   NORTH  WALK.    CUP  AND  PLATE. 


BARNSTAPLE,    NORTH    WALK. 
MOULD   FOR  RAISED  TILES,   AND  TILE   MADE   IX   OLD   MOULD. 

To  face  p,  257. 


NOTES  ON  NOKTH  DEVON  POTTERY.         257 

facture'*;  and  one  in  the  collection  of  the  late  W.  Edkins, 
"  probably  made  in  Wales  or  the  west  of  England,"  are  all 
three  unquestionable  North  Devon  specimens. 

Of  the  eighteenth-century  wares  of  similar  nature  that 
most  nearly  resemble  the  North  Devon  ware,  Donyat 
(Ilminster)  in  Somerset  and  Pencoed  in  Wales  are  most 
like,  but  specimens  are  generally  easily  distinguishable.  All 
other  eighteenth-century  wares  of  the  class,  that  I  have 
examined,  difier  considerably ;  and  the  examples  this  paper 
attempts  to  describe  will,  I  think,  show  that  the  North  Devon 
ware  has  considerable  local  character,  and  is  not  deficient  in 
quaintness  and  sometimes  beauty  of  shape,  and,  in  well-fired 
examples,  in  the  richness  and  depth  of  colour  which  makes 
the  Toft  ware  of  Stalibrdshire  so  attractive ;  indeed,  there  is 
so  much  similarity  in  the  material  and  process  of  manufac- 
ture, that  it  would  be  strange  if  it  were  not  similarly 
successful. 

This  North  Devon  ware  was  made  at  a  number  of  small 
pot-works  in  remote  districts,  producing  the  jugs,  baking- 
dishes,  flower-pots,  ovens,  butter-pots,  etc.,  for  the  neighbour- 
hood, or,  as  in  the  case  of  Fremiugton,  exporting  into 
Cornwall  pilchard-pots,  and  into  Cornwall  and  Wales 
ovens,  etc.,  the  decorated  or  ornamental  pieces  being  merely 
occasional  presentation  pieces  for  neighbours,  usually  harvest 
pitchers,  for  use  at  harvest  or  sheep-shearing  gatherings. 
These  pieces,  sometimes  treasured  for  a  time  in  farmsteads 
and  cottages,  and  the  tiles,  to  which  I  will  refer  presently, 
are  the  few  remaining  pieces  of  this,  at  its  best,  veiy  perishable 
pottery.  Every  trace  of  a  country  pottery  is  lost  in  a  very 
few  years — not  so  strange  if  we  remember  how  little  is  known 
of  many  important  china-works  of  the  eighteenth  century 
in  Staffordshire,  Bristol,  and  Lowestoft. 

The  products  of  the  potteries  at  Barnstaple,  Bideford,  and 
Fremington,  and  perhaps  those  of  other  works  that  have 
left  no  trace  behind,  are,  owing  to  the  same  materials  and 
processes  being  used,  often  impossible  to  separate  from  each 
other ;  but  around  this  small  clay  field  there  were  different 
types  in  different  places.  Bideford  was  probably  the  source 
of  most  of  the  harvest  pitchers,  especially  of  those  decorated 
with  ships,  as  would  be  special  to  a  seaport,  but  some  were 
also  made  at  Barnstaple  and  Fremington.  Puzzle-jugs  were 
made  at  Barnstaple.  The  North  Walk  Pottery  turned  out 
at  an  unknown  distance  of  time  beaker-shaped  cups,  one  of 
which  was  found  in  the  Taw,  and  many  pieces  on  the  site 
of  the  pottery,  and  in  sherd-heaps  on  the  banks  of  the  Yeo 

VOL.  xxxviii.  B 


258         NOTES  ON  NOETH  DEVON  POTTERY. 

opposite  the  pot-works.  An  important  manufacture  there 
was  plates  and  dishes  of  various  size  and  section,  cuid  gener- 
ally decorated,  sometimes  elaborately,  in  sgrafl&to,  ie.  mostly 
covered  with  white  clay  slip  and  with  incised  patterns; 
large  quantities  of  fragments,  both  in  the  biscuit  state  and 
glazed,  plain  and  slipped,  were  found  in  the  refuse-heaps 
from  the  pottery,  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  where  the 
broken  and  imperfect  pieces  were  thrown  away.  A  few 
more  fragments  of  similar  dishes  were  found  in  the  Backfield 
close  by,  at  a  small  depth  below  the  surface  of  old  pasture. 
Extensive  as  the  demand  for  these  dishes  must  have  been, 
judging  from  the  heap  of  fragments,  not  a  single  piece  has 
to  my  knowledge  been  found  above  ground. 

Eight  or  ten  years  ago  butter-steans  at  Crocker's,  Bideford, 
were  quite  different  in  shape  from  the  degenerate  butter-pots 
of  Fremington  and  Barnstaple.  At  East-the-Water  Pottery 
money-boxes  and  pipkins,  the  latter  diflferent  in  type  from 
those  of  Barnstaple  and  Bideford,  were  made  within  my  re- 
collection, as  were  also  oven  pitchers  or  potato-pots  at  Fre- 
mington, specially  for  the  South  Molton  bakers ;  also  from 
the  same  pottery  came  owFs  heads,  for  whitepot,  an  old- 
fashioned  dish,  now  still  made,  but  not  as  cooking  pots,  but 
as  art  pottery. 

An  old  domestic  implement  was  the  earthen  lamp,  of  two 
different  types  from  Barnstaple  and  Fremington,  said  to  have 
been  still  used  at  the  latter  place  half  a  century  ago. 

The  great  crock  of  1724,  for  some  home-brewed  liquor, 
passed  through  the  form  of  the  degenerate  pilchard-pot  for 
the  Cornish  fishermen,  and  has  now  ceased  to  be  made. 

Of  posset-pots,  one  with  a  seventeenth-century  date  is  in 
the  possession  of  a  Barnstaple  potter.  Porringers  may  still 
sometimes  be  seen  in  the  markets,  as  paint-pots. 

Fremington  clay  was  universally  used  for  the  body  of  the 
ware,  never  Bideford  pipe-clay;  pipe-clay  very  generally 
as  a  slip  covering  part,  or  the  whole,  of  the  surface, 
rarely  in  splashes,  as  in  the  pie-dishes  or  spirals  poured  on 
the  revolving  dish ;  it  is  strange  this  process  should  never 
have  extended  to  other  decoration  in  poured-on  slip,  as  it 
did  in  the  Midlands.  For  ovens,  tiles,  pipkins,  etc.,  Bideford 
gravel  was  mixed  with  the  clay,  to  harden  the  ware,  always 
the  galena  native  sulphide  of  lead  for  the  glaze,  no  doubt 
originally  dusted  on  to  the  ware,  as  with  the  older  potters 
elsewhere.  Decoration  in  sgraffito,  i.e.  scratched  through 
the  slip  of  pipe-clay  to  produce  the  pattern.  In  Freming- 
ton only,  of  the  time  of  George  Fishley,  manganese-brown 


NOTES  ON  NORTH  DEVON  POTTERY.         259 

and  the  addition  of  modelled  or  cast  ornament  in  pipe-clay 
or  mixed  red  and  white  clay,  giving  this  ingenious  craftsman 
a  scale  of  colour  similar  to  Toft  ware. 

The  galena  glaze,  though  decidedly  objectionable  from  the 
sanitary  point  of  view,  is  probably  the  secret  of  the  exceed- 
ingly deep  and  rich  colour  on  some  of  the  old  wares.  The 
efforts  of  the  modern  potter  to  produce  variety  of  colour 
and  whiteness  of  body  being  hindered  by  the  intensely 
yellow  colour  of  the  galena  glaze,  has  led  to  the  use  of  red 
lead  and  other  glazes,  and  even  leadless  glaze,  and  the  depth 
and  rich  quality  of  glaze  of  the  old  ware  is  lost  to  us  for  ever. 

The  old  churches  of  the  neighbourhood  still  contain  large 
numbers  of  embossed  tiles,  and  no  doubt  a  careful  examina- 
tion of  those  still  in  situ  would  afford  information  as  to 
dates.  Few  fragments  of  them  have  been  found  underground 
on  or  near  pottery  sites,  but  a  mould  in  wood  for  stamping 
them  was  found  in  the  North  Walk,  a  carved  wood  block, 
which  is  shown,  together  with  tiles  pressed  in  it,  and  made 
of  Fremington  clay  and  Bideford  gravel,  and  glazed  with 
galena,  showing  what  these  tiles  were  like  when  fresh  from 
the  potters  kiln;  most  of  these  tiles  are  much  the  worse 
for  wear,  but  the  admixture  of  gravel  in  the  clay  has  given 
them  considerable  hardness  compared  with  the  unmixed  clay, 
which  bears  out  the  character  for  softness  given  it  by  the 
Geological  Museum.  The  ware  generally  was  very  badly 
fired,  though  hard-fired  pieces  are  considerably  the  best. 
From  the  fragments  it  can  be  seen  that  the  firing  was  most 
unequal,  parts  of  the  body  being  grey  in  colour  instead  of  a 
rich  red,  as  the  well-fired  portions  are.  I  am  told  that  the 
kilns  originally  were  open  at  the  top  like  limekilns  and  the 
contents  roofed  over  with  old  crocks. 

A  further  evidence  of  the  manufacture  of  these  embossed 
tiles  in  Barnstaple  is  found  in  certain  roughly  shaped  bats 
of  clay  (and  gravel),  with  the  pattern  of  such  a  mould  partly 
impressed  on  the  top,  sides,  and  front ;  one  of  these  bats  of 
clay  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Brannam  was  found  in  pulling 
down  the  North  Walk  Pottery,  another  with  marks  of  sub- 
sequent use  in  the  fire  is  from  an  old  closed-up  fireplace  in  an 
old  house  in  the  High  Street,  Barnstaple,  and  two  in  the 
North  Devon  Athenaeum  were  excavated  when  the  Long 
Bridge  was  altered:  these  are  dated  1655,  the  earliest  date  I 
can  produce.  Still  another  of  these  clay  fire-dogs  is  in  the  Free 
Library  at  Bideford,  and  is  slipped  with  pipe-clay,  glazed, 
and  has  a  roughly  modelled  head  applied  on  the  front. 

Some  of  these  tiles  from  Bristol  Cathedral  *and  Bitton 

r2 


260         NOTES  ON  NORTH  DEVON  POTTERY. 

Church,  in  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  are  labelled 
fourteenth  century,  and  are  apparently  identical  with  tiles 
made  in  the  North  Walk  Pottery  in  the  latter  half  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  patterns  are  varied,  most 
commonly  a  fleur-de-lis,  but  floral  devices,  Tudor  roses, 
lions,  swans,  and  human  heads  and  figures  occur — all  of 
quite  a  medieval  character.  Of  course  these  tiles  may  not 
all  have  been  made  in  Barnstaple;  some  are  dated  1708, 
and  some,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Hamlyn  Chichester,  1661. 

The  names  given  to  different  sizes  of  pitchers  are  worth 
recording.  Yellow  drum  pitchers  with  tops  slipped  in  pipe- 
clay and  made  for  harvest  use.  Then  beginning  with  the 
largest  red  pitchers,  long  toms,  forty  tales,  guUymouths, 
pinchgutts,  sixties,  and  penny  jugs. 

The  terms  forty  tales  and  sixties  refer  to  the  number  in  a 
dozen  or  tale,  a  unit  that  contained  more  of  the  smaller  and 
less  of  the  larger  sizes,  and  was  of  uniform  value ;  a  similar 
way  of  counting  formerly  prevailed  in  the  Stafifordshire 
potteries.  There  were  also  land  dozens  of  thirty-nine  and 
sea  dozens  of  sixty,  and  milk-pans  are  still  sold  eighteen  to 
the  dozen. 

The  different  sizes  of  pilchard-pots  were  known  as  great 
crocks,  buzzards,  and  gallons. 

I  do  not  know  if  the  poetical  inscriptions  on  the  harvest  jugs 
are  any  of  them  peculiar  to  North  Devon ;  here  are  a  few : 

The  tulip  and  the  butterfly 
Appears  in  gayer  coats 
Than  I  at  ome  be  drest 
Fine  as  those  worms 
Excell  nie  still. 
This  small  jug  in  friendship  take 
And  keep  it  for  the  givers  sake. 
"Wlien  I  was  in  my  native  place 

1  was  a  lump  of  clay 
And  digged  was  out  of  the  earth 
And  brouglit  from  thence  away 
But  now  I  am  a  jug  become 

By  potters  art  and  skill 
And  now  your  servant  am  become 
And  carry  ale  I  will. 

Drink  to  me  with  your  heart 
And  fill  up  unto  tne  mark 
Then  dnnk  me  dry 
Without  spilling  or  you  will. 

When  this  you  see  remember  me 

And  keep  me  in  your  mind 
Let  all  the  world  say  what  they  ^vill 

Speak  of  me  as  you  find. 
From  rocks  and  sands  and  every  ill 
May  God  protect  the  sailor  still. 


PIGMY  FLINT   IMPLEMENTS   IN  NOETH  DEVON. 

BY   THOMAS   YOUNG,    M.R,C.S. 
(Read  at  Lyiiton,  Jnly,  1006.) 


More  than  forty  years  ago  Mr.  Townshend  Hall  collected 
flint  flakes  in  North  Devon,  and  these  are  to  be  seen  in  the 
Athenaeum  at  Barnstaple. 

Those  who  have  studied  the  Transactions  of  the  Devon- 
shire Association  will  have  read  papers  by  Mr.  Burnard, 
Mr.  Francis  Brent,  and  Mr.  Spence  Bate,  in  which  mention 
is  made  not  only  of  the  finding  of  mere  flint  flakes,  but  also 
of  the  discovery  of  others — flints  trimmed  to  a  cutting  edge, 
borers  and  awls  with  sharpened  points,  scrapers  and  arrow- 
heads, and  an  occasional  axe-head  ground  to  a  sharp  edge. 

Mr.  Hairs  collection  consists  only  of  flakes  and  cores. 
These  other  gentlemen  have  succeeded  in  finding  definite 
flint  instruments  on  Dartmoor  and  in  other  localities  in  the 
county  of  Devon.  In  1903  I  first  visited  the  site  of  Mr. 
Hall's  discoveries  near  Croyde,  finding,  as  he  did,  abundance 
of  flakes  and  cores.  Among  them  was  a  tiny  flake  which, 
though  it  lay  for  two  years  unnoticed,  had  some  secondary 
chipping  along  one  edge.  1  showed  some  of  my  specimens 
to  Mr.  Charles  H.  Bead,  one  of  the  curators  of  the  British 
Museum.  He  drew  my  attention  to  the  discovery  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  world  of  certain  minute  flakes  of  very 
delicate  workmanship — the  so-called  Pigmy  Implements. 
They  are  figured  and  described  by  Mr.  Bead  in  his  Guide 
to  the  Antiquities  of  the  Stone  Age,  1902,  also  in  more 
detail  by  Sir  Jolm  Evans  and  Professor  Windle.  But  I 
believe  there  is  no  record  among  the  Transactions  of  the 
Devonshire  Association  of  any  discovery  of  the  kind  in 
this  county. 

Mr.  Read  encouraged  me  to  continue  my  investigations, 
and  I  determined  to  keep  a  good  look  out  for  the  "  pigmy 
flints." 

Between  Morthoe  and  Croyde,  from  time  to  time  I  found 
a  number  of  flakes  of  little  or  no  interest — I  never  missed 


262  PIGMY  FLINT  IMPLEMENTS  IN  NOETH  DEVON. 

picking  up  all  I  could  see.  But  it  was  not  until  the  winter 
of  1904  that  among  these  flakes  I  began  to  recognize  the 
rare  and  occasional  occurrence  of  pigmy  implements. 

Six  specimens  are  illustrated  by  Sir  John  Evans  in  his 
book  on  "  Stone  Implements  *' — three  of  them  came  from  a 
kitchen-midden  at  Hastings,  and  three  from  the  Vindhya 
Hills  of  India.  Their  shapes  are  seen  at  a  glance  to  be 
identical. 

"Curiously  enough,"  he  remarks,  "identical  forms  have  been 
found  in  some  abundance  on  the  Vindhya  Hills  and  the  Banda 
district,  India ;  at  Helouan,  E<(ypt,  in  France,  and  in  the  district 
of  the  Meuse,  Belgium.  Such  an  identity  of  form  at  places 
geographically  so  remote  does  not  imply  any  actual  communication 
between  those  who  made  the  tools,  but  merely  shows  that  some  of 
the  requirements  of  daily  life,  and  the  means  at  command  for 
fulfilling  them  being  the  same,  tools  of  the  same  character  have 
been  developed  irrespective  of  time  or  space." 

One  is  quite  willing  to  admit  the  truth  of  this  in  regard 
to  instruments  the  general  utility  of  which  is  suflSciently 
obvious,  such  as  arrow-heads,  scrapers,  and  celts.  But  when 
applied  to  instruments  whose  uses  are  hidden  in  such 
obscurity  as  is  the  case  with  these  we  are  considering,  the 
statement  may  require  some  modification. 

Professor  Windle,  in  his  "Eemains  of  the  Prehistoric 
Age  in  England,"  gives  an  engraving  of  fifteen  of  them.  He 
divides  them  into  four  classes : — 

Crescent. 

Scalene. 

Bounded  and  pointed. 

Ehomboidal. 

"  Of  the  so-called  Indian  varieties,  the  remarkable  point  is  that 
the  forms  in  India  and  the  forms  in  England  are  identical — a  fact 
which  some  have  thought  points  to  a  communication  between 
these  countries  at  a  very  early  period.  Others,  on  the  contrary, 
only  see  in  the  resemblance  a  common  result  of  a  common  need." 

In  France  they  have  been  discovered  at  Bruniquel  and 
Garancieres  (Seine  et  Loire),  and  have  been  divided  by 
M.  ThieuUen  into  triangular  or  amygdaloid,  concave- 
crescentic,  bevelled,  and  other  varieties. 

"  The  localities  in  which  they  have  been  found  are  not  numerous 
in  this  country  [England],  but  where  they  have  been  discovered 
they  seem  to  exist  in  great  numbers,  and  when  accompanied  by 
other  implements,  these  implements  belong  rather  to  early  than 
late  types  of  Neolithic  manufacture  "  (Ibid,), 


PIGMY  FLINT  IMPLEMENTS   IN  NORTH  DEVON.  263 

Mr.  Gratty  has  found  these  little  tools  on  the  sand  dunes 
in  North  Lincolnshire,  and  many  thousands  of  them  in  the 
valley  of  the  Don  in  Yorkshire.  Dr.  CoUey  Marsh  has 
found  them  far  from  the  sea  on  the  Pennine  range  at  an 
altitude  of  1300  ft.,  and  has  presented  a  series  of  them  to 
the  British  Museum. 

They  have  also  been  found  at  Lakenheath,  Suffolk.  They 
occur,  no  doubt,  in  other  districts,  but  owing  to  their 
diminutive  size  they  may  readily  escape  observation. 

The  probable  utility  of  these  little  implements,  which 
have  been  produced  in  such  large  numbers  and  at  the 
expenditure  of  so  much  time  and  trouble,  is  still  an  open 
question.  I  do  not  consider  as  satisfactory  any  of  the 
suggestions  that  have  been  made  as  to  their  use.  That  they 
appear  to  be  connected  with  the  early  development  of  Indo- 
European  races  gives  the  study  of  them  a  peculiar  interest 
to  ourselves. 

All  we  can  say  at  present  is  that  the  free  sharp  edge  of 
the  flake  was  probably  let  into  wood  in  such  a  manner  that 
the  worked  portion  may  have  formed  part  of  the  armature 
of  some  kind  of  implement  in  common  use  among  Neolithic 
peoples.  The  rhomboidal  flints  seem  specially  adapted  for 
such  a  purpose. 

The  method  of  mounting  a  series  of  flint  flakes  in  a 
wooden  handle  dates  from  the  time  of  the  early  Egyptians 
(Falc(5  de  Selco),  and  a  sharpened  flint  let  into  wood  has 
been  found  in  the  Swiss  lake  dwellings.  Evans  suggests 
that 

"  the  insertion  of  one  edge  of  a  flake  of  flint  into  a  piece  of 
wood  involves  no  great  trouble,  while  it  would  shield  the  fiDgers 
from  being  cut,  and  would  tend  to  strengthen  the  flint." 

He  also  endeavours  to  prove  that  the  curious  little  bevelled 
flakes  from  Kent's  Cavern,  which  bear  such  a  close  re- 
semblance to  the  larger  kind  of  Pigmy  Implements,  were 
employed  in  a  similar  manner  during  the  later  part  of  the 
Palaeolithic  Age.  These  are  manufactured  from  simple 
triangular  or  polygonal  flakes.  The  thin  edge  of  the  flake 
is  left  free,  and  the  thick  edge  is  worked  throughout.  In 
one  form  the  edge  of  the  flake  is  bevelled  ofiT,  and  in  another, 
and  rarer  form,  both  ends  are  bevelled.  One  or  two  speci- 
mens of  much  the  same  character  were  found  at  St. 
Madelaine;  and  in  other  French  caves  some  extremely 
slender  flakes  have  been  found  with  one  edge  worn  away 
and  the  other  left  untouched,  which  points  to  their  having 


264  PIGMY   FLINT  IMPLEMENTS   IN  NORTH  DEVON. 

been  inserted  in  some  sort  of  handle.  Mr.  Pengelly  has 
pointed  out  that  the  larger  implements  found  in  Kent's 
Cavern  resembling  those  from  the  river  gravels 

"belong  to  the  breccia  at  the  base  of  the  cave-deposits  rather 
than  to  the  cave-earth  above,  in  which  thinner  and  more  deli- 
cately worked  forms  have  been  found."  He  considers  "that  there 
was  a  considerable  interval  of  time  between  the  two  deposits,  and 
that  there  was  a  difference  between  the  fauna  of  the  one  and  the 
other." 

We  may  conclude,  therefore,  that  the  very  delicately 
bevelled  flakes  we  have  just  been  considering  came  out  of 
the  cave-earth  above  the  breccia,  and  belong,  therefore,  to  a 
comparatively  later  period  of  the  Palaeolithic  Age.  They 
bear  a  striking  resemblance  in  shape  and  design  to  certain 
of  the  larger  Pigmy  Implements  I  have  found  near  Croyde. 
In  fact,  one  figured  in  Evans  is  only  one-fifth  of  an  inch 
longer,  and  the  same  breadth  as  a  large  scalene  flint  in  my 
collection. 

I  have  gone  rather  fully  into  these  comparisons  because 
any  facts  which  may  help  us  to  fill  up  the  interval  that 
separates  the  two  Stone  Periods  have  a  particular  interest  at 
the  present  moment.  The  gap  that  has  been  supposed  to 
exist  between  the  latest  cave-dwellers  and  the  men  whose 
flint  implements  lie  scattered  over  the  surface  of  the  globe 
appears  to  be  wider  where  our  own  country  is  concerned 
than  is  the  case  with  the  adjoining  Continent,  where  recent 
investigations  in  the  south  of  France  are  tending  to  bridge 
it  over. 

The  flint  implements  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Croyde 
are  as  a  rule  small  in  size  and  poor  in  quality.  This  is  due,  no 
doubt,  to  the  indifferent  character  of  the  raw  material  which 
has  been  obtained  from  pebbles  from  the  shore,  and  its  raised 
beaches,  also  to  the  distance  of  thirteen  miles  which  separates 
it  from  the  nearest  deposit  of  flint  nodules  across  the 
estuary. 

The  diminutive  size  of  particular  implements,  however, 
does  not  entitle  them  to  be  regarded  as  Pigmy  Flints. 
These  little  implements  possess  distinctive  characteristics 
essential  to  themselves  and  quite  apart  from  their  minute 
dimensions.  A  selection  of  specimens  obtained  on  Baggy 
Point  vary  in  size  from  half  an  inch  to  an  inch  in  length, 
by  one-eighth  to  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  breadth. 

They  have  been  made  from  small  ridged  or  wedge-shaped 
flakes,  which  have  been  carefully  selected,  so  as  to  require 


PIGMY  FLINT   IMPLEMENTS   IN  NORTH   DEVON.  265 

only  a  small  amount  of  chipping  to  produce  the  desired 
effect.  The  flakes  are  often  almond-shaped,  with  the  bulb  of 
percussion  at  the  broader  end,  the  opposite  end  being 
narrower  and  tapering  to  a  point.  The  reverse  side  of  the 
flake  is  always  flat,  as  is  the  rule  with  the  earlier  types  of 
implements.  The  sharpest  and  thinnest  edge  is  left  un- 
touched, but  the  thick  edge  is  carefully  worked  to  an  even 
surface  by  successive  strokes  of  the  flaking  tool,  usually 
along  its  whole  length ;  but  when  the  thicker  edge  of  the 
flake  is  slightly  curved  towards  its  point,  as  is  often  the 
case,  only  a  little  bevelling  is  required  to  finish  it. 

In  order  to  obtain  these  flakes  a  shore  pebble  of  suitable 
size  was  first  broken  into  two  unequal  parts.  The  larger- 
sized  portion  was  then  held  between  the  thumb  and  finger 
of  the  left  hand,  with  the  fractured  surface  uppermost.  A 
series  of  external  flakes  were  next  detached  by  striking  the 
raw  edge  of  the  core  with  a  hammer-stone.  In  this  way  the 
external  flakes  were  got  rid  of,  then  one  or  more  ridged 
flakes  were  detached,  until  the  core,  no  longer  capable  of 
being  held  on  account  of  the  danger  of  bruising  the  thumb 
of  the  operator,  was  thrown  aside  with  the  refuse. 

On  the  spot  where  pigmy  implements  were  made,  we 
should  expect  to  find  some  of  the  smaller  cores  from  which 
these  little  flakes  have  been  struck,  and  many  have  been 
found.  Many  of  the  rhomboidal  flakes  have  no  doubt  been 
struck  from  cores  of  ordinary  dimensions,  and  afterwards 
shortened  to  the  required  length. 

I  have  one  small  core  which  shows  signs  of  abrasion  at 
the  apex,  probably  occasioned  by  contact  with  an  anvil- 
stone  during  the  process  of  detaching  the  flakes.  It 
measures  only  three-quarters  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  the 
same  diameter  at  the  base. 

I  f oimd  a  small  fabricator  in  an  old  occupation  on  Saunton 
Down,  suitable  for  bevelling  the  edges  of  pigmy  flints.  It 
is  far  smaller  than  the  ordinary  flaking  tools  in  my  collec- 
tion. I  have  often  visited  the  spot,  which  was  investigated 
by  Mr.  Townshend  Hall  in  1863.  It  lies  between  Croyde 
Bay  and  Baggy  Point,  where  the  little  stream  falls  into 
the  sea.  It  was  wlien  he  was  tracing  a  stratum  rich  in 
Ukynchonella  jileurodon  that  he  came  on  some  flint  flakes, 
scratched  out  by  rabbits,  as  he  was  ascending  the  side  of  the 
cliff  from  the  cave  beneath.  He  made  excavations  here,  and 
discovered  the  remains  of  an  urn,  and  many  flakes  and 
cores.  A  selection  of  the  flakes  obtained  from  this  spot 
have  been  recently  mounted  on  two  cards  by  the  Curator  of 


266  PIGKY  FLINT  DIPLEMKNTS  IN  NORTH  DEVON. 

the  Athenaeum  just  as  they  were  figured  in  the  "Intellectual 
Reviewer/'  where  Hall  gives  an  account  of  the  discovery. 

After  every  storm  a  few  flakes  and  cores  may  be  picked 
up  amongst  the  pebbles  which  cover  the  floor  of  the  cave. 
They  are  worn  and  polished  by  the  action  of  the  waves. 
Half  way  along  the  floor  of  the  cave  the  top  of  a  large 
erratic  boulder  is  generally  exposed  to  view.  Pigmy 
implements  were  probably  made  at  the  site  of  Hall's 
excavations.  My  first  pigmy  implement  came  from  there. 
Extremely  delicate  flakes  abound  in  the  soil,  and  numbers 
of  them  are  washed  out  after  every  rain  storm.  But  a  more 
important  site  of  manufacture  is  a  ridge  of  land  overlooking 
"the  flat  piece  of  ground  eighty  yards  square,"  which  is 
situated  above  the  cave  where  Mr.  Hall's  excavations  were 
made.  A  stone  wall  divides  that  portion  of  the  ridge  which 
is  under  cultivation  from  the  grass  land  next  to  the  sea. 
Now  whenever  the  soil  on  the  summit  of  this  ridge  has 
been  turned  over  by  the  plough,  and  exposed  for  a  time  to 
the  weather,  a  quantity  of  flint  flakes  are  brought  to  the 
surface,  as  well  as  a  number  of  cores  and  rough  external 
flakes  of  all  sizes  and  shapes.  Numbers  of  internal  flakes, 
also  with  sharp  clean-cut  edges,  showing  no  traces  of  second- 
ary chipping,  have  evidently  been  cast  away  as  worthless. 
They  are  all  highly  patinated.  Some,  however,  have  their 
edges  notched  and  worn  with  use,  others  are  sharpened  at 
the  end ;  in  rare  instances  hammer-stones  and  a  few  scrapers 
of  moderate  quality  have  been  picked  up.  These  are  easily 
distinguished  from  other  specimens  by  their  chalky-white 
colour  and  weather-worn  appearance.  From  among  this 
abundant  material  I  have  collected  from  time  to  time  many 
of  my  specimens  of  pigmy  implements.  Everything  here 
is  suggestive  of  a  very  early  occupation.  A  field  which  is 
nearest  to  the  extremity  of  Baggy  Point  was  occupied 
probably  at  a  later  period,  for  a  much  finer  class  of  imple- 
ments is  found  there.  Many  of  these  are  lustrous  but  not 
patinated. 

Following  the  direction  of  the  little  stream  inland  for  a 
distance  of  half  a  mile  in  an  easterly  direction,  one  arrives 
at  its  source.  Here  is  a  low  boggy  place,  around  which  are 
scattered  quantities  of  chipped  flints ;  and  amongst  them  I 
have  picked  up  several  pigmy  implements.  These  also  are 
well  patinated,  and  are  found  in  association  with  refuse 
flakes  and  cores,  occasional  hammer-stones,  and  coarse 
scrapers. 

In   the  neighbourhood  of  Spreacombe  remarkably  good 


PIGMY  FLINT  IMPLEMENTS   IN  NORTH  DEVON.  267 

flint  instruments  have  been  found.  I  have  several  fine 
scrapers,  and  some  of  the  arrow-heads  are  both  stemmed  and 
barbed 

In  nearly  all  cases  the  original  colouring  of  the  fractured 
surfaces  is  retained.  The  percentage  of  worked  implements 
in  that  locality  is  higher  than  usual  in  relation  to  the 
number  of  useless  flakes.  Few,  however,  bear  the  character- 
istics of  genuine  pigmy  flints,  and  I  have  only  one  or  two 
specimens  which  appear  to  belong  to  this  class. 

At  Orleigh  Court,  south  of  Bideford,  I  have  discovered 
abundant  evidence  of  the  flaking  of  the  flint  nodules  that 
occur  there.  I  have  obtained  arrow-heads,  scrapers,  boring 
tools,  and  some  very  large  cores,  but  up  to  the  present  I 
have  come  across  no  pigmy  flints.  The  flakes  and  instru- 
ments found  there  are  lustrous,  but  they  are  not  often 
patinated. 

Seeing  that  numbers  of  pigmy  flints  have  been  picked  up 
upon  sand  dunes,  and  that  flint  implements  have  been  found 
in  such  abundance  on  the  Glenluce  sands,  Wigtonshire,  and 
in  still  greater  numbers  also  on  the  Culbin  sands,  Elgin, 
where  many  of  the  specimens  collected  are  exceedingly 
minute,  it  has  always  struck  me  as  surprising  that  I  have 
never  yet  succeeded  in  finding  any  implements  or  flakes  of 
any  description  whatever  upon  the  large  tract  of  sand  hills 
known  as  the  Braunton  Burrows.  The  same  applies  to  the 
burrows  at  Northam  and  at  Croyde,  and  also  to  the  sand 
links  that  envelop  the  red  sandstone  clififs  at  the  base  of 
Pickwell  Down.  At  Woolacombe  the  flakes  can  be  traced 
right  up  to  the  sand  links,  but  there  they  cease.  But  in  the 
spring  of  this  year  I  found  twenty-three  pieces  of  flint  on 
the  surface  of  a  little  patch  of  drift  which  lies  in  front  of 
the  boat-house  at  the  foot  of  the  links. 

Two  or  three  of  these  fragments  fit  into  one  another  and 
are  evidently  portions  of  a  pebble  that  has  been  broken  on 
the  spot.  The  edges  of  the  flakes  are  quite  sharp,  and  their 
surfaces  grey  with  age.  Some  of  them  also  have  been 
scorched  by  fire.  They  were  embedded  in  a  thin  layer  of 
brown  earthy  clay  which  contained  many  particles  of  char- 
coal. This  is  evidently  a  scrap  of  the  old  land  surface,  which 
has  only  quite  recently  been  exposed  to  view  by  the  removal 
of  some  of  the  dry  sand  round  about  it.  It  seems  probable 
that  in  most  cases  the  level  of  old  occupation  is  overlain 
by  the  wind-blown  sand. 

I  have  continued  Mr.  Hall's  investigations  at  Westward 
Ho  in  association  with  Mr.  Inkermann  Kogers.     At  low- 


268  PIGMY  FLINT  IMPLEMENTS   IN  NORTH  DEVON. 

water  mark,  in  the  blue  clay  which  is  overlain  by  the  sub- 
merged forest,  there  exists  a  profusion  of  flint  flakes  and 
cores.  The  fractured  surfaces  of  these  flakes  have  a  pecuKar 
grey  colour.  They  lie  underneath  the  peat  bed,  and  are 
curiously  mottled  and  stained.  Bones  of  the  Keltic  ox  {Bos 
longifrons),  deer,  and  other  animals  belonging  to  the  recent 
period  are  found  in  association  with  them,  together  with 
masses  of  shells  of  the  oyster  and  other  edible  molluscs. 

Among  a  quantity  of  refuse  flakes  are  others  of  smaller  size 
and  finer  quality,  their  edges,  however,  as  keen  and  true  as 
on  the  day  when  they  were  struck.  They  have  lain  undis- 
turbed for  centuries  in  a  bed  of  consolidated  mud,  unabraded 
by  the  ploughshare,  or  any  contact  with  one  another, 
protected  by  the  peat  bed,  and  the  trunks  of  bog-ash  and 
hazel  which  overlie  them,  whilst  over  these,  again,  are  rolled 
the  sands  and  surf  of  the  Atlantic.  The  submerged  situa- 
tion of  this  deposit,  and  the  nature  and  extent  of  the 
material  that  has  slowly  accumulated  upon  the  site  since 
the  time  when  it  was  inhabited  by  man,  justify  its  claim  to 
belong  to  a  period  of  remote  antiquity.  Half  a  decade  of 
millenniums,  more  or  less,  must  have  elapsed  since  man 
chipped  flints  beneath  the  shade  of  these  forest  trees,  whose 
roots  lie  embedded  in  the  old  alluvium.  There  is  a  strong 
resemblance  in  the  quality  of  the  flint  refuse  that  exists 
here  to  that  which  has  been  described,  on  the  elevated  ridge 
near  Baggy  Point.  Here  also  the  flakes  are  highly  patinated, 
and  no  single  implement  worthy  of  the  name  has  been 
found  amongst  them.  Many  of  the  flakes  and  cores  also 
are  so  small  tliat  their  only  use  would  appear  to  consist  in 
the  production  of  pigmy  flints. 

The  limited  area  of  this  deposit  as  yet  examined  is  not  a 
sufficient  reason  for  our  want  of  success  in  discovering 
worked  implements. 

Such  a  large  accumulation  of  bones  and  shells  bears  wit- 
ness to  a  prolonged  occupation.  Moreover,  Mr.  Rogers  has 
found  excellent  flint  implements  close  to  the  pebble  ridge. 
They  were  taken  out  of  a  bed  of  yellow  clay,  which  is  sub- 
merged at  high  water,  and  they,  too,  were  associated  with 
bones  and  shells. 

There  is  good  evidence  that  these  fine  instruments  have 
been  made  on  the  spot  where  they  were  found.  Their 
brown  colour,  and  complete  absence  of  patination,  mark 
them  oft'  as  entirely  distinct  from  the  more  deeply  sub- 
merged and  highly  patinated  flakes  which  are  found  at  the 
low-water  level. 


PIGMY  FLINT  IMPLEMENTS   IN   NORTH  DEVON.  269 

Mr.  Eogers  assures  me  that  his  instruments  belong  to  a 
more  recent  occupation.  I  see  no  reason  to  abandon  the 
hope  that  future  researches  may  lead  to  the  discovery  of 
pigmy  Hint  implements  in  the  deposit  at  low-water  mark. 
This  suggestion  affords  the  best  explanation  of  the  state  of 
affairs  that  occurs  there,  and  enables  us  to  account  for  the 
presence  of  a  quantity  of  refuse  fragments  of  chipped  flint, 
occurring  as  it  does  at  a  particular  spot  which  has  evidently 
been  continuously  occupied  by  man,  a  "  kitchen-midden  "  in 
fact,  which  is  peculiar  inasmuch  as  it  has  not  yielded  any 
single  example  of  a  finished  implement,  broken  or  otherwise. 
My  belief  is  that  this  deposit  will  eventually  turn  out  to  be 
the  site  of  a  manufactory  of  pigmy  flints,  and  for  this 
reason  I  have  ventured  to  allude  to  it  in  a  paper  describing 
their  occurrence  in  North  Devon.  Such  little  implements 
may  prove  very  difficult  to  find,  and  it  may  be  by  mere 
accident  that  they  can  ever  be  discovered.  The  smallest 
fragments  are  found  deep  down  in  the  clay  amongst  the 
pebbles  of  carboniferous  limestone  which  constitute  the  base 
of  the  deposit. 

In  the  autumn  of  1864  Mr.  Hall  noticed  "  the  remains  of 
a  number  of  pointed  stakes  driven  into  it  in  a  kind  of  semi- 
circle." 

This  circumstance  is  very  suggestive  of  the  previous 
existence  of  a  pile  dwelling.  The  Swiss  lake-dwellers  used 
to  shoot  their  refuse  through  holes  in  the  platform  left  for 
the  purpose,  and  many  fine  implements  appear  to  have 
fallen  in  accidentally  with  the  rubbish. 

This  situation  can  only  be  investigated  during  low  spring 
tides,  and  is  only  exposed  after  the  sand  has  been  swept  off 
it  by  a  continuance  of  westerly  gales.  This  has  not  taken 
place  during  the  last  two  winters,  and  for  this  reason  a  more 
searching  investigation  has  not  been  possible. 


SOME   CRYPTOGAMS   OF   THE   BOTANICAL 

DISTEICTS  OF  BRAUNTON  AND  SHERWILL, 

NORTH   DEVON. 


BY   C.    E.    LARTER. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


The  first  sentence  of  this  paper  must  be  an  expression  of 
indebtedness.  To  Messrs.  W.  Mitten,  E.  M.  Holmes,  F.L.S., 
H.  N.  Dixon,  M.A.,  F.L.S.,  and  Symers  M.  Macvicar  I  owe  a 
gratitude  that  no  words  of  obligation  can  even  faintly 
indicate.  In  the  following  attempt  to  give  some  record  of 
the  Cryptogams  of  our  district  all  of  my  own  that  is  of 
value  is  owing  to  their  most  patient  and  unwearying  aid. 
Mr.  Mitten — than  whose  name  there  is  none  more  venerated 
amongst  the  survivors  of  those  great  makers  of  bryology  to 
whose  labours  we  owe  all  advance  in  the  science — has,  by 
his  own  most  generous  proposal,  been  at  the  trouble  to  read 
through  the  whole  of  my  moss  and  hepatic  lists,  and  has 
added  to  them  such  records  and  remarks  as  therein  appear 
with  his  name  appended.  He  has  also  allowed  me  the 
great  honour  of  giving  to  this  Association  the  first  publica- 
tion of  a  hepatic  new  to  science,  found  at  Lynmouth  by 
himself,  and  just  differentiated  and  named.  Full  particulars 
of  this  species  will  be  found  in  the  section  concerned  with 
the  hepatics  of  the  district. 

To  Mr.  E.  M.  Holmes  every  specimen  of  Algae  men- 
tioned has  been  submitted.  But  for  the  impulse  he  gave 
when  visiting  Ilfracombe  in  1903,  and  his  continual  kind 
instruction  since,  I  should  not  have  thought  of  taking  up 
their  study.  Mr.  H.  N.  Dixon  has  determined  critical 
species  of  mosses,  and  Mr.  S.  M.  Macvicar  those  of  hepatics. 
The  eminence  of  these  authorities  needs  no  assertion  here. 
The  title  of  the  work  each  respectively  has,  in  combination 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        271 

with  a  coadjutor,  issued  will  be  found  under  the  several 
headings  as  the  standard  of  the  nomenclature.  Others  who 
have  helped  me  will,  I  trust,  consider  themselves  as  included 
in  the  grateful  rendering  of  thanks,  without  my  adding  a 
further  list  of  names. 

The  "  Braunton  "  and  "  Sherwill "  botanical  districts  of 
North  Devon  are  the  first  two  of  the  twelve  into  which,  for 
botanical  purposes,  Mr.  W.  P.  Hiern,  m.a.,  F.R.S.,  has  sub- 
divided the  part  of  our  county  that  drains  naturally  to  the 
northern  coast.  These  divisions  are  "  broadly  based  on  the 
existing  hundreds  of  the  county,  but  with  such  modifica- 
tions as  seem  best  to  serve  the  purpose  "  of  conveniently 
grouping  the  botanical  records. 

The  "  Braunton "  district  embraces  sixteen  parishes : 
namely,  those  of  Mortehoe,  Ilfracombe,  Berrynarbor,  Combe- 
martin,  Trentishoe,  Kentisbury,  East  Down,  Bittadon,  West 
Down,  Georgeham,  Braunton,  Heanton-Punchardon,  Ashford, 
Mar  wood,  Pilton,  and  Barnstaple. 

The  "Sherwill"  district  includes  fourteen  parishes: 
namely,  those  of  Martinhoe,  Lynton,  Countisbury,  Brendon, 
Parracombe,  Challacombe,  Arlington,  Loxhore,  Sherwill, 
Bratton  Fleming,  High  Bray,  Charles,  Stoke  Eivers,  and 
Goodleigh.  Both  these  sub-divisions  come  under  District  I, 
that  of  "  Barnstaple,"  of  the  eight  into  which,  for  botanical 
purposes,  Mr.  Hiern  has  divided  the  whole  county  of  Devon. 

It  is  by  the  kindness  of  the  Hon.  Local  Secretary  of  this 
Lynton  meeting,  Mr.  C.  A.  Briggs,  F.E.S.,  that  I  am  able  to 
take  into  account  the  second  of  these  districts;  my  own 
explorations  have  been  almost  entirely  limited  to  the 
Braunton  one.  Mr.  Briggs  has  been  so  good  as  to  hand  to  me 
his  notes  of  moss-finds  later  than  the  gatherings  recorded  in 
"Science  Gossip"  for  the  month  of  September,  1900,  made 
in  that  year  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  John  Carrington.  As 
stated  in  that  paper,  all  the  determinations  given  by  him 
have  the  authority  of  Mr.  J.  A.  Wheldon,  of  Liverpool. 
Both  Mr.  Briggs  and  I  wish  it  to  be  clearly  understood  that 
neither  his  lists  nor  mine  profess  in  any  way  to  be  in  the 
least  exhaustive  of  the  treasures  of  the  regions  indicated. 
My  own  searching  for  cryptogamic  growths  of  the  "Braunton " 
one  began  only  in  1900,  and  his  of  the  "Sherwill"  one  in 
the  same  year,  coincidentally,  but  without  each  other's 
knowledge  at  the  time.  There  are  many  recesses  of  this 
rich  neighbourhood  that  we  know  we  have  barely  touched, 
or  not  reached  at  all.  To  future  explorers  we  are  assured 
the  country  will  yield  a  yet  richer  harvest. 


272        SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON. 

In  the  past,  whilst  the  south  of  the  county  has  been  fairly 
well  worked,  it  is  curious  how  little  attention  has  been  given 
by  cryptoganiic  botanists  to  its  northern  part.  The  names 
of  the  earliest  explorers  are  mostly  to  be  found  in  the 
records  of  the  llore  Collection — the  work  of  the  late  Eev. 
W.  S.  Hore,  m.a. — that  only  this  spring  has,  through 
the  good  otiices  of  Mr.  Hiern,  been  given  by  the  Misses 
Hore  to  tlie  North  Devon  Athenaeum,  Barnstaple.  There, 
in  a  case  made  for  its  reception,  it  is  now  permanently 
deposited.  Application  to  consult  its  specimens  and  records 
must  be  made  to  the  much-honoured  librarian  of  the 
Institution,  ilr.  T.  Wainwright,  to  whose  persistent  and 
zealous  etlorts,  during  the  long  period  of  forty  years,  to 
encourage  all  literary  and  natural  history  studies  we  in 
I^orth  Devon  owe  so  much.  The  name  of  earliest  date  in 
the  Ilore  Collection  is  that  of  the  Itev.  C.  A.  Johns,  M.A., 
writer  of  the  well-known,  popular  handbook,  "Flowers  of 
the  Field."  His  moss-records — very  few,  however,  in  number 
— go  back  to  18-iO.  Then  comes  Dr.  Kalfs,  whose  long  life 
ended  only  in  1890,  and  we  have  living  in  Barnstaple  at 
least  one  man  who  was  a  friend  of  this  great  Cryptogamic 
naturalist.  Contemporary  with  the  earlier  days  of  Dr. 
Kalfs  were  Mrs.  Griffiths,  of  Pilton,  and  her  sister-in  law, 
MLss  Griffiths,  of  Trentishoe.  Mitten's  work  in  the  region 
was  mainly  done  while  he  stayed  in  1874  and  1875  with 
the  then  Curate  of  Trentishoe,  tlie  Rev.  James  Hannington, 
known  to  all  tlie  world  later  as  Bishop  Hannington.  Mr. 
E.  ^I.  Holmes'  first  visit  to  tliis  part  of  the  county  was  in 
1877,  the  year  after  the  pul)lication  of  his  and  the  late  Mr. 
Francis  Brent's  list  of  tlie  "Mosses  of  Devon  and  Cornwall." 
As  he  knew  Mitten  and  Hore,  and,  as  a  young  man,  corre- 
sponded with  Ralfs  (we  omit  the  courtesy  "ilr."  where  the 
name  has  become  too  widely  familiar  and  revered  to  require 
it),  he  must  be  regarded  as  a  living  link  with  those  first 
students  in  past  days  of  this  part  of  our  county's  crypto- 
gamic growths. 

Witli  this  brief  introduction  to  the  subject  as  a  whole,  I 
proceed  to  give  such  records  as  I  have  been  able  to  find  or 
make  of  the  Musci,  Hepaticaj,  and  Algie  of  the  districts 
indicated  by  my  title.  Xotes  concerning  the  records  are 
reserved  for  the  particular  groups  they  concern.^  Raven- 
shaw's  "Botany  of  North  Devon" — the  standard  work  for 

*  In  aU  records  wliere  no  name  is  ap])ended  to  a  locality  the  **  find  **  is  my 
own.  Save  in  a  few  cases,  duly  noted,  all  Mr.  Briggs*  records  for  Lynmoutn 
and  mine  for  Combemartiu  are  new  for  those  places. 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        273 

localities  of  our  Phanerogams — has  brief  lists  of  all  these 
three  sets  of  cryptogams.  As  allusions  to  it  will  be  found  in 
the  following  pages,  I  may  state  that  the  date  of  the 
first  edition  was  1857  ;  that  of  the  second  edition,  1860 ; 
and  of  the  fourth  edition,  1877.  Of  a  third  edition  I  have 
failed  to  find  the  year.  The  name  of  the  editor  of  the  first 
edition  is  given  as  the  "  Rev.  George  Tugwell,  M.A.,  Oxon., 
Rector  of  Bath  wick."  The  fourth  and  last  edition  of  1877 
was  published  by  Simpkin,  Marshall,  &  Co.,  London,  and 
Stewart,  Ilfracombe,  with  "additions  to  the  Botanical 
Catalogue  by  Rev.  T.  F.  Ravenshaw." 


L  MUSCL 

The  Paper  read  before  this  Association  by  the  late 
Edward  Parfitt,  of  the  Devon  and  Exeter  Institution,  at 
the  meeting  at  Seaton  in  the  year  1885,  though  entitled 
"  Devon  Mosses  and  Hepatics,"  contained,  in  the  main,  only 
South  Devon  localities,  as  did  the  list  already  alluded  to  by 
Messrs.  E.  M.  Holmes  and  Francis  Brent, "  Mosses  of  Devon 
and  Cornwall.*'  It  would  have  been  well  had  the  titles 
indicated  the  limitations  of  their  scope.  I  merely  mention 
this  to  indicate  that  the  present  paper  is  not  a  covering  of 
the  same  ground. 

All  the  mosses  in  the  ensuing  list  are  named  according  to 
the  nomenclature  adopted  in  "  The  Student's  Handbook  of 
British  Mosses,''  by  H.  N".  Dixon,  m.a.,  F.L.S.  With  Illustra- 
tions, and  Keys  to  the  Genera  and  Species,  by  H.  G.  Jameson, 
M.A.;  Second  Edition,  June,  1904  (Eastbourne,  V.  T.  Sumfield). 
In  the  absence,  save  in  comparatively  few  cases,  of  localities 
from  Mr.  Dixon's  Handbook,  I  have  looked  out  the  previous 
records  in  Dr.  Braithwaite's  "  British  Moss  Flora."  Of  that 
great  work  the  first  volume  was  completed  in  1887;  the 
second  in  1895 ;  and  the  third  in  1905.  Any  species,  so 
far  as  I  know,  not  found  in  this  part  of  Devon  at  a 
date  prior  to  my  own  record,  and  for  which  no  locality 
is,  in  Dr.  Braithwaite's  records  of  the  less  common  species, 
given  here,  I  have  entered  as  new  for  V.  C.  4  (North 
Devon).  In  one  case,  that  of  Barhula  gracilis  Schwgr.,  Mr. 
H.  N.  Dixon  himself  has  notified  me  that  the  plant  had  not 
been  found  in  Devon  at  all  before  my  collecting  it.  Others 
indicated  below  are  also,  so  far  as  I  myself  can  discover,  new 
records  for  the  county. 

Those  Sphagna  found  by  myself  have  been  named  by 
Mr.  E.  C.  Horrell,  F.L.S.,  according  to  the  nomenclature  of  his 

VOL.  xxxviii.  s 


274       SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  KOBTH  DEYOK. 

monograph,  "The  European  Sphagnacese  after  Wamistorf" 
(West.  Newman,  &  Co.,  1901). 

Sphagnum  ru/escens  Wamst. — Great  Hangman  Bog,  Combemartin, 

May,  1901. 
S.  crassicladum   Warnst. — Great  Hangman  Bog,    Combemartm, 

March,  1903;  Chapman  Barrows,  Exmoor,  September,  1905. 
S,   papillosum    (Ldb.),   Var.    normale,    Wamst.— Combemartin, 

November,  1900. 

The  following,  found  by  Mr.  C.  A.  Briggs,  are  named 
according  to  Dixon's  Handbook,  first  edition  : — 

S,  cymHfolium  Ehrh. — Exmoor.    Var.  congestum  Schp. — ^Exmoor. 

S,  rigidum  Schp. — Exmoor. 

S,  suhsecundum  Nees. — Exmoor. 

S,  intermedium  HofF. — Exmoor. 

S,  cuepidatum  Ehrh. — Exmoor. 

Teiraphis  pellucida  Hedw. — Countisbury,  C.  A.  B. 

CathanTiea  undulata  W.  and  M. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B.,  passim; 
Combemartin;  Berrynarbor. 

Pdytrichum  nanum  Neck. — Lynton,  C.  A.  B. ;  Sterrage  Valley, 
Berrynarbor. 

P.  aloides  Hedw. — ^Lynton  and  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin 
and  Berrynarbor,  passim, 

P,  urnigerum  L. — Countisbury,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor,  Sterrage 
VaUey. 

P.  cdpinum  L. — Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. 

P.  juniperinum  Willd. — Lynton,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin,  passim. 
Sub-species  strictum  Banks. — Exmoor,  passim^  C.  A.  B. 

P.  formosum  Hedw. — Great  Hangman  Bog,  Combemartin,  May, 
1902,  c.fr. 

P.  commune  L. — Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. ;  Great  Hangman  Bog,  Combe- 
martin. 

Diphyscium  foltosum,  Mohr. — Watersmeet,  1876,  W.  Mitten. 

Fleundium  subulaium  Kab. — Lynmouth,  Miss  Griffiths  (Hore 
Collection) ;  Woolscot  Wood,  Berrynarbor,  1 906. 

Ditrichum  homomallum  Hpe. — Pinkery  Pond,  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B., 
1900;  Berrynarbor,  1905;  Watermouth,  1906.  Mr.  Briggs* 
record  of  this  si)ecies  in  1900  was  the  first  for  North  Devon. 

Ceratadon  purpureus  Brid. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin ; 
and  in  all  the  neighbourhoods  included,  passim, 

Dichodontium  pellucidurn  Schp. — Combemartin. 

Dicranella  heteromalla  Schp. — Parracombe  and  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. ; 
Combemartin. 

D.  cerviculata  Schp. — Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. 

D.  varia  Schp. — Lynmouth  and  Brendon,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combe- 
martin. 

Dicranoweisia  cirrata  Ldb. — Summer-house  Hill,  Lynton ;  and 
above  Saddlegate,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin,  1904. 


SOME  CBTFTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.  275 

Campylopus  flexuogus  Brid. — Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. 

C,  pyriformis  Brid. — Esplanade,  Lynmouth,  and  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B., 

1900;  by  the  East  Lyn,  May,  1902. 
C  fragilia  B.  and  S. — llfracombe,  E.  M.    Holmes,   September, 

1903. 
Dicranum  scoparium   Hedw. — Throughout   the  Lynton   district, 

C.  A.  B. ;  also  in  all  the  neighbourhoods  embraced  by  this 

paper,  passim, 

D.  majus  Turn. — East  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin  and 

Arlington. 
D.   Seottianum   Turn. — Hooe    Lake,   Trentishoe,    Miss    Griffiths 

(Hore  Collection). 
Leucobrywn  glaticum  Schp. — Desolation  and  Countisbury,  C.  A.  B.; 

Great  Hangman  Bog,  Combemartin,  May,  1900. 
Fisstdens  mridulm  Wahl.— The  Tors,  Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B.,  1900; 

Little  Hangman  Hill,  Combemartin,  1905. 
F.  incunms  Starke. — Berrynarbor,  March,  1 906. 
F,   hryoides  Hedw. — Lynmouth,    llkerton   Lane   ("a   somewliat 

doubtful  specimen  "),  C.  A.  B. ;  Sterrage  Valley,  Berrynarbor, 

December,  1902. 
F.  adiantoides  Hedw. — Wood  beyond  Higher  Leigh,  Berrynarbor, 

May,  1 906 ;  Road  between  Chelfham  Station  and  Loxhore, 

August,  1906. 
F.  decipiens  De  Not. — East  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor, 

April,  1901. 

F,  taxifolius  Hedw. — Barnstaple,  February,  1864  (Hore  Collec- 

tion); "Tors,"  Lynton,  Mi-s.  Griffiths  (Torquay  Nat.  Hist. 
Soc.  Collection) ;  Berrynarbor,  1904. 
Orimmia    apocarpa    Hedw. — Lynmouth    and    district^    poisim, 
C.  A.  B. 

G.  viaritima  Turn. — Ravenshaw,    1877;    Combemartin;    Berry- 

narbor; llfracombe;  1^0^  y  passim, 
G,  pulvinata  Sm. — In  all  the  district,  passim, 
G,  ovata  Schwgr. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 
Rhacomitrium  aciadare  Brid. — Valleys  of  the   East  and  West 

Lyns  (on  stones),   C.  A.  B.,    1900;  and  December,    1904, 

C.  E.  L. 
R,  fasciculare  Brid. — Watersmeet  and  Exmoor  (on  stones),  C.  A.  B. 
R,   heierostichum   Brid. — Saddlegate,   and   East  and   West  Lyn 

VaUeys,  C.  A.  B. 
R,  laniLginosum  Brid. — Pinkery  Pond  and  Desolation,  C.  A,  B. 
R,  canescens  Brid. — Heath  near  Saddlegate,  C.  A.  B. ;  Hangman 

Hill,  Combemartin. 
Ptychomitrium  polyphyllum  Fiirnr. — In  all  the  district,  passim,,  . 
Hedmgia  ciliata  Hedw. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Little  Hangman 

Hill,  Combemartin,   1904. 
Phascum   curvicolle   Ehrh. — Berrynarbor,   April,    1906.     A  new 

record  for  North  Devon. 

82 


276        SOME  CBYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DSVON. 

Pottia  recta  Mitt. — Berrynarbor,  fallow  field,  September,  1903. 

P.  Heimii  Fiinir. — Watermouth,  Berrynarbor,  June,  1901. 

P.  truncatula  Ldb.  Sub-8i)ecie3  intermedia  Fiimr. — Little  Hang- 
man, Combemartin,  February,  1906. 

P.  crinita  Wils. — AVatermouth,  Berrynarbor,  March,  1904. 

P.  minutula  Fiirnr. — Fallow  field,  BerrjTiarbor,  September,  1903. 

P.  Starkeana  C.  M. — Watermouth,  Berrynarbor,  February,  1906. 
Also  a  form  with  a  shorter  seta  than  is  normally  found  which 
Mr.  Dixon  labels,  "  Pottia  Starkeana  probably."  There 
appeared  at  first  to  be  a  doubt  if  this  plant  might  not  prove  to 
be  the  rare  P.  commutata  Limpr.,  but,  on  further  examination, 
the  coarsely  tuberculate  spores  were  found  to  be  inconsistent 
with  the  characteristics  of  that  species. 

P.  lanceolata  C.  M. — Watermouth,  Berrynarbor,  February,  1906. 

From  the  above  enumeration,  in  which  are  included  six 
species  and  one  sub-species  out  of  the  whole  eleven  species 
and  two  sub-species  of  our  British  Pottias  (that  is,  more 
than  half  the  number  growing  in  these  islands),  it  will  be 
seen  that  this  part  of  Devon  is  peculiarly  rich  in  Pottias. 
According  to  the  localities  given  in  Braithwaite's  "British 
Moss  Flora,"  Vol.  I  (1887),  Pottia  recta,  Pottia  intermedia, 
Pottia  lanceolata  appear  to  be  new  records  for  Devon ;  and 
Pottia  crinita  for  North  Devon.  I  have  sought  carefully, 
but  so  far  vainly,  for  Pottia  viridifolia  Mitt.,  which  from 
the  records  appears  to  be  limited  to  slaty  and  basaltic  rocks. 
The  new  Pottia  commutata  Limpr.,  discovered  by  Mr.  W.  E. 
Nicholson  in  Sussex,  in  1903,  certainly  should  be  further 
looked  for,  since  we  have  just  the  kind  of  earthy  ground 
close  to  the  sea  in  which  Mr.  Nicholson  has  found  it  in  the 
two  Sussex  localities. 

Tortula  amhigua  Angstr. — Combemartin,  February,  1905. 

T,  aloides  De  Not.— Combemartin,  1903. 

T.  atrovirens  lAh, — Watermouth,  March,  1904  and  1906;  Combe- 
martin, February,  1906;  Croyde,  February,  1906.  This, 
again,  appears  to  be  a  new  record  for  North  Devon. 

T,  muralis  Hedw. — Lynmouth,  passim,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin, 
passim,  Var.  B,  rupestris  Wils. — Combemartin,  1^0^,  passim, 

T.  suhidata  Iledw. — Countisbury,  C.  A.  B. 

T,  laevipila  Schwgr. — Barnstaple,  February,  1864  (Hore  Collec- 
tion);  Watermouth,  February,  1906. 

T,  ruralifm-mis  Dixon. — Saunton,  May,  1902;  and  c.  fr.  January, 
1905;  Combemartin,  1906.     A  new  record  for  Devon. 

Barhula  lurida  Ldb. — The  Leat,  Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B.  A  new 
record  for  Devon. 

P.    cordata     Dixon. — Saiuiton     (smmy     banks),     April,     1903, 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        277 

E.  M.  Holmes.  Mr.  Dixon  ("Handbook,"  second  edition) 
writes:  "This  plant  until  recently  was  known  only  from 
Central  Europe  (Austria,  Germany,  and  Switzerland).  In 
1902  it  was  detected  by  Mr.  \V.  E.  Nicholson  and  myself  in 
the  Pyrenees,  and  Mr.  Holmes  detected  it  in  the  above 
locality  in  April,  1903." 
B.  lobelia  Mitt. — Road  to  "Watersmeet,  Lynmouth,    December, 

1904,  C.  E.  L.     Also  (date  not  given)  found  at  Lynton  by 
C.  A.  B. ;  Ilfracombo  and  Combemartin,  September,  1905. 

B.  tophacea  Mitt. — Hangman  Hill,  Combemartin,  November,  1840, 

C.  A.  Johns  (Hore  Collection) ;   Sandy  Bay,   Berrynarbor, 

Jime,  1903. 
B.  faUax  Hedw. — Barnstaple,  February,  1864  (Hore  Collection); 

Lynmouth,  passim^    1900,    C.  A.  B. ;    Combemartin,    June, 

1903.     Var.   h.   hrevifolia  Schultz. — Esplanade,   Lynmouth, 

1900,    C.  A.  B.     The   variety   is   a  new   record   for   North 

Devon. 
B,  rigidula  Mitt. — Combemartin,  C.  A.  Johns,  November,  1840 

(Hore  Collection) ;  Combemartin,  1903. 
B,  cylindrica  Schp.— West  Lyn  Valley,  1900,  C.  A.  B.     A  new 

record   for   North   Devon.     Berrynarbor  (Sterrage   Valley), 

February,  1904. 

Sub-species  vinealia  Brid. — Watersmeet  Road,  Lynmouth, 

C.  A.  B.,  1900;  Saunton,  August,  1903.     The  Watersmeet^ 

Lynmouth,  one  is  a  new  record  for  North  Devon. 
Barhula  gracilis   Schwgr. — Saunton   sand-hills,   May,   1902.     A 

new  record  for  Devon. 
B,  revoluta  Brid. — Once  at  Watersmeet,  C.  A.  B.,  1900.     A  new 

record  for  Devon.     Saunton  Sands,  E.   M.  Holmes,  April, 

1903. 
B.    convoluta    Hedw. — Countisbury,    C.  A.  B.,    1900;    Saunton, 

August,    1903.      Var.    h.   Sardoa   B.    and   S. —  Berrynarbor 

(Sterrage  Valley),  E.  M.  Holmes,  September,   1903. 
B.  unguiculata  Hedw. — Lynmouth,  passim,  C.  A.  B. ;  Saunton, 

1 905,  c.  f r.   Var.  b.  cuspidata  Braithw. — Berrynarbor  (Sterrage 
Valley),  January,  1904. 

W,  crispata  C.  M.— Once,  Tors,  Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B.,  1900. 

Weisia  microstoma  C.  M. — Tors,  Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 

W,  viridula  Hedw. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin  (Little 
Hangman),  November,  1902.  Var.  6.  amhlydon  B.  and  S.— * 
Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Silver  Mine,  Combemartin.  Var.  d. 
densifoUa  B.  and  S. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 

W,  veriicillata  Brid. — Ilfracombe,  C.  A.  Johns,  September,  1840 
(Hore  Collection) ;  Watersmeet,  Lynmouth,  E.  M.  Holmes, 
1877;  Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor,  1899,  with  abundant 
fruit.  In  this  district  the  fruit  is  not  at  all  uncommon,  as  it 
is  elsewhere. 

Trichostomum  crisptUum  Bruch. — Capstone,  Ilfracombe,  Raven- 


278  SOME  CRYPTOOAIIS  OF  NOBTH  DKVON. 

shaw,  1877 ;  Combemartin  (Newberry  Cliflfs),  August,  1903; 

Hagginton  Cliffs,  February^  1906. 
T.  mutabile  Bruch. — West  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin 

(Newberry  Cliffs),   1903.     Var.  lUtorale  Dixon.— West  Lvn 

VaUey,  C.  A.  B. 
T.  flavovireiis. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Newberry,  Combemartin. 
T.  tenuirostre  Ldb. — Glen  Lyn  (on  damp  stones),  C.  A.  B. 
T.  nitidum  Schp. — Newberry,  Combemartin,  June,  1902. 
Ginelidotus  fontinaloides  P.  B. — East  Lyn   Valley   (stones  near 

river-bed),  C.  A.  B. 
Encdlypta    streptocarpa   Hedw. — East   Lyn   Valley    (sparingly), 

C.  A.  B. 
Zygodon  Mougeotii  B.  and  S. — On  a  boulder  to  left  of  path  in 

wood  above  Long  Pool,  near  Rockford,  on  right  bank  of  East 

Lyn,  C.  A.  B.     A  new  record  for  North  Devon. 
Z,   viridissimus   R.    Br. — Walls   in   E.    Lyn   Valley,    C.  A.  B. ; 

Watermouth,  February,  1906,  c.  fr.  (on  tree). 
Z:  stirtoni  Schp. — Lee  Bay,  Lynton,  C.  A.  B.     A  new  record  for 

North  Devon. 
Ulota  phyllantha    Brid. — Lee    Bay,    Lynton,    C.  A.  B. ;   Water- 
mouth  and  Combemartin,  1906. 
U»  Hutchinaice  Hamm. — Little  Hangman,  Combemartin,  February, 

1906,  c.  fr.     A  new  record  for  North  Devon. 
Orthotrichmn  Lyellii  H.  and  T. — Desolation  Farm,  Countisbury 

(on  a  poplar),  C.  A.  B. 
0,  affine  Schrad.— Combemartin,  April,  1905. 
0.  pulcJiellum  Sm. — High  Bickington,  C.  A.  Johns,  April,  1841 

(Hore  Collection). 
0,  diaphanum  Schrad.,  passim, 
Philonotis  fontana  Brid. — Pinkery  Pond,  C.  A.  B.,  c.  fr. ;  Berry- 

narbor   (Woolscot  Wood),    1906.     Var.   d,  pumila  Dixon. 

Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
P.  calcarea  Schp. — Lynmouth,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Breutelia    arcwita    Schp. — Trentishoe,    September,    1840,    Miss 

Griffiths  (Hore  Collection) ;  and  C.  A.  B. 
Wehera    nutans    Hedw. — North    Walk    and    Hkerton,    Lynton; 

Exmoor  (in  peat  cuttings),  C.  A.  B. 
W.    annotina    Schwgr. — Wall    at    Saddlegate,    C.  A.  B. ;   Berry- 

narbor  (Sterrage  Valley),  E.  M.  Holmes,  September,  1903. 
W,  cornea  Schp. — "A  doubtful  specimen,  not  in  fruit,  from  Lee 

Bay,  Lynton,''  C.  A.  B. 
Physocomitrium     pyHforme     Brid. — Combemartin,     September, 

1903;  Berrynarbor,  April,  1906. 
Funaria  fascicular  is  Schp. — Watermouth,  W.  S.  Hore. 
F,  hygrometica  Sibth.,  passim, 

Atdacomnium  paltcstre  Schwgr. — Trentishoe,  c.  fr.  (Hore  Collec- 
tion) ;  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. ;  Great  Hangman  Bog,  Combemartin, 

1901. 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.  279 

Bartramia  pomiformis  Hedw. — Desolation,   Summerhouse   Hill, 

Ilkerton  Lane,  and  Lee  Bay,  at  Lynton,  C.  A.  B. ;  Kentisbury, 

1903;  Arlington,  1906. 
W,  aJbicant  Schp. — Spring  in  East  Lyn  Valley,  and  at  Lee  Bay, 

C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor,  April,  1906. 
W,    Tozeri   Schp. — Combemartin   (Ravenshaw),    1877 ;    Croyde, 

K  M.  Holmes,  April,  1903. 
Bryum  pendulum  Schp. — Saiinton,  June,  1904. 
B,  incUnatum  Bland. — Countisbury,  C.  A.  B. 
B,    pollens    Sw. — Exiuoor,     passim,     C.  A.  B. ;     Combemartin, 

September,  1902. 
B,  pseudotriquetrum  Schwg. — Lynmoiith,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor, 

April,    1906.     Var.    b,    compactum. — Combemartin,    Silver 

Mine,  January,  1904. 
B.  caespittcium  L. — Countisbury ;  Watersmeet  Road,  etc.,  C.  A.  B. 
B,    argenteum   L. — Lynmouth;   Combemartin,    Little   Hangman, 

April,  1906. 
B,  roseum  Schreb. — Sherry  combe,  Combemartin,   1899;  Cowley 

Wood,  Kentisbury,  1902. 
Mnium  aJHne  Bland. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 
M.  cuspidatum  Hedw. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 
If.  rostratum  Schrad. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. 
M,  undulatum  L.,  passim, 
M,  homum  L.,  passim. 
M.  stellare  Reich. — Sterrage  Valley,  Berrynarbor,  E.  M.  Holmes, 

September,  1903;  "Gardner's"  Lane,  Combemartin,  1905. 
Af,  punctatum  L. — West  Lyn  Valley,  etc.,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor. 
Fontinalis  antipyretica  L. — Combemartin,  1901. 
Cryphwa  heteromalla, — Sterrage  Valley,  E.  M.  Holmes,  September, 

1903. 
Neckera  crispa  Hedw. — Watersmeet,  Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Little 

Hangman,  Combemartin,  1905. 
N,   pumila, — Combemartin,    Rev.    Augustin   Ley;    Berrynarbor 

(Sterrage  Valley),  E.  M.  Holmes,  September,  1903. 
N,    complanata    Hubn. — Brendon    (on    tree-trunks),    C.  A.  B. ; 

Cowley  Bridge,  Kentisbury,  c.  fr.,  January,  1902;  Berrynarbor, 

c.  fr.,  1906. 
Homalia  trichomanoides  Brid. — Lee  Bay,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor 

(Woolscot  Wood),  1901;  Combemartin,  ^(M«tm. 
Leucodon  sciuroides,  Schwgr. — Combemartin,  1906. 
Pterygophyllum    lucens    Brid. — Little    Hangman,    Combemartin, 

February,  1906. 
Pterogonium  gracile  Sw. — Lynmouth,  Ravenshaw,  1877 ;  Valley 

of  Rocks,  Lynton,  July,  1905,  H.  Boydon;  Little  Hangman, 

Combemartin,  February,  1906. 
Hahrodon    Notarisii    Schp. — **0n    elm-trees,    Lynton,    Mr.    J. 

Norrell"    (Holmes    and    Brent's    "Mosses   of    Devon    and 

Cornwall ").    Some  recent  confirmation  of  this  record  is  much 


280        SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON. 

to  be  desired.     The  plant  had  been  known  only  from  Killin, 

Perthshire,   until   Marquand  reported  it  from  Totnes  and 

Ashburton,    and   Cumow   from    Plymouth.     The    plant   in 

appearance  much  resembles  young  Gryph<Ba  heteromalla,  but 

the  nerve  is  absent  in  Hdbrodon  Notarisii} 
Porotriehum  alopecui'um,  passim, — At  Combemartin,  c.  fr.,  1900. 
Leskea  polycarpa  Ehrh. — Banks  of  Taw,  C.  A.  Johns,  September, 

1840  (Hore  Collection). 
Anamodon  vitictdosus  H.  and  T. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;   Berry- 

narbor  and  Combemartin,  passim, 
Leptodon  Smithii  Mohr. — Croyde  Lane,  E.  M.   Holmes,  April, 

1903. 
Thuidium  tamariscinum  B.  and  S.,  passim, 
Pylaisia  polyantha  B.  and  S. — Watersmeet  and  Lee  Bay,  C.  A.  B. 

(on  tree-trunks). 
Orthothecium   intricatum   B.    and    S. — Lynton,  E.   M.   Holmes, 

1877. 
Tsothecium  myurum  Brid. — West  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B.  {Eufhyn- 

chium  myurum  Dixon's  Handbook,  second  edition). 
Camptothecium  sericeum  Kindb.,  passim^  c.  fr. 
C.  lutescens  B.  and  S. — Saunton  Sandhills,  May,  1902,  c.  fr. 
Brachythecium   albicans   B.    and   S. — Ilfracombe   Eoad,    Berry- 

narbor,  September,  1903. 
B,  rutahulum  B.  and  S.,  passim, 
B,  rivulare  B.  and  S. — East  Lyn  Valley  and  at  Lee  Bay,  C.  A.  B. ; 

Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten;  Martinhoe,  1906. 
B,  velutinum  B.  and  S.,  passim, 

B,  populeum, — East  Lyn  Valley  and  Parracombe,  C.  A.  B. 
B.  plumosum  B.  and  S.. — West  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B. 
B,  purum  Dixon,  passim. — At  Combemartin,  c.  fr. 
Eurhynchium  crassinennuin   B.   and   S. — Old   Barnstaple   Road, 

Lynton,  C.  A.  B. 
E,  prcBloiigum  B.  and  S.,  passim,     Var.  h,  Stokesii  (L.  Cat.,  second 

edition).— West  Lyn  Valley,  C.  A.  B. 
E,  Sxcartzii  Hobk. — Lynmouth,  C.  A.  B. ;  Berrynarbor,  February, 

1903. 
E.  pumilum  Schp. — Berrynarbor,  c.  fr. 
E,  ahbreviatum  Schp. — Countisbury  Road,  C.  A.  B. 
E.  tendlum  Milde,  passim, 
E,  myosuroides  Schp.,  passim, 

E,  striatum  B.  and  S. — Brendon  and  Parracombe,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combe- 
martin and  Berrynarbor,  c.  fr. 
E,  rusciforme  Milde,  passim, 
E,  con/ertum  Milde,  passim, 

Plagiothecium  elegans  Sull. — West  Lyn  Valley  and  at  Pinkery 
Pond,  C.  A.B. 

^  Mr.  Mitten  now  writes  that  he  has  found  it  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  at 
Lyme  Regis,  and  by  Windermere,  but  always  barren. 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        281 

P,  denttcttlcUum  B.  and  S.,  passim. 

F,  sylvaiicum  B.  and  S.— Old  Barnstaple  Road,  Lynton,  and  Lee 

Bay,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin. 
P.  undulatum  B.  and  S.— West  Lyn  Valley,  C.A.B. ;  Great  Hang- 
man Bog,  Combemartin. 
Amhlytiegium  serpens  B.   and   S. — Coddon   Hill,   C.  A.   Johns, 

September,  1840  (Hore  Collection);  West  Lyn  Valley  and 

Parracombe,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin. 
A,  irriguum  B.  and  S. — Desolation  Farm,  Countisbury,  C.  A.  B. ; 

"  Seaside,"  Combemartin. 
A,  filicinum  De  Not. — Lady's  Wood,  Combemartin,  C.  A.  Johns, 

April,  1841  (Hore  Collection) ;  spring  at  Parracombe,  C.  A.  B. ; 

Wild  Pear  Bay,  Combemartin. 
llypnum  commutatum  Hedw. — Spring  in  East  Lyn  Valley,  and 

on    Watersmeet    Road,    C.  A.  B. ;    Combemartin,    March, 

1901. 
H,  falcatum  Brid.     Var.  b,  gracilescens  Schp. — Berrynarbor  (on 

the  cliffs),  October,  1905.     A  new  record  for  Devon. 
H.  cupressifonne  L.,  passim,     Var.  b,  resupinatum  Schp. — West 

Lyn     Valley,     C.  A.  B. ;     Berrynarbor     (Sterrage     Valley). 

Var.  </.  filiforme  Brid. — Desolation ;  and  "  a  pretty  interme- 
diate form  at  Lee  Bay,*'  C.  A.  B.     Var.  ericetorum  B.  and  S. 

— Countisbury  and  Saddlegate,  C.  A.  B.     Var.  elatum  B.  and 

S.— Saddlegate,  C.  A.  B. 
n.  molluscum  Hedw.,  passim, — At  Combemartin,  c.  fr. 
H,  palustre  L. — West  Lyn  Valley  (submerged),  C.  A.  B. 
H,  euryngium  Schp. — Lynton  (rare),  Mr.  J.  Norrell,  Ravenshaw, 

1877. 
H,  straminium  Dicks. — Pinkery  Pond,  C.  A.  B. 
H,  c\ispid<Uum  L. — Desolation,  and  East  Lyn  Valley;  Exmoor, 

c.  fr.,  C.  A.  B. ;  Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor. 
//.  Schreberi  Willd. — The  Tors,  Countisbury ;  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. ; 

Combemartin. 
H,  cordi/oUum.     **  A  single  specimen,"  Exmoor,  C.  A.  B. 
H,   splendens  B.   and   S. — Desolation  and  Exmoor   (sparingly), 

C.  A.  B. 
H.  loreum  B.  and  S.,  passim, 

H,  squarrosum  B.  and  S.,  passim, — At  Combemartin,  c.  fr. 
H,  triqueti'um  B.  and  S. 

From  the  foregoing  records  it  will  be  seen  that  to  the 
Moss  Flora  of  the  county,  as  regards  those  rarer  plants  of 
which  alone  previous  records  of  habitats  have  been  kept, 
Mr.  Brigga  has  added  four  species;  and  I  myself  three 
species,  two  sub-species,  and  one  variety.  Mr.  Briggs's 
additions,  besides,  to  that  of  V.  C.  4  (North  Devon)  have 
been  four  species,  one  sub-species,  and  one  variety ;  and  my 
own  four  species. 


282        BOMB  CRTPTOGAMS  OF  NOBTH  DKVON. 

n.  HKPATICiB. 

These  are  all  named  according  to  "The  Moss  Exchange 
Club  Census  Catalogue  of  British  Hepatics,"  compiled  by 
Symers  M.  Macvicar  (October,  1905). 

Riccia    crystallina   L. — Braunton    Burrows,    W.    Mitten,    July, 
1875;  Braunton  Burrows,  E.  M.  Holmes,  April,  1903. 

Targionia  htjpophylla  L. — Ilfracombe  (Barnstaple  Road),   1901, 
c.  fr. ;  and  Berrynarbor  (Sterrage  Valley). 

Rehoxdia  hemisphaerica  Raddi. — Combemartin,  1902,  passim, 

Conocephalum  ccyiiicum  Dum.,  c.  fr. — Combemartin  and   Berry- 
narbor, passim. 

Lunularia  cruciata  Dum. — Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor,  passim. 

Dumortiera  irrigua  Nees. — Combemartin,  October,  1842,  J. 
Ralfs;  July,  1875,  J.  Curnow;  July,  1877,  E.  M.  Holmes; 
"probably  1883,"  W.  CaiTuthers;  Combemartin,  April,  1906. 
This  being  our  distinctive  North  Devon  hepatic,  some  note  on 
its  history  appears  to  be  desirable — the  more  in  that,  so  far  as  1 
am  aware,  no  clear  account  of  tliat  exists.  Indeed,  I  have 
had  some  little  difficulty  in  tracing  it  out,  as  the  accoxmt  in 
Dr.  W.  H.  Pearson's  "  Hepatics  of  the  British  Isles  "  does 
not  go  so  far  back  as  its  original  discovery  in  North  Devon. 
The  first  record  that  work  gives  is,  "Cumow,  Ilfracombe," 
without  date.  A  specimen  (knowledge  of  the  existence  of 
which  I  owe  to  Mr.  Macvicar)  in  the  Edinburgh  Herbarium 
bears  the  label,  "  Combemartin,  Nr.  Ilfracombe,  Devonshire. 
J.  Ralfs,  October,   1842." 

This  is  the  date  of  the  actual  discovery  of  the  plant  by 
Dr.  Ralfs  m  England.  He  was  visiting  Ilfracombe  in  1841, 
etc.  (See  the  "Journal  of  Botany,"  1890,  p.  290,  where,  in 
tlie  obituary  notice,  the  fact  is  mentioned  of  his  being  in 
Ilfracombe  during  that  year.)  It  has  been  most  interesting 
to  me  to  learn  from  Mr.  E.  M.  Holmes,  who  in  1877  visited 
Combemartin  in  order  to  gather  the  Dumortiera,  that  it  was 
Dr.  Ralfs  himself  who  gave  him  the  exact  description  of 
where  the  plant  was  to  be  found.  That  locality  Mr.  Holmes  very 
kindly  communicated  to  me,  and,  by  the  aid  of  a  sketch-map 
he  marked  for  me,  I  was  myself  able  to  discover  the  place  and 
to  gather  a  few  pieces  of  the  plant,  which  I  found  still  grow- 
ing in  fair  quantity  in  the  one  habitat,  not,  however,  more 
than  a  foot  in  extent.  This  after  I  liad  in  vain  searched  for 
it  nearly  every  year  we  have  been  in  Combemartin  I  For 
obvious  reasons  I  do  not  here  name  the  exact  region  where 
it  is  to  be  found,  although  it  is  happily  so  difficult  of  access 
that,  even  if  described,  the  hepatic  could  hardly  be  dis- 
covered witliout  some  one  who  knew  the  spot  to  point  it 
out.  In  1883  ("probably,"  he  is  not  sure  of  the  date) 
Mr.  W.  Camithers,  formerly  of  the  British  Museum,  came  down 


SOME  CBTFTOGAMS  OF  NOBTH  DEVON.        283 

to  get  the  plant,  and  apparently  he,  Mr.  Holmes,  and  myself 
are  the  only  living  people  who  have  gathered  it  in  this  locus 
doMicus,  Cumow  collected  it  in  1875,  and  it  is  to  his 
gathering,  doubtless,  that  Dr.  Pearson's  record  refers.  The 
second  locality  given  by  Pearson  is,  **  Hastings,  S.  M.  Holmes." 
Tlie  "  S  "  here  is  evidently  a  printer's  slip  for  "E."  But  in  this 
statement  there  is  a  slight  error.  It  was,  Mr.  Holmes  tells  me, 
the  late  Mr.  E.  George,  of  Forest  Hill,  who  was  the  discoverer 
of  the  Sussex  locality.  Not  recognizing  the  plant,  he  sub- 
mitted it  to  Mr.  Holmes  for  identification  ;  hence  probably  the 
confusion.  The  date  of  Mr.  George's  "  find  "  Mr.  Holmes  does 
not  remember.  But  a  specimen  sent  from  Hastings  to  Cumow 
in  1882  by  ^fr.  G.  Da  vies,  of  Brighton,  who  was  informed  of 
its  existence  at  Hastings  by  Mr.  Holmes,  shows  that  Mr. 
George  must  have  discovered  the  plant  there  before  that  year. 

A  note  in  Ravenshaw's  "  North  Devon  Guide  "  (1877)  first 
aroused  in  me  the  sense  that  it  was  necessary  to  seek  con- 
firmation of  the  dates  and  localities  there  alluded  to.  The 
note  runs  as  follows  under  the  locality  **  Combemartin " : 
"  The  wood  (in  which  the  plant  grew)  has  been  cut  down,  but 
Mr.  Ralfs  tells  me  that  the  plant  was  gathered  in  1874  in  its 
old  station,  whence  thirty  years  ago  it  was  first  recorded  as  an 
English  plant.  It  has  since  been  reported  from  Dartmoor 
and  near  Torquay  by  Dr.  Carington." 

The  spelling  of  Dr.  Carrington's  name  with  a  single  "  r  "  is 
one  indication  of  a  certain  want  of  close  acquaintance  with 
the  details  of  the  matter  that  marks  the  paragraph.  The 
1874  gathering  of  which  Dr.  Ralfs  told  Ravenshaw  may  be 
the  one  of  Curnow's  specimen  labelled  "July,  1875."  In 
1877  the  actual  date  of  Dr.  Ralfs'  find  was  thirty-five  years 
ago,  not  "  thirty." 

I  regret  that,  so  far,  I  have  been  unable  to  discover  the 
records  of  Dr.  Carrington's  "finds"  in  South  Devon. 
Professor  Weiss,  of  the  Victoria  University,  Manchester,  has 
very  kindly  looked  through  for  me  the  specimens  that  exist 
in  Dr.  Carrington's  collections  in  the  museum  at  Owens 
College,  but  none  are  from  South  Devon.  Dr.  W.  H.  Pearson 
writes  to  mc  just  as  this  is  ready  for  the  press  that  he  has 
found  in  that  collection  a  packet  labelled  "  Dumortiera  irrigua 
Nees. — Combemartin,  J.  Ralfs,  October,  1842.  Ex.  herb. 
Wils."  Evidently  this  is  part  of  the  same  gathering  as  the 
Edinburgh  Herbarium  specimen,  and  one  sent  by  Dr.  Ralfs  to 
William  Wilson,  the  great  bryologist. 

This  account  refers  only  to  the  English  habitats  of  the 
plant.  In  Ireland  it  was  discovered  as  long  ago  as  1820 
by  Dr.  Taylor  at  Blackwater  Bridge,  near  Dunkerton ;  and  in 
1829  in  a  glen  near  Fermoyle  by  William  Wilson,  who  first 
published  it  as  a  native  of  the  British  Isles  in  his  "  English 


284       SOME  CRTPT06AMS  OF  NOBTH  DEVON. 

Flora,"  1833.     Since  then  it  has  heen  found  in  several  Irish 
localities. 

Aneura  pinguis  Dum. — Berrynarbor,  1901 ;  Martinhoe,  1906. 

A,  mtdtifida  Dum. — Lynton,  August,  1875,  W.  Mitten;  Berry- 
narbor, March,  1904.  Var.  ambrosioides  Nees. — Lynton, 
W.  Mtten,  1875. 

A.  sinuata  Limpr. — Trentishoe,  August,  1874,  W.  Mitten. 

A.  latifrons  Lindb. — Dfracombe  Road,  Berrynarbor,  March,  1905, 
c.  fr. 

Metzgeria  furcata  Lindb.,  gemmiferous  form. — Little  Hangman 
Hill  (on  a  wall),  Combemartin,  Kovember,  1903;  and  on 
Watermouth  Headland,  near  Ilfracombe,  in  parish  of  Berry- 
narbor, March,  1904. 

M,  conjugata  Ldb. — Combemartin,  June,  1902. 

Pdlia  endivicefolia  Dum. — Ilfracombe  Road,  September,  1903, 
c.  fr.,  and  Loxhore,  August,  1906,  with  gemmae. 

P.  epiphylla,  Dum. — Combemartin,  February,  1901,  c.  fr. 

Petalophyllum  Bal/sii  Gottsche — Ravenshaw,  1877;  Saunton, 
1898,  E.  M.  Tindall. 

Fossomhronia  pusilla  Dum. — Saimton,  1898,  E.  M.  Tindall; 
Combemartin,  February,  1906;  Loxhore,  Aug.,  1906,  c.  fr. 

F,  Miitenii  Tindall. — Road  between  Parracombe  and  Barnstaple, 
July,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 

This  is  the  only  known  locality  for  the  species,  and  since 
Mr.  Mitten  found  it  there  it  has  not  been  collected  at  all.  A 
search  by  myself  this  summer  for  it  has  failed,  as  did  Mrs. 
Tindairs  some  years  ago,  although  she  had  Mitten's  own 
directions  as  to  tlie  exact  spot  where  he  gathered  it. 

Marmpella  emarginata  Dum. — Castle  Hill,  Combemartin,  April, 
1905,  c.  fr. 

Nardia  scdlaris  Gray. — Combemartin,  1903. 

N,  minor  Arnell. — Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 

N,  hydlina  Carr. — Loxhore,  W.  Mitten. 

Aplozia  cremdata  Dum.  Var.  h,  gracillima  Sm.  —  Combe- 
martin, March,  1904. 

A,  riparia  Dum. — "Gardner's**  Lane,  Combemartin,  March, 
1906. 

Lojyliozia  turbinata, — Lynmouth,  1875,  W.  Mitten;  Combe- 
martin, 1901. 

L.  Mulleri  Dum.  Var.  6.  hantriensis  Hook. — Martinhoe,  1875, 
W.  Mitten. 

L,  ventrtco8a 'Dum. — Lynmouth,  1902;  Combemartin,  1904. 

L.  cdpestris  Evans. — Wooda  Bay,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 

L,  Floerkii  Schffn.— Martinhoe  Cliffs,  1875,  W.  Mitten.  Var.  6. 
Baueriana  Schffn. — Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 

Plagiochila  spintdosa  Dum. — Combemartin,  April,  1 904. 

P,  asplenioides  Dum. — Combemartin,  1899.  Var.  c,  Dillenii 
Tayl.— Martinhoe  Cliffs,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 


SOBIE  CRYPTOGAMS   OF  NORTH  DEVON. 


285 


Lophoeolea  bidentcUa,  Dum. — Combemartin,  1902. 

L,  alata^  Mitt. — Lyninouth,  August,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 

"This  hitherto  undescribed  species  has  the  aspect  of 
Lophoeolea  hidentata^  but  the  angles  of  tlie  triquetrous 
perianth  are  all  widely  alate;  the  alea  dentate.  The  name 
*alata*  has  been  taken  from  the  *  Synopsis  Hepaticorum,' 
wherein,  at  p.  159,  is  described  a  specimen  whicli  Dr.  Taylor 
sent  from  his  residence  Dunkerrow,  and  which  appeared  to 
the  authors  of  that  work  to  be  a  monstrous  variety  of 
L.  hidentata^  and  they  made  it  Var.  g,  alata.  No  si)ecimen8 
of  this  Irish  plant  are  available,  but  the  term  *  alata'  is  so 
apposite  to  the  Devon  plant  that  it  has  been  thus  used.  So 
different  in  its  perianth  from  all  other  British  species,  yet 
nearly  allied  to  the  L.  coadunata  of  Swartz.  from  Jamaica, 
having,  like  it,  free  floral  leaves  and  amphigastrium  oval,  yet 
appearing  different  in  areola tion,  and  also  in  stature  a  little 
more  robust.  It  was  overlooked  until  more  recently  in  a 
search  for  distinctive  characters  among  these  bidentate  species 
so  variously  described.  All  are  probably  monoicous,  but  the 
synonymy  is  so  confusing  that  the  right  ai)i)ortioning  of  the* 
names  is  difficiUt." 


Lophoeolea  alata  Mitt.,  n.  sp.     Much  magnified. 

This  description,  with  figure  accompanying,  was  sent  me 
by  Mr.  Mitten  in  a  letter  on  2l8t  June,  1906. 

L.  sjncafa  Tayl. — Lynmouth,  1875,  W.  ^Mitten. 
L,  heterophylla  Dum. — Combemartin,  March,  1904. 
Chiloscijphus  poli/anthos  Coi-da. — Lynmouth,  November,  1902. 

^  This  is  the  new  Bi)ecie8  alluded  to  in  the  Introduction  to  this  paper  that 
Mr.  Mitten  allows  me  to  publish  first  to  this  gathering  of  the  Devon- 
shire Association. 


286  SOME  CBYFTOQAMS  OF  NORTH  DKTOIL 

Saceogyna  vUiculo$a  Dum. — Wooda  Bay  (abundant  and  fruiting), 

September,    1875,    W.    Mitten;    Combemartin,    Febraaiy, 

1901. 
Cephalozia  bicuspidatu  Dum. — Combemartin,  1905. 
Kantia  Trichoniania  Gray. — Combemartin,  1904. 
K,  Sprengelii  Pears. — Combemartin,  March,  1904. 
A',  arguta  Lindb. — Berry narbor,  September,  1903,  K  M.  Holmes. 
Lepidozia  reptans  Dum. — litUe   Hangman  Hill,   Combemartin, 

April,  1904. 
PtUidium  ciliare  Hamj^e. — Trentishoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Trichocdea  tonienteila  Dum. — Ladv's  Wood  Valley,  Berrynarbor, 

1899 ;  and  Glen  Lyn,  July,  1906. 
Diplophyllum    albicans   Dum. — Combemartin   and   Berrynarbor, 

1899,  passim. 
Sc4ipania  compada  Dum. — Berrynarbor,  February,  1906,  c.  fr. 
S.  aspera  Bernet. — Trentishoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
S,  gracilis  Kaal. — Little  Hangman,  Combemartin,  April,  1904. 
RadiUa  HoUiu—Lynton,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Madotheca     laevigata     Dum. — Lynmouth,      November,     1902; 

Lynton,  W.  Borrer. 
M,  platyphylla  Dum. — Hfracombe,  September,  1905. 
Lejeunea  cavifolia  Ldb.    Var.  c,  heterophyUa  Carr. — Combemartin, 

1905. 
L,  patens  Lindb. — Lynmouth,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Drepanolejeunea    hamatifolia     Schfl&i. — Lynmouth,     1875,    W. 

Mitten. 
Harpalejeunea  ovata  Schffn. — Lynmouth,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Marcliesinia  Mackaii  S.  F.  Gray. — Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
Juhula  Hutchinsiae  Dum. — Lynmouth,  1875,  \V.  Mitten. 
Frullania  Tamarisci  Dum. — Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor,  1899. 
F.  microphylla  Pears. — Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
F,  fragilifolia  Tayl. — Martinhoe,  1875,  W.  Mitten. 
F.  dilatata  Dum.,  passim. 
Anthoceros  laevis  L. — Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor,  May,  1905, 

c.  fr. 
A.  punctatus  L. — Combemartin  and  Berrynarbor,  May,  1905. 

Of  the  62  hepatics  here  enumerated  only  6  are  given  for 
V.  C.  4  in  the  "Moss  Exchange  Club  Census  Catalogue," 
October,  1905.  The  remaining  56  are,  therefore,  all  new 
records  for  the  vice-county.  Of  these  fresh  records,  one  is 
by  Mr.  E.  M.  Holmes,  another  by  Mrs.  Tindall,  20  by 
Wm.  Mitten,  and  34  by  myself. 

III.    ALGiE. 

The  shores  of  North  Devon  come  under  Section  6  of 
the  fourteen  littoral  districts  into  which,  for  the  purpose  of 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        287 

algological  records,  the  firitish  Isles  were  divided  by  Messrs. 
Batters  and  Holmes,  as  set  forth  in  the  Preface  and 
Appendix  to  their  standard  work:  '*A  Bevised  List  of 
British  Marine  Algae,"  by  E.  M.  Holmes,  F.L.8.,  and  K  A.  L. 
Batters,  B.A.,  LL.B.,  F.L.S.,  reprinted,  in  1892,  from  the 
"  Annals  of  Botany,"  Vol.  V.  To  this  work,  in  the  "  Journal 
of  Botany"  for  1902,  Dr.  Batters  added  a  Supplementary 
List.  It  is  after  these  lists  all  the  Algae  given  here  are 
named.  It  is  greatly  to  be  regretted  that  the  handbook  on 
the  subject  by  these  two  authorities,  alluded  to  in  the  1892 
list  as  **  already  in  progress,"  and  which,  they  there  say, 
"  we  hope  to  publish  at  a  later  date,"  has,  in  this  year  1906, 
not  yet  seen  the  light.  The  work  is  much  needed,  Mr. 
Holmes  alone  having  added  to  our  British  Marine  Flora 
some  two  hundred  species,  of  which  no  single  text-book 
gives  a  complete  account.  The  list  of  species  found  by  him 
on  this  coast,  which  he  has  worked  from  Clovelly  to  Lynton, 
will,  however,  I  understand,  be  published  in  the  "  Victoria 
History  of  the  County  of  Devon,"  although  without  exact 
localities.  -  These  have,  so  far  as  concerns  species  new  to  the 
British  Flora,  already  appeared  either  in  "Grevillea"  or 
in  Mr.  Holmes'  own  eleven  fasciculi,  "Algae  Britannicae 
Eariores."  To  none  of  these  sources  of  information  have  I 
been  able  to  gain  access.  I  can,  therefore,  include  in  my 
list  only  such  of  Mr.  Holmes*  localities  as  I  happen  to  have 
remembered,  or  he  has  himself  added  in  very  kindly 
revising  my  own  list. 

Other  and  earlier  records  of  this  part  of  Section  6 — a 
section  that  in  its  entirety  includes  all  the  coast  and 
islands  on  the  west  from  the  Great  Orme's  Head  to  the 
Land's  End — are  to  be  found  in  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Here's  great 
coUection  of  British  and  Foreign  Seaweeds,  already  alluded 
to  as  in  the  North  Devon  Athenaeum  at  Barnstaple.  The 
same  institution  also  possesses  a  set  of  miscellaneous  Algae 
collected  by  Mrs.  Griffiths,  evidently  the  remnants  of  her 
numerous  gatherings,  and  chiefly  interesting  as  having  with 
them  notes  of  her  correspondence  with  Dr.  Greville  and 
other  leading  algologists  of  her  day.  To  a  Devonshire 
audience  it  is  perhaps  hardly  necessary  to  state  that  this 
lady,  once  of  Torquay,  but  who  passed  the  last  years  of  her 
life  in  the  home  of  her  family  at  Pilton,  Barnstaple,  was,  in 
her  time,  as  Dr.  Harvey  described  her,  ''facile  Eegina  of 
British  algologists."  To  her  Dr.  Harvey,  himself  amongst 
the  greatest  of  our  early  systematists  in  this  branch  of 
science,  dedicated  his  "  Manual  of  the  British  Marine  Algae." 


288        SOME  CRTPTOOABfS  OF  NORTH  DEVON. 

He  writes  there  of  her  as  "a  lady  whose  long-continaed 
researches  have,  more  than  those  of  any  other  observer  in 
Britain,  contributed  to  the  present  advanced  state  of  British 
Marine  Botany/'  and  says  that  his  volume  owes  much 
of  whatever  value  it  may  possess  to  her  liberal  donations  of 
rare  specimens,  and  her  accurate  observations  upon  them. 

At  a  meeting  of  this  Association  in  the  region  of  Devon 
where  they  worked,  it  is  fitting  and  gladdening  to  recall 
the  names  of  these  earlier  students  who  made  of  our  shores 
and  moors  classic  ground  for  algologista  and  bryologists. 

The  coast  from  Saunton  to  Countisbury  is  that  which 
comes  within  the  limits  prescribed  by  the  title  of  this 
paper.  I  hope  to  go  on  working  the  Combemartin  region, 
and  it  is  much  to  be  desired  that  some  one  would  make  that 
about  Lynmouth  his  special  field  of  research.  Doubtless 
many  discoveries  remain  to  be  made  there,  especially  by  one 
able  to  dredge  for  deep-water  weeds.  Shells  and  rejectamenta 
brought  in  by  fishermen  frequently  have  on  them  rare 
microscopic  algae,  and  furnish  a  good  field  for  exploration 
and  examination. 

Oscillaria  sancta  Gem. — Ilfracombe,   September,    1903,   E.    M. 

Holmes.     New  to  Britain. 
Enteromorpha  compre^a  Grev.,  passim, 
Ulva  latissima  J.  Ag.,  passim, 

Codiolum  greganum  A.  Br. — Lynmouth,  1883,  E.  M.  Holmes. 
Endoderma  viride  Lagerh.,  parasitic  on  Ahnfdtia  plicata^  Fries. 

— Wild  Pear  Bay,  Combemartin,  June,  1904.     A  new  record 

for  North  Devon. 
Chaetomorpha  tortuosa  Kiitz. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
C,  aerea^  Kiitz. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Rhizoclonium  implexum  Batt. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Cladophora  rupestris  Kiitz.,  passim, 
C.  alhida  Kiitz. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

C,  lanosa  KUtz — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Bryopsis  hypnoides  Lamour. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Derhesia  fenuissima  Cm. — Watermouth,  E.  M.  Holmes,  Septem- 
ber, 1903. 

Desmaresfia  a^uleata  Lamx. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

D.  ligidatay  Lamx. — Combemartin,  1906. 

Striana  attenuata^  Grev. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Pundaria plantaginea  Grev. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Ectocarpus  Holmesii  Batt. — Ilfracoml)e,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Acliinetospoi-a    pusilla    Born.     Yar.    crinita    Batt. — Ilfracombe, 

Suppl.  List,  1902. 
Ectocarpus   Sandriamis   Zan. — Ilfracombe    and    Saunton,    1903, 

E.  M.  Holmes. 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON.        289 

E,  gramdasua  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

E.  viicrospongtum  Batt. — Combemartin,  1903,  E.  M.  Holmes. 

JE,  ovatus  Kjellm.  Var.  arachnoideus  Rke. — Ilfracombe,  May, 
1892,  E.  M.  Holmes.     The  only  known  British  locality. 

Phheospora  brachiata  Born. — Ilfracombe  (margin  of  ladies* 
bathing  pool,  on  R,  palmata),  Ravenshaw,  1877. 

PylaieUa  litoralis  Kjellm. — Hele,  November,  1859  (Hore  Collec- 
tion). 

Sphacelaria  cirrhosa  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  January,  1860  (Hore 
Collection). 

8.  plumigera  Holm. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

Cladostephua  spangiosns  J.  Ag. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  April, 
1904.     New  record  for  North  Devon. 

(7.  verticillafus  C.  Ag. — Seaside,  Combemartin,  March,  1906. 

Halopteris  filicina  Kiitz. — Hele,  January,  1860  (Hore  Collection) ; 
Hele,  September,  1903,  E.  M.  Holmes;  Combemartin,  June, 
1906. 

Stypocaulon  scoparium  Kiitz. — Hele,  January,  1860  (Hore  Collec- 
tion). 

MijHonema  stranrjulans  Ore  v.,  on  Nitophyllum  lacercUum  Grev., 
Combemartin,  May,  1905.     New  record  for  North  Devon. 

Petrospongiuvi  Berkeleyi  Niig. — Hele,  E,  M.  Holmes,  September, 
1903;  Combemartin,  July,  1906. 

Leathesia  difformis  Aresch. — Hele,  E.  M.  Holmes,  September, 
1903. 

Scytosiphon  lovientarius  J.  Ag. — Combemartin,  1906. 

Laminar ia  saccharina  Lamx.,  passim, 

L.  digitata  Edm.,  passim,  f.  stenophj/Ua  Harv. — Combemartin, 
June,  1906. 

Alaria  esculenta  Grev. — Below  Trentishoe. 

Fucus  platycarpus  Thur. — Com])emartin,  June,  1903. 

F,  vesicnlosHS  Linn.,  passim, 
F,  serratiis  Linn.,  passim, 
Ascophyllum  nodosum  Le  Jol.,  passim, 
Pelveiia  canalicuiata  Dene  et  Thur.,  passim, 

Bifnrcaria  ttiberculata  Stackh. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

Halidrys  siliqtiosa  Lyngb.,  passim. 

Cystoseira  ericoides  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

C,  grantUata  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  December,  1859  (Hore  Collection). 

C,  discors  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1903. 

Tilopteris  Mei'tensil  Kiitz. — "On  mud-covered  rocks  and  stones 
between  Rillage  Point  and  Watermouth,"  Ravenshaw,  1 877. 

Dictyota  dichotoma  Lamx. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  and  Combe- 
martin, 1904. 

Taonia  atomaria  J.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902, 
Mortehoe,  E.  George. 

Dictyopteris  polypodioides  Lamx. — Ilfracombe,  December,   1859 
(Hore  Collection). 
VOL.  XXXVIII.  T 


290  BOMS  CBTFTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DIYON. 

Bangia  fusco-purpurea  Lyngb. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List^  1903. 

Porphyra  lin^iis  Grev.,  passim, 

Choreocolax  PolystphonioB  Beinsch.  on  Polysiphonia  elongaia 
Grev. — Combemartin,  September,  1903.  New  record  for 
North  Devon. 

Harveyella  pachyderma  Batt.  on  Gracilaria  eon/enxndes  L. — 
Combemartin,  September,  1903.     New  record  for  Devon. 

Pterocladia  capiUacea  Bornet. — Combemartiil,  1904. 

Oelidium  comeum^  Lamx.,  f.  aculeata  Grev.,  Suppl.  list^  1903; 
and  f.  pinnatum  Turn. — Combemartin,  1906. 

Chondrus  crispus  Stackh.,  passim^  f.  patens  Tiu:n. — Combemartin, 
1906. 

Oigartina  acicularis  Lamx. — Combemartin,  December,  1859  (Hore 
Collection);  Hele,  E.  M.  Holmes,  1903;  Combemartin, 
March,  1905. 

O,  mamillosa  J.  Ag.,  passim, 

Phyllophora  rubens  Grev. — Combemartin. 

Ph,  Traillii  Holm,  et  Batt. — Combemartin,  1906.  New  record  for 
North  Devon. 

Ph,  palmettoides  J.  Ag. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  March,  1905. 
New  record  for  North  Devon. 

Ph,  membranifolia  J.  Ag. — Combemartin,  1904. 

Stenogramme  tnterrupta  Mont. — Combemartin,  E.  M.  Holmes, 
September,  1903.     A  new  record  for  North  Devon. 

The  finding  of  another  locality  for  this  very  rare  deep- 
water  weed  is  of  great  interest,  as  the  following  note  respect- 
ing it,  taken  from  Harvey's  "Phycologia  Britannica,"  1851, 
shows.     He  writes : — 

"This  very  interesting  plant,  by  far  the  most  important 
addition  lately  made  to  the  British  Marine  Flora,  was  dis- 
covered on  the  21st  October,  1846,  by  Dr.  John  Cocks,  of 
Plymouth,  on  the  shore  at  Bovisand,  near  Plymouth.  A  few 
days  subsequently  it  was  met  with  in  a  neighbouring  station 
by  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Hore  .  .  . ;  and  to  the  imtiring  persever- 
ance of  these  two  gentlemen,  who,  day  by  day,  during  the 
inclement  month  of  November,  in  all  weathers,  visited  the 
shore  and  preserved  every  scrap  which  the  wind  threw  up,  we 
are  indebted  for  all  the  British  specimens  which  have  been 
taken  of  the  Stenogramme." 

Since  that  date  Mr.  Holmes  had  collected  the  plant  at 
Torpoint  previously  to  his  discovery  of  it  at  Combemartin, 
where  some  of  the  specimens  had  cystocarps,  and  others 
tetraspores. 

Oymnogongrns  Grt'ffithsice  Mart. — Wildersmouth,  November,  1859; 
Combemartin,  December,  1859;  Haggington,  January,  1860 
(Hore  Collection) ;  Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  March,  1905. 

O,  norvegicus  J.  Ag. — Hele,  Mrs.  Griffiths,  March ;  Combemartin, 
September,  1905,  c.  fr. 


SOME  CEYPT0GAM8  OF  NOETH  DEVON.  291 

Ahnfdtia  plicaia  Fries. — Combemartin,  April,  1905. 

Aetinacoceus  aggregatus  Schmitz  on  Gymnogongrus  Griffiihsiae 
Mart. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  April,  1905.  New  record 
for  North  Devon. 

Stereocolax  decipiens  Schmitz  on  Ahnfeltia  plicaia  Fries. — Combe- 
martin, April,  1905.     New  record  for  North  Devon. 

Callophi/llis  laciniata  Kiitz.,  passim, 

CHabellata  Cm. — Combemartin,  February,  1906. 

Callocolax  neglecta  Schmitz  on  Callophyllis  flahdlata  Cm. — 
Combemartin,  February,  1906. 

Callymenia  renifannU  J.  Ag.,  passim, 

C,  microphylla,  J.  Ag. — Hele,  E.  M.  Holmes,  1903 ;  Combe- 
martin, April,  1905.     "With  cystocarps. 

C,  Larteri  Holm. — Combemartin,  1906. 

Mr.  Holmes  has  provisionally  given  this  name  to  a  plant 
differing  much  in  form  and  ramification  from  C.  reni/ormis 
until  sufficient  material  enables  him  to  say  whether  it  should 
be  regarded  as  a  variety  of  that  species  or  a  distinct  species. 

Cystoclanium  purpurascens  Kiitz,  jmssivi, 

Catendla  Opuntia  Grev. — Hele,  September,  1903,  E.  M.  Holmes. 

RhofiophyUis  bifida  Kiitz. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

R,  appendiculata  J.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Suppl.  List,  1902. 

GracUaria  confervoides  Grev. — Combemartin,  September,  1903. 

Callible2)haris  dliata  Kiitz,  passim, 

C.  juhata  Kiitz,  passim, 

Rhaiymenia  paZmetta  Grev. — Hele,  March,  1860  (Hore  Collec- 
tion) ;  Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  April,  1903. 

R,  palmata  Grev.,  passim, 

Lomentaria  articulata  Lyngb.,  passim. 

Chylocladia  ovalis  Hook. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  April,  1905. 

C  refleza  Lenorm. — Haggington,  Ilfracombe,  1834  (Hore  Collec- 
tion).   Both  sides  of  Hele  beach,  E.  M.  and  K.  Holmes,  1903. 

Plocamium  coccineum  Lyngb.,  passim, 

NilophyUum  Gmelini  Harv. — Ilfracombe,  Mrs.  Griffiths  (Hore 
Collection) ;  Combemartin,  1 906.     With  tetraspores. 

There  was  at  first  a  question  if  this  would  not  prove  to  be 
the  Mediterranean  species  N,  Sandrianum  J.  Ag.  Mr.  Holmes 
80  labelled  the  first  specimen  I  sent  him.  On  the  latest  he 
has,  however,  now  written :  "  I  think  Dr.  Bornet  would  call  this 
Nitophf/Uum  Sandrianum ;  I  should  call  it  ISHophyllum 
Gmelini  approaching  SandrianumJ^  In  an  exi)lanatory 
letter,  accompanying  the  return  of  this  and  four  other 
examples  of  the  same  Alga  I  was  able  to  send  him  from 
Combemartin,  he  writes  as  follows ; — 

"My  Mediterranean  specimens  of  N.  Sandrianum  from 
Minorca  have  a  much  more  starved  appearance;  the  central 
nerve  of  the  branches  is  more  pronounced,  and  the  tetraajwres 
are  in  rounded  spots  along  the  maxgin,  rather  than  in  clouds 

t2 


292        SOME  CRYPTOGAMS  OF  NORTH  DEVON. 

or  continuous  sori.  Still,  these  are  characters  that  may  be 
due  to  the  situation,  and  some  of  the  Cornish  specimens  are 
almost  exactly  similar  to  the  Mediterranean  ones,  except  that 
they  are  more  luxuriant.  I  do  not  find  that  the  ciliate 
character  of  the  fronds  is  sufficient  to  separate  Sandrianum 
from  Omelinif  for  both  have  it.  But  the  Gmelini  of  still 
waters  is  broader  and  more  purplish;  that  of  the  open  sea 
redder  and  narrower,  and  more  divided.  ...  In  any  case, 
the  plant  of  Minehead  and  Combemartin  is  intermediate 
between  the  Cornish  narrow  form  and  the  broad  purplish 
Weymouth  and  Plymouth  form." 

N,  laceratum  Grev.,  passim,  f.  uneinatum  Grev. — Combemartin, 
July,  1906.     f.  Smithii  Kutz.— Combemartin,  July,  1906. 

N,  reptans  Cm. — Combemartin,  May,  1905.  New  record  for 
North  Devon. 

N.  Bonnemaisanii  Grev. — Ilfracombe  (Hore  Collection);  Combe- 
martin, 1906. 

N,  versicolor,  Harv. — Ilfracombe,  1808  (Hore  Collection) ;  Combe- 
martin, July,  1906. 

Delesseria  alata  Lamx.,  passim, 

D.  Hypoglossum  Lamx.,  passim, 

D,  sinuosa  Lamx.,  passim, 

D,  sanguinea  Lamx.,  passim.     Very  fine  in  Watermouth  Caves. 

ETiodomela  suhfusca  C.  Ag.,  passim, 

Laurencia  pinnatifiJa  Lamx.,  passim. 

PolysipTionia  elongella  Harv. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor,  September, 
1903. 

P,  elongata  Grev. — Combemartin,  September,  1903. 

P,  furc^llata  Harv. — Ilfracombe  (Hore  Collection). 

P,  fastigiata  Grev.,  2)aA8im, 

P,  Ehunensis  Born. — Ilfracombe,  R.  V.  Tellam ;  and  August,  1883, 
E.  M.  Holmes. 

Dasya  ocellata  Harv. — Hole,  Ravenshaw,  "  Bot.  of  North  Devon," 
1877. 

Lophothdlia  hyssoides  J.  Ag. — Combemartin,  1906.  New  record 
for  North  Devon. 

D,  coccinea  C.  Ag.,  passim, 

Pf ilothamnion  pluma  ThuT, — Combemartin,  March,  1905. 

Oriffithsia  setacea  C.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  J.  W.  Rohloflf  (Hore 
Collection). 

Halurus  eguisetifolius  Kiitz. — Hfracombe,  December,  1859  (Hore 
(Collection). 

Rhodochorton  Eothii  Nag. — Combemartin,  September,  1903. 

Cdllithamnioii  polyspermum  J.  Ag. — Sandy  Bay,  Berrynarbor, 
February,  1905. 

C.  tetragonum  C.  Ag.,  f.  brachiata  J.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  Mrs. 
Griffiths  (Hore  Collection). 

C.  tetricum  J.  Ag.,  passim. 


SOME  CRYPTOGAMS   OF  NORTH  DEVON.  293 

Compsothamnioii  thuyotdes  Schmitz. — Hele,  Ravenshaw,  "Botany 
of  North  Devon,"  1877. 

Aniith amnion  plumula  Thur.  and  f.  horridtdum. — Combemartin, 
July,  1 906.     The  var.  a  new  record  for  North  Devon. 

A.  harbatum  Holm,  et  Batt. — Hele,  August,  1883,  E.  M.  Holmes. 

Ceramium  rubrum  C.  Ag.,  passim, 

C.  acanthonotum  Carrn.,  f.  transcurrens  Kiitz. — Combemartin,  May, 
1906. 

C,  ienuissimum  J.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  E.  M.  Holmes. 

C,  flahelligerum  J.  Ag. — Ilfracombe,  J.  Ralfs  (Hore  Collection) ; 
Combemartin,  June,  1906. 

Orateloupia  jUicina  C.  Ag.,  f.  intermedia  Holm,  et  Batt. — Combe- 
martin, December,  1859  (Hore  Collection);  Combemartin, 
September,  1903. 

Dumontia  filifomiis  Grev. — Mortehoe,  April,  1860  (Hore  Collec- 
tion) ;  Combemartin,  1906. 

Dilsea  edvlis  Stackh.,  passim, 

Furcellana  fastigiata  Lamx.,  2>o^''^^' 

Polijides  rotundus  Grov.,  passim, 

Mehbesia  Laminariie  Cm. — Combemartin,  December,  1905.  New 
record  for  North  Devon. 

M,  CoralUncB  Cm. — Combemartin,  December,  1905.  New  record 
for  North  Devon. 

Lithophyllum  inct-ustans  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1905. 
New  reconl  for  North  Devon. 

L,  crouani  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1905. 

Lithothamnion  corticiforme  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1905. 

L,  lichenoides  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1905. 

L,  Lenormandi  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1905.  New 
record  for  North  Devon. 

Phymatolithon  polymorph  um  Fosl. — Combemartin,  December,  1 905. 

Corallina  officinalis  L.,  passim. 

Of  those  of  the  above  Algae  foiind  by  myself  sixteen 
species  are  new  vice-county  records  for  North  Devon,  one  is 
new  for  the  whole  county,  and  one  is  new  to  science. 


Note. — Two  days  after  this  paper  was  read  at  Lynton  Mr.  Mitten 
passed  away,  on  20th  July,  1906,  just  one  month  after  his  latest 
communication  to  me  so  continually  referred  to  in  these  pages. 

C.  E.  L. 


PAGES  FROM  A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY 
OF   HATHERLEIGH. 

BT  JOHN   M.    MARTIN,    C.E. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Concerning  the  three  "Hatherleigh  Worthies  of  the 
Seventeenth  Century  "  who  were  introduced  to  the  Associa- 
tion by  Sir  Roper  Lethbridge  at  Teignmouth  two  years  ago, 
much  information  is  to  be  found  in  a  manuscript  history  of 
Hatherleigh  now  lying  before  me. 

Of  one  of  these  three  kinsmen,  Bartholomew  Yeo,  Sir 
Roper  tells  us  that  on  St.  Bartholomew's  Day,  1662,  he  was 
ejected  from  Merton  rectory,  and  according  to  Calamy 
**  preached  the  Gospel  [of  course,  as  a  Nonconformist]  in 
Hatherleigh."  And  Calamy  adds,  "In  the  next  parish  to 
which,  and  in  a  kinsman's  house,  he  resigned  his  soul  to  God 
in  February  1693.'*  This  was  doubtless  at  Dunsland  Court, 
in  Jacobstowe,  the  home  of  Thomas  Lethbridge,  whose  son 
John  at  this  time  was  rector  of  Jacobstowe,  and  married  to 
the  granddaughter  of  Bartholomew  Yeo's  sister  Jacquet. 
Dunsland  nearly  adjoins  Deckport,  and  here  Bartholomew 
Yeo  was  living  within  an  easy  walk  of  numerous  friends  and 
relations,  amongst  whose  names  occurs  that  of  his  brother 
Leonard  Yeo,  at  Reed,  in  Hatherleigh. 

In  connection  with  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  in 
Hatherleigh,  the  MS.  gives  particulars  which,  though  they 
differ  on  a  point  or  two  from  the  preceding  account,  are  in 
the  main  confirmatory  thereof,  and  also  supply  much  fuller 
information. 

The  MS.  says  that  •*  Bartholomew  Yeo,  Rector  of  Huish," 
(not  Merton)  "  was  deprived  of  his  living  on  the  passing  of 
the  Uniformity  Act,  a.d.  1662,  and  came  to  reside  with  his 
brother"  (Leonard  Yeo)  "at  Reed,  where  he  established  a 
Presbyterian  Meeting  which  was  afterwards  removed  to  the 
Meeting-house  behind  Mr.  CoUins's,  erected  1712.     He  was 


A  MAinJSCRIFT  HISTORY  OF  HATHERLIIGH*  295 

buried  in  the  Chancel  of  Hatherleigh  Church  on  the  first 
day  of  February,  1693,  in  the  76th  year  of  his  age." 

The  entry  in  the  Register  of  the  burial  of  Bartholomew 
Yeo  emphasizes  the  fact  that  having  been  ejected  from  his 
living  he  was  no  longer  to  be  recognized  as  a  clergyman  of 
the  Church  of  England,  although  his  remains  were  per- 
mitted to  be  laid  in  the  Chancel.  It  runs  thus:  "Mr. 
Bartholomew  Yeo,  Minister,  was  buried  Ist  February,  1693  " ; 
and  the  entry  recording  the  burial  of  his  wife,  who  pre- 
deceased her  husband,  is  couched  in  similar  terms :  "  Mary 
the  Wife  of  Bartholomew  Yeo,  Minister,  was  buried  y®  24th 
June  1669." 

We  are  not  told  where  these  Presbyterians  held  their 
meetings  during  the  nineteen  years  which  elapsed  between 
Bartholomew  Yeo's  death  and  the  building  of  the  Meeting- 
house, but  are  left  to  assume  that  his  brother  Leonard,  with 
whom  he  lived  at  Eeed  where  he  established  the  Presby- 
terian meetings,  held  the  same  religious  convictions  as  he 
did,  and  therefore  allowed  them  to  be  continued  at  Eeed 
until  the  Meeting-house  was  built  in  1712. 

That  the  services  were  continued  during  that  period  we 
may  learn  from  a  deed  by  one  Mary  Tucker,  bearing  date 
the  twenty-sixth  day  of  December,  in  the  fourth  year  of  the 
reign  of  Q^een  Anne  (1706),  of  which  the  following  is  an 
abstract. 

To  all  Christian  people  to  whome  these  presents  shall  come  .  .  . 
I  Mary  Tucker  send  Greeting  .  .  .  Whereas  [here  follow  the 
terms  of  Mary  Tucker's  inheritance]  I  the  said  Mary  Tucker 
...  by  these  presents  do  direct  limitt  and  appointe  that  the  sum 
of  Forty  Pounds  of  good  and  lawfull  money  of  Great  Britain 
...  to  be  paid  by  the  said  William  Butt  (and  other  trustees  to 
her  estate)  unto  Joseph  Hallett  (and  others,)  upon  special  trust 
and  confidence  ...  to  be  employed  bestowed  and  applyed 
for  the  use  benefitt  better  support  and  maintenance  of  a  Dissent- 
ing Minister  of  tlie  Congregation  or  Protestant  Dissenters  at 
Hatherleigh  afores^,  vulgarly  called  Presbyterians. 

The  next  document  is  a  copy  of  a  deed  relating  to  the 
purchase  of  a  site  for  the  chapel. 

This  Indenture  made  the  26th  day  of  September  in  the 
Eleventh  yeare  of  the  Reigne  of  our  Soveraigne  Lady  Anne  by 
the  Grace  of  God  of  Great  Britain  ffrance  and  Ireland  Queen 
Defender  of  the  ffaith  etc.  Anno  Domi  1712  Between  Abraham 
Collins  of  Hatherleigh  .  .  .  Joiner  (and  others)  of  the  one  part 
George  Lyssart  (and  others)  of  the  other  part  Witnesseth  that  the 
said  Abraham  Collins  for  and  in  consideration  of  the   sum  of 


296  A  MANU8CBIPT  HI8T0BT  OF  HATHERLEIGH. 

Twelve  Pounds  of  good  and  Lawfull  money  of  Great  Britain  to 
him  in  hand  well  and  truly  paid  or  secured  to  be  paid  by  the  said 
George  Lyssart  (and  others)  at  or  before  the  Sealinge  and 
deliverie  hereof  the  receipt  whereof  the  said  Abraham  Collings 
doth  hereby  acknowledge  and  thereof  and  therefrom  .  .  .  Doth 
hereby  exonerate  acquit  release  and  for  ever  discharge  the  said 
George  Lyssart  (and  others)  by  these  presents  and  for  diverse 
other  good  causes  and  considerations  him  the  said  Abraham 
Collins  thereunto  moveing  Hath  Granted  .  .  .  unto  the  said 
George  Lyssart  (and  others)  ...  all  that  plot  and  parcell  of  his 
the  said  Abraham  CoUins's  Garden  [site  described]  yielding  and 
paying  thearefore  yearely  imto  the  said  Abraham  Collins  .  .  . 
the  yearely  Rent  of  Three  Shillings  of  Lawfull  money  of  Great 
Britain  at  the  ffoure  most  usual  fifeasts  or  dayes  of  payment  in  the 
yeare  by  even  and  equall  Quarterly  payments  That  is  to  say  the 
ffeast  of  St.  Michael  Th*  drchangell  the  birth  of  our  Lord  Christ 
the  Annucacon  of  the  blessed  Virgin  Mary  and  the  Nativity  of 
St.  John  the  Baptist. 

This  deed  is  a  good  sample  of  the  quaint  legal  intricacy 
and  tautology  of  the  period :  it  occupies  ten  pages  folio  of 
closely  written  words,  and  much  of  it  is  devoted  to  the 
definition  of  various  easements,  the  principal  of  these  being 
the  "  free  liberty  of  Ingress  I^ress  and  Eegress  thereunto 
in  and  through  the  Entiy  and  Court  of  the  said  Abraham 
Collins."  It  also  provides  for  refilling  any  gaps  among  the 
trustees  caused  by  death  or  absenteeism,  and  ends  by 
saying  that  "  the  same  James  Collins  "  [one  of  the  *  others ' 
— a  son  of  Abraham  Collins]  "shall  be  at  no  costs  in  passing 
the  flBne  within  mentioned  nor  shall  he  be  obliged  to  cause 
his  wife  to  pass  a  ffine  with  him  unless  she  will  freely  doe 
it." 

A  paucity  of  trustees  has  occurred  and  is  thus  dealt  with: 
"An  Indenture  made  the  18th  day  of  December  1734" 
shows  that  owing  to  vacancies  which  had  been  caused  in  the 
ranks  of  the  trustees  by  the  removal  to  Minehead  of  one  of 
their  number  and  the  death  of  three  others,  there  were  only 
two  Femaiuing  alive,  who  from  their  ages  and  infirmity  were 
desirous  of  being  discharged  of  the  Trust,  and  "  that  some 
other  sufficient  inhabitants  of  the  s*^  parish  of  Hatherleigh 
being  Protestants  dissenting  from  the  Church  of  England 
and  commonly  called  Presbiterians  should  be  chosen  in  their 
stead  to  execute  the  s**  Trust";  and  after  reciting  that 
the  said  Meeting-house  might  for  ever  remain  and  be  for 
the  benefit  of  all  the  Dissenting  Protestants  of  the  said 
parish  of  Hatherleigh,  as  the  same  was  at  first  intended  by 


^  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY  OF  HATHERLEIGH.  297 

the  purchasers  thereof,  "  did  appoint  .  .  .  other  Trustees  to 
take  up  the  Trust  and  take  possession  of  the  Premises," 
which  on  the  24th  was  accordingly  done  by  them. 

In  1765,  fifty-three  years  after  the  building  of  the  chapel, 
we  find  that  a  contribution  to  the  sustentation  fund  was 
made  by  William  Coombe,  late  of  Hatherleigh,  by  the  follow- 
ing extract  from  his  Will : — 

Also,  I  give  and  bequeath  unto  the  Dissenting  Minister  of 
Hatherleigh  for  the  time  being  after  my  decease  the  sume  of  Ten 
Shillings  yearly  and  every  year  for  ever  ...  to  be  paid  out  of  a 
Field  or  Close  of  Land  called  Lomacroft  in  Hatherleigh. 

The  last  of  these  documents  is  "  An  Indenture  made  the 
24th  day  of  March  in  the  21st  year  of  our  Sovereign  Lord 
George  the  Third  by  the  Grace  of  God  .  .  .  King  .  .  . 
1781,"  which,  after  stating  that  other  of  the  trustees  had 
died  and  that  some  had  gone  out  of  the  town  and  none  were 
left  therein  but  George  Castle,  John  Eandall,  and  John 
Smale,  witnesseth  that  these  three,  the  surviving  trustees, 
sold  the  Meeting-house  to  John  Collins   ...   so 

"that  he  the  said  John  Collins  his  heirs  .  .  .  may  Peaceably 
and  quietly  have  hold  occupy  possess  and  Enjoy  all  and  singular 
the  said  Meeting-House  Seats  Pulpit  Planch  Loft  and  premises 
without  the  lawful  lett  suit  trouble  eviction  molestation  inter- 
ruption hinderance  or  Denyal  of  tliem  the  said  George  Castle 
John  Randall  and  John  Smale  or  the  other  Assigns  of  the  afore- 
said Trust  their  Heirs  Executors  or  Administrators  or  any  other 
person  or  persons  whatsoever. 
"In  Witness,"  etc. 

Thus  the  career  of  the  Meeting-house,  as  such,  closes  by 
reversion  to  a  son  of  the  original  owner.  From  John  Collins 
it  passed  into  the  family  of  the  present  writer,  who  inherited 
from  his  uncle  Abraham  CoUins's  old  house  with  the  Meet- 
ing-house and  garden  behind  it  and  some  lands  in  difierent 
parts  of  the  parish,  together  with  his  personal  efiects, 
amongst  which  was  the  MS.  History  of  Hatherleigh  whence 
these  details  are  gleaned. 

The  dwelling-house,  formerly  Abraham  Collins's,  is  the 
house  next  above  the  New  Inn,  and  the  Meeting-house 
stood,  and  probably  still  stands,  at  the  top  of  the  garden 
behind  it. 

Much  further  information  is  given  concerning  two  of  Sir 
Roper  Lethbridge's  three  kinsmen,  Bartholomew  Yeo  and 
John  Lethbridge;  but  William  Trevethick's  name  seems  to 
occur  but  twice,  each  time  as  an  entry  in  the  Register. 


298  A  liAKUSCRIFT  HI8T0BT  OF  HATH8RLBI0H. 

The  first  of  these  entries  is:  "Bebecca  Zenobia  and 
Katberine  daughters  of  William  Trevethicke  were  baptized 
the  29th  July,  1649/' 

This  is  the  last  entry  which  Mr.  Short  has  extracted  from 
the  first  volume  of  the  Parish  Register,  which  b^ns  in 
AprU,  1576. 

The  Register  had  been  signed  by  preceding  vicars  at  the 
time  of  their  institution,  and,  after  them,  in  April,  1641,  by 
"  Gulielm.  Trevethicke,  vie." 

The  MS.  history  of  the  old  borough  was  written  by  a 
very  unlikely  sort  of  man  to  do  such  a  thing.  He  was  a 
country  shopkeeper,  and  down  to  the  month  of  March,  1840, 
when  the  Old  Market  Houses  were  burnt  down,  he  occupied 
the  shop  fronting  on  the  main  street  of  the  town  at  the 
upper  comer  of  the  heterogeneous  mass  of  buildings  that 
went  by  that  name,  and  just  opposite  the  waggon  entrance  to 
the  yard  of  the  New  Inn. 

There  is  a  printed  list  of  the  various  articles  sold  in  the 
old  shop  which  will  serve  as  an  introduction  to  the  worthy 
burgess  himself  in  his  capacity  of  shopkeeper.  It  runs 
thus : — 

J.  S,  SHORT 

Druggist  Grocer  and  Tea  Dealer 

HATHERLEIGH. 

Sells 

The  following  Articles  of  the  Best  Quality 

on  the  most  reasonable  Terms. 

In  addition  to  the  well-known  "  Allspice  and  Cinnamon," 
which  constitute  the  first  item,  the  list  includes  other  such 
familiar  articles  as  Currants  and  Raisins,  Fine  Teas,  Salad  Oil, 
Raw  and  Refined  Sugar,  Tobacco,  Shag  and  Roll,  Starch,  etc., 
and  many  others  whose  names  are  strange  to  the  present 
generation,  such  as  Bole-Armoniac  and  Dragon's  Blood,  Cala- 
minaris  and  Tutty  Powder,  Hiera  Picra,  and  Oxycroceum  and 
Paracelsus ;  the  list  ends  '*  With  a  Variety  of  other  Drugs, 
Patent  Medicines,  Oils,  etc." 

On  the  night  when  the  fire  took  place  I  occupied  the 
bedroom  of  Abraham  Collins's  old  house,  which  was  next 
to  the  New  Inn,  and  being  aroused  from  my  sleep  by  the 
glare  of  the  flames  and  the  great  clamour  in  the  street,  I  got 
out  of  bed  and  had  from  my  window  a  full  view  of  the  con- 
flagration, which,  child-like,  I  stood  watching  until  my  aunt 
came  into  the  room  and  sent  me  back  to  bed  again. 

My  uncle's  house  having  been  separated  from  Mr.  Short's 
shop  only  by  just  the  width  of  the  street,  I  was  a  frequent 


A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY  OF  HATHERLEIGH.  299 

visitor  thereto  as  a  customer  for  sweetstuffs,  and  as  Mr. 
Short  and  his  wife  had  an  only  child,  a  girl  of  my  own  age, 
and  as  I,  a  motherless  boy,  also  had  neither  brother  nor 
sister,  little  "Missy,"  as  she  called  herself,  instead  of  the 
less-easily  pronounced  name  of  Elizabeth  by  which  she  had 
been  christened,  and  I  were  great  friends,  and  the  dear  old 
couple  treated  me  then  and  for  many  years  afterwards,  as 
long  as  I  remained  at  Hatherleigh,  as  if  I  had  been  really 
their  own  son. 

Besides  carrying  on  his  miscellaneous  shopkeeping  busi- 
ness, Mr.  Short  held  from  time  to  time  all  the  important 
ofiices  of  the  Parish  and  Borough.  He  was  in  turn  Reeve  of 
the  Parish  and  Portreeve  of  the  Borough,  almost  perpetual 
Churchwarden  or  Overseer,  and  Trustee  in  all  the  chief 
trusts  connected  with  the  charities  and  other  institutions  of 
the  Borough.  He  was  also  associated  with  Mr.  Thomas 
Roberts,  who  will  be  presently  referred  to,  in  reference  to 
the  Adjustment  of  the  Land  Tax  in  the  Parish. 

It  is  not,  however,  so  much  in  either  of  these  capacities 
that  Mr.  Short  may  lay  claim  to  the  notice  of  this  Associa- 
tion as  in  that  of  a  zealous  antiquary,  who  contrived  in  the 
course  of  his  otherwise  busy  life  to  collect  materials  for  a 
history  of  his  native  town,  its  church,  and  its  many  institu- 
tions, and,  in  the  leisure  of  his  later  days,  spent  in  the 
charming  little  abode  looking  down  the  main  street  of  the 
town,  called  Red  Hill  Cottage,  to  make  a  compilation  of 
the  same,  filling  a  big  manuscript  book  of  folio  size  and  con- 
taining nearly  live  hundred  pages  of  handwriting  and  pictures, 
as  the  outcome  of  his  industrious  investigations. 

There  are  sixteen  full-page  pictures,  all  of  which  are 
coloured  except  those  of  the  Church,  the  old  Vicarage,  and  a 
sheet  of  Elizabethan  coins,  which  are  pen-and-ink  sketches. 
Emblazoned  Coats-of-Arms  abound,  and  there  are  also  half  a 
dozen  copies  of  elaborately  painted  old  Inn  Signs.  The  total 
number  of  illustrations  exceeds  fifty,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
scores  of  epitaphs,  inscriptions,  etc.,  found  in  the  church  and 
the  churchyard. 

It  may  here  be  observed  that  Mr.  Short's  shop  stood  within 
forty  yards  or  so  of  the  churchyard  gate — itself  a  stone's- 
throw  from  the  church — so  that  when  business  was  slack,  or 
at  other  odd  times,  he  could  readily  visit  the  scene  of  his 
labours,  and  that  it  was  an  easy  walk  of  ten  minutes  to 
the  same  destination  from  Red  Hill  Cottage  by  way  of 
Sanctuary  Lane  and  the  Bowling-green,  or  down  around 
by  the  Market-place,  where  the  old  shop  had  stood. 


300  A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY  OF  HATHERLEIGH. 

The  title-page  of  Mr.  Short's  book  was  written  by  his 
friend  Mr.  Thomas  Roberts,  and  runs  thus : — 

HISTORICAL  MEMOIRS 

of  the 

Town  and  Parish  of 

HATHERLEIGH, 

Devon. 

Collected  from  the  Best  Authorities. 

This  title  is  beautifully  engrossed  in  German-text  and 
English  characters  in  capital  and  small  print,  and,  being 
embellished  with  the  customary  flourishes  of  the  period,  is 
calculated  to  excite  admiration  and  surprise  when  it  becomes 
known  that  the  artist  had  no  hands ! 

Mr.  Roberts  many  years  predeceased  the  author  of  this 
History,  who  has  given  us  the  following  outline  of  his 
friend's  life : — 

Thomas  Roberts  was  born  at  Anthony  near  Plymouth  in  the 
County  of  Cornwall  [his  father,  also  named  Thomas,  is  however 
described  on  his  tombstone  as  late  of  Exeter,  so  that  both  of 
them  may  be  claimed  as  Devonshire  men]  on  the  r2th  day  of 
October  1771.  When  a  boy  about  eleven  years  of  age  he  lost 
both  his  hands  by  the  explosion  of  a  hand-granade. 

About  the  year  1797  he  came  to  reside  in  the  Town  of 
Hatherleigh  where  he  established  a  School  in  which  was  taught 
Mathematics,  Latin,  Writing,  Arithmetic,  Drawing,  etc.  This 
undertaking  was  carried  on  with  great  success  for  several  years, 
having  generally  an  average  of  eighty  boarders  besides  day 
scholars.  He  built  a  new  house  in  this  Town  for  his  residence 
and  was  a  very  useful  member  of  society  having  several  times  filled 
the  offices  of  Portreeve,  Churchwarden,  Overseer  of  the  Poor, 
Surveyor  of  the  Highways,  etc.  He  died  much  regretted  on  the 
28th  Day  of  December  1848,  and  was  buried  by  the  side  of  his 
Wife  in  the  Bowling  green  ^  of  the  Churchyard  of  Hatherleigh  on 
the  6th  day  of  January  1849. 

Over  his  grave  was  placed  a  large  slab  of  Freestone  bearing  the 
following  inscription : — 

"Here  resteth 

the  body  of  Thomas  Roberts  who  departed 

this  Hfe  December  28th  1848.     Aged  78. 

Also  of  Mary  Anne  his  wife  who  died  December 

28th  1845.     Aged  72.*' 

^  Bowling-green.  The  manor  of  Hatherleigh,  in  "Domesday"  (Exeter) 
Hadreleia,  belonged  to  the  Abbey  of  Tavistock.  **  Domesday  "  tells  us  that 
there  were  four  military  tenants  of  the  abbey  on  the  manor,  and  we  learn 
from  Dr.  Augustus  Jessopp's  **  Daily  Life  in  a  Mediteval  Monastcir'*  that 
'*  bowls  was  the  favourite  and  a  very  common  diversion  among  the  Monks." 


A   MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY   OF  HATHERLKIGH.  301 

In  another  part  of  this  Cemetery  are  deposited  the  Father  and 
Mother  of  the  above  named  Thomas  Roberts.  His  son  George  who 
died  June  6th  1833  aged  27  And  three  other  of  his  Children  who 
died  in  infancy. 

N.B. — The  above  named  Thomas  Roberts  wrote  the  Title  page 
in  this  Book. 

With  Mr.  Roberts  I  was  also  personally  acquainted.  He 
was  Superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school  and  I  was  one  of 
the  scholars,  and  one  day  when  I,  with  others,  had  carelessly 
jostled  him  as  he  was  going  out  of  the  schoolroom  door,  he, 
not  being  able  to  pull  or  to  flip  my  ears — a  common  enough 
familiar  punishment  for  small  iniquities  in  those  days — play- 
fully boxed  them  with  the  wooden  stumps  he  wore  on  his 
wrists.  These  were  ingeniously  made  and  so  fitted  up  that 
they  might,  as  far  as  possible,  fulfil  the  functions  of  the 
missing  hands. 

In  what  manner  they  were  used  I  saw  one  evening  when 
my  father,  who  occupied  a  house  that  Mr.  Roberts  had 
recently  built  on  George  Hill,  took  me  with  him  when  he 
went  up  to  Mr.  Roberts's  own  house  at  the  top  of  Higher 
Street  to  pay  his  rent:  this  he  had  purposely  taken  the 
greater  part  of  in  the  smaller  coin  of  the  realm  in  order  that 
I  might  see  how  it  was  manipulated  (?)  and  counted  by  a 
man  without  hands. 

The  money-bag  was  emptied  on  the  table  at  which  Mr. 
Roberts  was  seated,  and  he,  being  supplied  with  a  dinner- 
plate  and  a  knife,  inserted  the  tang  of  the  knife-blade  into 
one  of  the  holes  in  his  "  stump,"  and  with  the  blade  counted 
with  ease  and  rapidity  the  money  into  the  plate  which  he 
had  placed  on  his  knees,  and  he  afterwards  wrote  out  the 
receipt. 

This  was  the  first  time  he  had  seen  me  since  the  "  boxing  " 
incident,  which  occurred  a  few  days  earlier,  and  he  asked 
me  how  my  ears  had  felt  thereafter,  and  when  I  told  him 
they  had  ached  for  a  little  while,  he  said  it  was  not  to  be 
wondered  at,  for  his  stumps  were  made  of  box  wood  and  were 
apt  to  hurt  if  used  ever  so  little  ungently.  However,  to 
make  amends,  he  gave  me  a  useful  Bible,  on  the  fly-leaf  of 
which  he  then  and  there  wrote  my  name  in  a  style  that  we 
used  in  those  days  to  call  copper-plate,  thereby  signifying  ita 
excellence,  from  the  resemblance  it  bore  to  the  imprint  of 
copper-plate  engraving. 

Mr.  Short,  from  the  obituary  notice  above  quoted,  omits 
mention  of  the  fact  that  in  connection  with  mathematics, 
etc.,  practical  navigation  was  a  specialty  with  Mr.  Roberts. 


302  ^A  MANUSCBIFT  HISTOBT  OF  HATHKKLEI6H. 

He  combined  practice  with  theory,  and  in  a  large  room  fitted 
up  as  a  carpenter's  workshop  he  taught  his  pupils  to  make 
and  rig-up  models  of  ships  and  boats,  and,  in  order  to  test 
their  sailing  qualities,  they  made  on  Hatherleigh  Moor  a 
large  pond,  called  Roberts's  Pond  to  this  day. 

For  the  accommodation  of  his  boarders  in  the  church,  he 
erected,  at  his  own  cost,  a  gallery  at  the  west  end  of  the 
north  aisle.  I  used  to  see  the  youngsters  trooping  in  around 
the  corner  from  the  tower-arch  on  a  Sunday  morning  from 
my  father's  sitting  in  another  new  gallery  which  had  been 
recently  built  out  from  the  middle  of  the  external  wall  of 
the  same  aisle.  To  this  gallery  special  reference  will  be 
made  later  on. 

Mr.  Roberts  died  on  28  December,  1848 — the  third 
anniversary  of  the  death  of  his  wife — ^leaving  no  issue:  a 
son,  George,  who  died  at  the  age  of  thirty-seven,  having 
predeceased  his  father,  as  had  also  three  children  who  died 
in  their  infancy,  and  were  buried  in  the  same  grave,  in 
another  part  of  the  churchyard,  with  their  grandfather, 
Thomas  Roberts,  who  is  described  on  his  tombstone  as  "  late 
of  Exeter." 

Two  of  his  brothers,  however,  survived  him :  one  of  them, 
named  William,  will  perhaps  be  remembered  by  some  of  the 
older  members  of  this  Association.  He  was  a  bookseller  in 
Exeter — probably  the  largest  and  best  known  in  the  city. 
His  shop  stood  in  High  Street,  facing  Broadgate,  and 
over  the  doorway  was  suspended  a  large  imitation  Bible, 
which  now  adorns  the  entrance  to  Messrs.  Eland's  shop 
higher  up  the  street. 

John,  the  third  of  the  brothers,  held  ofl&ce  in  the  Excise 
at  Birmingham,  and  early  in  June,  1852,  my  uncle  James 
and  I  spent  Sunday  there  with  him  and  his  wife,  and  long 
and  well  did  I  remember  the  thoroughly  Devonshire  dinner 
they  gave  us,  for  I  had  no  other  like  it  for  many  years.  The 
next  day  I  was  on  board  a  ship,  being  towed  down  the 
Mersey  on  my  way  to  Australia, 

On  his  superannuation,  John  Roberts  removed  to  Hather- 
leigh, and  lived  for  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  the  house 
on  George  Hill  which  his  brother  had  built,  in  which  my 
parents  had  lived  and  died,  and  in  which  I  was  born.  It 
faces  a  little  triangular  shop,  occupied  by  a  saddler,  and 
known  as  the  "Salt-box,"  which  was  erected  on  the  spot 
where  the  pillory  formerly  stood. 

Mr.  Short  commences  his  "  Historical  Memoirs  of  Hather- 
leigh "  with  a  description  of  the  topography  of  the  town  in 


A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTOKT  OF  HATHERLEI6H.  303 

relation  to  the  adjoining  parishes,  its  size,  population,  etc. 
and  then  bestows  a  warm  eulogy  on  the  superior  comfort  to 
be  found  in  the  old  cob-houses,  of  which  the  town  almost 
entirely  consists.  He  gives  a  drawing  of  the  inscription 
over  one  of  the  windows  of  a  house  which  was  built  in  1585, 
and  speaks  of  another  which  was  built  in  the  last  year  of  the 
reign  of  Queen  Mary  the  First,  1558;  whilst  a  third  shows 
the  date  1668;  but  these  houses  are  small  and  mean  in 
comparison  with  the  more  important  buildings  of  the  town, 
which  have  been  better  cared  for,  and  are  probably  much 
older,  so  old  even  as  to  justify  the  ancient  proverb  that 
"  with  a  good  hat  and  good  shoes,"  that  is,  protected  from 
wet  above  and  below,  "  good  cob  will  last  for  ever." 

He  next  proceeds  to  tell  us  of  the  government  of  the 
town. 

There  ia  a  Court  Leet  and  Court  Baron  held  in  this  Town  every 
year  at  which  Court  a  Jury  is  regularly  nominated  and  sworn  who 
has  the  power  of  chosing  [sic]  a  Portreeve  for  the  better  Govern- 
ment of  the  Town,  Two  Constables  are  also  deputed  and  sworn,  a 
Tithingman,  Reeve,  Ale  Tasters,  Searchers  and  Sealers  of  Leather 
and  a  Scavenger  are  also  chosen. 

And  in  another  place  he  adds  that  these  officers  "  are 
invested  with  considerable  authority  if  they  choose  to 
exercise  it." 

In  this  Court  which  has  been  held  here  time  immemorial 
anciently  all  i)etit  causes  relative  to  the  inhabitants  were  tried, 
and  in  order  to  defray  the  expenses  of  keeping  Court  the  Lord  has 
a  right  to  demand  a  Chief  Rent  from  a  great  number  of  the 
Tenants  in  Fee  which  is  collected  in  the  Borough  by  the  Portreeve 
[the  chief  rents  in  the  jmrish  being  collected  by  the  reeve]. 

In  the  "  Rentall "  of  1744,  sixteen  of  the  tenants  had  to 
furnish  a  capon  in  addition  to  the  sum  set  down  as  chief 
rent. 

Many  of  the  items  of  chief  rents  to  be  paid  by  the  tenants 
to  the  borough  are  trivial  and  curious.  Among  them  are : 
"  Pales  before  his  House,  6d. ;  Posts  before  his  House,  6d. ; 
Posts  to  his  House,  Is. ;  Posts  to  her  House,  6d. ;  Posts,  6d. ; 
Sign  Posts,  6d. ;  Posts,  6d. ;  His  Posts,  6d. ;  Posts,  6d. ; 
Pool  for  Northcotts,  6d. ;  Pales,  3d. ;  Porch,  3d. ;  Porch,  3d. ; 
Pales,  etc..  Is. ;  Corner  of  the  wall  next  the  Front,  3d. ;  Sign 
Post,  Is.,  etc."  One  unspecified  charge  is  set  down  at  one 
halfpenny. 

The  items  in  respect  of  which  these  sums  are  payable  may 
be  regarded  as  perpetual  easements  which  cannot  be  in* 


304  A  MANUSCBIFT  HI8T0BT  OF  HATHERLEIG^ 

terfered  with  by  the  lord,  nor  even  altered  or  abandoned 
by  the  tenants  themselves,  without  the  consent  of  the 
Court.  The  lord's  remedy  for  non-payment  of  the  high 
and  chief  rent  is  an  exceedingly  prompt  levy  of  distress, 
as  is  shown  by  the  following  copy  of  a  warrant  for  collection. 

^  \    '^o  Mr.  Andrew  Goss,  Reeve,  Mr.  Arthur  Titherley, 

annoT  \  jy^^x^X^r  Reeve  of  the  said  Mannor  and  John  Hur- 
jr^-i  T  '  \\  ford,  Bailiff,  You're  hereby  authorized  to  Ask, 
^  ^  '  '  Collect  and  receive  of  the  severall  persons  whose 
names  are  witliin  written,  the  severall  sumes  of  Money  (together 
with  the  araerciments^)  to  their  names  respectively  affix*d,  and  for 
their  refusal  or  non-payment  to  Levy  the  same  by  a  Distress  on 
their  respective  goods  witliin  the  said  mannor,  and  if  the  same  shall 
not  be  redeemed  within  five  days  then  to  appraise  and  sell  the 
same,  rendering  to  the  partys  the  oveq)lus  (If  any),  reasonable 
charges  being  first  deducted  and  for  your  so  doing  this  shall  be 
your  Warrant. 

Given  under  my  Hand  and  Scale  the  22  day  of  Octob'  1744. 

Ar.  Arscott. 


0 


The  Court  Baron  for  the  Hundred  of  Blacktorrington  is  now 
held  in  Hatherleigh ;  it  had  been  held  at  Clawton  Bridge,  as 
may  be  seen  by  the  following  proceedings  which  I  [J.  S.  S.]  copied 
from  the  old  Court  Book. 

A  Court  held  at  Clawton  Bridge *the  23'**  day  of  June  1737  Cha» 
Lurdon,  Steward ;  W*"  Bubley  and  Free-Suitors. 

Into  this  Court  was  brought  one  Bright  bay  Nagg  about  twelve 
or  thirteen  hands  high  having  a  Meally  Mouth,  a  white  Starr  on 
the  forhead,  a  black  mane,  three  white  spots  in  the  back,  a 
Blackish  bob  tail.  Burnt  in  the  near  Buttock  with  T  W  which 
came  as  an  Esstrey  about  the  twenty  first  day  of  this  Instant: 
July  14^*»  the  Bay  Nag  is  still  in  Custody— Aug«*  4**>  1»*  Procla- 
mation,— July  6***  1738  another  Procl"  was  made  and  as  no  person 
hath  owned  or  claimed  the  same  the  said  Nag  is  forfeited  unto 
Will™  CliiFord  Martin  Esq"^  Lord  of  the  Hundred  afores<*. 

As  an  instance  of  the  mode  of  procedure  followed  by  the 
Borough  Court  in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  following  case 
of  alleged  unlawful  commoning  on  the  moor  may  interest, 
especially  as  John  Yeo,  of  Heed,  was  the  person  accused. 

*  Ameroiamont:  Pecuniary  puuishment  imposed  mwii  Offenders  at  the 
Mercy  of  the  Court ;  it  differs  from  a  Fine,  which  is  a  punishment  certain  and 
determined,  from  Statute  (Bailey). 


A  MANUSCKIPT  HISTORY  OF  HATHKRLKIGH.  305 

A  Copy  of  a  Record  of  the  Right  of  Common  in 

Reed  Estate  on  Hatherleigh  Moor. 

Dated  10"»  April  31»*  Elizabeth  a  d  1590 

Also  an  Acknowledgment  of  the  same  Right 

and  Inrollment  6**>  Nov.  1626. 

Memorandum  that  the  Lawe  Courte  daye  holden  at  Hatherleigh 
within  her  Majestie's  Borrough  the  Tenth  daye  of  April  in  the 
one  and  thirtieth  yeare  of  her  most  Gracious  Raigne  came  into 
the  said  Courte  John  Stowell  Gent^  William  RoUstone,  John 
Wadland  Sadler,  Will™  Reade  and  Johan  Bennett  Wydowe,  and 
then  and  there  theye  and  every  of  them  of  theire  owne  accorde 
dide  take  theire  voluntarye  othes,  that  several  of  them  for  ffower 
scoore  yeeres  past,  some  for  three  scoore  and  tenne  yeeres  and 
others  for  three  scoore  yeeres  by  the  lest,  dide  know  one  Thomas 
Reede  dwelling  in  a  Tenement  called  Reede  al»  Sworthecotte 
within  the  Mannoure  of  Hatherleigh  and  after  him  Richard 
Reed  his  sonne  did  Comon  in  and  uppon  Hatherleigh  Moore,  wth 
their  Plough  and  small  Cattle  Horse  and  Sheep  in  right  of  the 
saide  Tenement  of  Reede  al»  Sworthecotte  and  at  no  tyme  denyed 
the  use  of  the  said  Comon,  these  thinges  aforesaid  they  dide 
openly  declare  uppon  theire  othes  in  the  presence  and  Audience 
of  George  Arscott  Gent,  then  Steward  of  the  same  Courte,  and 
before  both  Juries  of  the  Burrough  and  Mannoure  whose  names 
are  hereunder  wroten  with  manye  others  being  then  present. 

The  Burrough  Jurye. 

Will™  Hooper  John  Whitbreade  Richard  Wadland 

Richard  Hooper  John  Kympe  Richard  Heard 

Will™  Egwyrt  John  Holmes  Richard  Christopher 

Walter  Bulhedd  John  Sraytham  Will™  Edye 

Robert  Rist  Will™  Edward  Perme  Willmid  Edye 

Will™  Wadland  John  Loder  Serriptorem  et  Testime 

The  Mannoure  Jurye. 

Raymond  Webber       Will™  Godefray  Robert  Lugger 

Richard  Laishbrook    John  Baggaton  lliomas  Morcomb 

John  Gove  Thomas  Locke  Robart  Tayler 

John  Wadland  John  Merrifield  Peter  Lucas 

John  Seldon  John  Crocker  de  Lake  Will™  Jarston 

Memorand  That  at  the  Burrough  Court  of  Hatherleigh  holden 
the  sixt  day  of  November  1626  John  Yeo  Gent  (being  accused 
by  the  Jurye  of  the  sayd  Borough  for  Comoning  in  Hatherleigh 
Moor  agaynst  ryght  for  his  Tenement  called  Reede  al»  Sworthecott 
w**»  in  the  Manor  of  Hatherleigh)  came  into  the  Courte  and  openly 
shewed  this  present  evidence  w^**  was  then  and  there  Inrolled  in 
the  Courte  Books  by  me  William  Bleigh,  then  Steward  of  the 
same  Court. 

Mention  of  other  Manorial  Courts  follows,  and  then  are 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  u 


30$  A  MANUSCRIPT  BISTORT  OF  HATHSRLKIGH. 

given  the  histories  of  certain  sub-manors  and  estates  which 
had  been  carved  out  of  the  great  "  Mannoure "  of  Hather- 
leigh,  the  first  to  be  named,  and  named  only,  being  Fishleigh, 
**  the  ancient  abode  of  the  Yeos." 

I^wer  or,  as  Risdon  calls  it,  Le-worth,  had  sometime  lords 
that  bore  that  territorial  appellation.  In  the  year  1546 
Lewer  was  in  the  possession  of  a  member  of  that  ancient — 
almost  prehistoric — ^Devonshire  family,  the  Crockers,  for 
King  Henry  the  Eighth,  in  the  thirty-seventh  year  of  his 
reign,  granted  unto  John  Crocker  de  Lewer  and  others  in 
trust  the  house  called  the  Priest-  or  Church-house,  within  the 
town  of  Hatherleigh;  concerning  which  Priest-house,  Mr. 
Short  has  much  to  say  when  he  comes  to  tell  us  about  the 
church  in  connection  with  the  Yeo  family. 

Langbear,  or  Lang-a-beare,  comes  next  with  the  tradition 
that  a  town,  having  a  weekly  market  held  therein,  stood  in 
a  field  which  is  still  called  Market  Gratton. 

'*  Near  this  place  is  Knap's-lane-hill  where  a  battle  was 
fought  at  the  time  of  the  Civil  Wars  in  the  reign  of  King 
Charles  the  First,  and  on  Hurlbridge  Moor,  adjoining,  are 
now  to  be  seen  several  Hillocks  which  cover  the  dead  bodies 
of  the  slain ;  this  Moor  has  recently  been  plowed  up  for  the 
purpose  of  tillage,  and  several  Human  bones,  old  pieces  of 
Swords,  etc.,  have  been  found." 

**  Yollaberry,  anciently  Yeo-la-beare,  which,  in  the  beginning 
of  King  Edward  the  Third's  reign,  was  the  property  of 
Nicholas  Yeo,  son  of  William  Yeo,  who  had  this,  together 
with  Heanton  Satchville,  in  the  parish  of  Petrockstowe,"  and 
as  many  other  manors  and  estates  in  Devon  and  Cornwall  as 
must  almost  have  caused  those  much-manored  gentlemen, 
Baldwin  of  Exeter  and  Judhel  of  Totnes,  to  turn  in  their 
graves  with  envy.  These  manors  formed,  later  on,  the  bulk 
of  the  great  RoUe  estate,  and  the  devious  way  in  which 
they  passed  through  the  hands  of  the  Earls  of  Lincoln  and 
of  Oxford,  the  Barons  Clinton,  Saye,  and  others,  to  the 
Trefusis  family,  is  traced  at  great  length,  as  are  also  the 
provisions  of  the  Acts  of  Parliament  passed  for  the  settle- 
ment of  the  various  properties  embraced  therein. 

The  historical  references  made  by  Mr.  Short  to  the  Yeos 
occupy  a  considerable  space  in  his  book,  and  are  illustrated 
with  many  coloured  drawings  of  the  arms  borne  by  the 
various  branches  of  that  family.  There  are  several  forms  in 
which  these  arms  are  shown,  but  in  all  of  them  appears  the 
inevitable  "  Shoveller  " — thus  defined  by  Bailey, "  the  Pelican, 
a  bird." 


A  MANUSCRIPT   HISTORY   OF  HATHERLBIGH.  307 

Mr.  Short  has  a  difficulty  concerning  this  "  bird  "  which 
figures  so  largely  in  the  Yeo  arms,  and  he  has  left  blank  the 
shield  he  had  outlined ;  this  has  on  the  left  side  the  single 
word  "Arms,"  and  on  the  other,  "Flor.  A.D.  1358,  E.  E. 
Edw.  3." 

The  arms,  however,  are  thus  described : — 

Argent,  a  Chevron  between  three  Shovellers,  Azure,  Member'd 
and  beak'd,  Or. 

Crest.  On  a  Torse,  Arg.  and  Sab.,  a  Peacock  (Qu.  if  not  a 
Turkey  Cock)  Standing  proper. 

On  a  Stone  against  the  North  Wall  over  Reed  pew,  with  five 
Coats  of  Arms  painted  round  the  Stone,  is  the  following  inscrip- 
tion : — 

"  PiaB  MemorisB  lohannis  Yeo  Filij  lohannis  Yeo  de  Heed  Ar  : 

et  Mariti  Annae  FiliaB  Henrice  Hurding  de  Long  Briddy  in  Agro 

Dorsett"'  Ar:  qui  mortalitatem  deposuit  15^  die  Octob:  1662. 

Amoris  ergo.  Uxor  amans  oliiii  Delecta,  nunc  solitarie  Kelicta  hoc 

'  posuit  A*  Etatis  63." 

What  of  difficulty  remains  is  to  reconcile  the  difference  in 
respect  to  their  Coat  Armour. 

It  is  generally  agreed  that  the  Shovellers  aforesaid  do  belong 
to  the  Heanton  Family  of  this  Name.  But  Guillim  ("Display 
of  Herald."  sec.  3,  c.  21,  p.  233)  tells  us  that  a  Silver  field,  a 
Chev.  Sab.  between  three  Turkey  Cocks  in  their  pride  is  born 
[sic]  by  the  name  of  Yeo  of  Devonshire. 

It  may  be  so,  and  yet  the  Bearing  be  honourable  enough  :  Let 
therefore  no  Critic,  as  Dr.  Fuller  advises,  cavil  at  the  Coat,  as  but 
a  modern  Bearing,  because  Turkey  Cocks  came  not  into  England 
'till  about  the  tenth  year  of  K.  Hen.  8***,  for  they  might  formerly 
be  shown  here  for  Rarities,  tho'  not  fed  on  as  Table  Fowl  till  that 
time.  Besides  Heralds  have  ever  assumed  that  priviledge  to 
themselves,  to  assign  for  Arms,  both  those  Creatures  which  are 
found  only  in  foreign  Countries,  as  Lions,  Leopards,  Tigars  and 
the  like ;  and  those  whose  sole  Existence  is  in  the  fancy  of  Poets 
and  Painters,  as  the  Phoenix,  Centaur,  Griftin  and  Ilarpie,  whose 
face  is  like  a  Virgin's,  but  hath  Talons  like  an  Eagle. 

So  Virgil  :— 

Tristus  haud  illis  Monstrum  nee  Saevior  ulla,  etc 

Thus  translated  by  Guillim  : — 

Of  Monsters  all,  most  monstrous  this:  no  greater  Wrath 
God  sends  'mongst  men;  it  comes  from  Pitchy  Hell; 
A  Virgin's  face,  but  womb-like  Gulf  insatiate  hath; 
Her  hands  are  griping  Claws,  her  Colour  palo  and  fell. 

It  was  mentioned  early  in  these  notes  that  the  Courts  of 
the  Hundred,  Borough,  and  Manor  were  held  at  the  George 

u2 


308  A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORY  OF  HATHBRLEIGH. 

Inn,  Hatherleigh.  The  "Dragon  "  might  have  been  omitted 
from  the  notices  given  of  the  holding  of  these  Courts  for  the 
sake  of  brevity,  the  inn  being  so  well  known;  but  in  Mr. 
Short's  time  its  name  was  "  George  and  the  Dragon,"  and  he 
gives  us  a  splendidly  coloured  copy  of  the  sign.  It  shows 
St.  George  in  full  armour,  with  an  immense  plume  of  black 
ostrich  feathers  in  his  helmet,  mounted  on  a  white  horse, 
likewise  protected,  and  prodding  with  his  spear  a  most 
demoniacal -looking  green  dragon  with  red  wings,  which 
emits  flames  not  only  from  his  mouth  and  nostrils,  but  from 
some  imaginary  vent  at  the  top  of  his  head. 

That  there  were  poets  in  the  land  in  those  days  let  the 
following  epitaph  on  the  late  landlord  of  the  "  George  "  bear 
witness : — 

Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Richard  King  of  this  Parish  who 
died  the  20tli  day  of  March  1816  in  the  58th  year  of  his  Age. 

A])i)roacli  with  Awe — here  sleeps  a  King  ! 
Whose  Soul  from  Earth  has  taken  wing 
From  this  vain  World  its  toys  and  toil 
I'm  gone— to  reign  my  name  is  Roy*l. 
Believe  in  Christ  from  sin  refrain 
Then  you  above  like  Kings  shall  reign. 

Mr.  Richard  King  was  formerly  Landlord  of  the  George  Inn  in 
this  town.  His  wife,  Mary  King,  kept  on  the  Inn  after  her  hus- 
band^s  death  for  nearly  forty  years  and  died  on  the  7th  day  of 
August  1853  aged  80  years. 

Her  character  as  a  landlady  was  found  written  on  a  pane 
of  glass  in  a  window  of  the  George  Inn  with  a  diamond,  and 
runs  thus : — 

Traveler  this  Inn — which  some  call  mean 
Approach  with  Awe — here  lives  a  Queen  ! 
Nay  !  start  not  at  so  strange  a  thing 
For  truly  she's  a  female  King — 
So  rich  her  soups — her  hashes — minces 
My  Boys— you  iiere  may  fare  like  Princes  ! 

The  signs  of  six  other  inns  have  been  copied  with  equal 
care— the  •*  Seven  Stars,"  the  "  Swan,"  the  "  Koyal  Oak,"  the 
"  Three  Crowns,"  the  "  Bell,*'  and  the  "  Sun." 

Of  the  "Seven  Stars"  (1742)  we  are  told  that  it  was  **a 
house  much  frequented  by  the  Gentry  of  the  Neighbourhood 
and  others  who  delighted  in  that  barbarous  Sport  of  Cock- 
fighting.  A  Cock  pit  (slq  it  was  commonly  called)  was  erected 
on  the  premises,^and  large  bets  made  on  their  Cocks.  The 
Ale  at  this  house  was  very  good  and  sold  at  three  pence  a 
quart." 

The  "  Koyal  Oak  "  sign  shows  the  Eoyal  Fugitive  up  a  fine 


A  MANUSCRIPT   HISTORY   OF  HATHKRLKIGH,  309 

oak  tree,  but  by  no  means  trying  to  conceal  himself  ;  on  the 
contrary,  he  seems  to  be  openly  watching  the  movements  of 
three  horse  soldiers,  who,  accompanied  by  three  dogs,  are 
capering  about  on  the  foreground. 

The  "Sun"  is  represented  by  a  man's  face  within  the 
arms  of  a  bright  yellow  crescent,  which  is  surrounded  with 
glowing,  wavy,  effulgent  rays,  and  the  whole  is  within  an 
outline  of  horseshoe  form,  with  a  shadowy  representation  of 
a  man's  face  in  the  lower  left-hand  corner. 

The  other  signs,  though  quaint  and  graphic,  call  for  no 
special  notice,  and  the  originals  of  all  have  long  ago  dis- 
appeared. 

Here  I  should  come  to  an  end,  leaving  the  church  and  the 
churchyard,  with  their  monuments,  inscriptions,  and  epi- 
taphs, of  which  many  scores  of  instances  are  given,  the 
charities,  with  the  numerous  documents  relating  thereto, 
many  of  them  containing  references  to  the  families  of  Yeo 
and  Lethbridge,  to  a  future  period. 

Mr.  Short's  own  biography  of  Jasper  Mayne  and  of  the 
Eev.  Cradock  Glascott — a  friend  of  John  and  Charles  Wesley 
and  of  Whitefield — the  vicar  whose  faithful  ministry  made 
necessary  the  building  of  three  new  galleries  in  the  church 
in  order  to  accommodate  worshippers, — must  also  stand  over, 
together  with  the  notice  of  that  gallant,  much-persecuted  old 
cavalier,  Colonel  George  Yeo,  of  Huish,  and  of  others  whose 
lives  were  intermingled  with  those  of  Lethbridge,  Yeo,  and 
Trevithick — the  three  Hatherleigh  Worthies  of  Sir  Eoper 
Lethbridge's  paper. 

I  cannot,  however,  refrain  from  mentioning  a  wonderful 
mural  painting  that  was  discovered  in  the  church  in  1832 
and  copied  by  Mr.  Short. 

On  the  left  of  the  picture  of  the  Lethbridge  monument,  a 
photograph  of  which  Sir  Eoper  gave  us  in  1904  ("  Trans.," 
p.  290),  is  shown  the  angle  of  a  wall  with  a  window  beyond. 
This  angle  and  this  window  form  part  of  the  third  new 
gallery  which  was  built  for  increase  of  accommodation  for 
Mr.  Glascott's  congregation. 

Down  to  the  year  1832  there  was  no  proper  vestry  for  the 
clergy  nor  for  the  parish  meetings.  These  wants  had  been 
supplied,  before  the  screen  was  taken  down,  by  what  appears 
to  have  been  a  chapel  at  the  east  end  of  the  south  aisle, 
which  then  formed  part  of  the  chancel.     In  this  chapel^ 

^  "  In  the  east  window  of  this  chapel  were  painted  the  Royal  Arms,  sup- 
posed to  be  done  for  John  of  Gaunt,  Duke  of  Lancaster,  who,  the  inhabitauto 
say,  gave  the  moor  to  the  poor  of  the  parish." 


310  A  MANUSCRIPT  UISTORY  OF  HATHERLKIGH. 

stood  the  parish  cofifer,  in  which  were  deposited  the  church 
plate,  the  parish  documents,  records,  etc.,  "until  of  late 
years,"  when  they  were  removed  to  the  priest's  house  over 
the  churchyard  gate,  and  the  space  that  had  been  so  occupied 
was  set  apart  for  the  girls  of  the  Sunday  school. 

The  surface  of  the  churchyard  outside  the  north  wall  of 
the  church  was  at  so  high  a  level  above  the  church  floor  as 
to  permit  the  construction  of  a  gallery  having  a  separate 
entrance  from  the  churchyard  and  on  a  level  therewith, 
which  would  leave  sufficient  height  for  a  vestry  beneath  it 
on  the  same  level  as  the  floor  of  the  church  itself.  The  new 
building  enclosed  a  small  portion  of  the  churchyard.  The 
gallery  provided  sixty  sittings.  The  vestry  had,  besides  the 
doorway  into  the  church,  a  second  entrance  from  the  church- 
yard, and  the  whole  work  constituted  a  notable  improve- 
ment. The  cost  was  defrayed  by  the  sale  of  the  sittings 
thus  provided,  and  my  father's  name  appears  in  the  seat  or 
pew  assigned  to  him  on  the  plan  of  the  gallery  showing  the 
general  allotment,  which  plan  is  duly  given  in  the  book,  as 
well  as  copies  of  the  faculty,  specification,  etc. 

Let  Mr.  Short  himself  describe  his  great  discovery : — 

As  the  workmen  were  scraping  off  the  wliitewash  from  the  wall 
in  the  Nortli  Aisle  ...  a  Scripture  sentence  from  Isaiah,  55  chap. 
6  &  7  verses,  was  discovered  written  in  old  black  letters  in  a  good 
state  of  preservation.  This  on  being  removed  and  several  more 
layers  of  whitewash  scraped  off  an  old  oil  painting  in  distemper 
appeared  to  view,  supposed  to  be  a  figure  ...  of  Saint  Cliristo- 
phor,  upwards  of  eight  feet  high,  with  fishes  &c.  at  his  feet. 

The  annexed  drawing  is  a  rough  Copy  taken  on  a  Scale  of  One 
inch  to  the  Foot. 

In  Mr.  Short's  drawing,  St.  Christopher  is  arrayed  in  a 
tunic  striped  vertically  in  various  shades  of  pink,  and  a  flow- 
ing red  mantle.  He  wears  a  golden  crown  on  his  head,  and 
with  an  olive  branch  in  his  hand,  used  as  a  walking-staff,  is 
carrying  an  infant  on  his  shoulder  across  a  stream.  He  is 
girt  with  a  bright  yellow  belt  from  which  depends  a  small 
brown  pouch. 

The  Child,  who  sits  astride  on  the  saint's  left  shoulder,  is 
clad  in  a  blue  *'  combination  "  garment  reaching  from  his  neck 
to  his  feet,  which  are  bare.  An  orb  surmounted  by  a  cross  is 
in  his  left  hand,  whilst  the  right  is  raised  in  benediction.  He 
has  long  curly  hair,  on  which  is  a  high  cap  ornamented  on 
the  outer  border  with  fleurs-de-lis. 

Between  the  saint's  bare  legs  a  mermaid,  with  a  wonderfully 
large  scaly  tail  and  furnished  with  the  regulation  mirror  and 


A  MANUSCRIPT   HISTORY  OF  HATHERLEIGH.  311 

comb,  disports  herself;  while  around  her  a  lot  of  fish  of 
various  strange  kinds,  and  a  couple  of  water-fowl,  are  swim- 
ming about.  In  the  forefront  is  a  three-masted  ship  at 
anchor,  and  a  man  is  paddling  about  in  a  boat,  which,  lest  it 
should  be  carried  away  by  the  current,  is  attached  to  the  ship 
by  a  rope.  By  the  saint's  uplifted  right  foot  in  the  lower 
left-hand  corner  of  the  picture  there  is  a  marvellous  spotted 
beast  whose  head  and  fore  parts  alone  appear  above  water, 
and  what  might  by  a  strong  exercise  of  the  imagination  be 
deemed  a  turtle,  only  that  it  has  six  legs  and  a  row  of  formid- 
able spines  along  the  back,  is  seen  on  the  other  side  of  the 
saint's  foot. 

A  curly-headed  stripling  in  a  yellow  jersey  and  blue 
trousers  stands  on  the  left  bank  fishing,  and  exceedingly 
good  sport  he  seems  to  be  having,  for  on  two  of  the  three 
hooks  attached  to  his  line  are  hooked  two  fish,  either  of 
which  is  as  big  as  a  boat  containing  eight  people,  which  is 
being  rowed  by  four  of  them  towards  the  bank  in  front  of 
him.  Another  boat  with  two  black  paddlers  is  seen  higher 
up,  just  under  the  hem  of  the  saint's  cloak.  Two  of  the  fish, 
one  of  them  hooked,  are  flat  fish  with  red  spots  on  them ; 
they  are  apparently  plaice,  though  it  puzzles  one  to  think 
what  sea-fish  would  be  up  to  in  a  little  stream  only  a  couple 
of  strides  wide,  and  only  deep  enough  to  reach  half-way  up 
to  the  saint's  knees — although  capable  of  floating  the  ship 
mentioned  above. 

St.  Christopher  seems  to  have  been  having  a  "  refresher " 
before  essaying  the  ford,  for  standing  on  the  bank  behind  him 
is  a  nun  in  a  bluish-grey  robe  and  black  tippet,  with  a  rosary 
hanging  from  her  left  arm,  who  holds  in  her  right  hand  a 
hooped  tankard  nearly  as  big  as  the  saint's  own  head ;  behind 
the  nun  is  a  building  of  alternate  red  and  white  bricks,  laid 
checker -fashion,  with  narrow  loophole-like  windows  and 
roofed  with  lead,  and  in  the  gable-end  there  is  a  rose- window, 
and  on  the  top  of  it  a  cross. 

In  the  distance  are  seen  mountains — the  more  distant  of 
the  purplish  tint  due  to  atmospheric  haze ;  on  their  foot-hills 
appear  the  loopholed  walls  of  a  city,  with  the  circular 
towers  of  a  castle  behind  them. 

This  is,  in  truth,  a  very  marvellous  picture,  independently 
of  the  circumstances  under  which  it  was  found. 

It  is  now  seventy-four  years  ago  that  this  old  painting  was 
discovered  and  destroyed.  It  is  therefore  unlikely  that  any 
parishioner  still  survives  who  was  then  old  enough  to  notice 
such  a  picture  intelligently,  or,  if  old  enough  then,  too  old 


312  A  MANUSCRIPT  HISTORT  OF  HATHSBLBIGH. 

now  to  retain  more  than  a  vague  impression  of  having  seen 
something  of  the  kind. 

Strangely  enough,  when  Mr.  Short's  book  came  into  my 
possession  and  I  saw  the  picture,  I  felt  at  once  that  I  had 
seen  it  before — the  fresco  itself  I  could  never  have  seen,  for 
at  the  time  of  its  transient  exposure  I  was  still  unborn — and 
the  only  theory  that  helps  me  to  account  for  that  conviction 
is  that  I  must  have  seen  Mr.  Short's  drawing  whilst  he  was 
at  work  on  it,  for  he  liked  to  have  me  with  him  at  times  and 
would  talk  to  me  about  matters  antiquarian  and  otherwise 
till  he  was  tired,  when  he  would  say :  "  Now  run  away,  boy, 
and  ask  mother  for  that  slice  of  cake  ! " 


THE  EARLIEST  POETION  OF  THE  "TESTA  DE 
NEVILL"   RELATING  TO  DEVON. 

BY    J.    H.    ROUND,    LL.D. 
(R«ad  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


In  spite  of  the  confused  arrangement  and  often  corrupt  text 
of  the  volume  known  as  "  Testa  de  Nevill/'  its  great  value 
and  importance  for  the  local  and  family  history  of  the  feudal 
period  have  been  rightly  insisted  on  by  students  of  the  sub- 
ject, such  as  Mr.  Whale  (XXIX,  218)  and  Mr.  Reichel 
(XXXVII,  410).  But  its  evidence  needs  to  be  employed 
with  great  discrimination,  and  the  dates  of  its  various  re- 
turns require  to  be  carefully  fixed. 

It  is  clear  that  Mr.  Whale  assigned  the  whole  of  the 
Devon  portion  to  1235,  and  mistook  the  heading  of  the  first 
part  of  it  for  the  heading  of  the  whole  (XXIX,  218).  The 
Pomeroy  extent,  however,  he  dated  21  Ed.  I,  its  date  being 
so  given. 

A  great  advance  on  this  view  is  seen  in  Mr.  Reichel's  recent 
paper  on  its  "earlier  sections,"^  which,  as  he  justly  observes, 
"  from  the  detailed  information  they  contain  are  by  far  the 
most  important." 

I  here  address  myself  specially  to  the  first  in  order  of 
date.i  Mr.  Reichel  dates  this  as  "1216"  (XXXVII,  410, 413), 
but  states  that  "  it  dates  apparently  from  the  first  year  of 
Henry  III"  (XXXVII,  411).  As  John  was  king  for  the 
greater  part  of  the  year  1216,  this  is  not  as  clear  as  it 
might  be,  and  I  therefore  wrote  to  ask  Mr.  Reichel  his 
authority  for  the  date  he  gives.  He  explained  that  the 
reference  he  gives  is  erroneous,  and  that  his  authority  is 
"  the  internal  argument  from  the  contents."  This,  however, 
proves  to  be  only  the  wardship  of  Reginald  de  Valletort, 

*  Mr.  Reichel  is  mistaken  in  calling  it  "  the  oldest  section  in  the  whole 
volume"  (which  contains  some  returns  of  1198),  but  it  is  the  earliest  for 
Devon. 


314       THE  KARLIBST  PORTION  OF  "TBSTA  Dl  NKVILL." 

which  indicates  a  date,  as  he  observes,  not  "later  than  1  Hen. 
Ill,  though  it  may  have  been  penned  earlier."  Exactly  so; 
and  I  shall  now  show  that  it  was.  But  I  may  first  observe 
that  it  affords  another  note  of  date  in  its  mention  of  Robert 
de  Ver;  for  although  Mr.  Eeichel  adds  "[Earl  of  Oxford]" 
after  his  name,  the  return  is  correct  in  omitting  that  style. 
It  was  made  before  he  succeeded  his  brother  in  1214. 

The  fact  is  that,  as  I  explained  in  my  paper  on  "  The  Great 
Inquest  of  Service,"^  published  so  far  back  as  1899,  this 
Devon  return  on  pp.  194-5  of  the  "Testa"  is  merely  part 
of  the  returns  of  a  great  inquiry  made  by  John  all  over 
England  in  the  year' 1212.  Its  primary  object  was  to  trace 
all  the  lands  which  had  been  formerly  in  the  hands  of  the 
Crown  and  had  been  alienated  therefrom.  The  order  for  this 
inquiry  is  thus  entered  in  the  "Annals  of  Waverley  " : — 

[1212]  Idem  (rex)  scripsit  vice-comitibus  ut  per  singulos  hun- 
dredos  facerent  homines  jurare  quae  terrsB  essent  de  dominico  pr»- 
decessorum  suorum  regiim  antiquitus,  et  qualiter  a  manibus  regum 
exierint,  et  qui  eas  mode  tenent  et  pro  quibus  servitiis.* 

The  actual  writ  commanding  the  survey  was  issued  on 
1  June,  1212,  and  is  printed  on  page  54  of  the  "Testa." 
From  it  I  select  these  words : — 

De  tenementis  omnibus  quae  antiquitus  de  nobis  aut  de  progeni- 
toribus  nostris  regibus  AnglisB  teneri  sclent,  quae  sint  data  vel 
alienata  .  .  .  et  noraina  illorum  qui  ea  teneant  et  per  quod  ser- 
vitium.^ 

The  return  was  made  with  great  promptitude,  and  the 
heading  to  the  Devon  portion  in  the  "Testa"  runs  thus: — 

Inquipicio  dominicorum  tenementorum  et  feoffamentorum  domini 
Regis  vel  aiitecessorum  suorum  in  Devonia  (p.  194). 

The  contents  of  the  return  correspond  exactly  with  the  two 
previous  extracts  quoted  above. 

With  this  return  we  have  to  compare,  but  with  discrimina- 
tion, the  lists  [assigned  to  1210-1212]  on  pp.  558-60  of  the 
"  Red  Book  of  the  Exchequer." 

Having  now  explained  the  date  and  object  of  this  valuable 
return,  I  turn  to  some  of  its  entries,  for  the  identifications 
in  which  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Reichers  local  knowledge. 
The  references  are  to  the  pages  and  the  numbers  in  his  paper 
(Vol.  XXXVII). 

^  In  "The  Commune  of  London  and  Other  Studies." 
'  *' Commune  of  London  and  Other  Studies,"  i».  266. 
»  Ibid. 


THE  EARLIEST  PORTION   OF   "TESTA  DE  NEVILL."       315 

The  annual  payment  in  respect  of  the  hundred  of  Bud- 
leigh  (p.  415,  No.  1345)  is  recorded  as  408.,  not  lis.  (Mr. 
iReichel  seems  to  have  misread  xl.  as  xj.) 

The  gift  of  Harpford  to  the  monks  of  Marmoutier  (p.  415, 
No.  1347)  was  made  by  Oliver  de  Dinan  18  June,  1173.^ 

Hugh  Peverel  of  Sampford  Peverel  and  Aller  Peverel 
(p.  416,  No.  1350).  This  is  a  very  important  entry,  for  its 
reference  to  an  early  enfeoffment  by  "William  Peverel,  of 
Essex,  and  Matilda  his  sister."  I  have  not  been  able  to  trace 
this  enfeoffment,  but  Mr.  Eeichel  has  fallen  into  error  by 
confusing  (like  some  of  the  older  antiquaries)  the  two  great 
and  distinct  honours  of  Peverel  of  Essex  {cdias  of  London) 
and  Peverel  of  Nottingham.  The  former  appears  to  have 
escheated  to  the  Crown  under  Henry  I  some  time  earlier 
than  the  other.  Hugh  Peverel,  the  holder  at  the  time  of 
the  return,  appears  on  p.  556  of  the  "Eed  Book"  as  "Hugo 
Pyperellus  de  Saunforde"  holding  two  and  a  half  fees  of  the 
Bishop  of  Exeter  in  1210-12.  But  on  p.  558  he  is  entered 
for  the  holding  in  the  "Testa"  return  as  "Hugo  Paynel  de 
Saunforde,"  and  is  so  indexed,  the  editor  (Mr.  Hubert  Hall) 
failing  to  recognize  his  identity. 

The  comments  on  the  Wonford  entry  (p.  418,  No.  1356) 
need  much  revision.  I  am  myself  made  responsible,  both  in 
text  and  note,  for  the  statement  that  Geoffrey  de  Mandeville, 
who  received  Wonford,  was  son  to  Geofirey  de  Mandeville, 
the  Conqueror's  companion.  But  on  turning  to  p.  392  of  my 
"Geoffrey  de  Mandeville"  (the  reference  given)  no  such  state- 
ment is  found,  nor  have  I  made  it  anywhere  else. 

Mr.  Eeichers  note  opens  thus : — 

Mr.  Whale,  on  the  authority  of  Madox,  says  that  Ralph  Taisson 
held  Wonford  in  King  Stephen's  reign;  but  how  this  statement 
can  be  reconciled  with  Henry  I's  gift  to  Geoflfrey  de  Mandevil 
does  not  appear. 

Why  create  these  difi5culties  ?  Every  antiquary  knows, 
or  should  know,  nowadays,  that  the  roll  which  Madox  with 
some  hesitation  accepted  as  of  "5  Stephen"  is  simply  the 
Pipe  Roll  of  1130  (31  Henry  I),  published  by  the  Record 
Commission.  Moreover,  the  record  is  not  only  misdated  by 
Mr.  Whale,  but  misquoted  as  to  its  purport.  What  we  read 
in  it  is  (p.  154): — 

Godefridus  clericus  Bald[uini]  de  Redv[eriis]  reddit  comp.  de 
Till  li.  et  VI  s,  et  viii  d,  ut  teneat  ad  firmam  terram  de  Wunford, 
In  thesauro  xl  s.  .  .  . 

^  See  ray  "  Calendar  of  Documents  :  France,"  p.  428. 


316       THE  EARLIEST  PORTION  OF  "TESTA  DB  NBVILL." 

Here  we  have  evidence  that  Wonford  was  being  farmed  of 
the  Crown  in  1130. 

Entry  No.  1362  (p.  420)  relates  to  the  lands  of  Juhel  de 
Mayenne  (Meduana).  "Gorham"  and  "Ambreres"  were 
Gorron  and  Ambriferes,  the  chefs-lieu  of  two  adjacent  cantons 
in  the  arrondissement  and  Department  of  Mayenne  (not 
"  Marne,"  as  Mr.  Keichel  has  it)  to  the  south  of  Domfront,  in 
Normandy. 

We  can  supplement  this  entry  in  very  interesting  fashion 
by  turning  to  another  page  of  the  "  Testa "  (p.  163),  where, 
in  the  Somerset  portion  of  the  same  return,  we  learn  that 
the  royal  manor  of  South  Petherton  formed  part  of  the  same 
exchange,  and  that  Juhel's  actual  predecessor,  who  received 
these  lands,  was  Hamelin  de  Mayenne.^ 

Tliere  is  a  reference  in  entry  1364  (pp.  420-1)  to  the  grant 
by  Richard  I  to  Henry,  the  Earl's  son,  of  Kings  Kerswell 
and  Diptford.  Its  date  was  24  April,  1194,  and  the  charter 
is  printed  in  my  "Ancient  Charters"  [Pipe  Poll  Society], 
pp.  101,  102. 

I  turn  to  the  Braunton  entry  (p.  421,  No.  1366).  Mr. 
Peichel  states,  apparently  on  the  authority  of  "Eisdon's 
Note  Book  " — a  secondary  authority  which  is  too  much  used 
— that  *'in  1176  the  king  gave  £20  a  year  in  Braunton  to 
Ode  son  of  William  son  of  Gerald."  But  I  have  dealt  with 
these  Braunton  transactions,  using  the  original  authorities, 
in  **The  Ancestor,"-  and  have  there  shown,  from  the  Pipe 
Poll  of  20  Hen.  II,  that  the  grant  was  made  at  Midsummer, 
1174,  and  that  Odo — the  ancestor  of  the  great  house  of 
Carew^ — held  the  estate  at  least  as  late  as  1201. 

Having  now  dealt  with  the  details  of  the  return,  I  recur 
to  the  question  of  its  date.  This,  I  have  shown,  was  1212, 
though  Mr.  Keichel  makes  it  1216.  He  closes  his  remarks 
on  the  date  thus : — 

The  only  difficulty  is  the  mention  of  Baldwin  de  Insula  as  E^rl 
of  Devon  (No.  1349) ;  for  he  only  became  earl  on  the  death  of  his 
father  Baldwin  de  Redvers  in  1246.  Perhaps  the  reference  to  him 
is  an  after  insertion  (p.  411). 

Again  I  ask,  Why  create  these  imaginary  difficulties? 
We  have  only  to  turn  to  the  writer's  own  version  of  "No.  1349" 
to  find  that  it  contains  no  mention  of  an  Earl  Baldwin  at  all ! 

*  Et  Henricns  Rex  senex  dedit  illud  maneriuni  Hamelino  de  Cheduana 
[sic]  in  escamliium  de  Anibreres  et  dc  Gurrehani  iiescimus  quo  servicio.  Etcii 
for  the  *'  Testa  de  Nevill "  **  Cbeduaua  "  is  a  gross  error. 

«  No.  5  (1903),  i»p.  23,  24. 

'  He  is  not  identified  by  Mr.  Reicbel. 


THE  EARLIEST   PORTION   OF  "TESTA  DE  NEVILL."        317 

His  words  are  "the  Earl  de  I'lsle  (de  Insula)."  This  style, 
like  Earl  of  "Exeter,"  could  be  applied  to  any  of  the  earls  of 
Devon  since  the  first  of  them  (before  his  creation),  when 
driven  from  Exeter  by  Stephen,  fled  to  his  possessions  in  the 
Isle  (of  Wight),  and  thence  defied  the  king. 

A  precisely  similar  instance  occurs  on  the  same  page  (p.  41 1). 
Dealing  with  the  section  of  the  "Testa/'  "on  p.  iy6h,  Nos. 
1436-66  [sic],  part  37  in  the  summary,"  Mr.  lieichel  holds 
that  it  "probably  dates  from  a  time  between  1217  and  1221." 
But  he  adds  that : — 

It  mentions,  however,  Patrick  de  Chaworth  (No.  1493)  [sic]  as 
tenant  of  Holsworthy,  whose  father  Pagan  did  not  die  before  1226, 
which  seems  to  create  a  difficulty ;  the  explanation  offered  is  that 
Patrick  was  tenant  of  Holsworthy  in  his  father's  lifetime,  Hols- 
worthy having  been  his  mother's  land. 

Again  a  needless  difficulty !  How  can  "  Xo.  1493 "  be 
comprised  in  "  Nos.  1436-66  '*  ?  We  have  only  to  turn  to  the 
entry  in  question,  on  p.  439,  to  find  that  it  forms  part  of  a 
section  (Nos.  1467-1508)  which  Mr.  Reichel  himself  assigns 
to  1244  (pp.  411,431)! 

The  simple  moral  of  this  paper  is  that,  without  care  and 
accuracy,  no  amount  of  local  knowledge  and  no  assiduity  of 
research  can  produce  archaeological  work  of  real  and  definite 
value. 


FEES   OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAY. 

BY   RBV.    T.    W.    WHALE,    M.A. 

(Read  at  Lyntou,  July,  1906.) 


Devonians  will  always  take  a  lively  interest  in  the 
authentic  records  of  the  possessions  of  the  greatest  of  her 
sons,  the  Earls  of  Devon.  The  document  transcribed  below, 
"  Chancery,  Miscellaneous  Rolls  ^,"  is  one  of  the  most 
important  of  these  records,  showing  that  Hugh,  Earl  of 
Devon,  who  died  in  the  ninth  year  of  Hen.  V,  paid  scutage 
for  102^  fees  on  the  honour  of  Plympton,  and  for  102^  fees 
on  the  honour  of  Okehampton.  In  the  time  of  Hen.  Ill 
only  427  fees  paid  scutage  in  Devon,  so  that  we  may  say  of 
this  Earl  Hugh  that  he  held  nearly  half  of  the  knights'  fees 
of  the  whole  county. 

No  satisfactory  list  of  knights'  fees  can  be  found  till  12-14 
Hen.  II,  when  the  barons  were  required  to  make  a  return  to 
the  King  of  the  knights  under  them  and  the  fees  they  held 
(see  Trans. :  Dev.  Assoc,  Vol.  XXXIII,  p.  363).  To  show 
how  uncertain  were  the  payments  before  this,  we  find  (2  Hen. 
II)  the  King  claiming  of  the  Abbot  of  Pershore  for  105J  fees, 
while  the  abbot  conceded  only  16J.  In  the  next  place  the 
book  called  *' Testa  de  Nevill"  collects  from  the  Rolls  of  the 
Exchequer  of  27  Hen.  Ill  the  knights'  fees  of  the  county  to 
serve  as  a  basis  for  future  assessments,  and  to  which  the 
figures  on  the  right  of  each  page  of  the  present  document 
refer,  mostly  following  in  consecutive  order. 

The  first  volume  of  the  new  Inquisitiones  post  mortem  is 
very  useful  for  explaining  the  fees  of  the  honour  of  Plympton, 
47  Hen.  Ill,  p.  173.  The  old  Calendar,  which  gives  only 
the  names  of  caput  manors,  fails  utterly  to  reveal  its  true 
meaning,  and,  following  closely  on  *'  Testa  de  Nevill,"  was  a 
complete  riddle  ;  but  now  we  see  (p.  174)  that  certain  manors 
were  surveyed  separately.  Afterwards  (p.  175)  we  find  **the 
following  knights'  fees  held  of  the  lord  of  the  castle  " :  and  a 
comparison  of  these  with  the  Inq.  p.m.,  1  Ric.  II,  p.  2,  No.  12, 


FEES   OF  EARL  HUGH   DE  COURTENAY.  319 

and  with  Trans.:  Vol.  XXXII,  p.  540,  enables  us  to 
follow  the  list  of  the  knights  of  the  honour  and  the  fees 
each  held. 

The  number  of  fees,  reckoning  the  Barony  at  2J,  is  89,  ^, 
T^r,  as  compared  with  89  fees  of  12  John  and  of  27  Hen.  IIL 

The  second  volume  is  shortly  to  be  published,  and  will  be 
useful  to  explain  the  inq.  p.  m.  of  John  de  Curtenay,  2  Ed.  I, 
p.  52,  27,  with  its  91  fees  pertaining  to  the  Barony  of  Oke- 
hampton. 

The  Aid  for  marrying  the  King's  daughter,A,D.1302,31Ed.I, 
next  claims  special  attention.  Granted  by  Parliament,  18Ed.  I, 
the  inquisition  was  probably  made  at  once,  but  the  subsidy 
was  not  levied.  In  a  parliament  held  in  London  in  the  year 
1302  it  was  unanimously  resolved  that  this  aid  should  be 
raised  for  the  service  of  the  Scottish  war  (Lyttleton's 
"  England,"  I,  470)  and  the  consequent  King's  writ  to  each 
county  notes  "pro  dicti  comitatus  aisimento  hue  usque  super- 
sedimus  graciose." 

In  this  year  (31  Ed.  I)  King  Ed.  I  granted  to  Hugh  de 
Courtney  scutage  of  the  honour  of  Okehampton  for  the 
armies  of  Scotland  (Feoda  in  capite,  223). 

Eight  years  later  we  get  (Trans. :  Vol.  XXXII,  pp.  540-2) 
a  register  of  fees  and  liberties  of  Hugo  de  Courtney,  ex- 
tracted from  previous  registers.  This  is  very  important 
in  connexion  with  the  "Kalendar"  we  have  in  hand,  for  its 
quondam  tenants  are  mostly  taken  from  the  above  Aid,  and 
where  they  differ  we  probably  have  changes  of  tenants 
between  the  time  of  its  survey  (whether  18  Ed.  I  or  3 1  Ed.  I) 
and  4  Ed.  II. 

Next  we  note  the  Inq.  p.m.  of  Hugh  Courtney,  1  Ric.  II, 
p.  2,  and  of  Margaret  his  widow,  15  Eic.  11,  p.  133,  who  was  a 
daughter  of  Humphrey  Bohun,  Earl  of  Essex.  It  is  notice- 
able that  these  inquisitions  are  not  arranged  in  hundreds,  but, 
like  the  Cartse,  according  to  the  holdings  of  successive  mili- 
tary tenants.  Apparently  the  above  register  of  4  Ed.  II  was 
arranged  in  the  same  way. 

Passing  on  to  32  Hen.  VIII,  when  the  Court  of  Wards 
and  Liveries  was  created,  we  find  (Feoda  in  capite,  p.  3)  fees 
held  of  the  King  in  capite  and  in  demesne  collected  from 
previous  registers  by  the  Master,  through  John  Ford,  who, 
under  him  as  Feodary,  had  charge  of  the  Devon  fees  (p.  223), 
with  special  reference  to  4  Ed.  II.  This  list  contains  the 
above  fees  of  1  Ric.  II,  in  the  same  order,  but  with  certain 
additions  representing,  I  suppose,  recent  acquirements,  with 
the  names  of   the  quondam  military  tenants  of  4  Ed.  II 


320  FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAY. 

at  the  head  of  their  respective  fees,  the  first  being  the 
caput. 

As  to  our  **Kaleudar/'  Scargill  Bird,  "Guide  to  Records," 
p.  120,  gives  its  date  as  £d.  Ill,  but  there  is  no  good  reason 
for  doubting  the  date,  1  Hen.  VI,  63,  p.  75,  Inq.  p.m. ;  in 
fact,  the  Inq.  p.m.  of  Hugh  de  Courtnay's  widow  Anna, 
daughter  of  Kichard  Lord  Talbot,  19  Hen.  VI,  proves  the 
date  by  comparison  of  entries.  The  inquisition  states  that 
Hugh  died  in  the  reign  of  Hen.  IV,  seemingly  a  mistake  for 
Hen.  V.  The  10th  of  Hen.  V  only  lasted  from  April  to 
August,  A.D.  1422 ;  the  remainder  of  the  year  was  1  Hen.  VL 
In  the  next  place  note  carefully  the  Inq.  p.m.  of  Hugo 
Courtenay,  Earl  of  Devon,  10  Hen.  V,  29b,  p.  66.  This  must 
be,  I  think,  the  same  Earl  Hugh.  The  inquisition  of  his 
manors,  rents,  etc.,  was  taken  between  April  and  August, 
1422;  that  of  his  fees  later  on,  in  the  year  1  Hen.  VI;  and  so 
it  becomes  desirable  to  add  this  inquisition  to  our  Kalendar. 

The  consecutive  numbers  to  each  entry  are  not  in  the 
original,  but  are  inserted  for  purposes  of  reference.  The 
holders  of  each  fee  are  entered  as  "quondam  tenentes" ;  ex- 
amination will  conclusively  prove  that  they  were  the  tenants 
of  4  Ed.  II.  Against  each  fee  is  entered  a  sum  of  money  at 
the  rate  of  £5  for  each  fee.  Now  the  relief  rolls  of  Ed.  I 
("Feudal  Aids,"  438)  show  that  £5  was  then  the  relief  payable 
on  each  fee.  (See  also  "New  Calendar  of  Inquisitions,"  Vol.  I, 
135.)  The  names  of  honours  and  hundreds  within  brackets 
are  not  in  the  original,  but  are  inserted  to  explain  the  plan 
of  the  survey.  The  figures  at  the  end  of  each  entry  are 
inserted  for  comparison  with  "Testa  de  Nevill"  (Trans.: 
Vol.  XXX,  203-57). 

The  entry  65  is  out  of  place,  and  should  have  been  entered 
before  139.  Bramforde,  399,  among  the  omissions  at  the  end, 
has  been  entered  before  (see  224)— a  strange  blunder  in  an 
original  document.  Aylescote  occurs  twice  (327, 339),  perhaps 
divided  between  the  two  owners. 

Hyanton  seems  to  be  omitted  after  288,  but  included  in 
the  2  J  fees. 

There  are  some  minor  faults  in  the  addition.  The  sum 
total  of  all  fees  appears  to  be  £1117.  9s.  3Jd.  I  have  failed 
to  discover  why  relief  should  be  charged  on  the  cwivowsons ; 
perhaps  the  incumbents  had  to  pay  on  the  death  of  the 
patron.  Nor  is  it  easy  to  see  why  the  third  part  of  the 
relief  was  taken,  unless  it  was  an  allowance  to  the  Earl. 

In  the  inquisition  of  manors  the  third  penny  of  the  county, 
as  of  old  £18.  6s.  8d.,  paid  to  the  Earl,  appears  at  the  head. 


FBES   OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAY. 


321 


It  is  remarkable  that,  after  the  death  of  the  Countess  Isabella 
de  Fortibus,  the  Earl  Hugh,  who  died  20  Ed.  I,  did  not  assume 
the  title,  and  was  ordered  by  the  King  to  take  it.  So  on  the 
death  of  Earl  Eichard  de  Red  vers,  A.D.  1162,  the  third  penny 
ceases  to  be  paid  till  after  1  Ric.  I ;  seemingly  then  his  suc- 
cessors, Baldwin  and  Richard,  did  not  take  up  the  title,  perhaps 
because  their  mother  Hawis,  daughter  of  Earl  Reginald,  was 
the  Countess.  The  word  hurgus  is  used  in  two  senses :  (1) 
as  representing  the  larger  burgh  of  the  Nomina  Villarum ; 
(2)  as  a  smaller  defensive  castle,  for  example  in  Chulmleigh, 
Chawleigh,  Kenford, .  of  which  we  find  notices  elsewhere. 
They  were  ancient  circular  buildings  or  ring  forts. 


Chancery,  Miscellaneous  Rolls  ^i, 

KALENDAR  OF  ALL  KNIGHTS'  FEES,  AND  ADVOWSONS  OF 
CHURCHES,  WHICH  WERE  HUGO  DE  COURTENAY*S,  FOR- 
MERLY EARL  OF  DEVON,   DEFUNCT. 


DEVON. 
[HONOUR  OF  PLYMPTON.l 

{HuTuired  of  fVenfort.] 

1.  Roucomb  Hughe,  lobelia  de  Brent        .        1  fee,  lOOs.     .. 

2.  Poltymore.        •  i  Robert  Morchard  ) 

o   u  ^wTi     J    A    ?  and  >        1  fee,  lOOs.    .. 

4.  Baggetorre,  Thomas  de  Baggetorre .  .  1  fee,  lOOs.  .. 

6.  Syggeford,  Joel  de  Bukyn^n        .  .  i  fee,    25s.  .. 

6.  Stapelhille,  Roger  Stapelhille  .  .  i  fee,    50s.  .. 

7.  Holebenie,  William  Holebeme         .  .  J  fee,    50s.  .. 

8.  Stoke  in  Tynehyde,  Robert  Fitz  Pain  .  J  fee,    508.  .. 

9.  Throuleghe,  William  Prouz  .  .  I  fee,    50s.  .. 

10.  Parva  Lam foi*de.  Prior  of  Plympton      .       ;:fee,    258.     .. 

11.  Hakeworthy,  Peter  Hakeworthi     .        .       $  fee,    50s.     ,. 

12.  Clyfforde  Corbeyn  1 

cum  y  Thomas  Radeweye  .       ^  fee,    508.     .. 

13.  Halstowe      .        .J 

14.  Estwogwill,  Robert  Malstone 

15.  Hyncton  inToppysham,  JoeldeBukyrgton 

16.  Sege  in  Topsham,  Augustine  de  Baa 

17.  Roghorn  in  the  manor  of  Topsham,  John 

deToryton        .    .  .  .         .        i  fee,    25s. 

18.  Hewyssh  Tremynet,  John  de  Henryssh 

Tremynet          .                .            .  .  ^  fee,    50s. 

19.  W'oneford,  William  de  Mountaga    .  .  J  fee,    50s. 

20.  Woneford  Wygor,  William  de  Venella  .  "   J  fee,    50». 

21.  Pynho  .  .  .  .,  Thonjas  Mpleton      .  .  1  fee,  100s. 

VOL.  XXXVIIL  X 


^  fee,  50s.  .. 
\j  fee,  5s.  .. 
I  fee,    12s.  6d. 


632 
626 


^103 
627 
628 
629 
630 
633 
637 
638 
639 


631 
624 
625 


640 


S22 


FKSS  OF  KABL  HUGH  DX  OOURTENAT. 


[Esmminidra.'i 

22.  Legh  Doddyscomb,  John  de  Doddyscomb 

23.  Broyngtone,  Walter  de  Broyngtone 

24.  Ayesherystx)!!,  Richard  Prouz 

25.  Shillyngforde,  Thomas  fil.  Ranulphe 

26.  Holdham.  John  de  Clavyle . 

27.  South  woae,  John  Frauncevs 

28.  Aysford  Peverel,  Walter  de  Ashford 


b       ^  fee,    50b.    ... 

722 

.       J  fee,    256.     ... 

719 

1  fee,  1008.     ... 

.       ffee,    668.  8d. 

718 

fee,    508.     ... 

;   fee,    25s.     ... 

720 

:    fee,    258.     ... 

721 

29. 


31. 
32. 

33. 
34. 
35. 


[TairUona.] 

Twynes,  John  de  Twynes  and  Hugh  de 
Coleford  .  ... 

Yeddeforde,  Gilbert  de  Knovyle     . 

Anykesdone,  John  de  Moeles 

Aystryngton,  Isabella  de  Fysacre  and 
John  ae  Beaumond 

Holrygge,  Abbot  of  Torre  . 

Whitewey,  Richard  de  Whiteweye . 

Lowedone,  John  de  Doddyscomb    . 


36, 


ICarseuilla,] 
Wakeleforde     /    Gnj  d^Bry^n   \ 

(Bakeleford)jjjj^hola^Penyles/ 

37.  Bokelond       '\  Stephen  de  Haccomoe  ] 

and  >  and 

38.  Charlecombe  )        John  Herpath         ; 

39.  Eggergswill  J  John  de  Ferramus  (Fer- 

aiid  >  "^^^^^)>  Roger  de  Rem- 1 

(    mysbwey,  and  Eustace  I 
Odeknoll    .  )  de  (le)  Baron 
Torbruer,  John  de  Mohoun. 
Aire  juxta  Carswill,  John  de  Aire  . 
Wydecomb,  Thomas  Fitz  Ralph      . 

[Cadelintona,] 


40. 
41. 
42. 
43. 


44.  Stoke  in  la  Hamme  )  Matthew  Fitz  John  ) 
and  c  and  [ 


j-  and 

45.  Blake  Aueton        . )    Abbot  of  Torre 

46.  Qrymston,  William  de  Qrymston    . 

47.  Stancombe,  Peter  Prior 


[JDippe/orda,] 

48.  Leghe  Artour,  William  de  Grymstone 

49.  Herewelthesore,  Baldwin  de  Bastard 

50.  Wodelegh,  Henry  Fitz  Alan 

51.  Morleghe,  Peter  de  Fysacre 

52.  Myddelton  "j    James  de  Mohoun   ^ 

and        V  and  > 

53.  Horswille   J  Richard  de  Neweton  J 

(  William  de  Beneleghe  ) 

54.  Beneleghe  <  and  > 

(       John  de  Moeles       ) 

55.  Combe  Rouel,  William  de  Combe  . 


J  fee,    168.  8d.  701 

1  fee,  1008.     ...  702 

1  fee,  lOOs.     ...  705 

1  fee,  lOOs.     ...  706 

^fee,    338. 4d.  703 

I  fee,    16s.  8d.  704 

I  fee,    50s.    ...  722 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
1  fee,  1008. 

I  fee,    508. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 
ifee,    25s. 


695 

^696 

[697 
698 


700 
699 


1715 
2  fees,  2008.     .,.< 

(714 

1  fee,  100s.     ...     716 

^  fee,     88.  4d.      717 


1  fee,  lOOs.  ...  709 

ifee,    25s.  ...  707 

1  fee,  100s.  ...  708 

1  fee,  lOOs.  ...  709 

1  fee,  lOOs.  ...  711 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
^fee,    258. 


713 
712 


FEES  OF  KARL  HUGH  DB  COURTRNAY. 


323 


[AUeriga,] 

66.  Aueton  Gyflfard,  William  le  Prouz 
57.  Flute  .        .  ) 

68.  Bykcomb    .  (  John  de  Ambe  Marie  \ 
and  (        (Alba  Maria)        / 

59.  Wardyslegh) 

60.  Ermyngton,  John  de  Benestede 

61.  Kyngestone,  William  Martyn 

62.  Holboghetone,  William  de  (le)  Prouz 

63.  Kyllebury,  Robert  de  Kyllebury    . 

64.  Uggeburgh,  John  de  Monoun 
Wytherygge,  William  Poleyn 
Blache worth,  Baldwin  le  Bastard 


[65 


I  fee,  lOOa. 
1  fee,  lOOa. 

^  fee, 

J  fee, 

J  fee, 
.      ^  fee, 

1  fee,  lOOs. 
i  +  ^fee,    608. 

±  fee,    258. 


67.  Nyther  Blaccheworth,  Prior  of  Plympton       J  fee,    258. 


[Plintona,} 

68.  Hennemerdona  1 

cum  >  Nicholas  de  Warwyk 

69.  Bockeworth     .J 

70.  Bykeford,  William  de  Bykeford     . 

71.  Legh  Chalouns,  Robert  Chalouns    . 

72.  Gosewill,  Baldwin  le  Bastard 

73.  Alfamestone,  William  de  Treauwen 

74.  West  Hoo,  Osbert  Gyffard  . 


1  fee,  lOOs.     ...     641 


J  fee,    268. 

tfee,  20s. 
fee,  508. 
1  fee,  1008. 
I  fee,    258. 


641 
644 
643 
642 
684 


[  JFalehentOfuu'j 

75.  Tauyfolyot,  John  GJorges     . 

76.  Whitechurch,  Joan  de  la  Treauwen 

77.  Sampforde-spyne,  Walter  de  la  Spyne 

78.  Shiteletorre,  John  Herbert . 

79.  Louytone,  Baldwin  le  Bastard 

80.  Bokelond,  John  Gyffard      . 

81.  Comptone,  John  Gyffard 

82.  Efford,  Baldwin  le  Bastard  . 

84.'  ?Srelegli  I  ^^"^^  ^'  ^aTd  ^^""'"''^^ 

85.  Whythy  .  (       *^^^^  ^^  Blakeston 

86.  Buttockyshyde,  William  de  Buttockya- 

hyde .  .  ... 

87.  Tamertone  Folyot,  John  Gorges 

88.  Blakestone,  John  Blakestone 


} 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 
1  fee,  1008. 
1  fee,  503. 
I  fee,  26s. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 
I  fee,  75s. 
I  fee,    508. 

3^  fees,  350s. 


1  fee,  100s. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 
j[  fee,    608. 


677 
678 
679 
680 
681 
682 
683 
685 
686 
I  687 

'688 

689 
693 
694 


[Xiftono.] 

89.  Wyselysworth,  William  Trenchard         .       1  fee,  lOOs. 

90.  Lamerton,  Joan  de  la  Treauwen     .        .       1  fee,  lOOa. 

91.  Colycomb) 

and        y  William  Trenchard  .  .  1  fee,  lOOs. 

92.  Wylestre  J 

93.  Bradestone,  John  de  Crwys  .  .  4  fee,    508. 

94.  Sprey,  John  de  Assheleghe  .  .  i  fee,    508. 

x2 


645 
648 
649 


r64 


6:)0 

661 
652 


324  FEES   OF  EARL  HUGH  DB  COUBTBNAY. 

[TauuerUona,] 


96.  Mylestonel 

and        >  Richard  Corbyn 

96.  Hoke        J 

97.  Cruke  Burnell,  Ralph  Burell  (Burnell)  . 

98.  Taiitone  \ 

cum       I 

iStSre    Hughd^VaUeTovta    .        . 

and         I 

101.  Wyke       / 

[Toritona,] 

102.  Lughhyngcote,  Jordan  de  Liiglihyngcote 

103.  Brygge  Rouwald,  Ralph  de  Doune 

104.  Chury  Potford,  Robert  de  Mortone 

105.  Tiuieueburgh    "j 

and  V  Ralph  de  Asshe.   . 

106.  Clystmeldoune  J 

107.  Gydecote,  Walter  le  Denys . 

ll^^fU        HalphdeEsse        | 

110.  Haie    (  Richard  deStapledone  J 

111.  Whamford,  William  le  Prouz 

112.  Innelegh,  John  Beaumound 

r      Walter  Speare       "j 

113.  Myddelcote-!  and  V 

(^  Robert  de  Kyllebury  J 

114.  Scobchestre,  Roger  Asshbrytell    (Assh 

bury). 
116.  Asshbury,  Roger  Asshbrytell  (Asshbury) 

116.  Radeclyve,  John  le  BrocKe . 

117.  Beworthy  \ 

and         >  Ralph  Bloyou  . 

118.  MelleburyJ 

119.  Kympebeare,  John  le  Beare 


1  fee,  100s. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
1  fee,  100s. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 

i  fee,    508. 

J  fee,    758. 

i  fee,  508. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 


^563 

[564 

562 

r567 

I  568 
569 


589 

590 

591 

1^592 

[593 

594 

^595 

I  597 

'599 
600 
601 


^fee,    168. 8d.      602 


ifee,  338.  4d. 
1  fee,  100s.  ... 
i  fee,    258.     ... 

i  fee,    508.     .., 

}  fee,    758.     ... 


603 

604 
[606 

[607 
605 


[Mertona.] 

120.  Warre     A 

and       >  Joan  de  la  Treauwen    . 

121.  HoldhamJ 

122.  Little  Tori  tone,  William  Crwys      . 

123.  Beauforde,  John  Wyletone  . 

(  Robert  de  Stokhay  ) 

124.  Hele  Pouere  <  and  > 

(   Matthew  Gyffard   ) 

125.  Hele  Godyng,  Thomas  Terrell 

126.  Twykeyeare         .  ) 

127.  Wynse^ote  .        .  (  ^^^^^P  ^^  Courtenay      2  fees,  200s.     ...  j 

et  cum  membris  )  ( 

ISInlSr'^rrlondlDaviddeServjngton       1  fee,  1008.    ...    616 


1  fee,  1008. 

i  fee,    508. 
J  fee,    25s. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 

J  fee,    25s. 


I  608 

*609 
611 
612 

613 

614 
:  615 


FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAT. 


325 


nyrgton  ^ 
le  DenysJ 


[Brantona,] 

130.  Lobbe,  Mauger  de  Sanctx)  Albino    . 

r  rain  de  Mollecote  ) 

131.  Mollecote-!  and  V     . 

(^  John  Doddyscomb  ) 

132.  Whitfyld,  Richard  Whitfyld 

(   Prioress  of  Cany 

133.  Qodelegh<  and 

(  Heirs  of  John 

134.  Cburche  Merewode,  William  Martyn 

135.  Crackeway,  John  White  way 

[Scireaella,] 

136.  Sherewille,  Thomas  Beaumound     . 

137.  Stoke,  Peter  de  Fyshacre     . 

[Sul  Moltona,] 
13d.  Polham,  John  de  Sancto  Mauro 


i  fee,    60s. 

i  fee,    508. 

1^  fees,  1508. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 

i  fee,    508. 
I  fee,    258. 


1  fee,  100s. 
^fee,    258. 


582 
I  583 


584 
686 


585 

7 


687 
688 


iVfee,    88. 4d.      610 


139.  Wolferysworth 

140.  Tedelegh. 

and 


[jrUric.] 

Robert  de  Stokay, 
Walter  de  Mollond, 

John  de  Wyke, 
and 

William  Dubbe 


141.  Blakegrove 

142.  Baggeston,  Robert  de  Baggeston 

143.  Warbryghtyslegh  ] 

and  y 

144.  Blakeworth         .J 

145.  Derterauf,  Ralph  de  Esse    . 

146.  Odetowne,  Robert  de  Horton 


Tliomas  de  Danecaster 


1  fee,  1008. 


J  fee, 

ifee, 

i  fee, 
J  fee. 


25s. 
258. 


128.  6d. 


671 
672 
573 


676 
676 

677 
581 
679 


147.  Langgelegh 


[Budeleia.] 

and  ~      >  Henry  de  Wylytone 

148.  Brotherygge  J 

149.  Crydehylyon,  Ralph  de  Hylyon 

150.  Wortha,  Alexander  de  WoVtlia 

151.  Blakeburgh,  Hoger  le  Poyer 

152.  Clyst  St.  Alary,  Roger  Tauntefer    . 
Femdon  Rauf,  Thomas  Fitz  Ralph 

C  John  de  Forde  ) 

Forde  <  and  > 

(  Nicholas  de  la  Wythyen  ) 
Cadebury,  William  de  Botreaus 


153. 
154. 


155. 


[Culiniona»] 

156.  ^Vhitelegh  ) 

and        >  Hugh  le  Prouz 

157.  Wydecomb  ) 

158.  Muttone  (Suttone),  Maurice  de  Lucy 

159.  HuUe,  Abbot  of  Quarera     . 

160.  Forewode,  Abbot  of  Quarera 


:■•{: 


'723 
1  fee,  lOOs. 

■  Y23 
Ifee,    16s.  8d.    '724 
^  fee,    508.     .. 
A  fee,    lOs.     .. 
*  fee,    50s.     .. 
I  fee,    338.  4d. 


ifee,    168.  8d. 
^  fee,    508.     ... 

i  fee,    608.     ... 


726 
726 
727 

728 


729 
863 

619 


fee,    508.     ... 

620 

fee,    168.  8d. 

621 

fee,    60s.     ... 

69 

326 


FEES  OF  KARL  HUGH  DB  COUBTENAY. 


[Axtmuda,] 

161.  Doune,  Ralph  de  Doune 

[Axeministra.] 

162.  Memburye  Capye,  William  Capye  . 

163.  Wyke,  Ralph  de  Doune 

164.  Kylmetone,  Richard  de  Mertone    . 

[ffamiihe.] 
166.  Chery  Stan  tone,  Oliver  de  Todeham 

[Clisiana,] 

166.  Kolomp,  Mauger  de  Sancto  Albino 

167.  Biyghrycheston,  Nicholas  de  Boteforde . 

iJohn  de  Valle  Torta    ) 
and  V 

Henry  de  Frankehayne  ) 

169.  Boterlegh,  William  Poleyn . 

[Badentona,] 

170.  Pal  tone,  John  de  Radyngtoue 

171.  Donnyngston,  Abbot  of  Torre 

[TuuerUma,] 

172.  La  Cove  ) 

and      >  Roger  Fitzpain   . 

173.  La  Mere) 

174.  La  West  Mere,  Matthew  de  la  Newlond 
176.  West  Cheuethome,  William  de  Cheue 

thorne  .  .  . 

176.  Louerlegh,  Richard  le  Palmer 

177.  Legh,  Thomas  de  Legh 

178.  Pole,  Mauger  le  Qraunt 

179.  Noggecote,  Robert  Mauduyt 

180.  Est  Bradelegh,  Richard  de  Est  Bradelegh 

[Sul/ertana,] 

181.  Cadelegh,  John  de  Mohon  . 

182.  Plymptrwe,  Robert  Fitzpain 

183.  Greenelynch  J 

184.  Northwill      f  . 

and  t 

186.  Yerdone         ) 

186.  Blakeburgh  Boty— of  which  |th  parti 

is  in  Ashforde,  Adam  de  Boty         .  j 

187.  Est  Raddone,  Augustine  de  Baa 

188.  Nywelond,  Gregory  de  Wyllyngton 

189.  Waylesbeare,  John  de  Chalouns 

190.  Borne       A 

and  >  Margaret  de  la  Borne  . 

191.  DowryggeJ 

192.  Paddokebroke,  William  de  Cogan  . 

193.  Emehilte,  Henry  de  Campo  Amulphi    . 

194.  Sylferton,  Humphry  de  Bello  Campo     . 


ifee,    168. 8d.     618 


^  William  Thorlok 


r  fee,  168.  8d. 
ffee,  168.  8d. 
r  fee,    608.     ... 


1  fee,  1008.     ... 

J  fee,  60s.     ... 

I  fee,  338.  4d. 

^  fee,  608.     ... 

i  fee,  608.     ... 


1  fee,  1008. 
1  fee,  lOOs. 


1  fee,  1008. 
I  fee,    128.  6d. 


nfee, 
i  fee, 
ifee, 
; :  fee, 
fee, 
A^ee, 


608. 
268. 
668.  8d. 
268. 
20a. 
2s.  6d 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
i  fee,    608. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 


1  fee,  lOOs. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 
"  fee,    268. 


Jfee, 

ifee, 

ifee, 
J  fee, 
1  fee,  lOOs. 


268. 

60s. 

608. 
258. 


[Honour  of  Plympton     102^  fees,  10233s.  4d.] 


622 


861 


667 
669 

668 


963 


660 

[661 
662 

762 
663 
664 
666 
666 
106 


653 
&54 


/864 
•\856 

!     668 

.     666 

f666 


659 


PSSS  OF  KABL  HUGH  DX  COUBTSNAY. 


327 


195. 
196. 
197. 
198. 

199. 

200. 
201. 

202. 
203. 

204. 
206. 
206. 
207. 
208. 
209. 

210. 
211. 
212. 

213. 

214. 
216. 
216. 
217. 
218. 

219. 


221. 

222. 
223. 
224. 


[HONOUR  OF  OKSHAHFTON.] 
[JFenf&rt.'i 

Rawlandeston,  Master  John  Derwyen     . 

Bramford  Pvn,  Robert  de  Pyn 

Parva  Donsford,  William  Servyngton     , 

Matforde,  Oliver  de  Dynham 

rRalpli  Fitz  William^ 

Rocombe  Cadeho-!  and  V 

[   Henry  Fitz  Alan    J 

Medenecomb,  John  de  Byttlysigate 

Rydemore  \ 

and        >  Stephen  de  Haccomb  . 

Clifford    .J 

Teigntone  Drw  \  John  Dabemoun  "j 

and  >  and  > 

Bradeforde      .  J      John  Denes     J 

Ryssheforde,  William  de  Ryssheforde     . 

Spraytone,  William  Talbot 

H  utteneslegh,  Roget  Cole    . 

Eg£;ebeare  J 

Boledone   f  j  ,  „  ir«ii«. 

and        >  John  Kelly      .  .        . 

Haylake     ) 

Foleforde,  Henrv  de  Foleforde 

Melehewyssh  (  f  eter  de  Melehewyssh ") 


^fee,    16s.  8d.  476 

1  fee,  100s.     ...  475 

fee,    608.     ...  477 

fee,    12s.  6d.  478 


1  fee,  lOOs. 


479 


^fee,    50s.    480,481 
(  484 

f  fee,    66s.  8d.  \ 

(486 
(486 


and  '       I  and  > 

Langeston     .  (  Langeston  ) 

Tettebom,  Thomas  de  Harpetrwe  . 
Tettebom,  R(M5er  de  Langeforde 
Wolderygge,  John  de  Wyke 
Wolderygge,  Henry  Goraunt 
Colechurcne,  Dommus  de  Colechurche 

"  c^ue  dicitur  Sancte  Marie  in  le  Hethe." 
Westecote  ^ 

and        >  Walter  de  Langedon    . 
La  HagheJ 

Uppecote  .  1    y^^.^  ^j  1^^^  ^j  Uppecote 
Holecombe  )  <^^  ^^^^^^  ^^  Exemynstre) 
Floyerslond  juxta  Exham,  Walter  Floyer 
Bramforde,  William  Le  Speke 


^  fee,    508. 

J  fee,  75s. 
1  fee,  1008. 
^fee,    60s. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 

^  fee^    60s. 

1  fee,  lOOs. 

i,  ^  fee,  76s. 

fee,  603. 

fee,  50s. 

fee,  508. 

fee,  75s. 


487 
488 
489 
[490 
491 


•"{ 


492 
493 


1  fe^,  100s. 

J  fee,    268.     ...< 


494 

496 
496 
497 

498 

499 
553 


[Esseministra,'] 
(  Hugh  le  Prouz   ^ 

225.  Shappelegh-I  and  V    . 

\  Richard  le  Prouz  J 

226.  Fenne  ^ 

and  \  Robert  de  Valepytte 

227.  Jordenestoune  J 

228.  Tengce  George,  John  le  Norreys    . 

229.  Alandestone,  Nicholas  Pecche 

230.  Mamaheued,  Nicholas  de  Carru 

231.  Teygnemuthe,  Serlo  de  la  Gore 


^fee,    508. 
1  fee,  100b. 


1  fee,  100s. 


ifee,    16s.  8d. 

J  fee,  508.  ... 
fee,  258.  ... 
1  fee,  100s.  ... 
^iee,    168.  8d. 


552 

71 

549 

550 

548 

551 
554 


328  FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  GOURTENAT« 

[Taintona.] 

232.  Heanoke,  John  de  Tremynet 

233.  Parva  Maneton,  Mabel  de  Langedon 

234.  Nytherdone,  Hugh  le  Prouz 


236.  Torbryan ) 
nd       } 


[Caruuilla.] 


and      {  Guy  de  Briane  . 

236.  Westeton  ' 

237.  Spearkewill,  William  Bernhous 

238.  Blakedon,  John  Pypard 

239.  Haccomb,  Stephen  de  Haccomb 

240.  Welleburgh,  Abbot  of  Torre 


[Cadelintona,] 

241.  Aydesham  (Dydesham),  Roger  de  Inke- 

penne  .  ... 

242.  Slaptone,  Quy  de  Bryane    . 

243.  Doddebrok  A 

and  y  Henry  Fitz  Alan    . 

244.  Porttelemwe  J 

245.  Lamsyde,  Henry  Fitz  Alan 

246.  Pral,  William  Pral  ... 

247.  Engleburne,  Abbot  of  Bucfestre     . 


[LisUma.] 

248.  Wyke  Langeforde,  Prior  of  Frethelystok 

249.  Barony  of  (Bratton)  ) 

250.  Comb      .        .        .U^eydeMeryet    . 

251.  Qodescote  .  ) 

252.  Brydestawe,  John  de  Cobeham 

253.  Dountertone,  Philip  de  Courtenay . 

254.  Kelly        A 

and  VJohnde  Kelly 

255.  MedewylleJ 

256.  Lyem  .        .  \ 

and  y  William  Trenchard  . 

257.  WadelestoneJ 

258.  Orchard,  John  de  Mules 

259.  Godberdone  (  Thomas  de  Godberdone  ^ 

and  <  and  > 

260.  Alfardestone  (  Alfardesdone  ) 

261.  Meledone,  Michael  de  Meledone     . 

262.  Hoke,  William  de  Cockyscomb 

263.  Stokelegh,  Geoffrey  de  Stockelegh  . 

[TauuetUona,] 

264.  Eggeneford,  Richard  de  Reygny     . 

265.  Wemme  Worthy  ) 

and  I  William  le  Speke 

266.  Brysshford  J  ^  381 

267.  Pettrycheswall  i  J  379 

and  \  Adam  de  Boys      .        .       I  fee,    25s.     ...  { 

268.  Heyghes.        J  U78 


1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

538 

ifee,    25s.     ... 
ifee,    16s.  8d. 

539 

640 

638 

1  fee,  100s.     ... 

633 

r  fee,    50s.     ... 

634 

fee,    16s.  8d. 

636 

fee,    338.  4d. 

636 

Ifee,  lOOs.     ... 

537 

1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

1  fee,  100s.     ... 

f643 

ifee,    60s.     ...- 

1644 

ifee,    33s.  4d. 

646 

fee,    128.  6d. 
rfee,    258.     ... 

646 

647 

ifee,    508.     ... 

500 

'601 

1  fee,  100s.     ...  < 

|502 

1 
1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

607 

1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

608 

r509 

Ifee,  1008.     .... 

[510 

f611 

i  fee,    338.  4d.  - 

,512 

ifee,    25s.     ... 

513 

r 

ifee,    50s.     .... 

,503 

:  fee,    20s.     ... 

604 

fee,    20s.     ... 

506 

fee,    50s.     ... 

506 

ifee,    50s.     ... 

377 

( 

380 

I  fees,  200s.     ... 

FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  GOURTENAT. 


329 


270. 
271. 
272. 
273. 
274. 

276. 
276. 
277. 
278. 

279. 
280. 
281. 
282. 
283. 
284. 
285. 


Nymet  Rolond  ) 

&i         [johndeWolfryngton 

Kolondistone     ] 
Brodenymet ) 

^*^T^^     >  Robert  de  Appeldore 
Appledore  .  ) 

Bordeuylestone,  Walter  de  Loges    . 
Cloueneburgh,  Walter  le  Denys 
Walestone  l  Robert  de  Stokhay  i 

and       I  and  }  . 

Thorn      .  I  Thomas  de  Tetborn  ' 
Hals,  Walter  Tauntefer 
Greneslade,  Hu^h  de  Greneslade    . 
Newelond,  William  de  Newelond   . 
Cheynystone,  Walter  de  Chenystone 
Harawynslegh,  Roger  Cole . 
Wyke,  Robert  Flambard     . 


1  fee,  lOOs. 


1  fee,  lOOe.     .. 

ifee,  508.     ... 

fee,  33s.  4d. 

J  fee,  25s.     ... 

^  fee,  508.     ... 

j^fee,  75s.     ... 

rfee,  168.  8d. 

;   fee,  25s.     ... 

irfee,  50s.     .., 

^:fee,  258.     ... 


384 


286. 
287. 


289. 
290. 
291. 
292. 
293. 
294. 
295. 

296. 
297. 
297. 

298. 
299. 
300. 
301. 

302. 
303. 

304. 
305. 
306. 
307. 
308. 
309. 


Ledebrok 


[Taritona,] 

Domeforde  ( ^^^^^  ^^  ^f^f  °^  ^^''}^'  \ 
nr^A         }     boHie  aud  Agnes  de      > 

Yekesbomei  Domeflforde  J 

Lodecote     .  ) 

wis':  Jo^'^^«C''<^«^°    •    • 

Rokeworthy  ) 

Belstone,  Henry  de  Belstone 
Bryxteneston,  Robert  de  Brodenemet     . 
Herpforde  I    Walter  Tantefer    j 

and        ]  and  /     . 

Radewey  .  '  Roger  de  Radewey  * 
Wyghelegh,  Walter  Tauntefer 
(H)Sonychurch,   Richard  de   (H)Bony- 

chiirch  .  ... 

Monokekhampton,  Robert  de  la  Mare    '. 
Brodewode,  Henry  de  Belston 
Corbynestone,  Peter  de  Corbynestoue     . 
Inwardlegh  (  Elias  Coffeyn  ] 
and        <  and  > 

Westecote     (  Walter  Perer  ) 
Catokebeare  | 

and         J  Roger  de  Langeforde 
Crofte.        .  J 

Gorhuwyssh,  William  Gorhuwyssh 
Maddeforde,  William  de  Maddeforde 
West  Polworthi,  Ralph  de  Ponestone 
Bordone,  Roger  de  Bordone 
Bradeforde  Auborne,  Heirs  of  lord  of 

Bradeforde  Auborne 


2^  fees,  250s. 


1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

i  fee,    508.     ... 
I  fee,    33s.  4d. 

J  fee,    508.     ... 

5«5  fee,      5s.     ... 

1  fee,  100s.  ... 
h  fee,  508.  ... 
I  fee,  33s.  4d. 
I  fee,    16s.  8d. 

1^  fees,  1258.    ... 


453 


i  fee,  508. 

I  454 

ifee,  60s.     ...  455 

I  fee,  258.     ...  456 

^  fee,  lOs.     ...  467 

^  fee,  10s.     ...  458 

ifee,  128. 6d.  433 


330 


FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DX  COUBTKNAY. 


[Mertana.] 

310.  Langcars,  John  de  Beaumond 

311.  Pairkham,  Henry  de  Belston 

312.  Hemsham,  William  de  Comu 

313.  Poderygge,  Hugh  le  Moygne 

I  Matthew  Gyffard  ) 

314.  Methe  j  and  [  .        . 

(  John  le  Deneys   i 
316.  Wolledon,  John  de  Wolledon 

316.  Stokelegh  Dabernoun,  John  le  Denys     . 

317.  Heauntou  Sachevyle,  Mauger  Fitz  Henry 

318.  Tonyrton,  Joel  Pollard 


^  fee,    268.  ... 

2  fees,  7008.  ... 

^  fee,    608.  ... 

I  fee,  lOOs.  .... 

1  fee,  100b.  ... 

J  fee,    60s.  ... 

fee,    60a.  ... 

I  fee,  lOOs.  ... 

I  fee,    128.  6d. 


[ffertilanda,] 

319.  Asshmoundesworthy,  Roger  Bemehous  .       \  fee,    60a. 

i  Richard  de  Strokesworth  | 
and  I  ^  fee,    608. 

Bartholomew  Gyffard     ' 
321.  Parva  Yeamescombe,  Walter  Fitz  Warin       1  fee,  lOOs. 


[Brantona,] 

322.  Asshforde,  John  de  Beaumound 

323.  West  Asshforde,  Robert  Beaupel    . 

324.  Heaunton. 
326.  Hagyngton 

326.  Blakewill . 

and 

327.  Aylescote  . 

328.  Lyucomb 

329.  "VV^orcomb 

and 

330.  Myddlemere 

wode 

331.  Worcombe  Roges,  Heirs  of  Fitz  Rogo 

332.  Ilf  redecombe,  Henry  de  Campo  Arnulpho 

333.  Kentelysber}',  Richard  le  Wolf 

334.  Felelegh,  Thomas  de  Felelegh 

335.  Westecote  .  j 

and  [  Henry  Merewod 

336.  Puttesforde  * 

337.  West  Bokelond,  Nicholas  de  Warwyk 

{Robert  Beaupell     \ 
and  J 

Matthew  Forneauus ' 
339.  Aylescote,  Augustine  de  Pyn 


-John  de  Puncherdon , 


Abbot  of  Donkeswell ) 

and  ; 

Matthew  Crowethom  ' 


[Scireu£lla»] 

340.  Sherewille,  John  de  Beaumond 

341.  Charles,  Henry  de  Ralegh  . 

[Sut  MoUona,] 

342.  Newetone  .  | 

and         5  Baldwin  de  Lorrewille 

343.  Wettestone  * 


469 
460 
461 
462 

463 

464 
466 
466 
467 


641 


642 


1  fee,  1008.    ... 

412 

.       1  fee,  100b.    ... 

413 

r414 

416 

.      3  fees,  3008.     ...- 

416 

.     6 

r417 

418 

.      2  fees, 

200b.     ,,.- 

.419 

.       i  fee, 
0       1  fee, 

20s.     ... 

420 

100s.     ... 

421 

.       1  fee 

100s.     ... 

422 

.       i  fee. 

608.     ... 

423 
111 

.       ifee, 

60s.     ... 

Ifee, 

100a.     ... 

424 

.       ifee. 

508.     ... 

425 

•       ifee, 

60s.     ... 

6 

.    Hfees, 

1608.     ... 

426 

.       1  fee. 

1008.      ... 

427 

i  431 

.       ifee. 

508.     ...j 

432 

FEES  OF  EARL  HUGH  DX  COUBTENAT. 

^fee,    M)8. 


344.  Ansty  Reygny,  Richard  de  Revgny 

345.  Frodetone  i 

and         I  William  de  Moigne     . 

346.  Monyeston  ' 

[JFitric.] 

347.  Chedeldownle  Yestre,  John  Unthunk     . 

348.  Haunteforde,  William,  son  of  John  de 

Ralegh 

349.  Cadebury,  Richard  I^e  Copyner 

350.  Bonevyleston,  John  de  Bonevyleston 

351.  Gorlounde,  John  de  Gorloimde 

352.  Shitysbeare,  William  de  la  Fenne  (Stone 

353.  Baylekeworth,  William  Cole 

354.  Stone,  William  de  la  Stone 

355.  Heaunteforde,  Roger  Cole  . 

f  Simon  Fitz  Rogo  ") 

356.  Meu8hawe<  and  >     . 

(^  Baldwin  Flemyng  ) 

357.  La  Yerd,  Roger  de  la  Yerd 

358.  Assh,  Robert  de  Assh 

359.  Rakeneforde,  Alexander  de  Crws   . 

360.  Wodebom) 

and        >  Henry  de  Colecomb    . 

361.  West  Aps  J 

362.  WestwcKieborn,  Thomas  de  Westwodebom 

363.  Ad  pontem  ) 

and         >  William  de  Raysshelegh    . 

364.  Hospitalem  ) 

[Chriditona,] 

365.  Yolk  (Yowe),  Annora  de  Tettebom 


^fee,    50b. 


^  fee,  lOs.     ... 

e,  33s.  4d. 

fee,  20b.     ... 

fee,  128.  6d. 

:  fee,  128.  6d. 

fee,  50s.     ... 

-  fee,  168.  8d. 

J  fee,  128.  6d. 

^  fee,  10s.     ... 

1  fee,  100b.     ... 

i  fee,  50s.     ... 

I  fee,  Sas.  4d. 

1  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

I  fee,  lOOs.     ... 

i  fee,  338.  4d. 

J  fee,  508.     .. 


366. 
367. 
368. 
369. 
370. 

371. 
372. 


373. 


374. 


[Axeministrci.] 
377.  Forde,  Nicholas  de  Forde    . 


331 

428 
(429 

I43O 

.     395 

397 
398 
399 
400 
401 
403 
404 
405 

406 

407 

408 

409 

r410 


{ 


.411 
410 


[Budeleia.] 
lie  Shute,  Thomas  de  Swaynesseye 
Yetemetone,  John  le  Pouer . 
Dialedeche,  Robert  Dyaledech 
Rokebeare,  Abbess  of  Legh 
Rokebeare  Baudewyne  1 

and  >  Henry  deBelston 

Dodetone    .        .        .  ) 
Aylysbeare,  Sir  Hugh  de  Courtenay 

[CuliniorM.'] 

(  William  de  Parco  "i 

Colewill  -|  and  > 

(  The  Master  of  Bothemyscomb  ) 

!  William  de  Parco,  J 
John  de  Veer      ) 


1  fee,  lOOs.  .., 

^  f ee,    258.  ... 

I  fee,    128.  6d. 

ifee,    508.  ... 

I  fee,    503.  ... 

1  fee,  lOOs.  ... 

^  fee,    508.  .. 


1  fee,  100b. 


1  fee,  lOOs. 


396 


655 
656 
557 
658 
659 

^560 
661 


473 


474 


ifee,  608.  .,.{%l 
I  fee,  128.  6d.   471 


332 


FSBS  OF  EABL  HUGH  DE  COUBTENAT. 


[Axemuda.] 

378.  Comb  Coffyn,  Gilbert  de  Umframvyle 

379.  Suttecomb,  John  de  Veer   . 

380.  Brokelonde,  Vivian  de  Trylle 

[Bdmiohe.'i 

381.  Hydone,  Margaret  de  Dynham 

382.  Colomppyne,  John  Toiler   . 

383.  Nonyngcote,  John  TyrrV     . 

384.  Bolham,  Abbot  of  Dunkeswill 

[Clistana,] 

385.  Clyst  Hydon,  William  de  Hydon   . 

386.  Aflsheclyst,  Abbot  of  Torre 

[BadetUona,'} 

387.  Trounham,  William  Bamevyle 

388.  Hokeworthy,  William  de  Hokeworthi 

389.  Holecomb,  Henry  de  Roges 

[HcOberUma.] 

390.  Selake,  Philip  Gyffard 

[Tuuertona.] 

391.  Chyuethom,  William  de  Chyuethom 

(in  the  hundred  of  Baunton) 

[Sul/ertona,] 

392.  Payhembury,  Philip  Gyffard 

393.  Hele,  Roger  de  Hele 

394.  Kentelesbeare ' 


395.  Kyngefforde  . 

396.  Ponteforde     . 

and 

397.  Cattesburffh 


irgJ 
roe 


Henry  Fitz  Mauger  j 

and  I 

William  Vacy      ' 


398.  Langeforde,  John  de  Langeforde 


399.  Bramforde,  William  Speke . 

400.  Monketon,  John  de  Carru  . 

401.  Spelecomb,  Roger  le  Geu     . 

402.  Borlond,  Richard  de  Hewyash 


;  fee,    50s.     ...     468 

:fee,    148.3^.    472 

fee,    258.     ...     748 


fee,  508.  ...  527 

fee,  50s.  ...  528 

fee,  50b.  ...  529 

fee,  50s.  ...  530 


1  fee,  lOOs. 
ifee,    25s. 


i  fee,  50s. 
I  fee,  50s. 
1  fee,  100s. 


531 


525 
526 


I  fee,    128.  6d.      515 


^fee,    50s.     ...     523 


.       ifee, 

50s.     ... 

514 

.       1  fee. 

lOOs.     ... 

516 
519 

.      3  fees,  300s.     ..." 

518 

^520 

.       ifee, 

50s.     ... 
100s.   (see 

521 

1  fee. 

224) 

i  fee, 

503.     ... 

.       Ifee, 

25s.     ... 

.       Ifee, 

50s.     ... 

[fee8l02f   10214    3^] 
The  sum     £1020    5  11^ 


Est  Coker 
North  Coker 

and 
Haryngdon 


SOMERSET. 

John  de  Maundevyle, 

I  John  de  Sancto  Quinteno,  I 

I  and  I 

Clement  de  Monte  Alto 


3  fees,  300s. 


FEES   OF  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAY.  333 

Heghe  Church  (juxta  Hemyngton),  William  le 

Prr»na 


1  fee,    33a 
.      I  fee,    258. 

.10  fees,  lOOOs. 

i  fee,    50s. 

1  fee,  100s. 


Prous.  .  .  .  .         .       i  fee,    33s.  4d. 

Folkelond,  Nicholas  de  Seyntvyger 
Ashull  \ 

and  I  Matilda  de  Moleton 

Sevenhampton  * 
Staunton,  Brodo  de  Staunton . 

I       John  Ryvere        ) 
and  > 

Stephen  Beaumond  ) 

(  William  de  Mounceaus  ) 

Quarme  Mounceaus !  and  J       .      J  fee,    50a. 

'  John  de  Doddescomb   ' 

^T,Simbris}Thomas  Gorges       .  .        .    2  fees.  200s. 

The  sum     £87  18    4 

DORSET.  '"^^'^'^'^^ 

Childokforde,  otherwise  called  Childakford  .        .       1  fee,  100s. 

BERKS. 
Sutton  Courtenay,  John  Borne  vile     ,  •        •     A  ^*^»    ^^' 

BUCKS. 
Wottesdon,  Richard  le  Monte  .  •        •      i  ^^c,    25s. 

(Richard  Atte  Halle,\ 
Edmund  Bernarde,  I 
John  Cotes,         I 
Isabella  Buket,      >      .            .        .      J  fee,    50a. 
Stephen  Fitz  Adam,  j 
and               I 
Richard  Wermeston^  ^ 

The  sum    £3  15 

Sum  total  of  all  fees         .     £1117  19    3^ 
Of  which  the  third  i>art      £372  13     1 

ADVOWSONS  OF  CHURCHES,  ETC. 

SOMERSET.  iB     «.    d. 

WestCoker  .  .  .  .  .        .    20    0    0 

Crukem  .  .  .  .  .        .     53    6    8 

The  second  portion  in  the  church  of  Crukern  .  .        .     10    0    0 

Chantry  of  the  chapel  of  the  Blessed  Mary  in  the  church 
of  Crukern       .  .  .  .  ..500 

Chantry  of  the  chapel  of  the  Blessed  Mary  in  the  church- 
yard of  Crukern  .  .  .  ..500 

Chapel  of  Misterton  within  the  parish  of  the  said  Church 

of  Crukern      .....        .      200 

Sum     £95    6     8 

DORSET. 
Church  of  Ebryghton         .  .  •  .        .     10    0    0 

HAMPSHIRE. 
Advowson  of  the  priory  of  Brymmore  .  •        .  100    0    0 


334 


FBIS  OF  EABL  HUGH  DB  OOURTKNAT. 


DEVON. 

Priory  of  St  James  by  Exeter 

First  Dortion  in  the  church  of  Tyvertone 

Church  of  Samforde  Courtenay 

„         Chaluelegh 

„  Wodelegh 

„  Throwlegh 

„         St.  Leonard  by  Exeter 
Prebend  of  Cutton 

„  Ken  . 

Chantry  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist  of  Colcomb 
„  St  Mary  of  Whiteford   . 


A      «. 

d. 

.  20  0 

0 

.  20  0 

0 

.  26  18 

4 

.  26  13 

4 

.  13  6 

8 

.  10  0 

0 

.  10  0 

0 

.  10  0 

0 

2  0 

0 

.   6  0 

0 

6  0 

0 

Sum    £354    0    0 


BUCKS. 

Advowson  of  three  portions  of  the  church  of  Wodeadon, 
each  at  £13.  6s.  8d.         .  .  .  .        . 


40    0    0 


DEVON. 

Third  portion  in  the  church  of  Tyvertone 
Abbey  of  Forde  . 
Prebend  of  Heyghes 
Church  of  Musebery 

„         Alfyngton 

„         Duelton 
Chantry  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist  of  Ken 

„  St.  Luke  in  Newton  Popleford 

„  Brygbtlegh      . 


SOMERSET. 
Church  of  Hemyngton 
First  and  principal  portion  of  the  church  of  Crukern 


BERKS. 


Church  of  Sutton  Courtenay 


.  16 

0 

0 

.  200 

0 

0 

.  33 

6 

8 

.  20 

0 

0 

.  20 

0 

0 

.  13 

6 

8 

6 

0 

0 

6 

0 

0 

2 

0 

0 

Sum     £354  13    4 


DEVON. 
Abbey  of  Bokelond 
Priory  of  Cowyke 

Second  portion  in  the  Church  of  Tyvertone 
Fourth  „  ,.  „ 

Church  of  Mylton  Damarelle 

„  Chylmelegh 

Five  prebends  in  Chylmelegh,  each  at  66s.  8d. 
Church  of  Ken   . 

„  Stokedamarl 

Chantry  of  St  Mary  of  Stykelpath  . 


Sum  total  of  advowsons      £1063    0    0 
of  which  one  third  part       £354    6    8 


.  20  0  0 

ni    .  20  0  0 

.  53  6  8 

.  100  0  0 

.  40  0  0 

.  16  0  0 

.  10  0  0 

.  26  13  4 

.  20  0  0 

.  16  13  4 

.  13  6  8 

.  13  6  8 

.   5  0  0 

Si 

im  £354  6  8 

FEES  OP  EARL  HUGH  DE  COURTENAY.        335 

INQ.  P.M.  OF  HUGO  COURTENAY,  EARL  OP  DEVON, 
10  Hen.  V,  29b,  66. 

(Mention  is  made  of  divers  manors,  etc.,  in  the  county  of 
Devon,  under  the  county  of  Somerset.) 

Devon  £18.  68.  8d.  from  the  issue  (3rd  penny)  of  the 
county.  Extent  of  manors  and  hundreds  —  Plimpton 
honour,  castle  and  burg';  Tyverton,  and  burg';  Exminster; 
Topsham  manor;  Weneford  and  Harygge  hundreds;  Exe, 
free  fishery;  Wodeleghe  and  Stokdamerle — lands  and  ad- 
vowsons  of  churches.  Advowsons — Bokeland  Abbey ;  Exon', 
priory  of  St.  James. 

Trowelegh,  Milton  Damerle,  St.  Leonard  juxta  Exon* — 
advowsons  of  churches. 

Bottesford,  messuages,  lands,  etc.  Holbogheton,  rents. 
Okhampton — manor,  honour,  burg',  etc. — extent,  Brightlegh, 
advowson  of  chantry.  Sampford  Courtney,  manor  (extent), 
and  advowson  of  church.  Stykelpath,  advowson  of  chantry. 
Churebeare,  manor.  Duwelton,  manor,  and  advowson  of 
church.  Chulmelegh,  manor,  burg',  and  advowsons  of  church 
and  prebends  there.  Chaluelegh,  manor,  burgh',  and  advow- 
son of  church.     Nywenham,  manor  juxta  Chitelbamholt. 

Exclond,  manor.  Ken,  manor,  and  advowson  of  chantry 
there.  Keneford,  burgii'.  Whympell  and  Aylesbeare, 
manors.  Neweton  Popelford,  hamlet,  and  advowson  of 
chantry  there.  Hontebeare,  manor.  Colyford,  burg'.  Mus- 
berye,  manor,  and  advowson  of  church.  Brokelond — Frill 
and  Smalecombe,  messuages,  and  lands  there.  Pontesford 
juxta  Colompton,  messuages,  mill,  etc.  Alsyngton  vel 
Alfyngton,  land  there,  and  advowson  of  church.  Seilake 
juxta  Halberton,  messuages,  land,  etc.  Advowsons — Forde 
Abbey,  Cowyk  Priory.  Heighys,  Cutton,  and  Ken — prebends 
in  the  chapel  of  the  castle  of  Exon.  Crulledych,  half  of 
the  market.  Budlegh,  hundred.  Stuttecomb,  Milham,  and 
Loueclyff — messuages,  lands,  etc.,  as  parcel  of  the  honour  of 
Okehampton. 

Manors  of — Godrington,  Stancombe  Dawny,  Southaling- 
ton,  Slapton.  Didisham  and  Poleantony,  as  of  the  honour  of 
Plympton.     Whitewill. 

Coleford,  and  Blackeworth  in  hundred  of  Whiterigge — 
messuages,  lands,  mill,  etc. 

Mill  called  Habrigemille.  Columpe  John,  manor  extent^ 
as  of  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster.  Exilond,  tenement  there. 
Paddskesbroke  juxta  Colympton,  messuages,  lands,  etc. 
Cornwode,  manor.     Norton,  manor,  as    of    the  manor  of 


336  FESS  OF  EABL  HUGH  DE  GOUBTENAY. 

Marshwodvale.  Northpole,  manor,  as  of  the  manor  of 
Burlescomb.  Farewaye,  manor,  and  advowson  as  of  the 
manor  of  Linieland.  Manors  of — Toutz  Seinston,  Twyke- 
beare,  Holdham.  Exon* — land  there,  glebe  of  the  church 
of  All  Saints,  Goldsmith  Street — tenements  called  Londesyn 
and  Lytelbrian.  Bents  in  Legh  Durant  and  Lopethorne. 
Land  in  Eadestan.  Kent  of  a  messuage,  etc.,  in  Hurneford. 
Wodhaye  aliaa  Wodecort,  rent  of  a  messuage  as  of  manor 
of  Dertington.  Washburn  Durant,  rent  Bayllisford,  4  mes- 
suages, 1  cottage,  mill,  etc.  Burdisheale,  rent.  Sandwell, 
messuages,  etc.  Thorlegh  Durant,  2  messuages.  Yealborne, 
rent.  Knytheton,  messuages,  land,  etc.  Maneton,  rent. 
Ford  juxta  Alington,  land.  Kingesbrigge  and  Dodebrok, 
2  messuages  in  each.  Coldashe  and  Kekehill,  rents.  Burye, 
messuage  and  land.  Vielyston,  rent.  Estekleworthy, 
messuage  and  land.  Westekleworthy,  Gallisore,  Suwelond, 
Thornwygger,  Coldiscote,  Bokelond  Chalowe,  Lokkysore, 
rents.  Middelton,  messuage  and  land.  Churibeare,  2  mes- 
suages, etc.  Cotteford,  rent.  Prestecote,  messuage  and  land. 
Exon',  tenement,  Lancaster  Duchy  member.  Bradeninch 
manor  member,  Barnstaple  castle  member.  Colecombe, 
manor.     Colyton  manor,  hundred.    Whyteford,  manor. 


THE  EAELY  DESCENT  OF  THE  DEVONSHIRE 
ESTATES  BELONGING  TO  THE  HONOURS  OF 
MORTAIN  AND   OKEHAMPTON. 

BY   THE   REV.    OSWALD   J.    RBICHEL,    B.C.L.    &   M.A.,    F.8.A. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


I.  The  Honour  of  Mortain  and  the  Earldom  of  Cornwall, 

The  portion  of  the  honour  of  Mortain  to  which  the  follow- 
ing observations  are  intended  to  apply  is  not  the  original 
comt(5  of  Mortain  in  the  diocese  of  Avranches  which 
gives  its  name  to  the  honour,  a  Norman  barony  which, 
on  the  forfeiture  of  William  the  Warling  (Warlenc)  in 
1051,  was  conferred  on  Robert,  the  Conqueror's  half- 
brother  (Planch^,  "The  Conqueror's  Companions,"  I,  108; 
II,  55);  nor  yet  the  whole  of  that  very  much  larger  estate 
in  twenty  counties  in  England  which  on  the  division  of  the 
spoils  was  assigned  to  the  count  of  Mortain;  not  even 
indeed  the  whole  of  that  portion  of  it  in  the  shires  of 
Wilts,  Dorset,  Devon,  and  Cornwall  which,  according  to  the 
summary  in  the  Exeter  " Domesday*'  (fol.  531),^  consisted 
of  "  623  manors  assessed  at  833  hides  all  but  2J  virgates,*' 
with  arable  land  for  1480  ploughs,  "  of  a  value  of  £1409  all 
but  6  shillings  and  10  pence,*'  and  of  which  we  are  told 
"  the  count  had  200  hides  all  but  2  [virgates]  in  lordship, 
worth  to  him  £400  and  a  mark  of  silver,"  and  **  his  liegemen 
had  655  hides  all  but  ^  virgate  worth  to  them  £1000  all  but 
6  shillings  and  10  pence";  but  only  the  Devonshire  estates 
belonging  to  this  section,  a  comparatively  small  number, 
81  manors  assessed  at  79^  hides  with  a  cultivated  area  of 

^  These  fi^oires  will  not  tally.  It  is  suggested  that  in  the  lordship  we 
should  read  '*  200  hides  all  but  2  mrgates^'"  and  that  either  833  hides  should 
bo  changed  into  855,  or  655  into  633.  Also  how  can  £1409  -6/10  =  £400  + 
£1000-6/10  +  13/4?  Perhaps  instead  of  1409  we  ought  to  read  1404— iv 
easily  beconies  ix  if  carelessly  written ;  and  instead  of  a  mark  we  should 
read  6  marks — vr  instead  of  i — £4  l)eing  =  6  marks. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  Y 


338    THE  HONOURS  OF  MOBTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 

some  40,000  acres.  The  count  had  besides  263  manors  in 
Cornwall  (Exeter  "Domesday,"  fol.  224-65),  besides  17 
which  he  had  filched  from  the  bishop  of  Exeter,  St.  Petrock, 
or  some  other  Church  holder.* 

The  holder  of  this  great  fief,  Bobert,  count  of  Mortain 
(Comes  Moritonensis  or  Moritanius,  or  de  Moritonio,  or  de 
Moritolio,  or  de  Moriteleio,  for  it  is  written  in  all  these 
ways),  was  by  extraction  a  younger  son  (Odo,  bishop  of 
Bayeux,  being  his  elder  brother)  of  Herlwin  de  Conteville  and 
his  wife  Herleva,  the  Conqueror's  mother.  He  was  therefore 
the  Conqueror's  half-brother.  Born  about  1031  (Planch^ 
I,  108),  he  must  have  been  some  thirty-five  years  of  age 
at  the  time  when  he  received  his  English  estate,  the  western 
section  of  which  now  occupies  our  attention.  By  his  first 
wife  Matilda  (Oliver,  **  Mon.,"  p.  32),  daughter  of  Boger  de 
Montgomery,  earl  of  Shrewsbury  (Bound, "  Feudal  England," 
154);  who  is  spoken  of  as  ^leceased  in  documents  dating 
between  1087  and  1091  ("Cal.  of  Documents  in  France," 
257,  433,  435),  he  had  a  son,  William,  afterwards  count  of 
Mort€un,  and  four  daughters,  viz.  Emma,  married  to  William, 
count  of  Toulouse,  great-grandmother  to  Eleanor,  Henry  II's 
queen ;  Agnes,  married  to  Andr6  de  Vitre,  mother  of  Hawise, 
wife  of  Bobert  de  Ferrers,  earl  of  Derby ;  Denise  or  Agatha, 
married  to  Sieur  de  Laval ;  and  Barbe,  married  to  Baudouin 
de  Bose  (Mrs.  Vade-Walpole  in  "  Notes  and  Queries,"  9  ser, 
VIII,  526,  28  December,  1901).  After  Matilda's  death  in 
1083  ("Cal.  Documents  in  France,"  p.  435)  he  married 
secondly  Almodis  (ibid,  p.  256,  436),  by  whom  he  had 
another  son,  Bobert.  On  the  Conqueror's  death  he  joined 
in  the  rebellion  against  William  Bufus  in  1088  ("  Political 
History  of  England,"  II,  75).  The  insurrection  was  soon 
put  down,  but  sharing  in  the  general  amnesty  he  never  lost 
his  earldom,  and  died  some  time  before  1100  (Planch^,  I, 
113,  **  Cal.  of  Docts.  in  France,"  436). 

His  eldest  son,  William,  who  succeeded  him  as  count  of 
Mortain  and  earl  of  Cornwall  ("Cal.  of  Docts.  in  France," 
285),  married  Adelidis  de  Ou  or  de  Eu  (ibid,  436)  between 
1100  and  1106,  and  founded  the  priory  of  Montacute  in 
Somersetshire  ("  Trans."  XXIX,  257,  n.  40).     Offended  with 

'  The  17  are  Pennadelwan  (fol.  101b)  taken  from  a  king's  manor,  Boietona 
(fol.  181b)  Uken  from  Tavistock  Abbey,  Matela  market  (fol.  199)  and  St.  Ger- 
man's  market  (fol.  200)  taken  from  the  bishop  of  Exeter,  Elhil,  Calestoo,  Trelloi, 
Hecglosemuda,  Botcinnu,  Tremail,  Polroaa,  Hecglostudic  (fol.  202b,  203, 
203b,  204b)  all  taken  from  St  Petrock,  LAngorroc  (fol.  206)  Uken  from 
St.  Carentoch,  lAndscauetona  (fol.  206b)  taken  from  St.  Stephen,  Nietestoa 
(fol.  207)  taken  from  St  Niet,  and  Treiwal  (fol.  179)  taken  from  St  MichaaL 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKBHAMPTON.    339 

Henry  I  because  that  King  refused  to  give  him  the  earldom 
of  Kent,  which  his  uncle,  Odo,  bishop  of  Bayeux,  had  be- 
queathed to  him,  he  took  part  with  Kobert  de  Bellesme,  his 
maternal  uncle,  against  the  King  (Maclean's  "Trigg  Minor," 
II,  287;  Ordericus  Vitalis,  III.  358),  was  defeated  and 
taken  captive  at  Tinchebrai  in  1106  ("Political  History  of 
England,'*  II,  138,  144).  His  honour  was  then  forfeited 
(Round,  "  Victoria  History  of  Northampton,"  288),  his  eyes 
were  put  out,  and  he  was  condemned  to  imprisonment  for 
life.  Shortly  before  his  death  in  1140  he  became  a  monk  at 
Bermondsey. 

For  a  time  Henry  I  himself  held  the  honour,  and  in  that 
capacity  gave  a  charter  to  Constance  de  Tony  ("Trans." 
XXXIV,  589,  592) ;  but  before  1113  ("  Cal.  Docts.  in  France," 
97,  290)  he  had  bestowed  it  on  his  nephew,  Stephen  of  Blois, 
afterwards  King  (ibid.  127).  To  Stephen  succeeded  his  son 
William  (Ramsay, "  The  Angevin  Empire,"  12).  A  charter  of 
William  as  count  of  Mortain  is  dated  1158  ("Cal.  Docts. 
in  France,"  285,  343).  On  William's  death  in  1159  the 
honour  of  Mortain  was  reannexed  to  the  royal  demesne 
(Ramsay,  22),  Mathew,  son  of  Dietrich  of  Flanders  who 
had  married  Mary,  Stephen's  daughter  and  heiress,  some- 
time abbess  of  Riomsey  but  dispensed  from  her  vows  by 
the  Pope  ("Political  History  of  England,"  II,  271),  not  being 
allowed  by  Henry  II  to  take  it  up  (Ramsay,  91).  The  King 
then  retained  the  honour  of  Mortain,  but  gave  the  county 
of  Cornwall  to  Reginald,  a  natural  son  of  his  grandfather, 
Henry  I,  by  Amasa  the  daughter  of  Richard  Corbet  ("  lib. 
Nig.,"  p.  131,  note  ;  "  Trans."  XXIX,  455, n.  4 ;  XXXIII.  366), 
who  in  1166  paid  215  marks  4/5  (Dugdale,  "Bar.,"  I,  610) 
for  215J  fees  in  Devon  and  Cornwall  ("  Lib.  Nig.,"  131, 132), 
besides  59  marks  6/8  for  the  fees  of  Richard  de  Red  vers. 
Reginald  died  1  July,  1175  (Round,  "Feudal  England,"  509), 
leaving  two  side-wind  sons,  one  by  Alice,  de  Vaux,  after-  . 
wards  the  wife  of  the  elder  William  Briwere,  known  as  ^j(«tW^<c>-v 
Henry  fitz  Count  or  Henry  the  Earl's  son,  the  other  William  UtalhiJujii 

("Trans."  XXXIV,  571),  who  held  Sheepwash  in  Devon ^^=^^ 

("Lib.  Nig.,"   129)  and   Recradoc    in   Cornwall  ("Trans."  JotrlJ4f 
XXXIV,  571),»  and  by  his  wife  Beatrix,  daughter  of  the       /       / 
Cornish  magnate,  William,  son  of  Richard,  son  of  Turold  or 
Turolf    (Round,  "Feudal  England,"  487),   four  daughters 
("  Trans."  XXIX,  455,  n.  4),  one  of  whom,  Maud,  is  stated 

'  William  was  succeeded  at  Sheepwash  by  his  son  Robert  and  his  daughter, 
the  wife  of  Nicolas  Avenel  ("Trans."  XXXIII,  894),  and  at  Recradoc  by  his 
son  Henry  ("  Trans."  XXXIV,  667). 

t2 


340    THE  HONOURS  OP  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 

to  have  married  Kobert,  count  of  Meulan  ("  Trans."  XXXIV, 
586,  n.  4).     Henry  II  then  bestowed  the  honour  of  Mortain 
on  his  own  son,  John,  afterwards  King  ("  Devon  Notes  and 
Queries,"  II,  111),  who  signs  charters  as  count  of  Mortain 
in  1194  ("Cal.  Docts.  in  France,"  469),  in  1196  {ibid.  278) 
and  1198  (ibid,  71,  91,  339),  and  is  so  called  in  the  Pipe 
EoU  of  1196  (8  Ric.  I ;  "Trans."  XXXVI,  417,  420).*    The 
county  of  Cornwall  he  gave  to  Reginald's  son  Henry  to  hold 
to  farm,  and  with  it  he  gave  him  the  manor  of  Bradninch 
("Trans."  XXXIV,   573),  to  which  King  Richard  added 
Kingskerswell  and  Diptford  ("Testa,"  No.  1364,  p.  194b) 
and   King  John   the  castle    of    Totnes,   Comworthy,  and 
Loddiswell  ("Pat.   Rolls,"   17  John,  m.  15;   "Testa,"  No. 
1373,  p.  195a).    After  the  separation  from  Normandy  in 
1204  the  county  of  Cornwall — for  the  countship  of  Mortain 
no  longer  belongs  to  English  history — was  again  confirmed 
to  Henry  the  earl's  son  by  Henry  III,  but  was  forfeited  on 
Henry's  rebellion  in  1219  (Dugdale,  "Bar.,"  I,  611),  and  on 
10  August,  1231,  was  given  by  Henry  III  to  his  brother 
Richard,  King  of   the   Romans  ("Trans."   XXXIV,  574). 
From  Richard  it  descended  to  his  son,  earl  Edmund,  who 
died  without  issue  in  1300,  when  it  again  reverted  to  the 
Crown.     In  1307  Edward  II  bestowed  it  on  his  favourite, 
Peter  de  Gaveston,  who  had  married  Margaret,  Edmund's 
widow,  daughter  of  Richard  de  Clare,  earl  of  Hereford  and 
Gloucester,  but  on  Gaveston's  death  on  19  May,  1312,  it  once 
more  reverted  to  the  Crown.     Ultimately  in  1337  it  was 
constituted  an  appanage  of  the  heir  to  the  throne  and  as 
the   Duchy   of    Cornwall   still  retains  certain   quasi -royal 
privileges,  such  as  the  appointment  of  its  own  sheriff.     It 
is  characteristic  of  all  the  honours  which  grew  out  of  this 
fief  that  they  consist  of  small  or  Mortain  fees,  a  Mortain 
fee  being  roughly  described  as  §  of  an  ordinary  fee,*  but  to 
use  exact  terms  being  f  of  such  a  fee.® 

*  8  Ric.  I,  ni.  14,  Grant  to  **  J[ohn]  count  of  Mortain  of  £13  and  J  mark 
in  Axenienistra  with  the  hundred  for  1  half  year."  This  is  rei)eated  9  and  10 
Ric.  I  and  1  John.  In  10  Ric.  I,  m.  12d,  Grant  to  "count  John  of  £9.  15/ 
in  Adlerichescote  which  is  called  Tauton,'*  In  6  John,  m.  7,  Hamelin  de 
Torintou  **  accounts  for  20  marks  for  having  his  laud  of  Ailricheston  which 
the  King  gave  him  when  he  was  count  of  Mortain."  In  7  John,  m.  2d  : 
"Roger  son  of  Roger  de  Guierin  owes  100  marks  and  a  palfrey  and  a  goshawk 
for  having  his  land  of  Wike  and  Standon  whereof  the  King  when  count  [of 
Mortain]  made  seisin  to  Robert  his  father." 

8  "Lib.  Niger,"  85,  98,  99. 

«  "Trans."  XXXIV,  570.  In  a.d.  1346,  when  an  ordinary  fee  paid  40/-, 
a  Mortain  fee  jmid  25/-  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  p.  385). 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKBHAMPTON.    341 

II.    The  derivative  Honours  of  the  Mortainfief. 

On  the  Mortain  fief  being  forfeited  to  the  Crown  its  vava- 
sours became  tenants  in  chief  of  the  King,  and  their  holdings 
became  separate  baronies.  It  becomes  therefore  necessary  to 
glance  at  the  descent  of  those  derivative  honours  which 
inchided  Devonshire  estates.  Of  these  there  are  seven :  the 
Cornish  honours  of  Trematon,  Botardel  and  Cardinan,  Lantian 
and  Mideliand  or  Launceston  ("Trans.*'  XXXIV,  566)  and 
the  Somersetshire  honours  of  Odcombe,  Montacute,  and  Ash- 
leigh. 

1.  The  principal  vavasour  of  the  count  of  Mortain  having 
estates  in  Devonshire  was  Eeginald  de  Valletorta  or  de  Torta- 
valie  (Geld  KoU,  XLIX,  B.  8),  whose  fief  is  known  as  the 
honour  of  Trematon  from  Trematon  Castle  its  chief  seat  in 
Cornwall.  It  is  described  in  1166  ("  Lib.  Niger,"  131)  as  con- 
sisting of  fifty-nine  small  fees,  and  included  besides  the  estates 
held  in  Devonshire  and  Cornwall  by  Eeginald  de  Valletort 
under  the  count,  also  the  ancient  crown  lordships  of  Sutton, 
Maker,  and  Kings tamerton,^  likewise  one  estate  held  at  the 
time  of  the  survey  by  Hugh  de  Valletort  under  the  count 
(Geld  Roll,  XLI,  B.  2),  to  wit  Batson  (W.  336),  and  one 
held  by  Donne,  to  wit  Spriddlecombe  (W.  340).  According 
to  the  "After  Death  Inquests"  of  Edmund  earl  of  Cornwall, 
in  28  Ed.  I,  No.  44,  p.  160,  and  Edward  Prince  of  Wales,  in 
2  Eic.  II,  No.  57,  p.  14,  it  included  the  following  fees,  those 
in  Cornwall  being  printed  in  italics : — 

*'A.-D.  Inq.,"28Ed.  I.  **A.-D.  Inq.,"2Ric.  II.  Reference 

Fees  belonging  to  Fees  belonging  to  number  to 

Trematon  Castle.  Trematon  Castle.  "Domesday." 

[3l76]Liskerret«         .  1  fee  . 

[836]  Blikebury   (Big.  [3177]  Bukkebury        .  1  fee  .  W.  321  p.  838 

bury)       .         .      1  fee 

[3178]Hyngehaton     ,\  partofW.321 

and  ll  fee 


[837]  Hugaton 
(Hoi    ■ 


-  1  fee  [3179]  Lippeston.         J  W.  348  p.  374 


(Houghton     in 
Bigbury) 
[838]  Loppeston 

(Lip son  in 
Compton  Gif- 
fard) 

'  Mr.  Whale,  in  "Trans."  XXXIII,  376,  suggests  Clist  St  Laurence  for 
Valletort's  1  fee  in  1166  ("  Lib.  Niger,"  128).  ^But  amrt  from  the  fact  that 
Clist  St.  Laurence  is  returned  in  the  fee  lists  as  only  J  fee  ("Testa,"  No.  1607, 
p.  200),  the  "A.  D.  Inq."  of  Chaworth,  8  Ed.  II,  No.  56,  p.  268,  describes 
it  as  held  of  Odcombe,  and  not  of  Trematon.  "Feudal  Aids,"  340,  show 
Sutton,  Makerton,  and  Kingstamerton  held  by  John  de  Vautard  of  the  earl 
of  Cornwall  for  1  fee ;  and  "After  Death  Inquest,"  2  Ric.  II,  No.  57,  p.  14, 
names  Makre,  Sutton,  and  Kingstamerton  1  fee  among  *'fees  belonging  to 
Trematon  Castle." 

^  Liskaret  was  given  to  Henry,  the  earl's  son,  by  King  Richard  ("Testa," 
No.  1364,  p.  194b).'^  It  did  not  therefore  originally  belong  to  this  honour. 


342    THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 

[889]  Eyt  la  Grave 


[840]Notdenc    . 

[841]  Holwell  (in 

Bighury)  — 

[842]  Shipham         (in 

Modbury)*      .     J  fee 

[843]  Baddcston  (Bat-x 
sou  in  Mai- 1 
borough)  I 

[844]  Salteconibe  (Sal- 
combe) 

[845]  Wvraondesham 
( whinipston  in 
Modbury) 


2  fep  J3180]  On?  and     . 

'*'®*^  [3181]  Xa^rVow. 

1  fee  [3182]Nottedon. 

[3183]Holewill   . 


[3184]  Ocbiphara 
[3185]Bede8ton  . 


;}|fce 

!    1  fee 
.    ifee 

.    ifee 


2  fees  C^^^^l  Saltecombe 

[8187]  Wymondesham. 


[846]  Orchardon      (in 

Modbury)        .      1  fee 
[847]Peke  (Torpeak  ^ 

in   Ugborough) 
[848]  Trevnlneth 
[849]  Spridlesconib  (in 
lodbury) 


[3188]  Godefonl 

(Gutsford    in 
Modbuiy) 

[3189]  Orcharton 


[3190]Torpike     . 

2  fees  [3191]  Trtnalnard 
[3192]  Spriddilscomb 


[861]  Southrigge      (in\ 

Plympton)         {  «  feM 

[860]LopriKge         (in  (  ^  fee« 
North  Huish)  ) 


[3193]  Torrigge  " 
[8194]  Lopperigge 


[852]  Makere      . 
[853]  Sutton 
[854]  Kingstamertou 
[866]  Hepeford    (Har-^ 

ford) 
[866]Stokelegh(Stock 

leigh  English) 
[857]  Treloven  ^ 

[858]  Harestane  \ 

(Hareston      in 

Brixton) 
[859]  Yen  ton 

(in  Ughorough) 
[860]Harecnoll 

(Ilonicknowl 

in  St.  Budcaux) 
[S6\]Fen?ia7igell 


[3195]  Leye (Leigh)  and 

[3196]  Payneston 

(Penson)  . 

[3197]Makre       . 

1  fee  [3198]  Sutton      . 

[3199]  Kiugestamerton 
[3201]Ly8foi-di'- 

-  2  fees  [3202]  Stokclegh . 

[3203]  Trcnelowan 
[3204]  Hardston  . 


)  2  fees 


Ifee 


6  fees 


[3205]  Venton     . 
[3200]  Hareknolle 

[3207]  Penhangre 


\6  fees 


part  of  W.  321 
part  of  W.  821 

partofW.818 

p.  360 
W.  386  p.  870 


.  part  of  W.  386 
2  fees,  part  of  W.  818 


1  fee 


2  fees 


partofW.318 
W.  819  p.  862 

W.  829  p.  368 


W.  340  p.  374 

W.  842  p.  344 

W.  832  p.  318 

part  of  W.  332 

part  of  W.  332 
W.  86  p.  30 
W.  33  p.  28 
W.  84  p.  28 
W.  325  p.  338 

2  fees  W.  307  p.  342 
W.  343  p.  346 
W.  326  p.  364 


W.  347  p.  374 


•  "A.-D.  Inq.,"  31  Ed.  I,  No.  138,  p.  184,  gives  the  members  of  Modbury 
as  Orcherton,  Yedmerston,  Penkeyt,  Scliipham,  Shilston,  Spridelesconibe, 
Wymundeston,  Julesconibe,  and  Langeston. 

"  From  the  collocation  it  is  evident  that  Southrigge  =  Torrigge,  and  that 
Loprigge  of  28  Ed.  I.  includes  Lupridge,  Leigh,  and  Penson  of  2  Ric.  II. 

''•^  Hepeford,  alias  Lysford,  must  be  Harford,  since  Harford  and  Stockleigh 
are  the  only  2  fees  held  by  Gilbert  English  of  the  honour  of  Trematon  in 
"Testa,"  No.  1328,  p.  194a;  1172,  p.  190b. 


THE  HONOUKS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON.    343 


[862]  North  Lodbroke^ 
(Lud  brook  in 
Ugborough) 

[863]  Bauecombe 

(Bawcombo    in 
Ugboroucli) 

[864]  South  Lodbroke 
(an  outlier  of 
Modbury) 

[865]  LAUgham  (in 
Cornwood) 

[866]  Trethmake 

[867]  Broke 

lS6S]JiathvilU   . 

[869]  ApUdoitw/ord    . 

[S70]  Halton      . 

[871 1  PiUton      . 

[872]  Nodaiorre . 

[873]  Trewoman 

[874]  Trem 

[8761  Trebigou   . 

[876'  Tregantell 

[877]  Comhe 

[878]  Inhosworth 

[S79]  IHsert 

[880]  TrewenU  . 

[881]  Kallilond  . 

[882]  TreicenU  . 

[883]  St,  Goran  . 

[SSi]^''a)lstadderion 

[885]  Lantian    . 

[886]  Bore  manor  with 
members  " 


3  fees 


:} 


;} 


[3208]  North  Lodebroke^ 
[3210]  Baucombe 
[3209]  South  Lodebroke 
[3211]Langham  . 


[8212]  Trethynack 
[h^Brodeoke  . 

■  3  fees      [  c  ]  Rackehevill 

[  d]  Appledemeford, 
^Q]Halton     .  ^ 

\{\Pilaton     . 

-  4  fees      \g\  Nodetorr  , 
[h    Trewomam 
[  i  I  Tremaur  . 

1  fee  [k  Trenygoo  . 
Ifee  [^]TreganUl. 
^  ^^  [m]  Combe  . 
J  fee  [n]  Voyswarke 
ifee  [o]Di8ert 
J  fee  [  p  ]  Trewynt  . 
ifee  {i\\Callilond , 
1  fee      [T^Kelligreu. 

[  s  ]  Nan  Ladron 

2  fees 


-8  fees 


W.  831  p.  816 


W.  387  p.  372 


W.  830  p.  868 


W.  828  p.  866 


8  fees 


4  fees 


:} 


1  fee  — 

1  fee  ~ 

ifee  — 

ifee  — 

J  fee  — 

J  fee  — 

Ifee  — 

2  fees  — 


21  fees 


[8213]  Bere  manor 
with  members 


21  fees  W.  850  p.  840 


[Total  69J  fees] 
(Beer  Ferrers  and  Beer  Alston) 
Newton  Ferrers  being  one  of 

the  members  (**Testa,"  No. 

1324,  p.  193b) 
Cornwood  another  ("Testa," 

No.  1327,  p.  193b) 


[Total  59i  fees] 


W.  824  p.  328 
W.  828  p.  826 


^^  The  following  note  which  occurs  in  "Feudal  Aids,"  489,  under  date  1846, 
shows  that  only  4^  of  these  fees  lay  in  the  county  of  Devon  :  "William  de 
Ferrers  is  charged  100  marks  for  20  small  Mortain  fees  for  the  manor  of  Byr 
[Beer  Ferrers  and  Beer  Alston,  1  fee  apparently  not  being  char^^ed  at  all]  held 
of  the  honour  of  Trematon.  In  the  notes  of  the  2nd  year  Michaelmas  term 
the  aforesaid  collectors  are  chai^ged  for  4  fees  under  the  names  of  John  de 
Ferrers,  son  of  the  aforesaid  William  and  Matilda  who  was  the  wife  of  the  said 
William,  in  the  hundreds  of  Roborough  and  Blacktorington  by  ancient  evi- 
dences and  inquisitions.  And  by  the  same  evidences  they  are  charged  for 
16  fees  the  remainder  of  the  aforesaid  20  fees,  because  it  is  not  known  to  the 
court  who  are  the  tenants  of  those  fees  except  by  inquisitions  officially  taken 
by  the  said  collectors.  Of  these  [16  fees]  4  fees  and  a  fraction  [viz.  i-M 
and  a  fiftieth  [4^  in  all]  are  in  the  hands  of  divers  tenants  in  the  county  of 
Devon  whose  names  are  set  forth  in  a  Schedule  attached  to  this  roll  as  the 
collectors  say,  and  lli  +  i  fees  are  as  they  say  in  the  County  of  Cornwall." 


344    THE  HONOURS  OF  MOBTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 

Eeginald  de  Valletort  was  tenant  of  nearly  all  the  estates 
composing  the  honour  in  1086,  and  was  also  the  tenant  in  the 
time  of  William  Rufus  (Lysons,  287).  In  1166  the  honour 
was  held  by  Half  de  Valletort  ("  Lib.  Niger,"  p.  131),  whose 
heir  was  in  1207  in  the  custody  of  Peter  de  Rupibus,  bishop 
of  Winchester  ("Testa,"  No.  1372,  p.  195a).  In  1216 
Reginald  de  Valletort  came  of  age  and  received  possession 
("Rot.  Lit.  Glaus.,"  1  Hen.  Ill,  m.  18  de  reverso).  He 
married  Joanna,  one  of  the  daughters  and  heiresses  of 
Thomas  Basset,  and  was  in  possession  in  1227  ("Trans." 
XXXIV,  566)  and  in  1241  ("Testa,"  No.  1236,  p.  192a), 
but  died  without  issue  in  1245  ("A.-D.  Inq.,"  30  Hen.  Ill, 
No.  11,  p.  3),  when  his  brother  Ralf  succeeded.  Ralf  died 
before  1269  (Risdon's  "Notebook,"  p.  61),  leaving  a  widow, 
Joanna,  who  survived  till  1275  ("A.-D.  Inq.,"  4  Ed.  I, 
No.  61,  p.  59),  and  an  only  son,  Reginald,  who  died  without 
issue  in  1269  ("  A.-D.  Inq.,"  54  Hen.  Ill,  No.  9,  p.  33),  also 
leaving  a  widow,  Hawise,  who  survived  him  till  1298  ("  A.-D. 
Inq.,"  27  Ed.  I,  No.  32,  p.  149).  The  honour  then  came  to 
Roger  de  Valletort,  uncle  of  the  last  Reginald  (Roberts, 
"Cal.  Geneal.,"  No.  32,  p.  566,  and  No.  11,  p.  639),  who 
became  insane  and  dissipated  the  estate.  In  1270  he  made 
over  the  honour  to  his  overlord,  Richard  earl  of  Cornwall, 
and  many  of  the  estates  to  Alexander  de  Okeston,^*  who  had 
married  Joanna,  his  deceaused  brother  Ralf  s  widow.  On  his 
death  in  1275,  Nicolas  de  Montfort  is  returned  as  holding  it 
as  guardian  of  Ralf's  heir  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  316),  and  in  1286 
it  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Crown  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  327).  In 
1299,  however,  Henry  de  la  Pomeroy,  a  grandson  of  Hawise 
de  Valletort,  and  Peter  Corbet,  who  had  married  Beatrice  de 
Valletort,  her  sister,  both  being  sisters  of  Roger  de  Valletort 
("Trans."  XVIII,  204),  were  found  to  be  next  heirs  ("  A..D. 
Inq.,"  27  Ed.  I,  No.  32 ;  Roberts,  "Cal.  Gen.,"  No.  32,  p.  566, 
and  No.  34,  p.  299),  and  on  the  death  of  Edmund  earl  of 
Cornwall,  in  1300,  they  claimed  the  honour  as  such  ("  Abbrev. 
Plac,"  33  Ed.  I,  Easter  Rot.,  5),  but  in  1315  judgment  was 
given  against  them  ("Abb.  Plac,"  9  Ed.  II,  Easter  Rot.,  123). 

2.  The  honour  of  Cardinan  and  Botardel  consisted  of 
71  fees  ("Testa,"  No.  976,  p.  187a),  of  which  51  represent 

"  "Cal.  of  Ancient  Deeds,"  A.  10,842-4;  "Abbrev.  Placit,"  321; 
Hundred  Rolls,  4  Ed.  I,  p.  96.  Modbyri :  "They  say  that  Roeer  de 
Valletort  gave  the  castle  of  Trematon  to  Richard  earl  of  Cornwall  and 
the  borough  of  Modbyri  to  Alexander  de  Okestone  who  now  holds  of  the 
aforesaid  earl  in  socage."  These  donations  were  challenged  unsuccessfully 
by  the  heirs  on  the  CTound  that  Roger  was  mad  at  the  time.  In  Edwani  IPs 
time  Ox  ton  conveyed  Modbury  to  Champemown.     Oliver,  "Mon.,*'  298. 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKBHAMPTON.    345 

the  fee  of  William,  son  of  Eichard,  and  20  that  of  Walter 

Hai  ("Lib.  Niger,"  p.  131).     The  honour  included  all  the 

Devonshire  and  Cornish  estates  of  Kichard,  son  of  Turold 

or  Torolf,  whether  held  of  the  King  in  chief,  as  Woodhuish 

and  Eoddicombe   in   Brixham  (W.   1130;    "Testa,"   1261, 

p.  192b),  Notsworthy  (W.  1131;   "Testa,"  1281,  p.  192b), 

and  East  Allington  (W.  1133;  *'Testa,"  1257,  p.  192a),  or 

held  of  the  count  of  Mortain  as  St.  Mary  Church  (W.  312; 

"Testa,"  1287,  p.  193a),  Cotleigh  (W.  317;   "Testa,"  915, 

p.  184a),  Little  Bolbury  (W.  333;  "Testa,"  1240,  p.  192a), 

Shilston  in  Modbury  (W.  338;  "Testa,"  1338,  p.  194a),  and 

Little  Modbury  (W.  341;  "Testa,"  1322,  p.  193b);  and  also 

Earl  Hugh's  estate  of   Anstey  Crewes  (W.  351;   "Testa," 

919,  p.  184a).     Kichard  held  at  least  two  other  estates  in 

Cornwall,  viz.  Berner  (Exeter  "Domesday,"  fol.  199b)  and 

Cudawoit  {ibid.  fol.  224b),  and  witnessed  a  charter  as  late 

as  1104  ("Cal.  of   Docts.  in  France,"  437).     In  1166  this 

honour  was  held  by  his  grandson,  Robert,  son  of  William 

son  of   Kichard  son  of  Turold,^^  who  by  Agnes,  his  wife,     ^ 

had  a  son,  Kobert  II  (Oliver,  "  Mon.,"  38),  and  a  daughter  ,^^^j  OA 

called    Isabel,   his   eventual   heiress    (Lysons,    "Cornwall,"  <^a{eiil^ 

LXXIX),  who  carried  it  to  her  husband,  Kobert  de  Cardinan. 

In  1227  the  honour  was  held  by  A[ndrew]  de  Cardinan 

("Testa,"  in  "Trans."  XXXIV,  574),  and  in  1235  by  Kobert 

de  Cardinan  (Oliver,  38),  whose  widow,  Isolda  (Oliver,  43), 

married  Thomas  de  Tracy,  and  about  1259  conveyed  it  to 

Oliver  de  Dinham,  son  of  GeofiPrey  de  Dinham,  a  relative 

of    her  deceased   husband  (Lysons,  "Cornwall,"   LXXIX). 

His  descendant.  Sir  John  Dinham,  was   treasurer  of   the 

Exchequer  under  Henry  VII,  and  died  in  1501   without 

issue,  when   his   honour   and   estates  fell  among  his  four 

sisters,  coheiresses,  married  respectively   to  Lord  Zouche, 

Sir  Nicolas  Carew,  Sir  Fulk  fitz- Warren,  and  Sir  Thomas 

Arundel  (Lysons,  LXXX). 

"Botardel  30  fees"  appears  among  fees  held  of  the  earl 
of  Cornwall  in  1300  ("  A..D.  Inq.,"  28  Ed.  I,  No.  44,  p.  160), 

^^  According  to  the  charter  of  Archbishop  Thomas  of  Canterbury  in 
Oliver,  **Mon.,"  41,  Richard,  son  of  Turold  [the  Domesday  tenant],  had 
a  son  William.  Another  charter  {ibid.  38)  shows  that  William  was  succeeded 
by  his  son  Robert,  who  by  Agues  his  wife  had  a  son,  Robert  II,  and  a 
daughter,  Isabel.  The  Robert  de  Cardinan,  who  confirmed  his  predecessors' 
charters  (Oliver,  39),  was  probably  grandson  of  Isabel  and  son  of  Andrew  de 
Cardinan,  since  he  calls  William,  son  of  Richard,  his  atavw  (giandfather's 
grandfather,  Oliver,  39).  He  had  apparently  succeeded  l)efore  1235,  when 
llenry  III  confirmed  his  charters  {ibid,  38),  and  in  1241  the  l»arony  is 
described  as  the  honour  of  Andrew  de  Cardinan  (*' Testa,"  No.  1257,  p.  l»2a ; 
1261,  p.  192b). 


346    THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMFTON. 

but  not  Cardinan.  On  the  other  hand,  among  fees  held  of  the 
Prince  of  Wales  in  1379  ("  A..D.  Inq.,"  2  Ric.  II,  No.  57, 
p.  14)  is  found  Cardynan  26  fees,  but  no  Botardel.  In  1286 
Oliver  de  Dinham,  son  of  Oliver,  was  lord  of  Cardinan,  and 
in  1332  John  de  Dinham  died  seized  of  5^  fees  in  Devon 
belonging  to  it  at  St.  Mary  Church,  Little  Modbury,  East 
Allington,  Anstey,  Woodhuish,  and  Little  Bolbury  ("  A.-D. 
Inq.,"  6  Ed.  Ill,  No.  59,  p.  49). 

3.  The  honour  of  Mineli  and  Lantian  consisted  in  1166 
of  19  fees  ("Lib.  Niger,"  131),  of  which  10  formed  the 
ancient  barony  of  Richard  de  Luci  and  9  the  fee  (Lantian 
9  fees  in  "  A..D.  Inq.,"  2  Ric.  II.  No.  57,  p.  14)  of  Adam 
Malherbe  ("Lib.  Niger,"  131).  In  1227  it  was  held  by 
Robert,  son  of  Walter  and  Matilda  de  Luci  ("Trans." 
XXXIV,  566).  It  consisted  apparently  of  Cornish  estates. 
One  Devonshire  estate,  however,  belonged  to  it — Shobrook 
(W.  304).  The  "Black  Book"  (235)  has  in  the  return  of 
Richard  de  Luci  in  1166  this  entry:  "Oger  the  server  has 
1  fee  in  the  township  of  Scotebroc,"  and  the  "After-Death 
Inquest,"  18  Ric.  II,  No.  31,  p.  182,  has  "Shokebrook  1  fee 
belonging  to  the  manor  of  Lantyan."  The  manor  of  Lantyan 
and  the  fees  thereto  pertaining,  together  with  Stowford 
( W.  353)  and  Houndbear  (Laudeshers,  W.  354),  in  "  Domes- 
day" the  earl  of  Chester's  estates,  and  subsequently 
Herbert  son  of  Mathew's  ("Testa,"  No.  1183,  p.  190b; 
1217,  p.  191a),  were  in  the  fourteenth  century  held  by 
Ralf  de  Monthermer,  the  husband  of  Joane  Flantagenet, 
daughter  of  Edward  I,  and  were  by  him  settled  on  his  son, 
Edward  de  Monthermer  and  his  heirs,  but  Edward  having 
died  without  issue,  they  came  to  his  brother,  Thomas  de 
Monthermer,  whose  daughter  and  heiress  carried  them  to 
Sir  John  de  Montacute,  second  son  of  William,  first  earl  of 
Salisbury.  Sir  John  de  Montacute  died  4  March,  1390 
("  A.-D.  Inq.,"  13  Ric.  II,  No.  34,  p.  116),  followed  by  his 
widow  on  24  March,  1395  ("  A.-D.  Inq.,"  18  Ric.  II,  No.  31, 
p.  182),  when  his  son  of  like  name  succeeded,  who  on  the 
death  of  his  uncle  William  became  second  earl  of  Salisbury, 
and  was  beheaded  in  1400.  His  son  Thomas  was,  neverthe- 
less, allowed  to  succeed  in  1408,  when  he  was  of  full  age, 
and  in  1409  was  restored  to  the  earldom.  He  died  in  1428 
("  A.-D.  Inq.,"  10  Hen.  IV,  No.  54,  p.  326),  leaving  an  only 
daughter,  Alice,  who  married  Richard  Nevil,  third  son  of 
Ralf,  earl  of  Westmoreland,  upon  whose  attainder  in  1460 
the  estates  were  forfeited  to  the  Crown  (Maclean,  "  Deanery 
of  Trigg  Minor,"  II,  125). 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON.    347 

4.  The  honour  of  Launceston  Castle,  according  to  the 
"A..D.  Inq."  of  28  Ed.  1,  No.  44,  p.  160,  included  Polreda 
6  fees,  Worthfala  and  Penhale  12,  Eekaredek  4,  Alett  li, 
Trehagh  3,  Tremewith  1,  Tremodred  3,  Hudene  1,  Middel- 
launde  [i.e.  launceston]  10,  Hilton  5,  Breton  [Bratton 
Fleming],  Hautebray  [Highbray],  and  Bray  7,  Fenington, 
[West]  Kaddon  1,  Wadefast  1,  Stratton  1,  Efford  1,  Treverys, 
HoUewall,  Penrosburden  ^,  Tidye  1,  Hemston  2,  Tregony  1, 
Lantraghon  1,  Hornycote  5 ;  but  according  to  '*  A.-D.  Inq.," 
2  Eic.  II,  No.  57,  p.  14,  only  those  before  Hautebray  and 
Bray  belonged  to  the  castle  and  the  rest  to  Launceston.  Its 
Devonshire  estates,  which  in  the  above  list  are  printed  in 
small  capitals,  appear  therefore  to  have  been  confined  to 
(1)  those  held  by  Erchenbold  under  the  count,  viz.  Hele 
(W.  283),  Culleigh  (W.  275),  and  Stockleigh  Francis  ( W.  284) 
1  fee  ("Testa,"  Nos.  907-10,  p.  184a),  Alverdiscot  (W.  285) 
1  fee  ("Testa,"  911),  and  Bratton  Fleming  (W.  288)  2^  fees' 
C* Testa,"  918),  Croyde  (W.  290)  1  fee  ("Testa,"  917)  and 
Highbray  and  Bray  (W.  158)  1^  fees  ("Testa,"  No.  31, 175b), 
constituting  the  7  fees  held  by  Archebold  le  Fleming  in  1227 
("Trans."  XXXIV,  567),  by  Richard  le  Flemyng  in  1299 
("  A.-D.  Inq.,"  29  Ed.  I,  No.  46,  p.  167),  and  frequently  referred 
to  in  the  fee  lists  ("Feudal  Aids,"  413,  415,  417,  439)  as  the 
8  fees  of  Baldwin  le  Flemyng.  Ash  Eogus,  Benton,  and  Haxon 
(ibid.  439 ;  "  A.-D.  Inq.,"  4  Kichard  II,  No.  26,  p.  30)  making 
up  the  eighth  ;  (2)  to  the  count's  own  estate  of  West  Eaddon 
(W.  306)  which  in  1241  Geoffrey  de  Mandevil  held  appur- 
tenant to  his  honour  of  Marshwood  ("Testa,"  No.  841,  p.  183a)J; 
(3)  to  the  two  estates  held  by  Hamelin  under  the  count,  to 
wit  Alwington  (W.  272)  2  fees  ("Testa,"  No.  906,  p.  184a; 
"  Feudal  Aids,"  329),  and  Hempston  Borard  (W.  316)  2  fees 
("Trans,"  XXXIII,  382);  and  (4)  to  one  estate  held  by 
Nicolas  the  King's  crossbowman  in  "  Domesday,"  viz.  Web- 
worthy  (W.  1018;  "Testa,"  914,  p.  184a).  It  may  be 
observed  that  the  10  fees  in  Midellaund  or  Launceston  held 
by  William  Briwere  in  1227  ("Trans."  XXXIV,  566)  appear 
to  be  identical  with  the  10  fees  held  by  Geoffrey,  son  of 
Baldwin  (Oliver,  "Mon.,"  41),  son  of  Hamelin  (ibid,  42),  in 
1166  ("Lib.  Niger,"  131).  These  were  in  1234  held  by 
Robert  de  Pin  and  Walter  son  of  William  in  right  of  their 
wives  ("Trans."  XXXIV,  568)  and  in  1306  by  Herbert  de 
Pyn."     All  of  them  were  in  Cornwall  excepting  Alwington. 

"  "Feudal  Aids," 207, enumerates tliemaa 4 in  Middelaund [or Launceston], 
1  in  Gere  [i.e.  Bere,  "  Feudal  Aids,"  201],  2  in  Alwenton  [i.e.  Alwington],  1 
in  Marwenchurche  [i.e.  Marhamchurch],  and  2  in  Pensentenyon,  Trethewy, 
and  Westwy. 


348    THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMFTON. 

5.  With  the  Somersetshire  honour  of  Odcombe  ("Lib. 
Niger "  98)  went  all  the  estates  held  in  "  Domesday  "  under 
the  Count  (1)  by  Ansger  Brito  or  the  Breton,  to  wit,  Buck- 
land  Brewer  (W.  276;  "Testa"  No.  948,  p.  184b;  A.-D. 
Inq.  36  Ed.  Ill,  No.  37,  p.  247),  ^  fee  ("Feudal  Aids," 
p.  358),  East  Putford  (W.  277;  "Testa"  No.  949,  and  1650, 
p.  200),  i  fee  ("Feudal  Aids,"  358),  Bulkworthy  (W.  278) 
\  fee  ("Testa  "  950 ;  "  F.  Aids  "  358),  and  Smytham  (W.  279  ; 
"Trans."  XXXIII,  376);  (2)  by  the  Englishman,  Alward,  to 
wit  Clist  St.  Laurence  (W.  293)  i  fee  ("Testa,"  1607,  p.  200  ; 
"F.  Aids"  333;  A.-D.  Inq.  8  Ed.  II,  No.  56,  p.  258), 
Northleigh  (W.  315)  i  fee  ("Testa"  843,  p.  183b;  "F.Aids" 
330),  and  Hawkerland  (W.  310)  J  fee  ("Testa,"  844  and  1203, 
p.  191a ;  "Trans."  XXXV,  294)  and  Stockleigh  in  Highamton 
(W.  270) ;  and  (3)  one  estate  held  by  Alured  the  count's 
butler  {pincertui),  to  wit,  Sutton  Satchvil  and  Upcot 
(W.  301),  i  fee  ("Testa"  951  and  1644,  p.  200).  In  1126 
this  honour  was  held  by  Ansger  Brito,  a  great  benefactor 
to  Bermondsey  Abbey  (CoUinson's  "Somerset"  III,  223);  in 
8  Henry  II  by  Eoger  Brito  (Risdon's  "Notebook"  74),  and 
in  1166  by  Walter  Brito  ("Lib.  Niger"  98),  when  it  was 
returned  as  consisting  of  15  Mortain  or  small  fees.  From 
Walter  it  descended  to  his  sister's  son,  Walter  Croc  ("Lib. 
Niger"  372),  who  in  1200  sold  a  moiety  of  it  to  Richard, 
son  of  William  Briwere.^®  In  1219  William  Croc  succeeded 
("  Trans."  XXXVI,  422),  but  the  entirety  appears  to  have 
been  acquired  by  William  Briwere,  and  by  his  eventual 
heiresses  it  passed  to  Chaworth  and  others.  William 
Briwere    was    sheriff   of    Devon    1179-89,    of    Cornwall 

»8  Red  Book,  quoted  "Trans."  XXXIII,  373,  by  Mr.  Whale:  Richard, 
son  of  William  Brewer,  holds  the  barony  of  Walter  Brito.     Richard  was  the 
eldest  son  of  the  well-kno^vn  judge,  William  Briwere,  and  lost  his  life  before 
1196  fighting  against  the  Welsh.     The  judge  William  Briwere*s  connexion 
with  Devon  is  stated  by  Dugdale  to  commence  With  his  purchase  of  Ilesham 
r"        y       /y       in  1179  ("Bar.,"  I,  700),  but  it  appears  that  his  mother  was  a  Devonshire 
J^       K/*<*yUt^    lady,  da«^||tEr  of  Geoffrey  and  sioterj)f  Reginald  de  Albemarle,  of  Wood- 
^  C&VttCy  ^"^y  (Hund.   Rolls,   No.  9,  p.   65)7  and   that  William   Briwere  inherited 

Greendale  from  his  mother.  This  family,  variously  written  Briwere 
("Testa,"  No.  1488,  p.  197b,  and  1567,  p.  199a),  Briguere  (charters  in 
1190  and  1198,  "Gal.  of  Documents  in  France,*'  119,  462),  Bruere  ("Testa," 
1357,  p.  194b),  Bruerre  (Red  Book,  232),  and  Briwarr  ("Testa,"  1442, 
I).  196b)— in  the  foundation  deed  of  Tor  Abbey  (Oliver,  **Mon.,"  173) 
William  signs  for  himself  Briewere  and  for  his  son  Briegwere—must  not  l^o 
confounded  with  that  of  Ralf  de  Brueria,  in  "Domesday,"  an  undertenant 
of  Baldwin,  although  in  the  twelfth  century  the  two  families  became  con- 
nected by  marriage.  William  de  la  Brueria  married  Englesia,  William 
*  Briwere's  sister  (*•  Trans."  XXXV,   289),  and   William   Briwere  obtained 

♦#»/  A0^^  Wolborough  (Oliver  "Mon.,"  186)  by  purchase  from  Anthony  de  Bruera. 

^'     A      j/\  -T^  '^^®  charter  of  1191  is  witnessed  by  both  William  Briwerre  ana  William  de 
*m.  iif^^^^r*<r»^rueria  (**Cal.  Docts.  in  France"  17). 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON.    349 

1202-3,  of  Dorset  and  Somerset  1209-10  (Maclean's  "Trigg 

Minor,"  III,  148).     His  wife  was  Matilda  de  Vallibus  or   /^juj^.^/i 

de  Vaux  (Oliver,  "Mon."  173),  the  mother  by  Keginald,  earl       /         / 

of  Cornwall,  of   Henry  the  earl's  son,  and  by  her  he  had 

issue,  besides  Richard  who  lost  his  life  in  Wales,  another 

son  William  who  succeeded  him  in  1227  (Oliver  "Mon.," 

293),  and  five  daughters,  who  on  the  death  of  their  brother 

on  22  February  1233   without  issue   by  his  wife  Joanna 

(Oliver,  p.  174),  became  his  eventual  heiresses.     Margaret, 

the  eldest  of  these  according  to  Risdon  ("Notebook"  74), 

was  married  to  William  de  la  Ferte  or  de  Aflfertis,  and  had 

by  him  an  only  daughter,  Gundreda,  who  brought  her  share 

of  William   Briwere's   honour   to   her  husband.  Pagan  de 

Chaworth   (Dugdale,    "Bar."   I,    517;    "Testa"    p.    200a). 

From  Pagan  it  descended  to  his  son,  Patrick  de  Chaworth 

(Hundred  Rolls,  No.  32,  p.  79;  "Trans."  XXXVII,  428, 

n.  22),  who  was  in  possession  in  1241  ("Testa,"  p.  183b), 

and  died  in  1257.    Patrick  was  followed  by  his  two  sons 

in  succession.     The  elder  one,  Pagan,  died  without  issue  in 

1278  (Risdon,  75),  and  the  younger  one,  Patrick,  died  in 

1315  (A.-D.  Inq.  8  Ed.  II,  No.  56,   p.  258),  leaving  an 

only  daughter,  Matilda,  who  became  the  wife  of  Henry 

Plantageuet,  duke  of  Lancaster.     On  Henry's  death  in  1362 

(A.-D.  Inq.  35  Ed.  Ill,  No.  122,  p.  237),  part  of  her  share 

came  to  her  daughter,  Matilda,  wife  of  the  duke  of  Bavaria, 

who  died  in  1363  (A.-D.  Inq.  36  Ed.  Ill,  No.  37,  p.  247), 

but  some  years  later  Henry  IV  incorporated  all  the  Chaworth 

estates,  some  30  fees,  in  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster. 

Of  William  Briwere's  other  daughters,  Graecia  was  married 
to  Reginald  de  Braose;  Isabel  was  twice  married,  Baldwin 
Wak  being  her  second  husband;  Alice  married  Reginald 
de  Mohun,  and  Joan  William  de  Percy  (Dugdale,  "  Bar.,"  I, 
702),  "Testa  de  Nevil"  (p.  199a,  in  "Trans."  XXXVII,  446 
seq^  enumerates  the  different  estates  allotted  to  the  several 
coheiresses,  from  which  it  appears  that  of  the  Mortain  fees 
in  Devon,  Denson  (No.  1573,  W.  291)  went  to  William  de 
Braose's  heirs,  Clist  St.  Laurence  (No.  1607,  W.  293)  to 
William  de  Percy,  Northleigh  (No.  1628,  W.  315)  to 
Chaworth  ("Trans."  XXXVII,  428),  and  Sutton  Satchvil 
(No.  1644,  W.  301)  and  East  Putford  (No.  1650,  W.  277)  to 
Hugo  Wak.  In  each  case  it  may  be  presumed  that  these 
were  the  head  manors,  carrying  with  them  a  number  of 
other  manors. 

6.  Two  other  Somersetshire  honours  had  their  origin  in 
the  great  Mortain  fief — that  held  in  1166  by  the  younger 


350         THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTillN  AND  OKBHAMPTON. 

Drogo  of  Montacute,  and  that  of  Walter  de  Ashul  ("  Testa," 
p.  184b)  or  Ashleigh  ("Testa"  169a),  which  "Feudal  Aids" 
writes  in  one  place  Ystlegh  (427).  To  Drogo's  honour  be- 
longed (1)  three  out  of  the  four  Devonshire  estates  held 
at  the  time  of  the  survey  by  Drogo  or  Drew,  viz.  Feniton 
(W.  298),  Corscombe  (W.  299),  and  Womberford  (W.  314), 
3  fees  ("Testa"  362,  p.  179a)— the  fourth,  Honiton,  had 
gone  to  the  earl  of  Devon;  (2)  all  the  estates,  excepting 
Sutton  Satchvil,  held  by  Alured  the  count's  butler  in 
Devon,  viz.  Monkleigh  (W.  273),  Frizenham  (W.  280), 
Wedfield  (W.  281),  Woodland  (Liteltrorilande,  W.  282), 
Matford  Butter  (W.  286;  "Testa"  369,  p.  179a),  Thorn- 
bury  (W.  294;  "Testa"  957.  p.  184b),  Chitterleigh  (W.  295), 
Stockleigh  Luccombe  (W.  302),  and  Poughhill  (W.  303) ;» 
besides  (3)  one  held  by  Hugh  de  Valletort,  to  wit.  Much 
Bolbury,  alias  Bolbury  Beauchamp.  (W.  334),»  i  fee  ("Testa" 
367,  p.  179a;  1239,  p.  192a).  This  honour,  accordmg  to 
the  Black  Book,  contained  in  1166  10^  + J  fees  ("Lib. 
Niger,"  94).  To  Ashleigh's  honour  belonged  5^  small  fees 
("Trans."  XXXIII,  371),  including  the  three  Devonshire 
estates  held  by  Bretel  of  St.  Clare,^  under  the  Count,  to 
wit,  Charlton  (W.  300)  i  fee  ("Testa"  364,  p.  179a),  Little 
Faringdon  (W.  308)  i  fee  ("Testa"  1194,  p.  191a,  in 
"Trans."  XXXV,  291),  and  Holbrook  Grindham  (Colebroca, 
W.  309)  i  fee  ("Testa"  1192;  "Trans."  XXXV,  290). 

Before  leaving  the  Devonshire  estates  of  the  count  of 
Mortain  it  may  be  as  well  to  observe  that  the  Englishman 
Alward,  who  appears  as  undertenant,  was  probably  neither 
Alward  Tochisons,  who  is  mentioned  as  the  ancient  holder 
of  Cruwys  Morchard  (W.  868,  p.  708),  Brendon  (W.  653, 
p.  922),  and  Puddington  (W.  873,  p.  714),  nor  yet  Alward 
Merta,  the  dispossessed  tenant  of  Dowland  (W.  787,  p.  824) 
and  Nimet  (W.  792,  p.  828),  described  as  a  freeman  {liber 
honio),  because  he  could  go  with  his  land  to  what  lord  he 
might  like,  to  whom  the  queen  in  pity  gave  a  small  property 
in  Ashreigny  (W.  1081b,  p.  1174),  but  he  may  have  been 

'^  '*  Testa,"  1205,  p.  191a,  describes  the  two  last  estates  as  held  in  socage 
of  Catharine  de  Montacute  of  the  barony  of  Cheselbergh,  and  Exeter 
*' Domesday,"  fol.  618,  shows  Ceselberia,  in  Somerset,  held  by  Alured  the 
count's  butler. 

^  "Feudal  Aids,"  324,  says  held  by  Beauchamp  of  the  King,  because 
Valletort's  barony  was  then  in  abeyance. 

^  Dr.  Round  says  that  this  was  Bretel  of  St  Glare  and  not  Bretel  of 
Ambrferes,  on  the  ground  that  he  is  so  described  in  the  G«ld  Roll  for 
Somerset,  and  that  the  count's  tenant,  Bretel,  is  found  in  the  Montacute 
Cartulary  as  Bretel  de  Sancto  Claro,  giving  the  very  land  he  held  at  Monta- 
cute in  "  Domesday." 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON.    351 

Alward  Tabe,  who  was  dispossessed  of  Matford  (W.  286, 
p.  350).  Richard,  son  of  Torolf,  or  Torold,  besides  being 
undertenant  of  the  count  of  Mortain,  held  other  estates  in 
chief  of  the  Crown,  and  these  as  well  as  the  others  were 
included  in  the  honour  of  Cardinan.  Alured,  the  count's 
butler,  was,  however,  in  all  probability  a  distinct  person 
from  Alured  the  Breton,  who  held  in  chief  of  the  Crown. 
Otherwise  both  groups  of  estates  would  have  constituted 
one  honour,  whereas  those  of  Alured,  the  count's  butler, 
formed  the  Mortain  honour  of  Montacute  or  Cheselbergh, 
whilst  those  of  Alured  the  Breton  were  held  of  the  honour 
of  Plymton.  Is  it  possible  that  Robert,  son  of  Ivo,  who  is 
also  mentioned  in  an  agreement  of  1121  ("Cal.  Docts.  in 
France "  258),  may  be  the  son  of  Ivon  or  Iwun  al  Chapel 
alias  Eudo  al  Chapel  (Eudo  cum  capello),  the  eldest  son  of 
Turstan  Haldub,  who  subscribed  himself  in  a  charter  of 
1074  as  Eudo  Haldub  (Planch(5,  II,  124)?  This  Eudo 
married  Muriel,  the  Conqueror's  half-sister,  and  had  a 
daughter  Muriel,  his  eventual  heiress,  who  married  Robert 
de  la  Haie  (ibid.  II,  125).  A  charter  of  Robert's  in  1105 
calls  him  son  of  Ranulf,  house  steward  to  Robert,  count 
of  Mortain,  and  grandson  of  Eudo,  steward  of  King  William 
(" Cal.  Docts.  in  France"  328). 

III.    Th^  Honour  of  Okehamton, 

The  descent  of  the  honour  of  Okehamton  presents  greater 
difficulties.  The  authorities  tell  us  that  Baldwin,  usually 
called  the  sheriff*,  the  first  holder  of  the  honour  of  Oke- 
hamton, was  the  younger  son  of  count  Gilbert  de  Brionne 
in  Normandy  ("  Cal.  of  Doc!  in  France  "  133,  141,  148,  503), 
that  he  was  sometimes  called  de  Molis,  from  the  castle  of 
Meules  (ibid.  26)  in  Normandy,  where  he  was  bom,  and  at 
other  times  de  Sap,  after  one  of  the  estates  restored  to  him 
by  Duke  William  in  1053  (Planch^,  II,  34,  41).  We  also 
find  him  called  de  Clare  (Round,  "Feud.  Engl."  473),  and  /  ;v^r,^ 
occasionally  de  Exeter  ("  Cal.  Doc.  in  France  **  38)  or  sheriff 
of  Exeter  (ibid.  327).  His  share  of  the  spoils  of  conquest 
consisted  of  177  manors,  assessed  at  146  hides,  and  com- 
prising roughly  some  100,000  acres  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion. With  five  exceptions,  viz.  Middlecot  (W.  381,  p.  406), 
Whiteway  (W.  512,  p.  542),  and  Alraforda  (W.  522,  p.  552),** 

^  The  list  of  Coartney  fees  in  1  Ric.  II,  No.  12,  p.  2,  names  together 
Rosamond  ford,  Whiteway,  and  Middlecot  among  fees  held  of  Plymton.  Pre- 
suming that  Alraforda  is  Rosamondford,  Briwere  was  suceessorto  Rannulf  in 
all  three. 


352    THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 

of  which  Eannulf  was  undertenant,  Woodington  (W.  501, 
p.  530),  of  which  William,  probably  William  the  guest- 
master,  was  undertenant,  and  Torington  ^  (W.  387,  p.  412), 
of  which  Eichard  was  undertenant,  all  Baldwin's  estates  are 
found  in  later  times  belonging  to  the  honour  of  Okehamton. 
That  honour  included  in  addition  (1)  three  fees  held  of  the 
bishop  of  Exeter  ("Lib.  Niger"  115),  to  wit,  Yeo  in  Credi- 
ton  ("  Feudal  Aids,"  337),  Dittisham,  and  Slapton  ("  Feud. 
Aids"  331;  "Trans."  XXXII,  542);  (2)  one  held  of  the 
bishop  of  Coutances,  to  wit,  Brampford  Speke  (W.  195, 
p.  192;  A.-D.  Inq.  1  Eic.  II,  No.  12,  p.  2);  (3)  two  estates 
held  by  Godeva  Brictric's  widow,  to  wit,  Torbryan  (W.  1110, 
p.  1192;  "Feud.  Aids"  317)  and  Dodbrook  (W.  1115, 
p.  1192;  "Feud.  Aids"  332);  and  (4)  Saulfs  Little  Duns- 
ford  or  Sowton  (W.  1118,  p.  1188;  "Feud.  Aids,"  314);  in 
all  92f  fees  (Eed  Book,  558;  "Trans."  XXVII,  99),  and  it 
was  held  by  the  service  of  three  knights  ("  Trans."  XXXII, 
542). 

Baldwin  was  twice  married,  (1)  to  Albreda,  the  Con- 
queror's niece  (Oliver,  "Mon.,"  338;  "Trans."  XXX,  506) 
or  cousin  (Planch(5,  II,  43),  and  (2)  to  Emma  (so  stated  in 
"Domesday,"  W.  478,  p.  512),  and  had  issue  three  sons, 
William,  Kobert,  and  Eichard  ("Cal.  of  Doc.  in  France" 
524),  besides  a  daughter  Adeliza.  The  older  authorities 
gave  him  also  another  daughter  Emma.  Dr.  Eound  gives 
the  three  sons  to  Emma,  though  he  is  doubtful  about 
William  ("  Feudal  England  "  473).  Planche  gives  her  only 
the  two  daughters  ("The  Conqueror's  Companions,"  II,  44). 
Eobert  succeeded  his  father  as  count  of  Brionne  in  1090 
(Planch(5,  I.e.  43),  and  William  Succeeded  him  as  sheriff  of 
Devon  (Charters  in  Oliver,  "Mon.,"  117,  153;  Eound  "Feud. 
Engl."  330,  n.  37),  and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother 
Eichard,  who  in  1129  held  the  shrievalty  together  with 
the  honour  of  Okehamton  (Eound,  I.e.  473).  Eichard  died 
without  issue  on  25  June,  1137  (Oliver,  "Mon.,"  338),  when 
the  sisters  became  his  heirs.  The  elder  one,  Adeliza,  was 
the  wife  of  William  son  of  Wimund  in  1086,^''  which  would 
almost  require  her  to  be  Albreda's,  and  not  Emma's  daughter, 
and  if  she  was  the  aunt  (amita)  of  Eannulf  Avenel,  Eannulf 
must  have  been  the  son  of  her  sister,  so  that  she  must  have 
had  a  sister  married  to  Avenel's  father.    She  died  23  August, 

*  Presuming  tliat  Torintona  is  Littlo  Torington,  which,  however,  Mr. 
Whale  disputes. 

^  "DomesJay,"  W.  397,  p.  422.  This  manor  (Dolton)  Baldwin  gave  to 
William  son  of  Wimund,  with  his  daughter  in  marriage. 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 


353 


1142,  after  founding  Ford  abbey,  it  is  usually  said  without 
issue,  but  the  Ford  abbey  cartulary  (Oliver,  "Mon.,"  341) 
gives  a  diJBferent  pedigree,  which  may  be  summarized  as 
follows : — 


Baldwin  de  Brionis=Albreda. 


Richard, 

founder  of  Brightley  in  1133, 

ob.  t.p.  25  June,  1137. 


Adeliza= 
only  daughter, 
d,  23  August,  1142. 


Rannulf  Avenel= Alice.     ^  ..  ..'^^ 
I  ■  •  /  ^ 


Robert  d'Avrancheg= Matilda  ==  Robert,  the  King's  son, 


first  husband. 


second  husband. 


Two 

daughters, 

nuns. 


Ha  wise: 
elder  daughter, 
second  wife, 
stated  to  be  a 
descendant  of 
Albreda,  o6.  31 
July,  1209. 


Reginald  de  Courtney = a  Nomian 


son  of  Florus,  Florus 
being  a  son  of  Louis 
the  Fat. 


lady,  first 
nfe. 


Robert  de  Courtney, 

younger  son, 

deprived  of  the 

shrievalty  in  1231. 


r 


r 


William  de  Courtney = Matilda, 
elder  son.        younger 
daughter. 


A  difficulty  arises  in  reconciling  this  pedigree  with  the 
charter  of  William  Avenel  (Oliver,  136)  addressed  to  Bishop 
Eobert  of  Exeter  [1150-59]  and  to  Earl  Baldwin  [who  died 
in  1154]  and  others,  whereby  William  Avenel  the  then 
possessor  of  the  honour  of  Okehamton  between  1150  and 
1154,  confirms  to  Ply m ton  priory  "all  that  my  father 
Rannulf  and  Adeliza  his  aunt  (arnica  =  father's  sister)  gave 
to  them."  Further,  it  is  not  true  that  Hawise  de  Courtenay 
died  as  stated  in  the  pedigree  in  1209,  for  the  Pipe  EoU  of 
12  John,  i.e.  1210,  contains  the  entry:  "Hawise  de  Curtenai 
accounts  for  £195.  10s.  scutage  of  92f  fees  in  Okemanton  at 
3  marks  for  each  fee";  and  that  of  16  John,  i.e.  1214: 
"Hawise  de  Curtenai  owes  7^  marks  for  the  honour  of 
Okemanton."  Also  as  Cleaveland,  p.  124,  points  out,  Reginald 
de  Courtenay's  father,  whether  called  Peter  or  Florus  or 
bearing  some  other  name  (Florus  being  only  a  nickname), 
cannot  have  been  son  of  Louis  the  Fat.  because  Louis  the 
Fat  after  1150  married  Reginald's  daughter. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  z 


354 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON. 


Pole,  setting  the  Ford  pedigree  down  as  erroneous,  gives 
an  entirely  different  one,  taken,  as  he  says,  "out  of  the 
Okhamton  lieger  book"  ^  as  follows : — 

'.'-      'j^     Baldwin^ -   ;,    -^ 


Richard,  Adela, 

lord  of  lady  of 

Okhampton.    Okhampton, 
ct  /I  V  married  a 

Kentish 
knightf  ob.8.p. 


William  Avenel= Emma = William  d'Avranchos. 


Matilda=Ralf   Avenel, 
sister  to        lord  of  Ok- 
Richard        hampton. 
de  Redvers. 

The  lord  de  Aincoort: 
first  husband. 


daughter     of 
Godwin  Dole. 


Robert  d'Avranches, 
lord  of  Okhamp- 
ton. 


Matilda = Robert,  son  of  the  Eine, 
brother  of  earl  Reginald; 
second  husband  lord  of 
Okhampton. 


A  Norman  lad7=Reginald  de  Gourtney^Matilda, 


first  wife. 


whom  queen  Eleanor 
brought  with  her  to 
England. 


second  wife, 
ob.  $,p. 


Ha  wise  de  Aiucoort= William  Courtney, 
lord  of  Sutton, 
Berks. 


Robert  Courtney=MaiT,  daughter  of 

William  de  Vernon. 


Pole  quotes  three  charters  to  prove  that  Matilda,  the  wife 
of  Eeginald  de  Courtney,  died  without  issue.  In  the  first 
one  Hawise  refers  to  and  confirms  a  deed  '*made  by  my 
sister  Matilda/'  which  shows  that  Matilda  was  in  posses- 
sion of  the  honour  before  her  sister  Hawise.  The  second  is 
a  grant  of  Musbury  made  by  Matilda,  lady  of  Okhamton, 
which  supports  this  suggestion.  The  third  is  a  grant  made 
by  Reginald  de  Courtney  "with  consent  of  Matilda  my  wife," 
which  proves  that  Matilda's  husband  was  not  called  William, 
but  Reginald.     Hawise's  charter  is  witnessed  by  "Robert 


*  John  Chase,  chapter-clerk  of  Winchester,  complains  that  in  the  Civil 
War  "  the  Minument  house  was  broken  up  by  the  Army  and  Soldiery  and  all 
my  lidcer  register  books  taken  away'*  (Capes,  "Rural  life  in  Hami»hire," 
190 ;  Winchester  Cath.  Doc.  II,  67). 


THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHAMPTON.    355 

Courtney  and  Eeginald  his  brother  my  sons,"  but  the  father's 
name  is  not  given. 

There  is,  however,  a  diflBculty  in  the  way  of  William 
Courtney  being  the  husband  of  Hawise,  if  Cleaveland's 
assertion  is  correct  that  William  Courtney  died  in  the 
crusade  of  1147-9  before  his  father  came  to  England.  To 
meet,  as  I  understand,  this  diflBculty,  A.  Ellis  in  "  Notes  and 
Queries,"  1  January  1881,  says  that  there  were  two  Eeginald 
de  Courtneys,  father  and  son,  a  view  which  has  been  accepted 
by  the  editors  of  Kisdon's  *'  Notebook  "  73.  The  documentary 
evidence  is  conclusive  that  when  Robert  the  natural  son  of 
Henry  I,  who  was  in  possession  of  the  honour  in  1166,  in 
right  of  his  wife  Matilda  d'Avranches  ("Lib.  Niger"  119; 
Bound,  "Feudal  England,"  266)  died  in  1172,  followed  by 
his  widow  on  21  September,  1173  (Dugdale,  "Mon."  V,  381), 
the  elder  Reginald  de  Courtney  obtained  the  wardship  of 
Matilda's  two  daughters,  and  himself  married  the  younger 
one,  Matilda,  whilst  he  gave  the  other,  Hawise,  to  his  son, 
called  by  Pole  and  the  monks  of  Ford  William  Court- 
ney. An  entry  in  the  Close  Roll  of  8  Hen.  Ill,  m.  8, 
runs:  "Robert  de  Curtenay  had  seisin  of  the  manor 
of  Wotesdon  [Wootton  Courtney  in  Somerset]  which 
Matilda  de  Curtenay  held  in  dower  since  the  death  of 
Reginald  de  Curtenay  aforetime  her  husband,  grandfather  of 
the  aforesaid  Robert,  whose  heir  he  is."  But  however  the 
pedigree  may  be  explained,  the  succession  to  the  honour 
according  to  the  charters  was,  first  to  William,  son  of  Bald- 
win, next  to  his  brother  Richard,  and  then  to  his  sister 
Adeliza  the  aunt  of  Rannulf  Avenel,  afterwards  to  Rannulf 
Avenel  and  to  William  Avenel  his  son  ("CaL  of  Docts.  in 
France"  257,  434),  then  to  Robert  the  King's  son  in  right  of 
his  wife  Matilda,  followed  by  Reginald  de  Courtney  in  right 
of  his  wife  Matilda,  and  then  to  her  half-sister  Hawise,  the 
wife  of  Reginald's  son  whether  called  William  or  Reginald.  She 
held  the  honour,  it  is  stated,  until  1219,  and  was  succeeded 
by  her  son,  Robert  Courtney,  who  married  Mary  de  Redvers, 
daughter  of  William  de  y«niOn,  and  had  issue  John  de 
Courtney.  Through  John  the  honour  descended  to  Hugh  I 
his  son,  Hugh  II  his  grandson,  and  Hugh  III  de  Courtney 
his  great-grandson.  In  1335  (9  Ed.  Ill),  some  years  after 
the  death  in  1293  of  Isabella  de  Fortibus,  last  of  the  Redvers, 
the  second  of  these  Hugh  Courtneys  was  authorized  to  assume 
the  title  of  earl  of  Devon  "as  being  the  heir  of  the  Redvers 
family  and  in  possession  of  their  estates,"  and  in  his  person 
the  honours  of  Plympton  and  Okehampton  were  united. 

z2 


356        THE  HONOURS  OF  MORTAIN  AND  OKEHABiPTON. 

According  to  "The  case  in  the  House  of  Lords,  1832," 

Hugh  II  de  Courtney,  the  first  earl  of  Devon  of  the  new 

fi^O'         1^"^»  ^^^^  l'^  ^-  m*     ^^s  s^^»  Hugh  III,  second  earl  of 

/Jtr  Devon,  died  51  Ed.  Ill,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  grandson 

'  Edward,  son  of  Sir  Edward  Courtney,  as  third  earl,  Edward's 

uncle  being  Sir  PhiUp  of  Powderham      On  the  death  of  the 

third  earl  in  7  Hen.  V  his  son,  Sir  Hugh,  succeeded  as  fourth 

earl,  but  died  10  Hen.  V,     Thomas  Courtney,  his  son,  then 

succeeded  as  fifth  earl,  and  died  36  Hen.  VI.     The  sixth 

earl  was  his  grandson,  Thomas  Courtney,  who  was  attainted 

and  beheaded  1  Edw.  IV,  leaving  no  issue. 

In  1  Hen.  VII,  Sir  Edward  Courtney,  a  collateral,  being  the 
grandson  of  Sir  Hugh  Courtney,  of  Haxjcombe,  a  brother  of 
the  third  earl,  was  created  earl  of  Devon  by  a  fresh  grant 
from  the  Crown,  but  died  in  1509.  His  son.  Sir  William, 
having  been  attainted,  and  his  grandson,  Henry  Courtney 
created  marquis  of  Exeter  having  been  attainted  and  be- 
headed 31  Hen.  VIII,  a  new  grant  of  the  earldom  of  Devon 
was  made  by  patent  on  3  September,  1553,  to  Sir  Edward 
Courtney,  the  son  of  the  late  marquis  of  Exeter,  "  to  him  and 
his  heirs  male  for  ever,"  but  without  reversal  of  the  attainders 
of  his  ancestors.  The  effect  of  this  was  to  make  Sir  Edward 
and  his  heirs  male  earls  of  Devon  of  a  new  creation,  but  to 
leave  the  old  earldom  descendible  to  heirs  general  together 
with  the  honours  and  estates  of  Plympton  and  Okehampton 
forfeit  to  the  Crown.  The  new  earl  died  without  issue 
18  September,  1556,  when  the  four  daughters  of  his  great- 
great-grandfather's  brother.  Sir  Hugh  Courtney,  of  Boconnoc, 
were  found  to  be  his  next  heirs,  viz.  Isabel  the  wife  of 
William  Mohun,  Maud  the  wife  of  John  Arundell,  Elizabeth 
wife  of  John  Trethurffe,  and  Florence  wife  of  John  Trelawney. 
The  present  line  of  earls  of  Devon,  whose  claim  to  the  earl- 
dom of  the  last  creation  was  allowed  in  1832,  are  descended 
from  Sir  Philip  Courtney,  of  Powderham. 


THE   RECENT   NEUROPTERA   OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

BY   CHARLES   ADOLPHTJS    BRIGGS,    F.E.8. 

(Read  at  I.yiiton,  July,  1906.) 


STONE -FLIES,    MAY- FLIES,    DRAGON  -  FLIES, 
CADDIS -FLIES,    ETC. 

The  four  main  divisions  of  the  groups  of  insects  comprised 
in  the  Linnaean  order  Neuroptera  are : — 

(1)  The   Pseudoneuroptera,  consisting  of  the  Psocidcc,  or 

Book-lice,    the    Feiiidcc,    or    Stone-flies,    and   the 
UphcMcridcc,  or  May-flies. 

(2)  The  Odoiutta,  or  Dragon-flies. 

(3)  The  Neiiroptera'Planipennia,  or  true  Neuroptera,  and 

(4)  The  Trichoptcra,  or  Caddis-flies. 

Of  these  divisions  the  Pscudaneuroptcra  and  the  Odoiiata 
undergo  incomplete  metamorphosis,  while  in  the  Neuroptera- 
Planipennia  and  the  Trichoptera  the  metamorphoses  are 
complete.  With  the  exception  of  the  Psocidce  and  the  great 
majority  of  the  Neuroptera -Planipennia  the  Neuroptera  are 
aquatic  in  their  habits,  passing  the  larva  or  nymph  stage  in 
the  water,  those  of  the  Perlida^,  Ephemcridw,  and  Odouata 
living  without  protection,  while  those  of  the  Trichoptera 
weave  cases  of  varying  thickness  covered  in  some  instances 
with  minute  water  shells,  in  others  with  stones  or  other 
debris. 

All  the  groups,  with  perhaps  the  exception  of  the  Odonata, 
are  well  represented  in  Devonshire.  There  are  few,  if  any, 
counties  in  England  so  well  adapted  to  these  water-loving, 
wood-frequenting  insects;  and  if  the  record  of  the  species 
observed  does  not  stand  out  above  that  of  any  other  county, 
the  fact  must  be  ascribed  rather  to  the  general  neglect 
which  has  been  shown  to  this  most  interesting  order  than 
to  the  paucity  of  the  county  fauna. 


358  THE  RECENT  NBUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

The  upland  bogs  of  Exmoor,  extending  1500  ft.  and  up- 
wards above  sea-level  and  but  little  altered  since  the  time 
of  primitive  man  whose  remains  are  so  thickly  scattered 
among  them — the  still  more  wild  and  lofty  range  of  Dart- 
moor— the  richly  wooded  combes  and  torrent  streams  of 
North  Devon,  and  the  larger,  more  slowly -moving  rivers 
of  other  portions  of  the  county  with  its  canals  and  ponds, 
all  afford  home  and  shelter  suited  to  the  varied  require- 
ments of  different  species. 

The  recorders  of  Devonshire  Neuroptera  are  but  few. 
Stephens,  in  his  "  Illustrations  of  British  Entomology," 
Mandibulata,  Vol.  VI,  published  in  1835-6,  records  a  number 
of  species  from  Devonshire  apparently  on  the  authority  of 
Dr.  Leach,  but  no  localities  are  given,  and  in  many  instances 
the  records  cannot  be  implicitly  relied  on.  From  his  time 
but  little  was  done  until  the  late  Mr.  Parfitt,  of  Exeter, 
the  great  authority  on  Devonshire  fauna,  read  his  exhaus- 
tive paper  on  Devonshire  Neuroptera  before  the  Devonshire 
Association  in  1879. 

Since  then  the  principal  records  are  those  by  the  Eev. 
A.  E.  Eaton  and  Messrs.  McLachlan,  Bignell,  Porritt,  and 
myself.  Much  however  remains  to  be  done,  especially  in 
the  wilder  regions  of  Exmoor  and  Dartmoor,  where  sys- 
tematic work,  particularly  at  night,  would  probably  produce 
great  results. 

The  Psocidce,  the  first  of  the  three  sub-groups  forming  the 
Pseudoneuroptera,  are  arboreal  or  terrestrial  in  their  habits. 
Some  of  the  wingless  section  are  chiefly  found  indoors,  being 
rarely  found  away  from  houses,  while  the  winged  section 
are  usually  to  be  found  on  the  barks  of  trees  or  among  the 
foliage,  or  on  palings  and  other  decaying  wood,  or  among 
dead  leaves.  They  are  well  represented  in  the  county,  no 
less  than  three  species  having  recently  been  added  to  the 
British  list  from  specimens  found  in  Devonshire  by  myself. 

Of  the  wingless,  or  partially  winged,  section,  Atropos  divin- 
atoria,  Mull.,  the  "  death-watch  "  of  our  superstitious  ances- 
tors, is  but  too  common  and  destructive  in  ill-kept  collections, 
but,  like  the  equally  abundant  and  destructive  Clothilla 
jndsatoria,  Linn.,  is  rarely  seen  out  of  doors.  These  two 
species,  which  have  a  certain  superficial  resemblance,  may  be 
easily  distinguished  by  the  strongly  dilated  femora  of  the 
former.  Clothilla  picea,  Mots.,  is  not  uncommon  at  Lyn- 
mouth  indoors,  but  is  occasionally  also  taken  by  beating. 
Mr.  Parfitt  records  it  as  being  found  among  dried  fimgi. 
Hyperetes  gucstfalimis,  Kolbe,  was  introduced   to   our  list 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE.      359 

from  specimens  beaten  from  an  old  beech  tree  in  the  Valley 
of  Stones,  Lynton,  in  1898,  and  subsequently  found  at  Lyn- 
mouth  in  considerable  numbers  on  ilex  trees  and,  very 
rarely,  under  stones  on  the  hills.  The  first  British  speci- 
mens of  Bertkauia  prisca^  Kolbe,  were  found  in  1900  on  the 
side  of  a  boulder  on  Countisbury  Hill,  Lynmouth — (now, 
alas !  buried  beneath  a  motor  gart^e) — and  subsequently  on 
a  few  occasions  under  stones  at  Lynton.  All  the  specimens 
taken  were  ?  ,  the  (J ,  which  is  said  to  be  winged,  not  having 
yet  been  observed  here. 

In  the  winged  section  Psocus  longicomiSy  Fab.,  is  found 
on  the  rugged  bark  of  trees  and  has  been  beaten  from  alder 
on  the  banks  of  the  Exe  and  the  East  Lyn,  also  taken  at 
Horrabridge  (Bignell).  Ps.  nebulosuSy  Steph.,  common  on 
larch  at  Kockford  on  the  East  Lyn,  is  also  recorded  from 
Bickleigh  and  Ivybridge  (Bignell),  and  from  Newton  Abbot 
and  Killerton  (Parfitt).  Ps,  variegaUts,  Fab.,  occurs  on  the 
banks  of  the  Exe  (Parfitt)  and  near  Plymouth  (Bignell). 
Ps.  fasciatiis.  Fab.,  has  occurred  at  Eockford  on  the  East 
Lyn.  Ps.  sexpunctattis,  Linn.,  occurred  abundantly  in  1902 
at  Lynmouth,  some  on  the  bark  of  the  ilex  oak,  but  the 
majority  on  the  stone  wall  of  a  cottage.  Ps.  bifasciattis, 
Latr.,  is  fairly  common  at  Lynmouth,  and  has  occurred  at 
Cann  Wood  (Bignell)  and  Stone  Wood,  Exeter  (Parfitt). 
A  solitary  specimen  of  Ps.  qucbdriviaculatus,  Latr.,  is  re- 
corded without  locality  by  Mr.  Parfitt,  who  also  records 
Ps.  bipunctatusy  Linn.,  though  with  some  hesitation. 
Stenopsocus  immacidatiiSy  Steph.,  occurs  commonly  in  Lyn- 
mouth, Ivybridge  (Bignell),  and  elsewhere.  St.  cniciatus, 
Linn.,  common  round  Lynmouth,  is  also  recorded  from 
Seaton,  Stoke  Wood,  and  Dunsford.  CcecUius  pedicularis, 
Linn.,  frequent  in  houses,  is  also  found  on  the  trunks  and 
flying  in  the  sunshine.  It  has  been  noticed  in  abundance  at 
Saddle  Stone  Gate,  Exmoor,  1500  feet  above  sea-level,  and, 
as  Mr.  McLachlan  has  pointed  out,  is  the  only  Psocid  that  is 
known  to  fly  without  being  disturbed.  CJUtvidtts,  Steph., 
also  occurs  on  the  high  levels  of  Exmoor,  as  well  as  at  Ljm- 
mouth,  Plymouth,  Dawlish,  Seaton,  Exeter,  and  Ivybridge. 
C.  obsolettis,  Steph.,  occurs  very  sparingly  at  Lynmouth,  and 
C.  dalii,  McLach.,  in  abundance  late  in  autumn.  C.  vittatus^ 
Latr.,  is  fairly  common  at  Lynmouth,  Stoke  Wood,  and 
Alphington.  C.  perlattcs,  Kolbe,  and  C.  piceiis,  Kolbe,  are 
sparingly  found  along  the  East  and  West  Lyns.  Ectopsocus 
briggsii,  McLach.,  a  genus  and  species  new  to  science,  was 
found  sparingly  at  Lynmouth  in  October,  1899,  and  since 


360  THE  BSCEKT  NEUROFTSIU  OF  DEVONSHIBB. 

then  in  abundance  there,  among  dead  leaves.  A  specimen  was 
taken  at  Christmas  at  Seaton  (Eaton).  Peripsocus  pfictopterus, 
Steph.,  has  been  taken  at  Gann  Wood  (Bignell),  Stoke 
Wood  (Parfitt),  and  is  common  at  Rockford  on  the  East 
Lyn.  JElipsocus  unipunctatus,  Miill.,  is  common  and  generally 
distributed,  and  E.  cyanops,  Kostock,  is  common  at  Lyn- 
mouth.  K  westtooodii,  McLach.,  and  its  variety  dbietia^ 
Kolbe,  are  commonly  met  with.  E,  hyalinus,  Steph.,  is  not 
uncommon  on  the  Exe  (Parfitt),  and  E,  Jlaviceps,  Steph., 
found  sparingly  at  Dawlish,  is  frequent  at  Lynmouth. 

The  Fcrlidce,  or  Stone-flies,  the  second  sub-group  of  the 
Pseudoneuroptera,  pass  their  early  stages  imder  water,  pre- 
ferring as  a  rule  the  more  swiftly  flowing  streams,  though 
some  are  to  be  foimd  in  the  still  waters  of  canals  and 
ponds.  The  larvae  or  nymphs  may  frequently  be  found 
beneath  submerged  stones  or  crawling  on  wooden  piles  in 
the  water.  In  Devon  the  group  has  been  greatly  neglected, 
though  perhaps  not  more  so  than  in  other  counties. 

Dictyopteryx  microcephala,  Pict.,  is  recorded  by  Mr.  Parfitt 
as  being  very  common  along  all  the  streams  from  spring  to 
autumn,  but  on  the  East  Lyn  it  occurs  very  sparingly  in 
spring.  D,  rectangudatay  Pict.,  was  taken  in  Devonshire, 
according  to  Stephens.  Perla  margiimta,  Panz.,  is  recorded 
by  Mr.  Parfitt  as  common  on  the  banks  of  streams,  possibly 
in  error.  P,  maxima.  Scop.,  and  P.  ceplmlotes,  Curt.,  are 
abundant  along  all  the  rivers,  as  also  are  Isopteryx  torren^ 
Hum,  Pict.,  and  Isop,  tripunctata.  Scop.  A  few  specimens 
of  Tmniopteryx  nebulosa,  Linn.,  have  been  taken  near  Exeter 
(Parfitt),  and  at  Exminster  in  March  (Bignell),  and  T.  risi, 
Morton,  rare  at  Exeter,  has  been  taken  in  Bickleigh  Vale 
(Bignell),  and  is  not  uncommon  near  Watersmeet  on  the 
East  Lyn  in  April.  Leuctra  geniculata,  Steph.,  is  common 
on  the  Exe  and  the  East  Lyn  in  August  and  at  Bovey 
Heathfield  in  May  (Parfitt).  Of  the  species  formerly  con- 
fused under  the  name  of  L.  fuscivcntris,  L,  hippopus,  Kemp., 
occurs  at  Ivybridge  (Bignell),  is  abundant  along  the  East 
Lyn,  and  L.  klapalekiy  Kemp.,  occurs  along  the  East  Lyn  and 
is  common  on  the  high  grounds  of  Exmoor  some  1500  ft. 
high.  Nemoura  varieyaia,  Oliv.,  is  common  at  Shaugh 
Bridge  and  Bickleigh  (Bignell),  at  Exeter  (Parfitt),  and  on 
the  East  Lyn.  N,  meyeri,  Pict.,  rare  on  the  Exe  in  June 
(Parfitt),  is  common  on  the  East  Lyn,  sometimes  appearing 
as  early  as  January.  It  has  also  been  noticed  at  Horra- 
bridge  (Bignell).  lY.  cinerea,  Oliv.,  apparently  recorded  by 
Parfitt  under  the  name  of  StdcicolliSf  Steph.,  is  common 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRB.      361 

along  the  East  Lyn,  where  also  N,  marginata,  Pict.,  is 
equally  common.  M  inconspicua,  Pict.,  has  been  taken  in 
Cann  Wood  in  October  (Bignell)  and  Ivybridge  in  August 
(Bignell). 

The  Epkemeridce,  or  May-flies,  another  aquatic  sub-group 
of  Pseudoneuroptera,  are  also  fairly  represented.  Ephemera 
vulgata,  Linn.,  and  Eph,  danica,  Linn.,  though  common,  are 
not  perhaps  so  abundant  as  in  some  coimties.  Eph.  lineaia, 
Eaton,  has  been  taken  near  Exwick  (Parfitt).  Leptophlebia 
svhmarginata,  Steph.,  and  Habrophlebia  fusca,  Curt.,  have 
been  taken  sparingly  on  the  Exe  in  June.  Ephemerella 
ignita,  Poda,  is  common  along  the  East  and  the  West  Lyn. 
Ccenis  halterata.  Fab.,  and  C,  dimidiata,  Steph.,  are  abun- 
dant on  the  canal  at  Exeter  (Parfitt).  Bcetis  binoculaius, 
Linn.,  may  be  found  on  the  Exe  and  Greedy  from  spring 
to  autumn  (Parfitt).  B,  scamhus,  Eaton,  and  B,  niger,  Linn., 
have  been  occasionally  captured  near  Exeter  (Parfitt).  B, 
pumilns,  Burm.,  is  common  along  the  East  Lyn.  B.  rhodani, 
Pict.,  is  generally  common  from  spring  to  autumn,  as  also 
is  B,  vermis,  Curt.,  which  appears  sometimes  even  in  winter. 
Cloeon  dipte7nim,  Linn.,  is  common  on  the  slower  streams, 
and  Centroptilum  lutcolum,  MlilL,  seems  to  be  generally  dis- 
tributed, as  also  is  Ehithogeniu  semicolorata.  Curt.  Hepta- 
genia  sulphurefi,  Miill.,  occurs  at  Stafford's  Weir  on  the  Exe. 
Ecdifurus  venosus,  Fab.,  is  common  and  generally  distributed. 
Ec.  insignis  is  recorded  from  the  Dart  (Eaton)  and  Exwick 
(Parfitt),  and  Ec,  volitans^  Eaton,  from  Dunsford  on  the 
Teign  (Parfitt). 

The  second  main  division  of  the  Neuroptera  consists  of 
the  Odonata  or  Dragon-flies,  which  are  also  aquatic  in  their 
early  stages.  Owing  no  doubt  to  their  conspicuous  appear- 
ance and  diurnal  habits  the  records  are  fairly  satisfactory, 
though  probably  a  few  species  have  been  overlooked. 

Of  the  forty-one  species  comprised  in  the  six  families  of 
British  Odonata  only  twenty-five  have  been  recorded  from 
Devonshire,  a  number  almost  equalled  by  a  single  pond  in 
Surrey,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  careful  search 
would  add  several  species.  Libellula  fvXva,  MiilL,  for 
instance,  has  probably  been  passed  over  for  its  commoner 
congener.  L,  quadriviaculatus,  Linn.,  and  Cordulia  anea, 
Linn.,  most  surely  occur  in  at  all  events  the  southern  portion 
of  the  county.  jEschTia  junceay  Linn.,  and  Enallagma 
cyathigcrum,  Charp.,  both  occur  freely  at  Pinkery  Pond, 
Exmoor,  only  about  half  a  mile  over  the  Somersetshire 
border. 


362     THE  BBCENT  NEUBOPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

Of  the  first  family  the  Idbellulidcg,  Sympetrum  striolatum, 
Charp.,  is  generally  common,  some  of  the  moorland  speci- 
mens being  very  highly  coloured,  and  a  solitary  specimen  of 
S.  vulgatum,  Lmn.,  was  taken  at  Torquay  on  15  August, 
1899,  by  Mr.  A.  H.  Hamm.  A  few  specimens  of  the  sporadic 
migrant  S,  flaveolum,  Linn.,  were  recorded  in  1876  from 
Lapford  and  on  the  Exe  and  Clyst  (Parfitt).  S.  sanguineum, 
Miill.,  is  reported  by  Stephens  from  Devonshire,  but  has 
not  been  noticed  since.  S.  scoticum^  Don.,  which  appears  to 
be  rare  in  the  southern  part  of  the  county,  is  very  common 
on  Exmoor  at  an  elevation  of  1400  feet.  Platetrum  de- 
pressum,  Linn.,  and  Libdlula  quadrimaeulata,  Linn.,  are 
fairly  common  over  ponds  and  streams.  Orthetnvm  caned- 
latum,  Linn.,  occurs  sparingly  in  the  Exeter  district 
(Parfitt),  and  0.  carrulescens.  Fab.,  has  been  taken  at  Corn- 
wood  and  Ivy  bridge  (Bignell),  Bovey  (Hamm).  on  the  Clyst 
and  at  Strete  Raleigh  (Parfitt),  and  elsewhere  in  the  southern 
portion  of  the  county,  but  not  at  present  in  the  northern 
portion,  although  it  is  common  near  Bude  in  North  Cornwall, 
just  over  the  border.  The  only  species  of  the  next  family, 
Cordvliidoe^  is  Oxygastra  curtisii.  Dale,  which  is  recorded 
by  Curtis,  "British  Entomology,"  p.  617,  from  Braunton 
Burrows. 

Of  the  Gomphidce,  the  magnificent  Cordulegaster  annvlaXtis, 
Latr.,  is  widely  distributed  and  fairly  common.  The  jEschnidcc 
are  represented  by  Brachytroii  pratense,  Miill,  which  is 
fairly  common,  as  also  is  JEschna  cyanea,  Miill.  ^.  mixta, 
Latr.,  so  long  a  rarity,  has  recently  been  taken  in  some 
numbers  by  Mr.  G.  T.  Porritt  and  others  at  Torcross  and 
elsewhere  along  the  south  coast.  ^,  grandis,  Linn.,  hos 
been  taken  at  Torcross  (Bignell)  and  Bovey  Tracey  (Hamm). 
Of  the  Calopterygidce,  Calopteryx  virgo,  Linn.,  is  recorded  by 
Mr.  Parfitt  as  being  very  scarce  in  the  Exeter  district,  but 
is  common  at  Bickleigh,  Plym  Bridge,  and  Shaugh  Bridge 
(Bignell).  It  occurs  also  at  Lydford  and  abundantly  on  the 
East  Lyn,  while  C.  splendens,  Harris,  is  generally  distributed 
in  the  Exeter  district,  but  not  near  Plymouth.  Of  the 
Agrionidm,  Lestcs  sponsa,  Hans,  is  recorded  from  Ivy  bridge 
(Bignell)  and  Bovey  Tracey  (Hamm).  Platycncmis  pennipeSy 
Pall.,  has  been  taken  at  Saltram  (Bignell)  and  is  common 
some  seasons  in  the  Topsham  Marshes  (Parfitt).  ryrrhosoma 
nymphula,  Sulz.,  is  generally  distributed  throughout  the 
county,  and  P.  tenellum,  Vill.,  has  been  taken  near  Bovey 
Tracey  (Hamm).  Ischnura  elegaiis,  Lind.,  is  fairly  distributed 
and  sometimes   abundant.     Agrion  pidchellum,  lind.,  has 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE.      363 

been  taken  along  the  Exe  (Parfitt),  and  A,  pudla,  Linn.,  is 
generally  common  throughout  the  county.  Miiallagma 
cyathigerum,  Charp.,  has  only  been  recorded  from  Bovey 
Tracey  (Hamm),  but  is  common  at  Pinkery  Pond,  Exmoor, 
about  half  a  mile  over  the  Somersetshire  border.  It  has  no 
doubt  been  overlooked. 

The  third  main  group  of  Neuroptera,  the  Planipennia 
(Snake-flies,  Lacewings,  Scorpion-flies,  etc.),  contains  three 
divisions — the  Sialina,  the  Hemerobiina,  and  the  Paiwiyina, 
which  are  represented  in  Great  Britain  by  seven  families ; 
others,  such  as  the  Myrmeleonidce  (Ant  Lions),  familiar 
enough  on  the  Continent,  not  having  yet  been  noticed  in 
our  islands.     The  group  is  well  represented  in  the  county. 

The  larvffi  for  the  most  part  are  arboreal,  but  some  are 
aquatic  and  a  few  terrestrial.  In  the  Sialina  the  larvae  of 
both  species  of  Sialis  are  aquatic.  In  the  Hemerohihia  all 
are  arboreal  except  the  aquatic  genera  Osmylus  and  Sisyra, 
while  the  Fanorpina  live  on  or  under  the  ground.  Of  the 
first  family  of  the  Sialina,  the  Sialidce,  Sialis  lutaina,  linn., 
is  common  and  generally  distributed,  while  the  rarer 
S.  fulffinaria,  Pict.,  has  only  been  very  sparingly  taken  on 
the  East  Lyn  (Briggs).  In  the  next  family,  the  Raphidiidoe^ 
Raphidia  notata,  Fab.,  and  R.  xanthostigma,  Steph.,  are  men- 
tioned by  Mr.  Parfitt  as  having  been  taken  in  North  Devon 
by  Mr.  Eaddon,  but  a  record  three-quarters  of  a  century 
old  is  scarcely  satisfactory.  In  the  second  division  or 
Hemerohiina  in  the  family  Osmylidoe,  the  beautiful  Osmylus 
chrysops,  Linn.,  often  known  as  the  Fairy-fly,  is  common 
along  the  East  Lyn,  and  is  recorded  from  Ivybridge  (Big- 
nell),  Marsh  Mills  and  Plym  Bridge  (Keys),  and  rarely 
at  Topsham  (Parfitt).  Sisyra  fuscata,  Fab.,  is  not  un- 
common among  firs  where  water  is  (Parfitt),  and  S.  ter- 
minnlis,  Curt.,  occurs  in  the  Exeter  district  (Parfitt).  Of 
the  Hemcrobiida:,  Micromus  variegatus.  Fab.,  and  M,  paganus, 
Linn.,  are  fairly  common  and  widely  distributed,  the  former 
being  frequently  swept  from  rank  herbage  by  the  hedge- 
side,  while  the  latter  shows  a  preference  for  trees  and 
bushes.  Of  the  genus  Hemerobitis  itself,  ff.  pelluddiLS, 
Walker,  has  occurred  at  Exwick  (Eaton)  and  sparingly  at 
Lynmouth  (Briggs)  in  company  with  H,  inconspicwus, 
McLach.  H.  7iitidultis,  Fab.,  occurs  among  fir  trees.  H. 
micans,  Oliv.,  is  common  and  generally  distributed,  but  its 
variety,  fuscincrvis,  Schn.,  is  rare.  ff.  humuli,  Linn.,  and 
n.  lutescenSy  Fab.,  are  fairly  common  and  generally  distri- 
buted.    H,  marginatus,  Steph.,  is  recorded  from  the  Exeter 


364  THE  RECENT  NBUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

district  (Parfitt).  E,  stigma,  Steph.,  is  common  among  firs. 
H,  atrifrons,  McLach.,  is  fairly  common  at  Eockford,  on  the 
East  Lyn,  and  Mr.  Parfitt  records  H.  pint  from  Stoke 
Wood,  near  Exeter.  H,  suhnebulosus,  Steph.,  is  fairly  com- 
mon but  local.  H.  nervostcs,  Fab.,  occurring  at  Bude  and 
Penzance,  has  not  yet  been  recorded  from  Devonshire.  Two 
specimens  of  the  very  rare  Megalomus  hirtus  from  near 
Exeter  are  recorded  by  Mr.  Parfitt,  but  there  is  probably 
some  error  in  identification  or  locality.  Of  the  Chrysopidce, 
Chrysopa  flava,  Scop.,  occurs  sparingly,  but  is  probably  fre- 
quently confused  with  the  commoner  C,  mttatay  Wesm. 
C.  alba,  Linn.,  is  common  and  widely  distributed,  being 
recorded  from  Exeter  (Parfitt),  Plymouth  (Bignell),  and 
near  Lynmouth  (Briggs).  C.  Jlavi/rons,  Brauer,  is  ifairly 
common,  and  C,  vulgaris,  Schr.,  is  common  throughout  the 
county,  though  its  winter  condition,  carnea,  Steph.,  has  not 
been  recorded.  The  ill-odoured  C.  septe7npunctata,  Wesm., 
which  most  unjustly  has  given  the  name  of  stink-fly  or 
corpse-fly  to  the  whole  of  this  beautiful  genus,  is  equally 
common.  C.  ventralis,  Curt.,  is  taken  sparingly  both  in  the 
Exeter  and  Lynmouth  districts,  but  the  commoner  C,  aspersa^ 
Wesm.,  seems  only  to  have  been  taken  by  Mr.  Porritt  at 
Torcross  in  1902.  Cperla,  Linn.,  is  generally  common,  and 
0,  ahhreviata,  Curt.,  was  recorded  by  Curtis  from  North 
Devon,  but  has  not  occurred  since  his  time.  Most  unfor- 
tunately his  collection  with  all  his  types  was  allowed  to 
leave  England,  and  is  now  at  the  Eoyal  Victoria  Museum, 
Melbourne.  Nothochrysa  fulvicepSy  Steph.,  and  N,  capitata. 
Fab.,  are  recorded  by  Stephens  from  Devonshire,  but  have 
not  been  noticed  since.  Of  the  Conioptciygidce,  Conioptcrt/x 
tineiformis,  Curt.,  is  common  in  woods  and  gardens,  as  also 
is  C,  psociformis,  Curt.,  but  C.  aleyrodifanniSy  Steph.,  though 
widely  scattered,  is  rarer.  All  three  species,  however,  are 
much  overlooked. 

In  the  third  division,  the  Panorpina,  the  family  Panarpidce 
is  represented  by  Panorpa  communis,  Linn.,  and  A  germanica, 
Linn.,  which  are  generally  common  throughout  the  county, 
and  P.  cogiwta,  Ram.,  which  is  recorded  with  hesitation  by 
Mr.  Parfitt  from  a  fir  plantation  near  Powderham. 

The  Triclwptera,  the  last  of  the  four  groups  of  the 
Neuroptera,  are  very  well  represented,  taking  the  county  as 
a  whole,  but  the  distribution  is  somewhat  irregular,  owing 
to  the  different  character  of  the  waters.  Some  of  the  com- 
monest of  the  Phryganidce,  Limnophilidm  and  Leptoceridm, 
are  almost  absent  from  the  Lynmouth  district,  where  the 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE.      365 

rivers  are  rapid  mountain  torrents,  while  in  the  southern 
portion  of  the  county,  where  the  rivers  are  broader  and 
slower  and  there  are  more  marshes,  ponds,  and  canals,  there 
is  a  marked  difference  in  the  Neuropterous  fauna,  fully 
accounting  for  the  richness  of  Mr.  Parfitt's  list. 

The  Tinchoptera  are  separated  into  two  main  divisions,  the 
Neuroptera,  in  which  the  joints  of  the  maxillary  palpi  of 
the  males  (four,  three,  or  two)  are  less  in  number  than 
those  of  the  females  (five),  and  the  JEquipalpia,  in  which  the 
number  of  joints  (five)  is  equal  in  both  sexes.  With  the 
exception  of  the  single  terrestrial  species,  the  larvae  of  all 
are  aquatic.  Many  of  the  imagines  come  freely  to  light,  and 
a  few  occasionally  appear  at  the  lepidopterists'  "sugar." 
In  the  first  division,  in  the  family  PhryganidcBy  Phryganea 
ffrandiSy  Linn.,  has  been  taken  by  the  Exeter  Canal,  and 
P.  varia,  Fab.,  near  Shaugh  Bridge  (Parfitt).  Of  the  Limno- 
phUidce,  Colpotaulius  incisus,  Curt.,  occurs  on  the  Dartmoor 
streams  near  Ashburton  and  Tavistock  (Parfitt).  GramvKh 
taulim  cUomarius,  Fab.,  is  recorded  by  Stephens;  Glypho- 
tceluis  pelhicidus,  Oliv.,  is  recorded  as  common  in  June  and 
July  by  Mr.  Parfitt,  but  no  locality  is  given.  Zimnophilus 
rhombvcus,  Linn.,  is  not  uncommon  in  May  and  July.  Z, 
Jlavicomis,  Fab.,  is  frequent  at  Exeter,  and  a  single  specimen 
has  occurred  at  Lynmouth.  Z.  murmoratics,  Curt.,  has  been 
taken  on  the  Teign  in  May,  on  the  Axe  at  Whitford 
(McLachlan),  at  Bickleigh  (Bignell),  and  Torcross  (Porritt). 
L.  lunatus,  Curt.,  sparingly  throughout  the  county.  L.  griseus, 
Linn.,  is  recorded  by  Stephens,  and  L.  bipunctatus,  Curt.,  by 
Parfitt  at  St.  James'  Weir,  Exeter,  and  at  Torcross  at  sugar 
(Porritt).  X.  affinis,  Curt.,  occurs  sparingly  at  Lynton,  but 
is  in  great  abundance  on  the  south  coast,  flying  freely  in  the 
sunshine  (Porritt).  L,  cerUralis,  Curt.,  and  Z.  vittattLS,  Fab., 
are  not  uncommon  at  Lynmouth,  and  are  also  recorded 
from  the  Exeter  and  Plymouth  districts.  Z,  auricula,  Curt., 
has  occurred  at  Shute  (McLachlan),  Bickleigh  (Bignell),  and 
is  not  uncommon  at  the  Alphington  Brook  and  Blackwaller 
Weir  on  the  Exe  (Parfitt).  Z,  luridus,  Curt.,  is  not  common 
on  the  Exe  (Parfitt).  Z,  sparsus,  Curt.,  occurs  at  Bickleigh 
and  sparingly  on  the  Upper  Weir,  Exeter,  on  the  Alphing- 
ton Brook  in  May  and  June,  at  Colyton  (McLachlan),  and 
near  Lynmouth.  Z,  fiiscicomis,  Kam.,  is  also  occasionally 
taken  near  Exeter  (Parfitt).  Anabolia  nervosa,  Curt,  common 
near  Exeter  in  autumn,  also  occurs  near  Saddle  Stone, 
Exmoor,  where  Anysarchus  ccenosus,  Curt.,  may  be  found 
sparingly.     Of  the  somewhat  puzzling  group  of  Stenophyllax 


366  THK  BBCENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

and  its  allies,  Stevophyllax  stellatus,  Curt.,  taken  occasionally 
at  sugar  at  Alphington,  is  not  uncommon  at  Lynmouth,  as 
also  is  S.  concentricuSy  Zett,  which  has  been  taken  freely  at 
sugar  at  Torcross  (Porritt),  while  S,  vibex,  Curt.,  is  recorded 
from  Alphington  (Parfitt).  Microptema  sequax,  McLach., 
has  been  taken  at  Alphington  (Parfitt)  and  Lynton  (McLach- 
lan).  M.  lateralis,  Steph.,  is  not  uncommon  and  widely 
distributed.  Halesus  radiaticSy  Curt.,  and  JT.  digitatus,  Schr., 
are  both  generally  common.  Ihnisus  annulatus,  Steph., 
taken  by  Mr.  McLachlan  at  Dawlish  and  by  Mr.  Bignell  at 
Horrabridge,  is  common  on  the  higher  reaches  of  the  West 
Lyn.  Chcetopteryx  villosa,  Fab.,  is  scarce,  both  in  the  north 
and  south  of  the  county,  and  Apatania  muliebris^  McLach., 
is  not  uncommon  at  Lee  Bay,  Lynton,  and  is  also  recorded 
by  McLachlan  from  the  Lynton  district. 

Of  the  SeriscostomidcPf  Seriscostama  personatum,  Spence,  is 
generally  distributed  throughout  the  county.  Notidobia 
cUiariSy  Linn.,  is  common  along  the  Dartmoor  streams 
(Parfitt),  Ooera  pUosa,  Fab.,  at  Whitford  (McLachlan),  on 
the  Dartmoor  streams,  and  on  the  East  Lyn.  SUo  paUipes, 
Fab.,  is  generally  common,  and  S.  nigHcornis,  Pict.,  is  not 
uncommon  on  the  East  Lyn.  Brachycentrus  subnubilus. 
Curt.,  has  been  taken  in  some  numbers  by  Mr.  Parfitt  near 
Exeter.  Cruncecia  irrorata,  Curt.,  is  recorded  from  Bovi- 
sand  (Bignell),  Dunsford  (Parfitt),  Dawlish  (McLachlan), 
Plymouth  (McLachlan),  Seaton  (Eaton),  and  a  solitary 
specimen  from  the  East  Lyn  (Briggs).  Lepidostoma  hirtum, 
Fab.,  and  Lasciocephala  basalis,  KoL,  are  common  in  most 
parts  of  the  county. 

In  the  second  division  of  the  Trichoptera,  the  jEquipalpia 
of  the  family  Leptoceridce,  Bercea  pullata,  Curt,  which  has 
occurred  at  Woodbury,  but  not  commonly,  is  abundant  at 
Axmouth  and  Bovey  Common  (McLachlan).  B,  maunis, 
Curt.,  at  Seaton  (Eaton)  and  at  Shute  (McLachlan).  B.  arti- 
cularis,  Pict.,  very  sparingly  at  Seaton  (Eaton)  and  Haven 
Cliff  (McLachlan).  Afolanna  angtistata,  Curt.,  was  recorded 
by  Stephens,  but  has  not  been  noticed  since.  Odontocericm 
alhicome.  Scop.,  has  occurred  at  Newton  and  Bovey  Heath- 
field  (Parfitt),  on  the  tributaries  to  the  Coly  (McLachlan), 
and  is  very  common  on  the  East  Lyn.  Leptocems  nigrotur- 
vosuSy  Retz.,  occurs  along  the  Exe  in  June  (Parfitt).  L,  albo- 
r/uttatuSy  Hag.,  a  specimen  taken  by  the  Eev.  J.  Hellins  at 
Exeter.  Z.  annulicornis,  Steph.,  is  common  by  Bla.ckwaller 
Weir,  Exeter  (Parfitt).  X.  aterrimus,  Steph.,  Exeter,  but 
not  common  (Parfitt).    Z,  ciTieretis,  Curt,  a  very  variable 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE.      367 

species,  is  common  (Parfitt).  L,  alhifrons,  Linn.,  occurs  at 
Alphington  Brook  and  by  the  Exe  commonly  (Parfitt), 
also  at  Whitford  and  elsewhere  on  the  Axe  and  Yarty 
(McLachlan),  and  at  Marsh  Mills  and  Plym  Bridge  (Bignell). 
L,  commutatus,  McLach.,  at  Dunsford  on  the  Teign  (Parfitt) 
and  Plym  Bridge  (Bignell).  Z.  bilineatiis,  Linn.,  at  Whit- 
ford (McLachlan),  Dawlish,  Dunsford,  Exeter,  and  in  abun- 
dance at  Exwick  (Parfitt),  and  on  the  East  Lyn  (Briggs). 
L,  dissimilis,  Steph.,  at  Whitford,  but  rare  (McLachlan), 
Dunsford  and  by  the  Exe  (Parfitt).  Mystaddes  (vsurea, 
Pict.,  is  common  on  most  streams,  but  M.  nigra,  Linn.,  is 
not  so  common  (Parfitt).  M,  longicomis,  Linn.,  occurs 
commonly  on  all  slow  waters.  Tricenodes  hicolor,  Curt,  is 
recorded  by  Stephens.  T,  conspersa,  Eamb.,  is  taken  on  the 
Exe  (Parfitt),  and  occurred  commonly  at  Whitford  on  the 
Axe  in  1902  (McLachlan).  Adicdla  reducta,  McLach.,  is 
recorded  by  McLachlan  from  near  Seaton  Junction  and 
Axmouth,  and  is  widely  distributed  in  the  south  (Parfitt). 
(Ecetes  testacea,  Curt.,  occurs  sparingly,  but  is  widely  dis- 
tributed, Exeter,  Plymouth,  and  Cann  Quarry  (Bignell) 
being  among  the  localities  recorded.  Setodes  tinei/ormis, 
Curt.,  occurs  sparingly  in  the  south,  and  S.  interrupta.  Fab., 
is  common  in  a  very  restricted  locality  near  Exwick  water- 
mill  (Parfitt),  and  has  occurred  on  the  Axe  (McLachlan). 

The  county  is  rich  in  the  Hydropsychidce,  Hydropsyche 
pdlucidula,  Pict.,  is  generally  distributed  in  South  Devon 
(Parfitt)  and  not  uncommon  on  the  East  Lyn  (Briggs). 
H,  instabilis,  Curt.,  not  common  in  the  south,  is  abundant  on 
the  East  Lyn.  ff.  angustipennis,  Curt.,  taken  at  Ivybridge 
by  Mr.  Bignell,  is  common  at  Exwick,  Stoke  Hill  House,  and 
Higher  Weir,  Exeter  (Parfitt).  ff,  guttata,  Pict.,  has  been 
taken  singly  on  the  Axe  and  Coly  (McLachlan),  at  Shaugh 
Bridge  (Bignell),  and  on  the  Exe  not  commonly  (Parfitt). 
H.  lepida,  Pict.,  on  the  Exeter  Canal,  but  rare  (Parfitt). 
Diplectrona  felix,  Westwood,  widely  distributed  in  the 
south,  occurs  sparingly  in  the  Lynmouth  district.  PhUo- 
potamics  montanuSy  Donovan,  is  abundant  on  the  more  rapid 
streams.  It  appears  on  the  East  Lyn  throughout  the  year, 
and  varies  greatly  in  size  and  colour ;  the  variety  insvlaris 
(McLachlan)  has  occurred  at  Salcombe,  and  chrysopterus 
(Morton)  at  Ilfracombe  (Saunders)  and  the  Exmoor  streams 
(McLachlan).  Wormaldia  occipitalis,  Pict,  occurs  at  Bovisand 
(Bignell),  at  Dawlish  (Parfitt),  and  not  uncommonly  at 
Lynmouth.  W,  subnigra,  McLach.,  at  Lynton,  1  $ 
(McLachlan),  and  on  the  East  Lyn  (Briggs).    Plectronemia 


368  THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE. 

conspersa,  Curt.,  common  near  Plymouth,  has  occurred  also 
at  Dunsford,  at  Exwick  Weir,  and  on  the  East  Lyn.  F. 
geniculata,  McLach.,  is  recorded  from  Dawlish  (McLachlan), 
and  the  rare  P,  hrevis,  McLach.,  was  taken  sparingly  near 
Seaton  by  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Eaton  in  May,  1898.  and  also 
subsequently.  Polycentropus  flavovfiaculatus,  Pict.,is  common 
at  Whitford  and  the  tributaries  to  the  Coly,  and  also  at  Ide 
Brook,  the  Exeter  Canal,  and  the  East  Lyn.  P.  kingi, 
McLach.,  occurs  on  the  East  Lyn,  and  P.  muUiguUatus,  Curt., 
at  Exwick  Weir  (Parfitt),  Bovisand  and  Bickleigh  (Bicknell). 
Holocentropus  duhim,  Ramb.,  is  rare  on  the  Exeter  Canal 
and  in  the  Exminster  Marshes  (Parfitt),  as  also  is  Ecnomus 
tenelliis,  Ramb.  Tiiiodes  wceneri,  Linn.,  has  been  taken  at 
Whitford,  at  Dunsford,  and  on  the  Exe,  and  is  common  near 
Lynmouth.  T.  tinicolor,  Pict.,  has  been  taken  somewhat 
commonly  at  Seaton  (Eaton),  and  also  at  Haven  Cliff  near 
Axmouth,  and  T.  aureola^  Zett.,  at  Dawlish  (McLachlan), 
near  Axmouth  (Eaton),  and  singly  at  Branscombe.  Lype 
phceopa,  Steph.,  has  been  taken  on  the  Exe  and  is  abundant 
on  the  East  Lyn.  Psycnojnia  pusUla,  Fab.,  occurs  at  Whit- 
ford (McLachlan)  and  on  the  East  Lyn. 

Of  the  Rhyacophilidcc,  Chimarrha  marginata^  Linn.,  hew 
occurred  at  Cadover  Bridge,  Dartmoor  (Bignell),  at  Shaugh 
Bridge  and  Drewsteignton  (Parfitt),  near  Dunsford,  and  a 
solitary  specimen  at  Rockford  on  the  East  Lyn  (Briggs). 
RhyacophUa  dorsalis,  Curt.,  common  at  Shaugh  Bridge,  Duns- 
ford, and  on  the  Exe,  is  in  profusion  on  the  East  Lyn.  K 
oUiterata,  McLach.,  was  noticed  by  him  higher  up  the  Ex- 
moor  streams,  but  is  very  rare  near  Lynmouth.  R,  munda, 
McLach.,  generally  distributed  on  the  Dartmoor  streams, 
also  occurs  on  the  East  Lyn,  where  several  2  2  were  taken 
(Briggs),  as  well  as  at  Drewsteignton  (Parfitt),  Comwood 
and  Shaugh  Bridge  (McLachlan).  Glossoina  holtoni,  Curt.,  and 
0.  veimale,  Pict.,  are  recorded  by  Mr.  Parfitt  from  the  Exe 
and  from  Dunsford ;  both  species  are  common  on  the  East 
Lyn.  Agapetics  fuscipes,  Curt.,  from  Dunsford  and  Woodbury 
Common  (Parfitt),  near  Seaton  (McLachlan),  and  abundantly 
at  Lynmouth,  and  A.  coinahis,  Pict.,  at  Dunsford  and 
Alphington  Brook,  more  commonly  than  the  last  (Parfitt), 
also  on  the  tributaries  to  the  Coly  (McLachlan). 

Of  the  concluding  family,  the  JTj/droptilidce^  Agraylea 
multipunctata,  Curt.,  is  not  uncommon  by  Stafford  Weir 
on  the  Exe,  at  Dunsford,  and  on  the  bridge  at  Whitford 
(McLachlan).  Hydroptila  tineoides,  Dalm.  (  =  sparsa,  Curt), 
is  very  generally  distributed  in  the  south.    H.  McLachlani, 


THE  RECENT  NEUROPTERA  OF  DEVONSHIRE.      369 

Klap.,  has  been  taken  at  Seaton  (Eaton),  and  H,  forcvpata, 
Eaton,  at  Shute  (McLachlan).  Of  Orthotrichia  angustella, 
McLach.,  a  single  specimen  is  recorded  doubtfully  by  Mr. 
Parfitt,  and  Oxythira  falcata,  Morton,  has  been  taken  at 
Seaton  (Eaton). 

From  the  foregoing  notes  it  will  be  seen  that  although 
the  record  of  Neuroptera  is  a  moderately  good  one,  yet  it  is 
not  nearly  so  full  as  might  be  expected. 

Many  of  our  records  are  those  made  during  brief  holiday 
visits,  chiefly  paid  to  seaside  towns.  There  is  much  need 
for  systematic  and  continued  observation,  especially  in  the 
central  part  of  the  county,  where  any  one  willing  to  devote 
time  and  attention  to  the  group  will,  beyond  doubt,  add 
largely  to  the  list  of  Devonshire  Neuroptera. 

Rock  House, 
Lynmouth. 


vol.  xxxviii.  2  A 


SUPPOSED   CUEEENCY  BAES,  FOUND   NEAR 
HOLNE   CHASE  CAMP. 

BY   P.    F.    8.   AHBRT. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


In  a  paper  I  read  before  this  Association  at  Sidmouth  in 
1873,  on  "  Some  Unrecorded  Hill  Fortresses  near  Ashbur- 
ton,"  while  describing  the  so-called  Eoman  camp,  an  earth- 
work on  the  elevated  peninsula  of  Holne  Chase,  I  mentioned 
a  find  of  several  iron  bars  about  fifty  yards  outside  the  fosse, 
which  at  the  time  were  supposed  to  be  unfinished  weapons 


l^SESS^^ilS^S^^ 


jgjgy 


i:!::^^^ 


ky^Jg>^?l'%'^*^^^^:^^^i^:iafe>^;^'^\^V,y  x.X 


.;^L:2-^«ww^^#j.ji^.i^i7v;^*V7X- 


Supposed  Currency  Bars. 


NoTS. — By  the  kindness  of  Reginald  A.  Smith,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  and  the 
permission  of  the  Committee  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  I  am  enabled  to 
reproduce  the  illustration  of  typical  iron  bars  used  as  currency  from  the 
"Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries'*  for  26  January,  1906,  quoted 
sboye. 


SUPPOSED  CURRENCY  BARS,  FOUND  NEAR  HOLNE  CHASE.  371 

("  Trans.,"  VoL  VI,  p.  264).  The  discovery  came  about  thus. 
In  1870  Sir  Bourchier  Wrey's  gamekeeper,  while  digging 
out  a  rabbit  from  among  a  clitter  of  rocks  between  the 
camp  and  the  River  Dart  on  the  west  side,  came  upon  about 
a  dozen  flat  iron  bars  packed  together  on  a  flat  stone  with 
another  stone  laid  on  the  top,  the  whole  embedded  in  peat 
earth  among  the  roots  of  oak  coppice.  The  bars  resembled 
heavy  spear-heads,  were  twenty-four  inches  long  and  two 
inches  broad,  tapering  slightly  to  a  flat  point  at  one  end, 
while  the  other  was  bent  round  as  if  to  receive  a  shaft  or 
form  a  handle.  Unfortunately  the  man  broke  most  of  the 
bars  against  the  rocks,  but  carried  two  or  three  back  to  the 
house,  where  the  gardener  used  them  for  supports  under  a 
cucumber  frame. 

I  first  heard  of  this  find  in  July,  1871,  when  examining 
the  camp  with  Mr.  Spence  Bate,  f.r.s.  Being  anxious  to 
get  a  sight  of  the  bars,  I  subsequently  called  at  the 
gardener's  and  managed  to  secure  some  fragments,  for  they 
had  been  still  further  broken  a.cross.  I  then  obtained  one 
specimen  showing  the  flat  point  and  another  with  a  portion 
of  the  folded  end,  but  all  was  a  brittle  mass  of  rust.  These 
fragments  I  showed  to  several  members  of  the  Association 
meeting  at  Bideford  in  1871,  among  them  to  Mr.  6.  W. 
Ormerod,  f.g.s.,  Mr.  E.  Parfifct,  and  Rev.  R.  Kirwan.  By 
Mr.  Ormerod's  advice  I  sent  a  portion  of  the  iron  to  Pro- 
fessor Church  of  the  Agricultural  College,  Cirencester,  in 
August,  1871,  with  inquiries. 

In  reply,  Professor  Church  wrote : — 

Tlie  iron  weapons  to  wliich  you  refer  have  fairly  puzzled  the 
antiquaries.  They  have  been  found  in  several  places  in  England, 
sometimes  in  considerable  numbers.  They  appear  to  be  unfinished 
straight  swords,  but  whether  they  are  Roman  or  not  is  a  question 
of  great  diflficulty.  They  are  smaller  in  size  than  any  known  forms 
of  gladius  or  glaive  of  the  Roman  times.  Yet  it  is  not  impossible 
that  great  variations  in  this  particular  may  have  occurred.  The 
sword  in  our  museum  is  of  about  their  size  (from  Bourton-on-the- 
Water  where  it  was  found  with  many  others).  I  do  not  entertain 
the  faintest  doubt  of  the  antique  character  of  your  swords.  They, 
however,  are  quite  unlike  the  heads  of  the  pila  as  far  as  known  to 
us  from  sculptures,  Roman  remains  in  Gaul  and  Italy,  etc. 

In  September,  1871,  Mr.  6.  W.  Ormerod  sent  my  most 
perfect  specimen  to  Professor  Ramsay.  In  October,  1871, 
Mr.  Ormerod  enclosed  me  the  reply  he  had  received,  stating 
that  he  had  deposited  the  specimen  in  the  Museum   of 

2a2 


372     SUPPOSED  CURRENCY  BARS,  FOUND  NEAR  HOLNK  CHASE. 

Practical  Geology,  also  Professor  Eeeks'  replies  to  the  ques- 
tions I  submitted  as  follows : — 

Gkological  Survey  of  England  and  Wales, 

London,  19  October^  1871. 

Mr  DEAR  Ormerod, 

I  received  your  letter  and  the  weapon  yesterday.    I  have 

put  it  into  the  hands  of  the  proper  man,  Mr.  Reeks,  and  it  will  go 

into  the  museum.     I  wish  your  friend  had  been  able  to  spare  us 

one  of  the  pointed  ones,  but  I  suppose  he  could  not  do  so.     I  do 

not  believe  any  man  can   tell  whether  the   iron  is  ancient  or 

mediaeval,  or  later,  composition  would  give  no  hint.     I  do  not 

think  they  are  at  all  likely  to  be  Roman,  at  least  they  are  not  at  all 

like  any  Roman  spears  or  other  weapons  I  have  ever  seen.     They 

seem  to  have  been  rude  pikes  of  some  sort.     Reeks  or  Ruddier 

will  write  a  letter  of  thanks.  _  ,     , 

Ever  yours  truly, 

Andr.  Ramsat. 

From  Mr,  Reeks  to  Mr.  Ormerod, 

Replies  to  Mr.  Amery*s  questions  respecting  a  fragment  of  an 
iron  implement  sent  by  Mr.  Omerod  to  the  Museum  of  Practical 
Geology,  October,  1871. 

1.  There  appears  no  evidence  to  prove  that  the  iron  of  which 
this  implement  is  formed  is  of  any  great  antiquity.  It  appears  to 
be  ordinary  wrought  or  malleable  iron,  and  exhibits  a  fibrous 
structure  at  the  fractured  end.  The  surface  is  covered  with  a 
thick  coating  of  hydrous  peroxide  of  iron,  wliich  is  crystallized  in 
some  of  the  cavities.  The  time  required  for  this  oxidation  of  the 
metal  must  depend  on  the  conditions  to  which  it  has  been  ex- 
posed, but  might  under  favourable  circumstances  bo  effected  in  a 
comparatively  short  time,  and  certainly  does  not  by  itself  bespeak 
any  high  antiquity. 

2.  It  is  difficult  to  assign  any  date  to  this  implement.  Iron 
weapons  referred  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  period  are  not  uncommon, 
but  they  differ  from  the  implements  in  question. 

3.  As  the  edges  are  thick  and  blunt  the  implement  could  not 
have  been  used  as  a  cutting  instrument,  but  its  point  at  the  end 
may  have  rendered  it  useful  as  a  tlirusting  weapon.  At  the  same 
time  it  seems  doubtful  whether  it  is  really  a  weapon  at  all,  but 
its  use  could  be  better  determined  by  examination  of  a  specimen 
more  perfect  than  the  one  now  sent. 

4.  It  does  not  appear  to  resemble  the  iron  head  of  the  Roman 
pilum  carried  by  the  pilerii. 

5.  There  is  no  reason  why  it  should  not  be  an  English  imple- 
ment of  modern  or  mediaeval  date.  But  on  this  point,  as  on  the 
other  question,  the  opinion  of  a  competent  antiquary  should  be 
consulted. 


SUPPOSED  CURRENCY  BARS,   FOUND  NEAR  HOLNE  CHASE.     373 

This  ended  the  inquiry,  and  I  put  away  the  fragments 
and  made  no  further  investigations. 

In  September  last  (1905),  when  visiting  the  County 
Museum  at  Heading,  I  noticed  a  group  of  iron  bars  similar 
in  appearance  to  those  found  thirty-five  years  before  in 
Holne  Chase,  and  labelled  "  Supposed  British  period 
weapons."  On  inquiry  of  the  Curator,  Mr.  Colyer,  I  was 
informed  that  Mr.  Eeginald  A.  Smith,  f.s.a.,  of  the  British 
Museum,  had  been  interested  in  the  subject  and  was  mak- 
ing investigations  on  the  character  of  these  iron  bars  of 
British  origin,  and  I  gave  him  some  particulars  of  those 
found  at  Holne  Chase,  of  which  he  made  notes.  In 
November  I  heard  from  Mr.  Reginald  Smith  asking  for 
full  particulars,  which  I  gave  him,  and  he  kindly  sent  me 
a  copy  of  his  paper  on  "Ancient  British  Iron  Currency," 
read  before  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  on  26  January,  1905, 
in  which  he  states  that  these  iron  bars  have  been  known 
for  many  years,  and  have  gone  under  the  name  of  un- 
finished or  unforged  sword-blades,  but  they  have  received 
no  special  attention.  The  bars  roughly  resemble  swords, 
and  consist  of  a  flat  and  slightly  tapering  blade,  the  edges 
of  which  are  blunt  and  vertical  and  the  faces  parallel.  A 
rude  handle  is  formed  by  turning  up  the  edges  so  as  to 
meet  one  another  at  a  point  about  two  inches  from  the  end. 
The  average  length  of  the  twenty  pieces  he  had  examined 
was  2  ft.  7^  in.,  the  greatest  width  usually  1 J  in.,  while  the 
narrow  end  is  square,  not  pointed,  and  is  usually  J  in.  wide. 
An  important  point,  he  observes,  is  that  such  bars  have 
often  been  found  secreted  in  considerable  numbers.  They 
have  been  foimd  buried  in  the  centre  of  British  camps. 
And  it  seems  much  more  probable  that  the  Ancient  Britons 
would  conceal  their  money  at  a  crisis  than  that  they  would 
bury  half-made  swords.  It  must  be  remembered  that  in  such 
a  society  division  of  labour  was  not  in  an  advanced  stage, 
and  the  smith  who  shaped  these  bars  would  have  himself 
produced  the  finished  article  if  swords  they  were  to  be.  He 
would  not  have  prepared  a  large  number  to  hand  on  to 
another  to  finish.  There  is  too  much  metal  in  them  for  the 
manufacture  of  a  sword  of  the  period.  Mr.  Smith  gives 
the  following  particulars  of  eleven  such  finds,  and  the 
museums  in  which  they  are  deposited,  which  show  a  wide 
distribution  which  may  carry  conviction  as  to  their  use. 

Hod  Hill,  Dorset — In  1868  it  was  reported  in  an  account  of 
this  famous  earthwork,  near  Blandfoid,  that  altogether  seventeen 


374     SUPPOSED  CURRENCY  BARS,  FOUND  NEAR  HOLNE  CHASE. 

had  been  found,  measuring  on  the  average  34  in.  in  length.  There 
are  eight  of  them  in  the  British  Museum. 

Spetfishury  Fort^  Dorset.  —  Also  known  as  Crawford  Castle, 
seven  miles  from  Hod  Hill.  Tliere  are  two  complete  specimens 
from  this  camp  in  the  British  Musexmi,  and  the  handle  of  a  third, 
also  two  of  smaller  size  with  average  length  of  22  in.  and  \  in. 
in  thickness.  These  correspond  with  a  large  number  found  at 
Malvern.  A  detail  in  the  discovery  at  Spettisbury  is  that  with 
them  was  found  a  sword-blade,  the  upper  part  of  which  resembled 
a  fine  example  of  the  late  La  T^ne  type  from  the  Thames,  now  in 
the  National  Collection.  Four  more  of  the  larger  size  were 
formerly  in  the  Durden  Collection,  and  came  from  Hod  Hill  or 
other  site  in  Dorset. 

Winchester y  Hants, — There  are  four  specimens  in  the  British 
Museum. 

Ham  Hillf  Somerset, — In  May,  1845,  a  large  number  were 
ploughed  up  on  a  part  of  Hamdon,  called  Stroud's  Hill.  The 
length  deduced  from  the  illustration  of  one  given  in  "Proceed- 
ings of  Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Soc."  (1886,  Plate  III,  f.  4, 
p.  82)  was  about  28  J  in.,  but  the  end  of  the  grip  was  missing. 
In  the  British  Museum  one  from  this  site  measures  27|in.  and 
three-parts  of  the  handle  are  missing. 

Moon  Hillf  Oloueestershtre, — In  1824,  in  the  middle  of  this 
encampment,  394  similar  blades  were  found  deposited  in  a  heap, 
each  measuring  about  30  in.  and  tapering  slightly  away  from  the 
handle. 

Bourton-on-the-WateVf  Qloucestershire, — ^At  a  place  called  "the 
Camp"  147  examples  were  found  closely  packed  together  in  a 
gravel  pit  about  1 J  ft.  below  the  surface,  and  the  remains  of  a  box 
are  said  to  have  accompanied  them.  Another  account  says  140 
were  found  lying  edgewise  in  two  rows  of  seventy  one  above 
another  in  the  middle  of  the  camp  not  far  from  Addlestrop 
Station.  There  is  one  specimen  in  the  British  Museum  and 
another  in  the  Reading  Museum. 

Malvern^  Worcestershire, — In  one  of  the  dingles  on  the  east 
side  of  the  range  between  Great  Malvern  and  the  Wyche  150 
specimens  were  found  together  in  1856.  They  had  evidently 
been  concealed  about  half-way  up  the  dingle,  and  lay  at  a  depth 
of  3  ft.  covered  by  a  piece  of  rock  and  rusted  into  a  solid  mass. 
In  the  following  year  a  second  deposit  of  160  were  found  3  or 
4  yd.  further  up  the  hill.  The  second  find  comprised  100  com- 
plete specimens,  the  rest  being  in  fragments,  and  the  average  length 
of  the  bars  was  22  in.,  with  a  width  of  f  in.  and  thickness  of  \  in. 
They  were  of  equal  breadth  and  thickness  with  one  end  blunt,  the 
other  hammered  out  and  turned  up,  forming  a  sort  of  socket. 

Giasf anbury  (Lake  Viliage\  Somerset,  —  Two  specimens  have 
been   recovered.      The   handles    resemble   those  of    the   smaller 


SUPPOSED  CURRENCY  BARS,  FOUND  NEAR  HOLNE  CHASE.     375 

Spettisbury  and  Maidenhead  examples ;  the  lighter  is  26  in.  long, 
weighing  4653  grains ;  the  heavier,  only  21  in.,  weighs  9098  grains. 

Maidenhead,  Berks. — A  bundle  of  seven  or  eight  bars  was 
found  at  the  bridge  about  1894.  One  is  in  the  British  Museum. 
The  handle  is  represented  by  two  flanges  hammered  out  thin,  and 
the  weight  of  two  shows  them  to  have  double  the  value  of  the 
common  size. 

St,  Laicrencej  Ventnor,  I.W, — Two  were  found  in  1880  in  a 
cleft  of  a  rock  6  ft.  below  the  surface,  and  were  broken  by  the 
workmen ;  one  measures  34  in. 

Hunsbury  (Danes'  Camp\  Northants.  —  Sir  Henry  Dryden 
illustrated  a  specimen  and  compared  it  with  the  Meon  Hill  ex- 
amples, being  doubtful  of  their  use  as  swords. 

The  object  of  Mr.  Smith's  paper  is  to  suggest  that  these 
iron  bars  are  none  other  than  the  identical  iron  currency  or 
money  of  certain  British  tribes  as  described  by  Caesar  in 
the  Fifth  Book  of  Commentaries.  He  goes  into  a  long  argu- 
ment on  the  various  readings  to  show  that  iron  bars  may  be 
read  in  the  passage  usually  translated  iron  rings. 

By  an  examination  of  the  weights  and  lengths  of  the 
recorded  groups  of  bars  he  finds  them  divided  into  three 
sets.  The  lighter  ones  average  just  under  4770  grains  or 
11  ounces,  which  he  presumes  the  standard  weight;  the 
twenty  of  the  next  set  average  8969  grains  or  20 i  ounces, 
the  weights  ranging  between  16^  and  26^  ounces :  these  he 
calls  double  weight ;  then  come  two  heavy  ones  averaging 
18,238  grains  or  41  ounces,  being  a  little  below  the  quad- 
ruple weight  of  19^080  grains  or  43 J  ounces.  It  may  be 
assumed  that  the  conditions  afiFecting  decay  were  not  uni- 
form, but  the  slightness  of  the  margin  affords  a  good  pre- 
sumption that  these  denominations  of  weight  were  current 
among  the  Britons  occupying  the  Western  strongholds  in 
the  first  century  B.C. 

Mr.  Smith  mentions  a  recent  coincidence.  Near  Neath, 
Glamorganshire,  there  has  been  found  a  series  of  late  Celtic 
bronzes,  evidently  a  hoard,  including  a  weight  of  4770  grains. 
It  is  of  a  common  Roman  form,  cheese-shaped,  with  "I" 
incised  on  the  top.  A  similar  weight,  but  made  of  basalt, 
is  in  the  museum  at  Mayence,  probably  found  in  that 
neighbourhood.  It  is  4767  grains,  and  may  be  considered 
identical  with  that  from  Wales.  This  near  agreement  with 
the  calculated  standard  of  the  iron  bars  is  very  remarkable, 
and  makes  it  probable  that  this  was  the  unit  of  weight  in 
Britain  and  Western  Europe,  and  of  our  smaller  iron  bar 


376     SUPPOSED  CUBRENCT  BABS,  FOUND  NEAR  HOLNE  CHASE. 

currency,  the  others  being  twice  and  four  times  the  unit 
respectively. 

I  have  searched  out  the  fragments  in  my  possession  and 
find  the  effect  of  thirty-six  years'  exposure  to  the  atmo- 
sphere, has  caused  a  disintegration  of  the  structure  of  the 
iron,  which  has  separated  into  thin  plates  lengthways  like 
the  leaves  of  an  old  book :  these  are  exceedingly  brittle  and 
will  scarcely  bear  lifting.  The  great  value  of  the  whole 
subject  is  its  bearing  on  the  antiquity  of  the  use  of  iron 
and  the  glimpse  we  may  have  of  early  commerce  in  Dan- 
monia,  and  is  my  apology  for  recording  the  find  of  iron  bars 
near  Holne  Chase  Castle. 


AxciKNT  Oak  Altar  in  .St.  Petkr's  CarRcii,  Tawstock.— To /m«  p.  877. 


ANCIENT  OAK  ALTAE   IN   ST.  PETEE'S  CHUECH, 
TAWSTOCK 

BT   C.    R.    BAKER   KINO,    A.R.I.B.A. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Many  years  ago,  when  I  was  engaged  upon  the  restoration 
of  this  church,  there  was  in  the  south  chapel  an  old  table, 
which,  though  not  standing  against  the  east  wall,  I  judged 
from  its  unusual  design  must  have  been  constructed  for  use 
as  an  altar.  I  had  not  then  an  opportunity  of  making  a 
drawing  of  it,  but  being  in  North  Devon  last  year  I  re- 
visited the  church  and  took  sketches  and  measurements 
from  which  the  accompanying  illustration  has  been  made. 

Wooden  altar-tables  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries  are  frequently  met  with.  They  usually  consist  of 
an  open  framework,  having  four  turned  and  moulded  l^s, 
with  horizontal  rails  or  stretchers  framed  into  them  at  the 
top  and  near  the  bottom.  The  top  or  slab,  also  of  wood, 
generally  has  moulded  edges  projecting  a  little  on  all  sides 
beyond  the  supporting  frame. 

The  table  at  Tawstock  differs  from  this  ordinary  type,  it 
having  the  general  form  of  a  stone  altar,  being  enclosed  on 
the  visible  sides,  Le.  the  front  and  the  two  ends,  by  close 
paneling.  The  back  is  open,  having  the  supports  at  the 
angles  without  any  panelling  between  them,  this  face  being 
intended  to  stand  against  the  wall 

The  front  has  a  moulded  sill  or  plinth,  mimtings  moulded 
on  both  edges,  and  top-rail  moulded  on  its  under  edge  next 
the  panels.  This  front  face  is  divided  by  the  muntings 
into  four  panels,  the  panels  being  fluted  somewhat  similarly 
to  "linen  panels."  The  ridges  between  the  hollows  or 
"  flutings  "  are  continued  from  bottom  to  top,  meeting  the 
plinth  and  top- rail,  without  being  "  stopped  "  or  returned  at 
the  ends,  as  in  the  more  ornate  form  of  linen  panels.     The 


378      ANCIENT  ALTAR  IN  ST.   PKTER'S  CHUBCH,  TAWSTOCK. 

ends  of  the  table  are  plainer  than  the  front,  but  the  moulded 
plinth  is  continued.  The  dexter  end  has  both  the  muntings 
moulded,  but  one  munting  only  of  the  sinister  end  is  so 
treated.  The  top-rail  of  each  end  is  left  unmoulded.  The 
top-slab,  of  oak,  is  moulded  on  its  front  edge,  projecting 
beyond  the  face  of  the  frame  below.  The  ends  of  the  slab 
also  project  beyond  the  face  of  the  end  framing,  but  the 
edges  are  square  instead  of  being  moulded  as  on  the  front. 
The  back  edge  of  the  slab  is  flush  with  the  back  edge  of  the 
framed  supports,  so  that  the  frame  and  top  fit  closely  up 
to  the  wall.  There  are  no  crosses  cut  in  the  upper  surface 
as  is  the  case  with  stone  mensae.  The  top  is  pinned  with 
oak  pins  to  the  framing  below. 

The  length  of  the  top  is  5  ft.  7^  in.,  with  a  breadth  or 
projection  of  1  ft.  SJ  in.  The  height  from  the  floor  is 
3  ft.  2iin. 

The  table  now  stands  against  the  north  wall  of  the  north 
transept,  being  used  to  accommodate  the  visitors'  book  and 
its  accompaniments. 

This  work,  judging  from  the  character  of  its  details,  seems 
to  belong  to  the  early  part  of  the  sixteenth  century.  At 
this  period  altars  were  almost  universally  of  stone,  and  the 
subject  of  this  notice  seems  to  have  been  designed  to  preserve 
the  general  form  of  the  stone  altar,  the  "table  form,"  having 
four  ornamental  legs  but  otherwise  entirely  open  below,  not 
having  come  into  use.  Mr.  J.  T.  Micklethwaite,  in  the  Alcuin 
Club  Tract,  "  The  Ornaments  of  the  Eubric,"  mentions  in  a 
note  that  wooden  altars  were  sometimes  used  as  early  as  the 
fifteenth  century.  This  statement  is  made  on  documentary 
evidence,  but  he  does  not  cite  any  existing  examples.  It 
would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  other  of  these  early 
wooden  altars  remain. 

Close  by  the  altar  just  described  stands  the  beautiful 
canopied  "squire's  pew,"  and  in  the  church  are  many  fine 
monuments. 

The  design  of  the  Tawstock  altar  shows  that  it  was 
intended  to  stand  altarwise  against  the  east  wall,  the  long 
front,  the  part  generally  seen,  being  the  most  ornamented. 
I  have  in  my  collection  of  drawings  one  of  the  altar-table 
at  Nerquis,  in  Flintshire,  which  was  intended  to  stand  in 
the  centre  of  the  chancel.  In  this  case  the  frame  is  open, 
having  four  legs  with  moulded  and  carved  rails  and  other 
ornaments.  One  end  (intended  for  the  west)  is  very  ornate, 
being  that  towards  the  people  in  the  nave ;  the  sides  are  less 


ANCIENT  ALTAR   IN   ST.  PETER'S   CHURCH,   TAWSTOCK.      379 

ornamented ;  and  the  other  end  (the  east),  being  away  from 
the  people  and  not  much  seen,  is  still  plainer.  This  table 
now  stands  in  the  chancel,  altarwise,  with  the  result  that 
the  legs  at  the  opposite  ends  differ  in  design,  those  at  one 
end  being  far  more  ornamental  than  those  at  the  other  end. 
This  table  dates  from  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century. 


OLD  TIVERTON  OE  TWYFORD. 

BT     MISS     EMILT     SKINNER. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


I.    Old  Tiverton. 

The  present  town  of  Tiverton  appears  to  have  grown  under 
the  Courtenays'  sway,  but  very  old  Twyford  shows  the 
marks  of  three  Saxon  homesteads  gathered  together  for  the 
sake  of  safety,  two  on  the  east  side  of  the  Exe,  Skrinkhill 
and  Little  Holwell,  and  one  on  the  west  side  called  West 
Exe.  I  will  take  that  which  appears  the  most  ancient — 
Skrinkhill. 

The  natural  position  of  old  Twyford,  between  the  old  ford 
in  Collipriest  and  the  ford  of  the  Lowman  near  old 
Blundell's  School,  made  it  a  place  of  early  importance,  and 
as  late  as  the  Commonwealth  it  was  called  the  Pass.  In 
pre-Norman  days,  when  an  arm  of  the  sea  was  said  to  have 
extended  to  the  Watergate  of  the  city  of  Exeter  (Moor 
Palkan  MSS.),  the  Isca  or  Exe  must  then  have  been 
more  a  tidal  river.  Anchors  have  been  discovered  as  far 
inland  as  Cowley,  and  to  this  day  a  sea  influence  is  some- 
times visible  in  the  water  that  works  the  mill  in  West 
Exe.  Before  the  Countess  Weir  was  made  by  Isabella  de 
Fortibus,  ships  must  have  been  able  to  come  much  further 
inland  and  bring  the  foreign  foe  nearer  Twyford. 

Cranmore  Fort  on  Skrinkhill  appears  to  have  been  an 
ancient  British  settlement,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  the 
old  wall  of  uncemented  stone  which  remained  there  about 
forty  years  ago  should  have  been  destroyed.  A  rocky  hill, 
rising  like  a  small  Gibraltar,  Skrinkhill  was  undoubtedly 
the  old  guard  of  the  rivers.  The  names  of  the  old  owners 
are  lost  in  antiquity,  as  they  would  probably  have  had  an 
exemption  from  taxation  from  the  importance  of  their 
service  as  guards  of  the  rivers. 


OLD  TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD.  381 

Certainly  in  the  earlier  sections  of  "  Testa  de  Nevil,"  A.i). 
1221 — number  1440  closely  following  Tiverton — Henry  de 
Pont  Audomar  (Henry  of  the  Bridge)  holds  the  manor  of 
Wobernford,  Halberton.  (I  shall  mention  later  the  close 
connexion  this  manor  had  with  Tiverton.)  ('Trans.," 
Vol.  XXXVII,  p.  426.) 

Any  one  on  the  river  between  the  bridge  and  the  church 
looking  at  Skrinkhill  would  understand  its  ancient  import- 
ance. Scouts  sent  out  on  Exeter  Hill  could  see  a  beacon 
fire  burning  on  Black  Down  and  other  hills,  or  give  warning 
by  lighting  their  own.  (Culmstock  was  an  old  Saxon  out- 
post.    "  Trans.,"  Vol  XXX,  p.  297.) 

From  this  fort  invaders  on  the  east  and  west  of  the  Exe 
could  be  seen  and  their  crossing  the  Eiver  Lowman  checked. 
Near  Caerwise  or  the  City  of  Waters  (Exeter),  Twyford, 
through  its  easy  access  by  the  Exe,  was  exposed  to  marau- 
ders by  sea,  and  this  was  a  warpath — proved  by  the  battle 
at  Bampton,  A.D  620 — whilst  the  finding  of  Eoman  coins 
hidden  near  Gombay  marks  the  trace  of  man  along  the 
banks  of  the  Lowman. 

In  the  days  of  King  Alfred  the  position  and  locality  of 
this  little  town  as  being  near  Skrinkhill  are  placed  beyond 
dispute,  for  it  is  called  Twyford  or  Two  Fords,  and  is  described 
as  on  a  hill  composed  of  twelve  tythings  governed  by  a 
portreeve,  and  is  specially  named  by  him  in  his  will  to  be, 
with  Collumpton  and  other  places,  the  property  of  his 
second  son. 

Although  we  have  no  distinct  record  of  Alfred's  visiting 
Devonshire,  a  man  of  his  capacity  in  planning  his  resistance 
of  the  Danes  would  certainly  have  examined,  or  made 
another  examine,  so  important  a  place  as  Twyford,  with  its 
two  river  passes,  particularly  as  in  877  he  tried  to  reach 
Exeter  to  defeat  the  Danes  (Oliver).  He  was  not  far  off,  for 
as  late  as  1826  on  the  Bath  road,  eleven  miles  from  Taunton 
on  Borough  Bridge,  a  pillar  stood  that  was  said  to  mark  the 
site  of  the  hut  where  Alfred  allowed  the  cakes  to  burn. 

We  know  from  the  word  portreeve  that  Twyford  at  this 
date  was  a  commercial  town,  and  although  the  English  are 
considered  to  have  been  only  shepherds  and  wool-sellers 
before  the  Plantagenets  promoted  the  manufacture  of  wool, 
the  charter  of  a.d.  690  shows  there  was  a  slave  traflBc. 

Charters  of  Alfred  lay  great  stress  on  truth  and  honour 
in  respect  to  contracts  and  debts.  Reeves  were  to  be  men 
of  unimpeachable  integrity,  and  a  merchant  who  traversed 
the  sea  frequently  received  the  social  position  of  an  earl. 


382  OLD  TIVERTON  OR  TWYFORD. 

In  Athelstan's  day  all  large  transactions  of  buying  and 
selling  were  to  be  within  the  gate,  and  witnesses  of  a  bargain 
were  to  be  above  suspicion.  He  also  commanded  the 
rendering  of  tithes. 

Edgar,  A.D.  959-75,  fixed  one  coinage,  with  the  standard 
of  measurement  and  weight  observed  at  London  and  at 
Winchester. 

Canute's  Charter,  a.d.  1016-35,  regulated  military  dress, 
allowed  a  man  to  hunt  on  his  own  land.  The  Sabbath  was 
to  begin  at  noon  on  Saturday  and  continue  until  Monday 
dawn,  and  there  were  to  be  no  marketings  or  business 
transactions  on  this  holy  day  (Stubbs,  "  Select  Charters  "). 

And  80  this  little  Saxon  homestead  continued  gaining  a 
notoriety  in  its  massacre  of  the  Danes. 

Gytha,  the  mother  of  Harold,  held  it  in  the  Confessor's 
day. 

In  the  Exchequer  "Domesday"  it  is  Tovretone,  in  the 
Exeter  "  Domesday,"  Touretona. 

King  William  held  it  and  had  in  demesne  1^  hides  with 
6  ploughs.  His  villeins,  35  in  number,  held  2  hides;  there 
were  24  bordars  and  19  serfs.  Cattle  and  swine  appear 
plentiful.  It  had  two  mills  of  some  importance,  as  each 
paid  58.  6d.  annually.  One  of  these  mills  was  probably 
near  the  site  of  the  present  one  in  Elmore,  not  far  from  the 
old  ford  of  the  Lowman  (from  an  early  date  one  portion  of 
the  town  lake  has  been  conveyed  into  the  Lowman  just 
above  the  mill  head  in  Elmore),  and  the  other  in  St.  Andrew  s 
Street  near  Cranmore  Fort.  At  a  later  date  this  mill  had 
a  chapel  and  a  court-house  near  it,  and  there  was  an  old 
bridle-path  from  Exeter  Hill  over  Skrinkhill  that  led  to  it. 

These  mills  appear  the  most  ancient,  as  the  leat  which 
worked  the  others  was  made  after  the  Conquest. 

The  acreage  is  given  as  4474. 

In  addition  to  its  woods  and  fourteen  acres  of  meadow-land, 
there  is  the  record  of  forty  acres  of  common  pasture — probably 
the  moorland  round  Elmore.  Polwhele  places  Tiverton  among 
the  fenlands  of  Devon,  and  the  shifting  nature  of  the  soil 
in  Elmore  was  confirmed  in  the  terms  of  the  gift  of  Countess 
Amica  of  Elmore  to  the  poor  of  Tiverton,  which  contained 
a  clause,  "  If  soil  were  taken  away  it  was  to  be  replaced  by 
other  matter."  I  have  heard  from  my  forefathers  that 
Elmore  was  originally  a  sort  of  fenland  on  which  grew  the 
wood  used  for  the  bows  of  archers.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  how  many  important  bowmen  received  land  in  this 
neighbourhood. 


OLD  TIVERTON   OR   TWYFORD.  383 

Nicolas,  King  William's  head  bowman,  held  in  Silverton 
and  CoUumpton ;  Fulcher  had  also  a  free  grant  of  land  in 
the  Hundred  of  Tiverton.  The  Kev.  T.  W.  Whale  traces 
one  holding  of  Fulcher  to  be  Leigh  in  Loxbeare  ("  Trans.," 
Vol.  XXXIV,  p.  297).  Archers  lived  generally  near  a  river, 
and  I  think  Fulcher*s  land  was  nearer  the  Exe.  One  of  his 
holdings  had  the  name  of  "  Cott,"  and  "  Cotty-house "  was 
the  name  of  the  old  turnpike  gatehouse  at  the  foot  of 
Seven  Cross  Hill.  **  Orchard  Leigh  "  is  still  the  name  of  a 
place  not  far  from  Broad  Lane. 

William  of  Normandy's  successful  conquest  of  England 
was  undoubtedly  due  to  the  master  mind  that  made  him 
secure  all  places  of  importance,  and  he  made  the  Hundred 
of  Tiverton  a  Norman  stronghold,  realizing  the  advantage 
of  doing  so.  As  king,  he  held  the  little  settlement  guarding 
the  junction  of  the  rivers,  and  some  of  his  important  followers 
were  apportioned  other  commanding  positions.  Walter  de 
Claville  held  land  along  the  bank  of  the  Eiver  Lowman ; 
Odo  Fitz  Gamelin  was  given  Huntsham ;  Ealf  de  Pomeroy 
had  Chevithome,  Uplowman,  and  Awliscombe;  Hamericus 
de  Arcis,  East  Bradley;  William  Hostiarius,  the  King's 
Eeeve,  one  of  the  two  who  carried  the  geld  for  Devonshire 
to  the  King's  Exchequer  at  Winchester("Trans.,"  Vol.  XXXV, 
p.  159),  had  a  holding  at  Boleham,  and  to  this  day  an  estate 
near  is  called  Eix,  apparently  a  corruption  of  Bex.  Badulf 
Paganel  and  Baldwin  the  Sheriff  had  also  land  in  the 
hundred. 

Four  thanes  appear  to  have  held  land  in  the  Tiverton 
hundred.  From  an  explanation  given  in  "Transactions," 
XXIX,  493,  note  58,  it  seems  that  thanes  tilled  the  post 
of  county  gamekeepers  or  royal  foresters.  The  many 
woods  around  Tiverton  would  have  given  them  work. 

There  was  a  tradition  that  the  Worth  family  received 
their  manor  at  the  Conquest:  I  do  not  find  it  confirmed. 
The  king  held  it  and  Radulf  Paganel  under  him,  and  in  the 
Confessor's  day  Saward  held  it. 

The  old  Chattey  family  also  claimed  from  the  Conquest : 
that  I  find  possible,  as  Humphrey  de  Charters  held  under 
Drogo  in  the  Witheridge  hundred,  and  Humphrey  continued 
a  family  name  to  the  nineteenth  century. 

As  late  as  1860  two  surnames  were  left  in  Tiverton 
that  were  reminders  of  the  long  past — Clavel  and  Gamelin. 
Walter  de  Claville  and  Odo  Fitz  Gamelin  held  land  in  the 
'* Domesday"  list. 

From  old  deeds,  and  an  exemption  of  service,  it  seems 


384  OLD  TIVEETON   OR  TVnrFORD. 

probable  that  land  on  the  lower  portion  of  Skrinkhill  was 
old  Saxon  bog-land.  I  can  trace  no  Saxon  church  or 
mother  church  in  Tiverton  at  this  early  date.  I  will  speak 
of  its  church  connexion  in  my  Holwell  paper. 

II.    Manlbytona  or  Manley  Town. 

THE    HOLWELLS. 

The  two  estates  of  Great  and  Little  Holwell  were  formerly 
known  by  the  name  of  Manley,  and  had  that  name  in  deeds 
in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII. 

They  correspond  in  size  to  the  Manley tona  of  the  "Domes- 
day "  list  in  the  hundred  of  Tiverton.  Manley  and  Bradley 
were  popular  names  for  estates  in  the  Halberton  and 
Tiverton  hundreds.  The  "Domesday"  identifiers  were 
unable  to  correctly  trace  this  estate,  as  they  did  not 
know  of  its  purchase,  also  change  of  name  by  the  Holwell 
family. 

It  had  a  splendid  position  for  a  Saxon  "tun,"  not  far  from 
the  banks  of  a  stream,  with  woods  near  to  supply  it  with 
fuel ;  it  was  also  near  the  very  ancient  road  and  causeway 
on  Exeter  Hill. 

In  Saxon  days  Tiverton  appears  to  have  had  no  mother 
church,  therefore  its  services  must  have  been  conducted  by 
outside  help.  At  this  early  date  Collumpton,  or  some 
religious  house,  would  have  supplied  the  priest.  Collump- 
ton, according  to  the  "Domesday"  records,  had  an  early 
church.  Crediton  was  then  the  see  of  the  west,  and  Saxon 
roads  to  this  old  town  must  have  been  through  Bickleigh, 
which  is  said  to  have  had  one  of  the  first  bridges  over  the 
Exe.  The  Holwells  lay  in  the  direct  route  east  of  the  river, 
and  old  river  bridle-paths  and  lanes  from  Twyford,  Newte's 
Hill,  Exeter  Hill,  and  Bax  Woods  converged  near  and  round 
them.     These  can  still  be  traced. 

From  an  early  period  an  alms-box  was  to  be  found  in 
every  place  of  worship.  Following  the  suppression  of  the 
monasteries  it  became  a  more  permanent  source  of  relief. 
An  injunction  in  the  reign  of  Edward  VI,  and  the  Visitation 
in  the  second  year  of  Elizabeth,  called  for  special  attention 
in  the  placing  of  this  box  in  a  prominent  position,  and  the 
antiquity  of  the  highway  of  Exeter  Hill  is  confirmed,  as 
Butterleigh  Church  still  retains  its  poor-box  with  its  in- 
scription :  "  This  box  is  Frelie  given  to  receive  Alms  for  ye 
Poore,  1629." 

Outside  Gogwell  farmhouse  on  Exeter  Hill  is  a  flight  of 


OLD  TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD.  385 

steps,  which  tradition  says  was  tlie  spot  where  the  minister 
stood  to  receive  the  tithes  when  they  were  paid  in  kind. 

The  records  of  Little  Holwell  puzzled  Harding.  More 
than  three  hundred  years  ago  the  rights  of  wdy  through  it 
were  declared  to  be  of  great  antiquity,  and  the  names  of  its 
fields  marked  a  lost  power. 

One  field  was  called  the  Gill  Hall,  or  Guildhall,  and 
another  had  the  important  name  of  Gallows  Down.  Gallows 
were  only  granted  "  in  a  lihti-um  mancHum  or  villa  integra  "  ^ 
("Trans.,"  Vol.  XXX,  p.  247). 

Ancient  deeds  lay  stress  on  its  two  herb  gardens.  In 
tithes  of  curtilage  garden  herbs  were  accepted  as  payment, 
and  in  the  tithe  list  of  Bishop  Brownlow,  1287,  the  profit  of 
ovens  was  included  ("  Trans.,"  Vol.  XXVI,  p.  226).  There 
also  appears  to  have  been  an  old  '*  bake  howse "  of  much 
importance.  The  Old  English  word  for  a  baker  was  baxter, 
and  the  woods  near  were  called  the  "  Bax  Woods.*' 

It  has  no  record  of  a  mill,  but  Tiverton  and  Bickleigh 
mills  were  near. 

The  buildings  of  Great  Holwell  are  comparatively  modern, 
but  no  one  can  look  at  those  of  Little  Holwell  without 
noticing  their  antiquity,  and  the  cottage  (now  in  decay)  in 
the  lane  near  Bax  Woods  is  also  very  ancient. 

There  is  a  tradition  that  in  older  and  more  troublesome 
times,  when  the  fire  on  the  hearth  was  not  burning,  guard 
used  to  be  kept  over  the  lai^ge  open  chimney  of  Little 
Holwell,  fearing  any  one  might  descend  to  rob  or  kill,  as 
tramps  and  troublesome  wayfarers  frequented  the  very  old 
bridle-paths  and  roads  around  the  farm. 

The  "  Domesday"  records  of  this  manor  ("  Trans.,"  ibid.  IV, 
pp.  544-6)  show  that  it  was  given  to  Baldwin  the  Sheriff, 
but  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  Edwi  the  Saxon  owner 
remained  as  a  tenant  at  the  charge  of  10s.  yearly. 

Ac.      r.    p. 
Its  measurement  of  145  acres  is  exactly  that 
of  Little  Holwell   .  ... 

and  Great  Holwell  or  Hare  Hill 


31 

0 

0 

114 

3 

20 

145 

3 

20 

This  manor,  held  by  Edwi  in  Saxon  days,  has  no  exemp- 
tion in  the  Geld  List.  It  is  not  a  large  holding  with  its 
3  villeins,  3  bordars,  and  1  serf ;  10  head  of  cattle,  30  sheep, 

^  The  original  deed  confinuiug  the  rights  of  way  is  still  preserved. 
VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  B 


386  OLD  TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD. 

and  25  goats.  Its  situation  is  helped  by  Edwi  appearing  to 
be  the  owner  of  the  near  manor  of  Butterleigh. 

The  curious  old  names  of  the  places  around  still  linger — 
"  Durkshay's-  Lane." 

One  portion  was  called  "  Durshame,"  evidently  the  Ham 
of  Dur.  The  name  Gill  Hall  and  the  nearness  of  the 
Gallows  Down  suggests  some  past  payment. 

There  are  strong  reasons  for  considering  that  at  Holwell  an 
old  Court  of  the  Hundred  was  held — its  easy  access  by  the 
river  paths  of  the  Lowman  and  Exe  and  the  nearness  of  the 
fords. 

"  This  Court,  as  regards  Devon,  was  in  early  times  held 
in  the  open  air  on  some  carefully  entrenched  hill  or  kopje  on 
the  boundary  line  of  the  Hundred,  where  the  authorities 
and  knights  of  the  Hundred  met  for  defence  against  the 
Danes." 

Little  Holwell  was  the  boundary  line  of  the  cultivated 
land  of  tlie  Tiverton  Hundred,  south-east  of  the  Exe,  the 
Bax  Woods  forming  a  wedge  between  the  Tiverton  and  old 
Harrige  or  Sulfretona  Hundred.  Silverton  was  one  of  the 
four  cases  of  exemption  of  the  ordinary  form  of  hiding. 
There  is  a  record  that  a  Court  of  the  Hundred  of  Harriage 
was  held  of  old  (on  the  boundary  line  between  Bradninch 
and  Collumpton)  at  Whorridge  Farm  ("Trans.,"  Vol.  XXXII, 
p.  545). 

Tiverton  being  a  royal  holding  had  a  king's  reeve  by 
whom  the  tax  was  collected,  and  I  have  shown  one  of  the 
highest  of  the  King's  reeves,  William  Hostiarius,  had  a 
residence  as  near  as  Boleham. 

Little  Holwell  held  just  the  position  for  the  Court  of  the 
Hundred,  as  it  was  the  boundary  line  for  the  collection  of 
the  Danegelt  of  the  Tiverton  Hundred  in  the  tenth  and 
eleventh  centuries,  and  it  is  worth  noting  that  later,  in  the 
tenth  year  of  Edward  I's  reign.  Arnica,  Countess  of  Devon, 
claimed  frank-pledge  and  gallows  rights  of  court  on  White 
Down,  near  Collumpton,  also  south  of  the  Tiverton  Hundred. 

The  missing  virgate  for  Tiverton  from  the  Halberton 
Hundred  is  stated  to  have  been  one  virgate  of  land  in  the 
Wobemford  estate,  which  at  that  time  included  Pitt  and 
Obernford.  It  is  named  villagers'  land,  held  under  Bristric, 
and  is  distinct  from  the  township  of  Halberton,  and  it  proves 
this  to  have  been  an  inhabited  region,  as  Pitt  is  close  to  the 
Holwells. 

This  portion  of  old  Twyford  and  the  Cranmore  Fort 
portion,  with  its  old  Castle  Barton,  now  Collipriest  Farm, 


OLD  TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD.  387 

appear  to  help  make  that  part  of  the  Tiverton  hundred  in 
Chappie's  Risdon,  page  133 :  Tiverton  £3.  19s.  Od. 

Although  the  property  of  Baldwin  the  SherifiP,  there  is  no 
record  of  this  estate  being  a  possession  of  the  Courtenays, 
but  it  is  described  as  joining  their  land,  and  these  facts  are 
confirmed  by  tlie  records  of  John  Greenway's  Charities 
which  included  the  estate  of  Little  Holwell,  which  he  gave 
in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII,  and  from  the  title  deeds  and 
old  leases  we  know  that  it  was  not  a  possession  of  the 
Courtenays. 

The  possessors  later  took  the  name  of  the  holding,  and 
bore  the  surname  of  Manlech  or  Manley,  and  one,  William, 
is  mentioned  in  an  old  Latin  deed  concerning  the  four 
ecclesiastical  divisions  of  Tiverton,  and  the  will  of  John 
Manlie,  who  held  a  lease  of  this  little  estate  granted  in  the 
thirty-second  year  of  Henry  VIII,  is  in  the  list  of  Wills 
("  Trans.,"  date  1591,  p.  460).  He  was  succeeded  by  John 
Godbere,  who  was  succeeded  by  Richard  Holwell,  who 
changed  the  name  of  the  tenement  from  Manlie  to  Holwell, 
a  name  he  had  already  given  to  Great  Holwell. 

The  estate  of  Little  Holwell  was  connected  with  Green- 
way's  Charities  from  the  time  of  tlie  death  of  the  donor  in 
1529  until  the  close  of  the  last  century ;  it  has  since  been 
sold. 

Great  Holwell,  which  belonged  to  Blagdon's  Charity,  has 
also  been  sold. 

III.    West  Exe. 

West  Exe  was  the  guard  of  the  Exe  on  the  west  side  and 
was  of  great  importance  in  checking  invaders  from  the 
north.  It  was  the  third  of  the  Saxon  settlements  near  to 
each  other  for  help  and  security. 

The  great  success  in  the  slaughter  of  the  Danes  is  ex- 
plained if  we  consider  the  deadly  nature  of  the  attack 
coming  from  the  inhabitants  east  and  west  of  the  Exe  or 
Isca  as  it  was  then  called.  Polwhele  says  that  the  word 
Isca,  in  the  opinion  of  several  etymologists,  is  derived  from 
the  British  "isacu"  (elder),  as  this  wood  grew  in  great 
abundance  on  the  banks  of  the  Exe.  Elder-wood  was  held 
in  great  esteem  by  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  Devon  and 
Cornwall. 

There  is  an  ancient  legend  that  dwarf  elder  or  danewort 
grows  only  where  the  Danes  were  slain.  It  certainly 
flourishes  vigorously  around  Tiverton  and  in  the  Chorl  below 
St.  Peter's  churchyard. 

2b2 


388  OLD  TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD. 

In  West  Exe  lay  the  earliest  roads  from  the  old  ford  in 
Collipriest  to  Washfield,  Stoodleigh,  Oakford,  Witheridge, 
and  Southmolton,  as  the  new  road  beyond  Bolham  and 
Stoodleigh  £oad  was  not  cut  before  the  last  century.  An 
old  bridle-path  can  still  be  traced  from  the  Broad  Lane  and 
Path  Fields,  passing  in  olden  days  through  the  meadows  in 
front  of  Waldron's  Almshouses,  and  the  Loughboro'  Fields 
to  Washfield.  There  was  another  old  path  through  the 
Ham  by  Exeleigh. 

Seven  Cross  lload  was  a  very  ancient  highway,  carried 
over  the  hill  for  safety,  when  the  valleys  would  be  impass- 
able at  times  of  heavy  rain  and  floods.  One  portion  on  the 
brow  of  the  hill  is  still  called  Cold  Harbour  (shelter), 
generally  held  to  indicate  the  neighbourhood  of  a  Roman 
road  ("Trans.,"  Vol.  X,  p.  300).  It  was  an  old  road  to 
Bickleigh,  Thorverton,  and  Crediton,  and  its  by-ways  led  to 
Templeton,  Eackenford,  and  also  Chumleigh:  the  latter 
was  on  the  borders  of  the  great  forest  between  Exmoor  and 
Dartmoor,  where  King  Athelstan  was  said  to  have  hunted 
"  or  ever  it  was  towned."  This  ancient  road,  from  its  position 
and  crossways,  was  probably  one  of  the  places  where  Saxon 
slaves  were  liberated.  **The  solemn  enfranchisement  of 
slaves  is  recorded  as  having  taken  place  not  in  a  church  but 
at  the  four  ways,  because  here  stood  the  cross  where  the 
people  were  in  the  habit  of  assembling  for  worship.  In  fact, 
the  erecting  of  a  cross  seems  to  have  been  regarded  as  a  kind 
of  legal  consecration"  ("Trans.,"  Vol.  XXX,  p.  269). 

There  are  traces  of  great  antiquity  around  West  Exe. 
The  word  "  Ham  "  speaks  to  us  of  early  dwellers  before  the 
mill  leat  divided  the  meadow  from  the  river.  The  name 
"  Wellbrook  "  appears  a  corruption  of  the  old  Saxon  word 
Wallabrook  or  brook  of  tlie  town.  It  was  in  this  part  the 
very  early  markets  were  held ;  a  stream  of  some  importance 
passed  through  Wellbrook,  but  it  was  diverted  for  filling 
the  leat. 

West  Exe  was  a  separate  settlement,  with  a  separate 
market  and  tithing,  from  the  more  modern  town  of  the 
Courtenays'  above  the  Exe  bridge.  In  the  very  early 
entries  of  the  parish  registers  inhabitants  from  this  part 
are  specified  as  from  West  Exe. 

This  separation  was  continued  for  centuries. 

In  the  **  Taunton  Journal,"  September,  1726,  was  the 
following :  "  Two  burgesses  did  serve  in  parliament  for  the 
borough  of  Twyford.  They  were  chosen  by  the  votes  of 
potwalliners  before  Tiverton  was  incorporated.     Note. — ^The 


OLD   TIVERTON   OR  TWYFORD.  389 

inhabitants  of    West    Exe,    they   have  no  vote  in   such 
election." 

This  portion  of  Tiverton  is  in  "Domesday"  (Devon), 
ibid.  VI,  p.  904.  It  is  in  the  Exeter  book  Touretona,  and  in 
the  Exchequer  book  Tovretone,  spelt  in  the  same  way  as  the 
manor  of  Tiverton  held  by  Gytha,  the  mother  of  Harold. 

This  part  and  Washfield  were  held  in  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor's reign  by  the  Saxon  Merusalem.  They  were  given 
by  the  Conqueror  to  one  of  his  military  servants,  Eadulf 
Paganel,  a  Frankling  knight,  and  they  were  sub-held  by 
Girard.  Eadulf  Paganel  held  the  adjoining  manor  of  Worth 
under  the  king;  he  had  in  demesne  two  ferlings  and  one 
plough  (ibid.  756).  There  is  an  exemption  between  the 
Geld  and  "  Domesday  "  lists,  and  a  reduction  from  40s.  to  30s., 
which  helps  to  decide  that  the  military  service  was  local. 
There  is  another  proof  of  this  being  a  military  station. 
William  is  said  to  have  boasted  that  not  one  head  of  cattle 
was  omitted  from  the  "Domesday"  return — in  West  Exe 
and  Washfield  not  one  animal  is  mentioned. 

The  mistake  of  the  Rev.  T.  W.  Whale  in  first  naming  this 
holding  "Cove,"  in  his  "Analysis  of  Exon  'Domesday'" 
("Trans,"  Vol.  XXVIII,  p.  445,  number  1005),  is  easily 
traced  to  the  spelling  "  Covertone,"  instead  of  Tovertone  in 
the  Pipe  Eolls  of  Henry  II  ("Trans.,"  Vol.  XXIX,  p.  484). 
He  corrects  it  in  Vol.  XXXIV,  p.  289 — there  he  names  it 
West  Exe.  The  history  of  the  escheat  in  the  Pipe  Eolls 
of  Henry  II.  places  it  beyond  doubt  as  the  "Domesday" 
holding  of  Girard,  and  as  it  belonged  to  the  barony  of 
Peveril  it  could  not  have  formed  part  of  the  Courtenays' 
Ashley  park  made  about  1106.  This  is  further  confirmed 
by  Weyber's  gift  as  late  as  1518.  "  Vocate  le  Hamme  cum 
suis  pertinenties,"  "lying  in  the  south  part  of  West  Exe 
between  the  land  of  John  Hensleigh  on  the  east,  the 
tenement  of  John  Bodleigh  on  the  west,  and  the  land  of 
the  Coimtess  of  Devon  on  the  south."  Taking  the  acknow- 
ledged old  boundary  line  of  the  Earl  of  Devon's  Home  Park 
as  not  extending  beyond  the  line  of  St.  Peter's  churchyard 
in  the  Ham  below  where  Exeleigh  now  stands,  it  helps  to 
locate  this  old  Peveril  portion  as  being  those  fields  below 
Prescott,  and  to  explain  why  from  ancient  days  there  has 
been  a  free  use  of  the  river  for  bathing  and  fishing  near  the 
weir,  and  it  has  been  used  by  the  people  for  generations 
as  an  indisputable  right,  just  as  children  always  played 
freely  on  the  portion  called  the  Eag,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
ford. 


390  OLD  TIVERTON  OR  TWYFORD. 

In  the  Tax  EoU  of  Edward  I  ("  Trans.,"  Vol.  XXX,  p.  417) 
Little  Washfield  only  is  mentioned.  In  "  Testa  de  Nevill " 
(*•  Trans./'  Vol.  XXX,  p.  213,  note  127)  it  is  again  confirmed 
as  West  Exe ;  Feoda  in  Capite  acknowledging  its  tithing, 
and  this  confirms  this  separate  portion  shown  in  Chappie's 
(p.  133):  West  Exe,  15s.  This  part  has  still  the  same 
name,  but  the  Washfield  next  to  it,  from  the  smallness  of  the 
holding,  202  acres,  could  not  be  the  present  Washfield ; 
that  would  be  Wasfelta  ("  Dom.,"  iUd,  Vol.  VII,  p.  946). 
Worth  is  returned  about  500  acres.  There  is  little  doubt 
this  portion  of  the  hundred  lay  between  West  Exe  and 
Worth,  and  would  be  the  Loughboro'  Fields,  Leat  Street, 
and  where  the  factory  stands.  The  old  name  for  the 
Loughboro*  Fields  was  Tomwill.  An  old  shed  and  other 
buildings  were  there  in  the  last  century. 

The  Exe  has  frequently  changed  its  course ;  in  the  days 
of  the  Conqueror  the  river  flowed  more  to  the  south  and 
left  more  land  on  the  other  side  for  the  Courtenays*  park, 
and  its  nearness  to  these  fields  was  no  doubt  the  cause  of 
the  old  name  Wasfelta  and  Wassyfield.  Beyond  these 
Ix)ughboro*  Fields  a  line  of  old  villages  and  old  important 
residences  can  be  traced.  Bishop  I^cy's  Register  records 
a  licence  for  a  chapel  at  Palmer's  village.  There  was  an 
earlier  chapel  at  Farleigh,  licensed  by  Brantyngham  in  1374. 

Some  Tivertonians  have  an  erroneous  idea  that  there 
could  be  no  roads  or  ways  near  or  through  tlie  Earl  of  Devon's 
park.  They  should  read  the  Statute  of  Winchester,  a.d.  1285, 
Clause  V,  and  they  will  see  that  in  it  Edward  I  guarded  the 
rights  of  all  classes  of  his  subjects,  and  no  lord's  park  could 
encroach  on  a  highway. 

I  can  find  no  trace  of  habitation  at  the  Norman  Conquest 
on  the  principal  portion  of  our  present  town.  Boleham,  or 
the  Ham  of  Bole,  was  as  disconnected  as  it  is  now.  This  is 
shown  by  its  possession  of  a  pack-horse,  and  a  large  mill 
for  it  rendered  7s.  annually.  This  was  held  by  William 
Hostiarius,  the  King's  reeve,  at  the  time  of  the  "  Domesday  " 
and  Geld  List. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  the  long  past  Tiverton 
held  its  own ;  no  doubt  the  abundance  of  its  waterways 
helped  to  make  it. 

The  ancient  settlements  of  Twyford,  Manleytona,  and 
West  Exe  help  to  confirm  the  accepted  fact  that  early 
dwellers  chose  their  position  on  or  near  the  banks  of  a 
stream. 


THE'PEIVATE   CHAPELS   OF  DEVON: 
ANCIENT  AND    MODERN. 

BY    THE    REV.    d'OYLY    W.    OLDHAM,    M.A.,   OXON.,    J.P. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1900.) 


There  are  those  who  in  the  present  day  ignorantly  talk  of 
old  times  as  being  **  dark  ages."  It  is  true  that  as  to  social 
refinement  and  scientific  knowledge,  our  distant  forefathers 
were  very  far  behind  ourselves  of  this  twentieth  century, 
but  in  the  thirteenth,  fourteenth,  and  fifteenth  centuries  the 
people  of  England  were,  according  to  their  lights  and  educa- 
tion, deeply  imbued  with  Keligion  and  its  sacred  ordinances, 
while  at  the  same  time  it  may  be  fearlessly  asserted  that 
Eeligion  entered  into  the  common  routine  of  daily  home 
life,  forming  a  larger  part  of  that  daily  home  life  tlian  we  in 
this  our  day  have  any  idea  or  conception  of.  For  those  were 
indeed  *'  the  ages  of  faith." 

As  early  as  a.d.  692  the  second  Trullan  Council  decreed 
that  no  priest  should  celebrate  either  Baptism  or  Eucharist 
without  a  special  episcopal  licence  for  the  same,  while 
Gregory  the  Great  gave  licence  for  the  consecration  of  an 
oratory  outside  the  city  of  Fermo  on  condition  that  there 
should  not  be  a  Baptistery  or  a  "  Cardinalem  Presbyterum,*' 
i.e.  a  titled  parish  priest. 

And  in  those  days  which  we  are  now  considering  the 
erection  and  maintenance  of  the  Private  Chapel  or  Domestic 
Oratory  was  a  very  important  factor  in  the  Keligious  Life 
of  Christian  countries.  At  one  time  as  many  as  7000 
private  Chapels  in  Castles,  Manors,  and  Parsonages  are  said 
to  have  been  in  use  in  England.  And  no  wonder,  when  we 
consider  the  conditions  of  country  life  in  those  days.  Long 
distance  from  the  parish  Church,  no  roads,  but  rough  cart- 
tracks,  over  vast  moors  and  through  dense  woods,  whilst 
highwaymen,  beggars,  pedlars,  and  wandering  minstrels,  all 


392     PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. 

eking  out  a  precarious  existence,  rendered  riding  or  walking, 
(especially  for  females,)  along  the  country-side  both  un- 
pleasant and  unsafe. 

So  it  came  to  pass  that  all  who  could  claim  to  be  of  any 
substantial  position  or  estate,  would  crave  of  their  Bishop, 
a  licence  for  a  private  oratory,  within  their  own  Domain,  in 
which  the  Lord  and  his  Lady,  and  their  retinue,  the  Squire's 
family  of  lowlier  degree,  or  the  Parish  Priest,  who  from  age 
or  infirmity  could  no  longer  climb  the  hill  to  the  parish 
church,  might  in  peace  and  safety  celebrate  the  rites  of  the 
Faith,  and  daily  keep  alive  the  flame  of  devotion  in  the 
parish  or  the  district  where  they  dwelt. 

The  Private  Chapels  of  the  greater  nobles  were  buildings 
of  size  and  importance,  while  the  services  therein  were 
conducted  on  a  scale  of  magnificence.  The  finest  specimen 
of  course  still  extant  is  that  of  St.  George's,  Windsor,  whilst 
among  the  large  and  important  ones  were  those  in  the 
White  Tower  of  London  and  in  the  Castle  of  Colchester,^ 
the  former  being  the  largest,  and  forming  a  great  and 
prominent  feature  of  the  building  itself,  while  sometimes, 
in  the  greater  Castles,  there  were  two  chapels,  one  being  for 
the  private  use  of  the  Lord  and  his  Lady,  and  the  greater 
one  for  the  whole  resident  party.*  In  the  Edwardian 
period,  the  Chapel  was  as  necessary  and  usual  a  part  of  the 
house  as  the  Banqueting  Hall.  Fine  examples  may  still  be 
seen  at  Ightham  Mote  in  Kent,  Bodiam,  Sussex,  at  the 
Vyne,  Hants,  and  also  at  Haddon  Hall  in  Derbyshire,  which 
is  much  like  a  village  Church,  and  is  furnished  with  Font 
and  Pulpit,  etc.  I  was  there  in  the  autumn  of  1903,  and  I 
was  told  that  some  years  since  the  fine  and  ancient  stained 
glass  of  the  east  window  had  been  taken  by  robbery,  and 
that  its  whereabouts  had  never  yet  been  discovered.  As  an 
architectural  feature  the  Chapel  had  great  differences.  In 
one  good  example,  that  of  Broughton  in  Oxfordshire,  the 
Chapel  is  approached  by  a  groined  corridor;  at  Meare  in 
Somerset,  and  at  Ightham  Mote,  the  Oratory  was  upstairs ; 
and  in  other  places  is  to  be  found  that  singular  arrange- 
ment by  which  the  Chapel  erected  on  the  ground  floor 
had  two  stories,  the  lower  portion  forming  the  space 
used  for  the  servants  and  retainers,  while  the  upper 
front  portion  was  composed  of  a  handsome  gallery  seat, 
occupied    by    the    master    and    mistress    and    their    own 

^  Now  used  as  a  museum. 

*  This  arrangement  of  having  two  Chapels  is  still  observed  in  the  Royal 
Castle  of  Windsor. 


PRIVATE   CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODERN.     393 

immediate  entourage.     These  seats  immediately  faced  the 
altar. 

This  arrangement  is  to  be  seen  at  Maxstoke,  Markenfield, 
Hendred,  Studley,  and  at  Godstowe  Nunnery  near  Oxford. 
But  to  come  nearer  home,  an  interesting  specimen  of  this 
arrangement  is  to  be  seen  at  Northwyck  Manor,  South 
Tawton,  Devon,  which  has  recently  been  beautifully  re- 
stored by  Mr.  Fellowes  Prynne,  F.R.I.B.A.,  to  which  I  shall 
allude  more  particularly  later  on.  In  Parker's  "  Domestic 
Architecture,'  1853,  vol.  2,  page  80,  we  find  this  interesting 
extract  from  tlie  "  Liberate  Eolls  " : — 

21st  Henry  III.  AVe  command  that  you  cause  to  be  made  at 
Kennington,  on  the  spot  where  our  Chai)el,  roofed  with  thatch,  is 
situated,  a  Chapel  with  a  staircase  of  plaster,  which  shall  be  30  ft. 
long  and  12  ft.  wide,  in  such  a  manner  that  in  tlie  upper  ^mrt  there 
be  made  a  Chapel  for  the  use  of  our  Queen  so  that  she  may  enter 
tliat  Chapel  from  lier  chamber,  and  in  tlie  lower  part,  let  there  be 
a  Cliapel  for  the  use  of  our  Family. 

Further  on  we  read : — 

At  Freemantle  a  certain  chamber  with  an  upper  storj'  with  a 
Chapel  at  the  end  of  the  same  chamber  for  the  Queen's  use. 

In  some  Castles  and  houses  the  Chapel  was  extremely 
small  in  itself,  being,  in  fact,  merely  a  sacrarium  with  altar 
and  pace,  and  divided  from  tlie  great  Hall  by  wooden 
screens,  in  order,  perhaps,  that  the  hall  space  might  be 
utilized  when  there  was  a  larger  attendance  at  the  services. 
And  in  some  few  cases  the  Oratory  was  a  detached  building 
in  the  Courtyard.  But  Mr.  Parker  in  his  "  Glossary  of 
Architecture"  says:  "Domestic  Chapels  were  often  also  made 
from  Rooms  in  a  Castle  or  house,  more  frequently  than 
erected  as  separate  buildings." 

In  olden  times  in  the  greater  houses  the  fittings,  services, 
and  the  Chapel  staff  were  on  a  scale  of  great  magnificence. 
In  the  "  Archiologicae,"  c.  25,  pp.  320-3,  is  to  be  found 
the  description  of  the  ecclesiastical  establishment  of  Henry 
Algernon,  fifth  Duke  of  Northumberland,  which  consisted 
of  a  Dean,  who  was  a  D.D.,  ten  priests,  eleven  gentlemen, 
and  six  Boys  of  the  Choir,  and  we  learn  that  the  "  gentle- 
men and  children  of  the  Lord's  Chappell  which  be  not 
appointed  to  attend  at  no  time,  but  only  in  exercising  of 
God's  service  in  the  Chapel  daily,  at  Matins,  Lady  Mass, 
High  Mass,  Evensong  and  Compline.'* 

In  the  greater  houses  a  band  of  minstrels  was  sometimes 
kept,  and  these  performed  not  only  in  the  hall  for  the 


394     PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. 

amusement  of  the  guests,  but  also  played  in  the  servioes  of 
the  Domestic  ChapeL 

Now  as  to  Devonshire  and  Cornwall  we  are  able  to  gather 
much  from  certain  sources,  as  to  the  prominent  place  which 
the  system  of  Private  Chapels  found  in  the  Eeligious  life  of 
medieval  days,  and  especially  in  that  monument  of  special 
knowledge  and  accuracy,  which  we  now  possess  in  the 
Episcopal  Eegisters  of  Exeter,  which  are  being  brought  out 
under  the  able  supervision  and  successful  labours  of 
Prebendary  Hingeston-Eandolph. 

The  custom  of  having  a  Private  Chapel  attached  to 
dwellings  (as  has  already  been  stated)  was  of  very  early 
origin,  but  here  in  the  West  of  England,  as  far  as  we  may 
judge  from  the  entries  in  the  Episcopal  Eegisters,  it  was  not 
until  the  earlier  part  of  the  fourteenth  century  that  these 
became  so  common.  In  the  Eegisters  of  Bishops  Brones- 
combe  and  Quivil^  the  entries  of  Licences  granted  are 
very  few,^  but  during  the  episcopate  of  Stapeldon,  A.D. 
1307-26,  wo  have  a  long  list  of  names  of  persons  in 
various  ranks  of  life  who  applied  to  and  obtained  from  the 
Diocesan,  permission  to  keep  a  Chaplain  for  private  services. 
Dr.  Cust,  in  his  "  Parish  Priests,*'  p.  427,  says  that  Arch- 
bishop Walter  de  Gray  gave  his  licence  to  have  a  Private 
Chapel  and  Chaplain  to  one  Alberic  de  Percy  to  celebrate 
Divine  offices  at  Sutton  "as  long  as  he  lives,"  and,  again,  he 
gives  a  similar  grant  to  Alexander  de  Vilers  and  his  heirs 
to  have  Divine  offices  at  Newbottle  for  his  family  and 
guests  "  for  ever,"  and  there  are  others  mentioned  to  whom 
this  prelate  did  likewise.  But  as  far  as  I  can  discover  the 
Bishops  of  Exeter  usually  licensed  Private  Chapels  for 
a  stated  time  only,  to  be  renewed  if  required.  In  Stapeldon's 
time  we  find  that  sickness,  age,  or  infirmity  were  at  once 
regarded  as  reasons  sufficient  for  giving  the  episcopal  per- 
mission, viz.  to  Dame  Isabella  Fishacre  in  "diebus  feriatis" 
and  on  Festivals,  on  account  of  rough  weather,  or  from 
bodily  infirmity  being  unable,  as  it  is  stated,  to  get  to  her 
Parish  Church,  a.d.  1312,  and  again  in  A.D.  1317  this  licence 
is  renewed  to  Sir  Peter  Fishacre,  the  Bishop  "  Considerans 
impotenciam  Domini  Fishacre  "  for  the  Chapel  of  Lupton, 
in  the  parish  of  Brixham.  Then  again  we  find  that  permis- 
sion is  given  to  Oliver  de  Halap,  "  broken  by  age  and  blind," 

^  Qnivil  licensed  a  Chapel  in  St.  Colomb  Major  Parinh.     I  find  no  other. 

•  The  Chapel  at  Bishopscourt  is  said  to  have  been  erected  by  Bishop 
Bronesconibe  m  1296,  and  I  imagine  licensed,  but  nothing  appears  in  his 
Register  on  this  point.     It  was  re-licensed  by  Bishop  Phill|)otts  in  1868. 


PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND   MODERN.     395 

for  an  Oratory  and  Chaplain,  within  his  Manor  at  Hartleigh, 
in  the  parish  of  Buckland  Filleigh,  as  long  as  nothing  is  done 
contrary  to  the  well-being  of  the  Kector  of  the  Parish,  or 
to  the  Mother  Church  of  St.  Mary  at  Buckland. 

To  Henry  de  Lapford  and  to  his  wife  is  leave  given  from 
1  July,  1310,  to  Michaelmas,  1311,  with  directions  that 
they  are  to  attend  the  Parish  Church  on  Sundays,  and  on 
the  greater  Festivals,  with  the  kindly  and  considerate  words 
attached,  "  as  long  as  the  temperature  of  the  air  and  their 
health  permit."  The  same  directions  with  regard  to  attend- 
ance at  the  Parish  Church  are  again  to  be  observed  in  the 
licence  issued  to  David  and  Alianora  Servyngton ;  they  are 
given  a  licence  for  their  Chapel  at  Dynesbeare,  in  the  parish 
of  Merton,  and  also  for  their  house  at  Upcott,  in  Bideford, 
the  services  to  be  entirely  for  themselves,  and,  I  suppose, 
for  their  family  and  servants,  wliile  all  other  parishioners 
were  to  be  excluded. 

To  William  do  Wollegh  a  grant  is  made  in  his  Manor  at 
Wollegh,  he  being  a  Priest  and  Rector  of  Yarnscombe,  but 
residing  in  the  parish  of  Beaford.  He  was  not  to  administer 
the  Sacrament  to  any  one,  and  he  was  to  resort  to  his  Parish 
Church  on  Sundays  and  Festivals,  given  in  1320,  and  re- 
newed in  1322.  In  Grandisson's  Kegister,  a.d.  1328,  a 
licence  is  issued  to  Joanna  Arundel,  Dame  Trembleythe, 
which  runs  in  these  words,  "  that  the  consent  of  the  Kector 
of  the  Parish  is  to  be  obtained."  And  from  these  extracts 
we  may  see  most  clearly  how  jealously  were  the  rights  of  the 
parochial  clergy  protected,  and  w^e  also  observe  that  the  rule 
was  carried  out,  when  from  difierent  causes  people  were 
unable  to  avail  themselves  of  the  ministration  of  the  Parish 
Church,  that  the  Church  and  its  blessings  were  brought  to 
them.  These  old  llegisters  of  prelates,  who  lived  and  ruled 
under  such  widely  differing  circumstances  from  those  of  the 
present  day,  reveal  to  us,  as  it  were  by  sidelights,  the  rough 
state  of  society  of  that  period.  Not  only  do  we  read  in 
Quivil's  Kegister  (1280-91)  of  the  murder  of  Walter  de 
Lechlade,  Precentor  of  Exeter  Cathedral,  in  the  Close,  on  his 
way  home  from  early  Moniing  Service,  or  again  of  a  Kector 
of  Exbourne  being  stabbed  by  another  clergyman  when  at 
supper  at  the  house  of  one  of  the  Canons  of  Exeter,  and  of 
the  would-be  assassin  being  excommunicated  by  Bell,  Book, 
and  Candle,  but  afterwards  being  reconciled  to  the  Church 
and  receiving  absolution.  In  Brantyngham's  Kegister, 
p.  335,  we  find  the  Bishop  excommunicating  a  certain 
Richard  Prideaux,  who  in  the  Cathedral  had  attacked  and 


396     PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:  ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. 

grievously  wounded  John  Durant,  Rector  of  Comb-in- 
Teignhead,  but  later  on  we  find  this  wretch  seeking  and 
obtaining  absolution,  from  his  Bishop  in  September,  1374. 
Another  case  of  murderous  attack  took  place  on  the  Provost 
of  Glasney,  Sir  Reginald  Calle,  by  one  Robert  Hoo,  a  cleric, 
whom  the  Bishop  in  his  sentence  of  excommunication  calls 
"a  satellite  of  Satan."  We  notice  that  frequently  Churches 
and  Churchyards  were  behig  polluted  by  blood-shedding  and 
other  wickedness,  so  that  the  office  of  reconciliation  had  to 
be  used  before  the  sacred  precincts  were  available  for  Divine 
service.  Those  must  have  been  indeed  strange  times  in  Eng- 
land, when  in  some  ways  Law  seemed  almost  to  be  in 
abeyance,  and  when  in  too  many  instances  might  became 
right,  and  violence  got  the  upper  hand.  In  Brantyngham's 
Register  are  some  curious  entries  which  show  that  a  licence 
for  a  Private  Chapel  was  not  always  to  be  traced  to  the  fact 
that  either  age  or  infirmity  were  the  causes  why  the  petition 
was  made.  For  in  the  year  1373  Sir  Peter  Hardbrigge 
(many  of  the  clergy  of  those  days  enjoying  the  title  of  Sir^), 
the  Rector  of  Dartington  craves  permission  that  he  may 
celebrate  the  services  of  the  Church  within  the  seclusion  of 
his  own  house,  because  he  was  living  "  in  the  just  fear  of  his 
own  Parisliioners."  His  petition  was  granted,  and  let  us 
hope  that  during  the  remainder  of  his  sojourn  at  Dartington 
something  like  peace  was  his  portion ;  but  it  is  evident  that 
his  life  in  that  beautiful  parish  was  (like  the  policeman's  in 
the  well-known  comic  opera)  "not  a  happy  one,"  because  in 
the  following  year  the  good  Bishop  gave  Sir  Peter  Hardbrigge 
permission  to  leave  tlie  parish  on  account  of  the  suggestion 
made  to  his  Lordship  that  Hardbrigge  "  dared  not  reside  in 
Dartington,"  "  propter  sa3viciam  inimicorum  suonim." 

Some  interesting  entries  in  the  Register  of  Brantyngham's 
episcopate  must  be  noticed,  for  I  find  that  here  in  my  own 
neighbourhood  of  Mid  Devon  a  licence  for  a  Private  Chapel 
was  granted  to  John  Northwood,  Rector  of  North  Tawton,  of 
St.  Mary,  Croke,  North  Tawton,  to  perform  the  sacred  offices 
in  the  Chapel  of  Croke  in  that  parish.  This  ancient  sanctuary 
exists  to-day,  used  as  a  hayloft.  It  still  retains  its  bossed  and 
ribbed  cradle-roof,  its  altar  steps  and  its  piscina,  a  relic  of  by- 
gone piety;  while  at  the  same  time  also,  is  granted  permission 
to  the  same  Rector  to  officiate  in  another  chapel  dedicated  to 
St.  Paul,  standing  in  the  cemetery  of  the  Parish  Church, 

In  the  parish  of  Colebrook,  it  is  said,  there  formerly 

*  This  title  Wing  equivalent  to  the  University  dcjin*<?e  of  B.A.,  whereas 
'  •  Magister  '*  va8  used  for  those  who  had  gone  further  in  their  studies. 


PRIVATB  CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND   MODERN.     397 

existed  no  less  than  five  chapels  dedicated  to  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Mary,  and  in  Brantyngham's  Register,  p.  348, 
mention  is  made  of  the  Manor  of  "  Wolmerstones,"  a 
licence  here  given  to  Thomas  Peverel  and  his  wife.  Again, 
in  1384  another  licence  is  given  for  a  chapel  in  this  parish 
granted  to  Adam  Copplestonc  and  his  wife  Alice,  in  the 
mansion  of  Colebrook.  This  was  renewed  to  the  same 
people  by  Bishop  Stafford  in  a.d.  1395. 

Brantyngham  seems  to  have  been  very  particular  in 
stating  the  duration  of  time  for  which  these  licences  were 
to  run :  sometimes  the  wording  was  thus :  "  as  long  as  his 
Lordship  pleases  *'  (qtiam  diu  Domino  placuerit) ;  at  another 
time  for  one  year,  or  for  two  years,  or  for  any  longer  period. 
There  is  a  licence  given  in  September,  1381,  to  "those  living 
in  the  town  of  Okehampton"  for  Divine  Services  to  be 
celebrated  in  "a  certain  Chapel";  this  may  mean  the  Chapel 
of  St.  James  in  the  Borough,  about  which  some  time  since 
a  contention  existed  between  the  Vicar  on  the  one  side  and 
the  Trustees  of  the  Charity  Lands  on  the  other  on  the 
question  of  whether  the  Vicar  or  Corporation  of  Oke- 
hampton  owned  the  Chapel,  when  it  was  decided  by  the 
authorities  that  St.  James'  formed  a  part  of  the  Vicar's 
rights.^  But  this  entry  may  apply  perhaps  to  the  Chapel  in 
Okehampton  Castle,  belonging  to  the  Earldom  of  Devon, 
and  this  is  quite  possible,  as  the  words  by  "  Contemplacione 
Edwardi  Comitis  Devonite"  occur.  On  very  high  ground, 
three  miles  from  Hatherleigh,  commanding  a  magnificent 
view  of  the  Dartmoor  Hills  to  the  south,  with  a  foreground 
of  woods  and  valleys,  Cliurch  towers,  and  farmsteads,  is 
still  to  be  seen  in  the  parish  of  Meeth  a  goodly  farm  called 
Crocker's  Hele;  and  in  1383  here  lived  William  Crocker  and 
his  wife,  to  whom  the  Bishop  gave  his  licence  for  Divine 
Service  in  their  Chapel  of  St.  Martin,  which  was  to  run  for 
one  year,  and  no  doubt  at  its  expiration  be  renewed. 

In  1397  John  Passenham  was  Eector  of  Sampford 
Courtenay,  living  there  with  his  sister  Eleanor,  and  to 
these  worthy  jicrsons,  Bishop  Stafford  gave  leave  for  a 
Chapel  within  the  Rectory  House,  and  it  is  an  interesting 
fact  that,  when  about  thirty-six  years  ago  the  old  Eectory 

^  The  Vicar  of  Okehainpton  (the  Rev.  Arthur  L.  Giles)  has  kindly  fur- 
nished me  with  a  draft  of  the  scheme  of  the  Charity  Commissioners.  In 
it,  it  is  stated  that  henceforth  three  ex-officio  Trustees— the  Vicar  of  Oke- 
hampton and  two  Churchwardens — with  two  co-optative  Trustees  shall  form 
an  "  Ecclesiastical  Charity,"  and  so,  after  many  years'  doubt  and  disputation, 
an  anxious  and  difficult  question  has  been  settled.  I  am  told  that,  in  medieval 
times,  this  Chapel  was  in  some  way  connected  with  the  Courtenay  family. 


398     PRIVATE  CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. 

House  was  taken  down,  a  large  flat  stone  with  five  crosses 
was  discovered  built  into  the  wall  It  is  an  ancient  altar 
slab,  and,  I  rejoice  to  say,  was  placed  in  the  Church  at 
the  recent  fine  restoration  by  Mr.  Fellowes  Prynne,  and 
put  beneath  the  wooden  mensa  of  the  altar.  This  no 
doubt  once  stood  in  the  Domestic  Oratory  of  Eector 
Passenham,  rescued  after  many  years  of  oblivion,  and 
once  more  restored  to  its  sacred  use. 

Special  mention  must  be  made  of  an  excellent  and  most 
interesting  restoration  quite  recently  made  in  the  parish  of 
South  Tawton  at  the  ancient  Manor  House  of  Northwyck, 
the  former  seat  of  the  Wyke  family.  Some  few  years  since 
this  property  returned  to  the  descendant  of  that  family,  the 
Rev.  W.  Wykes-Finch,  j.p.,  who  has  for  some  time  been  re- 
building and  restoring  this  beautiful  old  mansion.  The 
Chapel  has  been  brought  back  to  more  than  its  former 
beauty,  and  here  may  be  seen  the  old  arrangement  of 
two  floors  and  an  upper  gallery  overlooking  the  sanctuary. 
The  altar  is  again  in  place,  and  the  whole  apartment  is 
finished  with  fine  oak  panelling,  and  ready  for  Divine  Service. 

Dr.  Cust  in  his  work  before  alluded  to,  "  Parish  Priests 
and  their  People  in  the  Middle  Ages  in  England,"  speaks 
thus  (p.  434)  :— 

It  is  a  very  pleasant  feature  in  the  daily  life  of  the  Manor 
House  of  medieval  England  which  is  brought  home  to  us  by 
these  studies  of  ancient  domestic  architecture  and  from  these  dry 
extracts  from  Episcopal  Registers.  By  the  latter  part  of  the 
14  th  century  it  would  seem  that  nearly  every  Manor  House  had 
a  Chapel  and  its  resident  Chaplain.  Divine  services,  Matins  and 
Mass  before  breakfast,  and  Evensong  l^efore  Sui)per  were  said  every 
day,  and  when  the  solemn  worship  of  Almighty  God  held  so  con- 
spicuous a  place  in  the  daily  family  life,  it  is  not  possible  that  it 
should  not  have  exercised  an  influence  upon  the  character  and 
habits  of  the  people,  for  the  family  and  household  really  attended 
the  service  as  a  part  of  tlie  routine  of  daily  life  and  duty.  There 
are  numerous  incidental  allusions  in  the  course  of  historical 
narratives  which  prove  this,  for  Robert  of  Gloucester  says  of 
William  the  Conqueror : — 

In  Church  he  was  devout  enow. 
For  him  none  day  abide 
That  he  heard  not  Mass  and  Matins 
And  Evensong  at  each  tide. 

Malory,  in  his  "  History  of  Prince  Arthur,"  has  these  words : 
"  So  they  went  home  and  unarmed  them,  and  so  to  Even- 
song and  supper.  And  on  the  morrow  they  heard  Mass, 
and  after  went  to  dinner,  and  to  their  counsel,  and  made 


PRIVATE  CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:  ANCIENT  AND   MODERN.     399 

many  agreements  what  was  best  to  do."  One  more  allusion 
to  ancient  writings  on  Eeligion  in  domestic  life  must  suflBce. 
In  the  vision  of  Piers  Ploughman  we  read  these  words : — 

The  king  and  his  knights  to  the  Church  wenten 
To  hear  Matins  and  Maas,  and  to  the  meat  after. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  at  the  time  of 
Henry  VII,  I  think  we  may  take  it  that  the  age  of  erecting 
Domestic  Chapels  to  a  great  extent  ceased,  and  the  fashion 
came  in  of  a  family  building  an  aisle  on  to  the  Parish 
Church,  using  that  as  their  special  place  of  occupation 
during  Divine  Service  and  after  death  as  a  place  for 
sepulture.  It  is  not  quite  easy  to  know  wliy  this  change 
was  made,  but  it  was  so,  as  the  history  of  many  country 
parishes  shows.  The  north  aisle  of  Hatherleigh  Church  was 
erected  by  the  munificence  of  the  Yeo  family,  the  Speccot 
aisle  or  Chapel  in  Merton  Church  owed  its  origin  to  this 
change,  and  in  North  Lew  the  north  aisle  of  the  Church 
still  bears  the  name  of  Eutleigh  Manor,  as  being  erected  by 
the  once  owners  of  that  estate.  At  Modbury  also  we  find 
to  the  north  and  south  small  transepts  with  names  either  of 
families  or  estates  attached  (Champemoune  and  Prideaux, 
Okeston).  These  are  only,  of  course,  a  few  instances,  but 
they  could  be  indefinitely  multiplied. 

Dr.  Cust,  for  so  learned  a  man,  in  his  work  to  which  I 
have  before  alluded  has  apparently  fallen  into  an  extra- 
ordinary error  with  regard  to  medieval  Private  Chapels,  for 
at  page  420  he  asserts  "  that  the  Domestic  Chapels  of  the 
nobility  and  great  men  were  always  consecrated  and  had  a 
perpetual  licence  for  Divine  Service."  I  beg  leave  to  doubt 
this  entirely,  for  in  the  Middle  Ages  it  is  a  well-known  fact, 
that  even  in  respect  to  Parish  Churches  the  rite  of  Con- 
secration was  seldom  fully  carried  out,  the  reason  being  the 
enormous  expense  which  formal  consecration  imposed  upon 
the  parishioners.  Over  and  over  again  we  come  across  the 
records  as  to  how  the  Bishops  during  their  long  journeys 
through  the  Diocese  dedicated^  both  Churches  and  altars 
which  were  being  placed  in  enlarged  Churches.  Bishop 
Bronescombe  dedicated  himself,  eighty-eight  Churches  and 
altars  in  Devon  and  Cornwall  from  the  years  1259-69,  forty 
in  one  year.  Of  course  it  is  possible,  that  these  enlarged 
or  partially  rebuilt  fabrics  needed  no  fresh  consecration, 
which  they  rnaij  have  received  in  an  earlier  day,  for  Canon 
Law  holds  that  if  any  portion  of  the  walls  remain  of  the 

*  It  is  only  riglit,  however,  to  mention  that  some  antiquaries  say  that 
**Dedicavit'*  and  "Consecravit"  are  synonymous  terms. 


400     PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:  ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. 

older  buildings,  the  rite  of  consecration  is  not  needed. 
Where  consecration  was  carried  out,  crosses  were  usually  cut 
in  the  stone,  and  these  are  extremely  rare ;  they  are  to  be 
seen  in  great  form  on  the  south  aisle  exterior  wall  of  Exeter 
Cathedral  and  at  Ottery  St.  Mary,  but  these  are  the  only 
ones  with  which  I  am  acquainted  in  this  Diocese.  At  the 
Parish  Church  of  Highampton  a  cross  is  cut  on  a  stone  of 
the  tower,  but  its  explanation,  I  think,  is,  that  this  Church  is 
itself  dedicated  to  Holy  Cross.  The  Roman  Pontifical  has 
this  prayer  at  the  consecration  of  a  Church:  "Benedic 
Domine  creaturam  istam  lapidis,  et  prsesta  per  invocationem 
Sancti  Nominis  Tui,  ut  quicunque  ad  banc  ecclesiam  aedifi- 
candam,  pura  mente  auxilium  dederint,  corporis  sanitatem 
et  animje  medelam  percipiant "  (see  "  Bingham,"  IV,  80). 
"Pontificis  judicio  locus,  et  atrium  designentur,  et  per  eum 
vel  ejus  auctoritatem  per  sacerdotem  cmx  in  locofigatur,  et 
lapis  primarius  ponatur.  Tunc  aspergit  lapidem  ipsura 
aqua  beuedicta,  et  accepto  cultro  per  singulas  partes  sculpit, 
in  eo  signum  crucis  "  {ibidem). 

The  formal  act  of  consecration  at  once  throws  a  place  of 
worship  open  to  the  general  public,  whereas  dedication  or  a 
simple  licence,  confine  the  services  either  to  the  community, 
family,  or  special  persons  mentioned  in  the  document.  So 
it  is  quite  obvious  that  in  the  case  of  a  Private  Chapel,  the 
very  fact  of  its  being  consecrated  would  at  once  defeat  the 
object  of  its  being  set  up,  and  in  no  sense  could  such  a 
building  be  regarded  as  a  Private  Chapel, 

Now  to  come  from  ancient  times  to  modern.  How  many 
Domestic  Oratories  here  in  Devon  are  either  wholly  or  par- 
tially in  use  for  Divine  Service  ?  As  far  as  I  know,  at  the 
present  day  there  are  nineteen  Chapels  attached  to  Mansions 
and  Parsonages  in  this  Diocese.     They  are  viz.: — 

Cothele ; 

Powderham  Castle;  re-licensed  in  1861, 
Palace,  Exeter ; 

Deanery,  Exeter ;  licensed  in  1333. 
Killerton ; 

Bishopscourt ;  re-licensed  in  1803. 
St.  Mar//\%  Gnaton  Hall;  1887. 
Maristowe ; 

Lusconibe  Castle;  licensed  in  1862. 
Waddeton  Court ;  licensed  in  1868. 
Fardel  (Cornwood),  licensed  by  Lacy,  A.D.  1421. 
Eecently  restored  by  Mr.  Pode. 


PKIVATE  CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODEKN.     401 

Haldon  House ;  licensed  in  1867. 

Filham,  St.  Andrew's,  licensed  A.D.  1400. 

Nutwell  Court  ;^  licensed  in  1370. 

Bowringsleigh ; 

The  Eectory,  Milton  Damarell ;  licensed  in  1875. 

The  Vicarage,  Exwick ; 

The  Vicarage,  Bovey  Tracey ; 

Northwyck  Manor ; 

Beaford  Rectory ;  licensed  in  1894. 

The  first  named  of  these  is,  strictly  speaking,  across  the 
Tamar,  and  in  the  County  of  Cornwall  and  Diocese  of  Truro, 
but  up  to  thirty  years  ago  and  for  centuries  before  that  time 
this  lovely  place  was  within  the  Diocese  of  Exeter.  The 
chapel  of  the  mansion  was  first  licensed  by  Bishop  StafiPord 
12  May,  1411,  and  re-licensed  by  Bishop  Phillpotts.  It  is 
right  to  notice  in  passing  that  here  within  this  ancient 
sanctuary  the  marriage  of  the  noble  owner,  the  Earl  of 
Mount  Edgcumbe,  and  Lady  Eavensworth,  was  solemnized 
Eastertide,  1906.  The  Chapel  of  Powderham  Castle^  has 
marks  of  great  interest,  and  contains  some  valuable  fittings. 
The  fine  St.  Gabriel's  Chapel  at  Bishopscourt,  in  the  parish 
of  Sowton  or  Clyst  Fomison,  near  Exeter,  is  one  of  the 
earliest  as  to  foundation  which  we  have,  for  it  was  erected 
in  or  about  the  year  a.d.  1296  by  Bishop  Bronescombe, 
Bishopscourt  being  one  of  the  coimtry  seats  of  the  Bishops 
of  Exeter.  Bishopscourt  was  well  restored  in  1863,  or 
thereabouts,  by  the  late  Mr.  Garratt,  and  is  still  the  resi- 
dence of  that  family.  In  the  beautiful  park  at  Killerton, 
the  seat  of  Sir  C.  Thomas  Acland,  Bart.,  stands  the  Chapel 
of  the  Holy  Evangelists,  while  this  family  also  has  another 
Chapel  at  Culm  John  for  use  in  connexion  with  a  private 
burial-ground.  A  modem  Chapel  is  to  be  seen  at  Haldon 
House,  in  the  parish  of  Kenn,  erected  in  the  time  of  the 
first  Lord  Haldon,  the  present  home  and  seat  of  J.  Fitzgerald 
Bannatyne,  Esq.     In  the  parish  of  Newton  Ferrers  stands 

*  Licensed  by  Brantynghain,  a.d.  1370.  The  Rev.  J.  C.  Browne,  Rector 
of  Lympstone,  kindly  gives  me  this  information  :  **  Nutwell  Court  is  not  in 
my  parish,  but  my  registers  contain  entries  of  two  marriages  solemnized  in 
the  Domestic  Chapel  there  by  one  of  the  rectors  of  this  parish.  The  Chapel, 
which  is  a  beautiful  specimen  of  fourteenth -century  architecture,  still  exists, 
but  is  now  used  as  a  library."  Nutwell  is  really  in  the  parish  of  Wood- 
bury. 

^  The  screen  in  Powderham  Chapel  is  said  to  have  once  belonged  to 
More  ton  Hampstead  Church,  while  the  screen  in  Bowringsleigh  was  a  few 
years  since  removed  from  South  Huish  Church. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  C 


402     PRIVATE  CHAPELS  OF  DEVON:  ANCIENT  AND  MODKBN. 

Gnaton  Hall,  to  which  is  attached  a  very  beautiful  Chapel  ^ 
dedicated  to  B.V.M.,  built  by  the  late  Michael  Williams, 
Esq.,  High  Sheriff  of  Cornwall  (deceased  in  1899)  in  1887. 
on  which  no  expense  has  been  spared,  where  marble,  oak, 
and  fine  glass  all  combine  to  make  a  very  fine  interior. 
At  Maristowe,  the  beautiful  home  of  the  Right  Honble. 
Sir  Massey  Lopes,  Bart.,  P.O.,  and  over  lovely  scenes  of  wood 
and  water,  appears  the  spire  of  the  noble  Chapel  erected 
in  1877,  there  having  formerly  existed  one  dedicated  to 
St.  Martin  near  tliis  spot.  In  this  instance  also,  as  in  the 
last  mentioned,  munificence  and  good  taste  have  brought 
into  being  a  sanctuary  in  every  way  worthy  of  its  hjjgh 
purpose.  Here  are  daily  and  Sunday  Services,  and  a  resident 
Chaplain.  The  Oratory  of  Waddeton  Court  on  the  Dart 
has  recently  been  the  subject  of  a  lawsuit,  by  which  the 
Rector  of  Stoke  Gabriel  laid  claim  to  the  Chapel ;  but  one 
which  could  not  be  sustained  in  the  Courts,  as  the  judges 
decided  that  the  sacred  building  was  the  sole  property  of 
the  owner  of  the  estates.  In  the  parish  of  Dawlish  is 
Luscombe  Castle,  renowned  for  the  beauties  of  its  sylvan 
surroundings.  About  forty-five  years  ago  or  more  the 
owner,  Mr.  Hoare,  in  whose  family  the  property  still  remains, 
constructed  a  very  fine  Oratory,  in  which  during  his  lifetime 
Divine  Services  were  celebrated,  and  it  is  said  to  be  a 
building  of  great  beauty. 

In  the  Bishop's  Palace  at  Exeter  is  the  ancient  and  well- 
proportioned  Chapel  of  the  See  House,  a  quiet  spot  where 
"prayer  is  wont  to  be  made,"  a  place  indeed  hallowed  by 
the  solemn  associations  of  many  centuries.  Here  successive 
prelates  who  have  ruled  this  great  Diocese  have  confirmed 
the  young,  and  ordained  many  who  in  their  day  have  done 
good  work  for  the  Church.  This  Chapel  was  extensively 
repaired  and  adorned  in  the  episcopate  of  Bishop  Temple, 
and  is  of  course  in  constant  use  in  the  present  day.  The 
Deanery,  too,  has  its  ancient  Oratory  still  fitted  up  where 

*  Chapel  of  St.  Mary's,  Gnaton  Hall,  of  which  a  picture  of  interior  is  hero 
added.  Erected  by  the  late  Michael  Williams,  Esq.,  designed  by  Mr. 
Fellowes  Prynne,  f.]i.i.d.a.,  built  by  William  Veal  and  men  under  him, 
stone  from  neighbourhood,  marbles  from  Eitlcy  Park,  brass  and  woodwork 
by  Singer,  of  Frome.  The  triptych  of  paintings  by  E.  Fellowes  Prynne, 
brother  of  architect,  seating  for  seventy  persons.  This  cha])el  was  erected  in 
A.D.  1887.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  during  this  present  week,  July, 
1906,  in  which  our  meeting  takes  place,  a  marriage  was  celebrated  in  thia 
cha^Mil,  the  daughter  of  the  present  owner  being  the  bride,  Miss  Bewea. 
The  details  of  the  building  of  St  Mary's,  Gnaton,  kindly  given  me  by 
Mrs.  Giles  of  Okehampton  Vicarage,  who  was  the  widow  of  the  late 
Mr.  Michael  Williams. 


o 


-«1 


c5 

3!  a 


c 


Private  Chapels  of  Dkvon  :  Anxient  and  Modern.— To  fojot  p.  402. 


(: 


PRIVATE  CHAPELS   OF  DEVON:   ANCIENT  AND  MODERN.     403 

Family  Worship  is  held.  At  Milton  Damarell  in  West 
Devon  the  late  Kector  set  up  a  Chapel,  attached  to  his 
Kectory,  for  his  daily  service,  and  some  other  Parsonage 
Houses  in  Devon  have  their  private  Oratories.  It  was  duly 
licensed,  and  is  used  by  his  successor  for  its  sacred  purpose, 
and  as  far  as  I  know  with  some  others,  mentioned  in  the  list, 
concludes  the  list  of  Private  Oratories,  great  or  small,  in  the 
present  Diocese  of  Exeter.  There  may  be  more  which  are 
not  mentioned,  either  in  Diocesan  Calendars  or  in  Directories 
of  the  County,  but  few  as  they  are  in  comparison  with  the 
numbers  of  Private  Chapels  existing  in  Devon,  say,  in  the 
fourteenth  century,  yet  still  we  have  in  this  our  day  a 
sufficient  number  to  show  us  that  at  all  events  the  spirit 
of  devotion  forming  a  part  of  our  daily  life  is  not  dead 
amongst  us.  And  who  can  say  whether  or  not  in  "the 
coming  by  and  by  "  the  Private  Chapel  will  not  again  take 
a  more  prominent  place  in  the  Eeligious  Life  of  England  ? 
For  if  at  any  time  the  Parish  Churches  of  our  land  are 
seized  by  the  secular  power,  handed  over  to  Sectarians  for 
their  use,  or  even  put  up  to  sale  for  secular  purposes,  who 
can  say  that  then,  in  the  houses  of  the  wealthier  and  more 
educated  classes  and  of  the  more  devout  laity,  there  will  not 
arise  the  determination  to  have  the  offices  of  religion  jujcord- 
ing  to  the  Anglican  Rite  performed  at  their  own  expense  and 
within  their  own  Domains,  and  open  to  all  who  value  a 
definite  form  of  religious  belief  coupled  with  an  ordered  and 
dignified  ceremonial,  instead  of  being  forced  to  give  in  to 
the  tyranny  of  an  invertebrate  religionism  ?  May  that  day 
be  long  far  distant  from  our  beloved  land,  but  if  at  any 
time  our  faith  is  in  this  way  attacked,  I  venture  to  predict 
that  the  Private  Chapel  will  become  again,  as  once  it  was, 
one  of  the  ruling  factors  in  the  Eeligious  Life  of  England. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  a  list  of  all  Private  or  Domestic 
Oratories  in  Devon  should  be  added  to  this  Paper.  They 
are  all  to  be  found  in  the  Episcopal  Registers  of  the  Diocese. 
It  is  possible  that,  as  a  Supplement  to  this  Paper,  such  a  List 
may  at  a  future  day  be  added. 


2     2 


TOTNES:  ITS  MAYOES  AND  MAYORALTIES. 

1836-1906. 

Part  VI. 

BY   EDWARD   WIXDBATT. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


EiCHARD  SOPER,  the  Mayor,  elected  September,  1834,  by  the 
provisions  of  the  Municipal  Corporations  Act,  continued 
Mayor  until  31  December,  1835. 

1836.  Charles  Taylor. 

This  first  Mayor  under  the  Municipal  Corporations  Act 
held  office  from  1  January  to  9  November,  1836,  and  in 
future  the  election  of  Mayor  took  place  on  9  November 
in  each  year.  He  had  been  Mayor  in  1820.  Trewman's 
Flying  Post,  Exeter,  under  date  April,  1836,  announced  a 
company  had  been  set  on  foot  for  establishing  a  steamboat 
to  navigate  the  Kiver  Dart  between  Dartmouth  and  Totnes. 

1836.    William  Fabyan  Windeatt. 

He  was  elected  9  November,  was  the  father  of  the 
compiler  of  this  paper,  and  proclaimed  Queen  Victoria  in 
Totnes  May,  1837.  The  original  Proclamation  is  preserved 
in  the  Guildhall.  He  was  present  the  next  year  in  West- 
minster Abbey,  at  the  coronation  of  the  Queen. 

1837.  Charles  Webber. 

On  7  February,  1838,  Mr.  George  Farwell  ceased  to  be 
Town  Clerk,  and  Mr.  George  Presswell  was  appointed  in  his 
place.  March,  1838,  desk  around  the  Councillors'  seats 
erected. 

1838.    John  Derry. 

On  10  February,  1839,  resolved  to  petition  Parliament  in 
favour  of  the  penny  postage  as  proposed  by  Rowland  HilL 


TOTNES:   ITS  MAYORS  AND  MAYORALTIES.  405 

1839.    John  Fogwill. 

He  died  one  week  before  his  year  of  oflBce  expired, 
1  November,  1840. 

On  24  February,  1840,  the  Town  Clerk  was  instructed  to 
take  the  necessary  steps  to  vindicate  the  immemorial  right 
to  the  seat  in  the  Parish  Church  usually  called  "The 
Mayoress's  Seat"  by  action  at  law  or  otherwise  against 
Mrs.  Baker  and  others,  and  to  take  Counsel's  opinion  if 
necessary. 

On  24  February,  1840,  an  address  was  voted  to  the  Queen 
and  Prince  Albert  on  the  occasion  of  their  marriage.  On 
3  August,  1840,  it  was  resolved  that  no  one  not  a  member 
of  the  Corporation  should  sit  in  the  Corporation  seats  in  the 
church  without  the  permission  of  the  Mayor. 

1840.    William  Doidge  Taunton. 
On  22  February,  1841,  resolution  passed  requesting  the 
M.P.s  for  the  borough  to  support  the  proposal  that  Dart- 
mouth be  made  a  packet  station  by  the  Government. 

1841.    Thomas  Shore. 
On  30  November,  1841,  loyal  address  voted  to  the  Queen, 
Prince  Consort,  and  the  Duchess  of  Kent  on  the  birth  of  the 
Prince  of  Wales,  now  Edward  VII.     The  address  was  stated 
to  be  from 

"  Your  Majesty's  most  dutiful  and  loyal  subjects,  the  Mayor, 
Aldermen,  and  Burgesses  of  the  Ancient  Borough  of  Totnes, 
incorporated  by  the  Charter  of  King  John,  subsequently  con- 
firmed by  other  Charters  of  your  Majesty's  predecessors,  Kings 
and  Queens  of  glorious  memory." 

1842.  Samuel  Huxham. 

1843.  Charles  Webber. 

1844.  Edward  Luscombb. 

In  1845,  during  this  Mayoralty,  an  Act  was  obtained  for 
improving  the  markets  and  providing  the  borough  with 
water,  and  under  it  new  markets  were  erected. 

1845.  Edward  Luscombb. 

1846.  John  Derry. 

On  18  May,  1847,  there  were  bread  riots  in  Totnes. 
On   28  July,   1847,   South   Devon   Kailway   opened   to 
Totnes. 

On  5  October,  1847,  extended  Cattle  Market  opened. 


406  totnes:  its  mayors  and  matoraltiks. 

1847.  Samuel  Huxuam. 

1848.  GrSORGE  Farwell. 

On  11  August,  1849,  owing  to  cholera  in  Plymouth  and 
neighbourhood,  the  Council  recommended  the  races,  which 
brought  large  numbers  of  vagrants  and  trampers  into  the 
borough,  should  not  be  held.    As  a  fact  they  were  held. 

1849.  William  Bowden. 

On  22  April,  1850,  resolution  passed  in  favour  of  Great 
Exhibition  of  1851. 

1850.  James  Gill. 

1851.  Richard  Soper. 

On  20  July,  1852,  Prince  Albert  visited  the  borough,  and 
the  bells  were  rung  in  his  honour. 

1852.  EiCHARD  Soper. 

1853.  EiCHARD  Soper. 
1854    Samuel  Huxham. 

1855.    Frederick  Thomas  Michell, 

REAR  ADMIRAL,  C.B. 

An  account  of  him  appears  in  VoL  XXXII  of  the 
"  Transactions  "  of  this  Association,  p.  390.  He  had  com- 
manded the  ** Queen"  before  Sebastopol,  and  handled  his 
ship  so  well  that  he  twice  received  the  signal,  "  Well  done, 
*  Queen '."  There  is  a  cast  of  a  marble  bust  presented  to 
him  by  his  townsmen  in  the  Guildhall.  On  9  January, 
1856,  the  Mayor  was  requested  to  call  a  public  meeting 
to  consider  the  propriety  of  keeping  Greenwich  time,  and 
this  was  done. 

1856.  James  Gill. 

1857.  James  Gill. 

On  7  May,  1857,  the  Mayor  presented  a  portrait  of 
Captain  Short,  a  benefactor  to  the  charities  of  the  borough, 
to  the  Council,  and  it  was  placed  in  the  Guildhall,  where 
it  still  hangs. 

1858.  Frederick  Thomas  Michell, 

REAR  ADMIRAL,  C.B. 

1859.  Samuel  Huxham. 

1860.  Willlam  Fabyan  Windeati. 


totnes:  its  mayors  and  mayoralties.  407 

1861.  John  Derry. 

1862.  WiLLUM  Bentall. 

On  10  March,  1863,  there  was  great  rejoicing  on  the 
marriage  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  now  King  Edward  VII. 

1863.  John  Friend  Perring  Phillips. 

1864.  John  Friend  Perring  Philups. 

He  resigned  September,  1865,  and  James  Gill  was  elected 
for  the  remainder  of  the  year. 

1865.    Thomas  Greaser  Kellock. 
During  this  Mayoralty  the  restoration  of  the  church 
commenced. 

1866.    Thomas  Edward  Owen. 
A  son  was  bom  to  this  Mayor  during  his  Mayoralty,  and 
he  was  presented  with  a  silver  cradle. 

1867.  John  Bowden. 

In  May,  1868,  the  Bill  for  railway  from  Totnes  to  Buck- 
fastleigh  received  the  Eoyal  Assent. 

1868.  John  Bowden. 

1869.  John  Hains. 

1870.  John  Webber  Chaster. 

1871.  John  Webber  Chaster. 

1872.  Egbert  Bourne. 
Railway  opened  from  Totnes  to  Ashburton. 

1873.  James  Smith  Rose. 
1874    Jeffery  Michelmore, 

1875.  Jeffery  Michelmore. 

During  this  Mayoralty  the  Mayor's  chain  was  presented 
by  the  inhabitants  and  relatives  of  previous  Mayors  for  the 
use  of  the  Mayor. 

June,  1876.  For  the  first  time  within  fifty  years  a  ship 
was  built  and  launched  at  Totnes  Quay. 

1876.  Joseph  Roe. 

1877.  Joseph  Rob. 

1878.  John  Hains. 


408  TOTNES:  ITS  MAYORS  AND  MAYORALTIES. 

1879.    Jefpkry  Michelmore, 
First  visit  of    Devonshire   Association   to  Totnes,   Sir 
H.  D.  Acland  President. 

1880.  Edward  Harris. 

1881.  Edward  Harris. 

1882.  Frederick  Bowden. 

1883.  Frederick  Bowden. 

In  1888  Mr.  Bowden  placed  £1000  in  trust  to  provide 
annuities  of  £10  for  three  poor  men  of  the  borough,  and  he 
was  9  November,  1897,  elected  an  Honorary  Freeman  in  con- 
sideration of  this  gift.  In  April,  1884,  the  Town  Clerk, 
Mr.  George  Presswell,  who  had  been  Town  Clerk  forty-six 
years,  died,  and  his  son,  Mr.  H.  J.  Presswell,  was  elected  in 
his  place. 

1884.  Thomas  Creaser  Kellock. 

The  compiler  of  this  paper  was  elected  Town  Clerk 
1  December,  1884,  in  the  room  of  Mr.  H.  J.  Presswell, 
resigned. 

1885.  Thomas  Creaser  Kellock. 

During  these  mayoralties  a  new  Cattle  Market  was  pro- 
vided. The  market  had  from  time  immemorial  been  held  in 
the  streets.  A  new  Water  Supply  was  provided,  the  water 
being  obtained  on  the  Bowden  estate,  the  property  of  the 
Duke  of  Somerset. 

1886.  Henry  Symons. 
Jubilee  of  Queen  Victoria.  The  commemoration  in  the 
borough  was  carried  out  on  a  grand  scale.  The  Mayor 
attended  the  ceremony  in  Westminster  Abbey,  and  on  20 
December,  1887,  he  was  appointed  the  first  Honorary  Free- 
man. 

1887.    John  Earle  Lloyd  Lloyd. 
Jubilee  Eeservoir  erected  and  opened. 

1888.  Augustus  Hingston. 
Mr.  F.  B.  Mildmay,  M.P.,  presented  to  the  Corporation  a 
portrait  of  Christopher  Maynard,  Mayor  of  Totnes  1632, 
1648,  and  1658,  in  his  robes.  This  hangs  in  the  Guildhall 
It  was  found  in  a  garret  in  a  country  house,  and  Mr. 
Mildmay  purchased  it,  had  it  restored,  and  presented  it  to 
the  Corporation. 


totnes:  its  mayors  and  mayoralties.  409 

1889.  Philip  Symons,  Jun.^ 

1890.  Philip  Symons,  Jun. 

1891.  William  Condy. 

1892.  WILLLA.M  Condy. 

On  6  July,  1893,  there  were  great  festivities  in  the 
borough  on  the  occasion  of  the  marriage  of  the  Duke  of 
York,  now  Prince  of  Wales. 

1893.  Andrew  Hawkins  Tanqubray. 

1894.  Alfred  Michelmore. 

1895.  Henry  Symons. 

1896.  Thomas  Greaser  Kellock. 

Diamond  Jubilee  of  Queen  Victoria.  Eejoicings  on  large 
scale  in  the  borough.  The  Mayor  attended  the  Court  at 
Buckingham  Palace  the  day  after  the  Jubilee  held  by  Her 
Majesty.  On  9  November,  1897,  he  was  made  an  Honorary 
Freeman  of  the  borough,  being  an  Alderman,  having  been 
four  times  Mayor  of  the  borough,  one  of  which  was  the 
Diamond  Jubilee  year. 

28  July,  1897,  Sir  William  V.  Whiteway,  K.C.M.G.,  D.L.,  Q.C., 
Premier  of  Newfoundland,  a  native  of  Littlehempston, 
educated  at  Totnes  Grammar  School,  visited  Totnes,  and  was 
made  an  Honorary  Freeman  of  the  borough. 

On  9  November,  1897,  borough  extended,  a  portion  of  the 
parish  of  Dartington,  including  the  railway  station,  included 
in  the  borough. 

1897.  Benjamin  William  Hayman. 

1898.  George  John  Gibson,  m.d. 

The  Duke  of  York,  now  Prince  of  Wales,  visited  the 
borough  and  was  received  by  the  Mayor. 

1899.  Thomas  White  Windbatt. 

He  was  the  first  person  elected  Mayor  from  outside  the 
Council  At  the  election,  1  November,  1900,  he  was  elected 
a  Councillor.  In  July,  1900,  the  Devonshire  Association 
visited  Totnes  for  the  second  time.  Lord  Clifford  was 
President. 

*  The  old  north  gateway  was  sold  by  the  Endowed  School  Goveraors,  and 
purchased  by  Mr.  F.  B.  Mildmay,  M.P.,  and  presented  to  the  Corporation  in 

1890. 


410  totnss:  its  matobs  and  mayoralties. 

1900.  Frederick  Tapscott  Tucker, 

On  22  January,  1901, Queen  Victoria  (lied,and  His  Majesty 
King  Edward  VII  was  proclaimed  by  this  Mayor  on  25 
January,  1901,  at  the  GuUdhall,  outside  the  parish  church  of 
St.  Mary,  in  the  Rotherfold,  on  Brutus'  Stone,  on  the  Plains, 
and  in  Bridgetown.  The  original  Proclamation  is  framed 
and  hangs  in  the  Guildhall. 

1901.  Thomas  White  Windeatt. 
Coronation  festivities  in  the  borough.     The  Mayor  at- 
tended the  coronation  of  King  Edward  VII  in  Westminster 
Abbey. 

1902.  George  John  Gibson,  bid. 

1903.  Alfred  Michelmore. 

1904.  Capt.  Horace  Eeid  Adams,  r.n. 

1905.  Capt.  Horace  Reid  Adams,  rjj. 

A  member  of  an  old  Totnes  family,  owners  of  Bowden 
House.     Several  of  the  family  were  M.P.S  and  Mayors. 

During  this  Mayor's  Mayoralty,  through  his  instru- 
mentality, a  MS.  book  was  obtained  from  the  executors  of 
the  late  Francis  Benthall,  Esq.,  a  member  of  an  old  Totnes 
family,  which  book  contained  among  other  records  a  list  of 
Mayors  with  the  following  heading  : — 

"  Mayors  of  Totnes  with  their  Receivers  as  they  are  collected  by 
Mr  Wm  Yeo  some  time  Town  Clarck  out  of  divers  records  bj 
him  perused  from  33  of  Edwd  3d  unto  1st  of  Hen  8  as  followeth. 

**In  ye  27  yr  of  Edw  the  Ist  there  is  mention  made  in  ye  acct 
of  the  Guild  of  Mirchants  of  a  Mayr  Commonalty  and  Burgesses 
keeping  of  the  Mayrs  &  the  Cort  of  the  Com*^  making  of  Freemen 
there  fines,  of  Rents  belonging  to  ye  Mayor  &  Co  Cenery  Rent  in 
the  Borough  Cenery  Rents  of  Mchants  Customs  of  cutting  Flesh 
&  Amerccnts  &c. 

Edwd  3d 

33.  JohnAiyling    Mayr.  1359. 

34.  Ricd  Coucheneed  1360." 

There  is  then  a  gap  of  seventeen  years  to  1377,  without 
any  record  of  a  Mayor's  name,  and  in  the  latter  year  com- 
mences the  list  which  is  complete  to  present  time,  and  gives 
a  record  list  for  a  period  of  no  less  than  530  years,  with  no 
name  missing,  and  where  a  Mayor  has  died  during  his 
mayoralty  the  name  of  his  successor  recorded.  This  is  a 
list  of  which  any  borough  might  well  be  proud. 


THE  FOEEST  BOUNDS  NEAR  PRINCETOWN. 

BY   ARTHUR   B.    PR0W8B,    M.D.,    F.R.C.8. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1006.) 


The  frequency  with  which  we  find  references  in  old  Dartmoor 
records  to  disputes  concerning  boundaries,  and  to  actions  for 
trespass  and  poaching,  between  the  "  Duchy  "  and  holders  of 
property  and  others  living  near  the  forest,  makes  it  evident 
that  the  method  followed  in  defining  the  boundary  by 
natural  or  artificial  features,  situated  at  considerable 
distances  from  each  other  along  the  forty-two  miles  circuit, 
was  not  sufficiently  definite  for  practical  purposes. 

The  best  natural  boundary  is  undoubtedly  a  stream,  but 
such  a  plain  and  incontestable  limit  is  only  possible  here 
and  there;  and,  as  the  distances  between  the  various 
boundary-marks  fluctuate  from  three-eighths  of  a  mile  up 
to  as  much  as  two  miles,  it  is  easy  to  understand  how  difTer- 
ences  of  opinion  would  arise,  even  if  the  boundary  line  were 
supposed  to  pass  from  one  point  to  another  without  any 
deviation  to  right  or  left  on  the  way.  Doubtless  a  fairly 
direct  course  would  be  taken,  as  a  rule,  in  "beating  the 
bounds  " ;  but  in  a  wild  and  rough  country  like  the  moor  it 
is  often  impracticable  to  do  this.  Land,  so  boggy  as  to  be 
difficult  for  men  on  foot  and  quite  impassable  for  horses, 
would  certainly  be  avoided,  unless  very  small  in  extent  and, 
therefore,  easily  skirted  during  a  "  perambulation." 

The  necessity  for  more  clearly  defining  the  boundary 
would  be  felt,  especially  where  the  land  is  firm  and  good  for 
grazing  purposes,  etc.,  and  where  fairly  level  and  with  but 
slight  undulations,  and  also  where  the  principal  boundary- 
marks  are  of  small  size  and  not  easily  distinguishable, 
except  from  short  distances. 

Then,  too,  we  must  remember  the  not  unfrequent  mists, 
when  even  the  largest  and  most  distinctive  "  bounds  "  may 


412  THB  FOREST  BOUNDS  NEAR  PRINCETOWN. 

be  invisible,  and  therefore  useless  as  guides  to  a  perambulat- 
ing party. 

Consideration  of  these  points  makes  it  likely  that  even  in 
quite  early  times  some  additional  means  would  be  employed 
in  some  cases  to  define  the  boundary  beyond  a  mere  enume- 
ration of  well-known  objects  at  considerable  intervals  from 
each  other.  One  method  would  be  the  (modem)  plan  of 
erecting  small  stone  posts  at  shorter  intervals.  But  such 
marks  can  be,  and  sometimes  have  been,  moved  by  designing 
persons.  A  much  better,  but  more  laborious,  plan  is  the 
turning  up  of  a  bank,  not  necessarily  of  large  size.  This, 
with  the  associated  ditch,  would  withstand  the  denuding 
effect  of  weather  for  very  long  periods — it  would  be  a  very 
good  guide  in  foggy  conditions,  and  as  a  boundary-mark 
could  not  be  easily  or  quickly  obliterated,  even  though  it 
might  extend  for  only  a  short  distance. 

Bearing  in  mind  these  considerations,  I  have  of  late  years, 
when  opportunities  have  ofTered,  been  on  the  look  out  for 
lesser  boundary-marks  in  the  intervals  between  the  principal 
"  bounds  "  mentioned  in  the  "  perambulation  "  documents  ; 
and  with  some  success  in  certain  parts  of  the  "forest" 
margin. 

The  accompanying  map  (3  in.  to  1  mile)  shows  what  I 
have  noted  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Princetown,  between 
Great  Mistor  and  South  Hessary  Tor.  Starting  from  the 
latter  point,  the  modem  boundary-marks  in  the  1^-mile 
stretch  to  North  Hessary  Tor  are  seven  granite  posts  at 
intervals  along  a  straight  line  passing  across  the  west  end 
of  Princetown  Station.  For  about  300  yd.  before  reaching 
the  high  road  the  boundary-wall  of  a  meadow  runs  parallel 
and  close  to  this  line.  Elsewhere  the  line  cuts  across  other 
fences,  including  that  of  a  meadow  belonging  to  the  prison, 
about  half-way  up  the  hill  towards  the  tor. 

When  standing  on  South  Hessary  Tor,  however,  a 
small  bank  is  seen  running  for  about  500  yd.  in  a  direc- 
tion five  or  six  degrees  west  of  the  direction  of  North 
Hessary  Tor.  This  is  shown  upon  the  Ordnance  Survey 
6-in.  map,  except  its  last  70  yd.  (see  A  on  the  map  accom- 
panying this  paper).  Beyond  this,  for  about  one-third  of  a 
mile,  there  is  now  no  bank  visible  on  ground  which  has 
become  rather  rough,  partly  by  weathering  and  partly  also 
by  the  usual  careless  way  in  which  the  surface  sods  have 
been  replaced  in  former  "  turf- ties."  Then,  again,  we  find 
running  in  the  same  direction  another  similar  bank  (B) 
about  80  yd.  long.     After  an  interval  of  220  yd.  another 


THE  FOREST  BOUNDS  NEAR  PRINCETOWN.  413 

piece  (C),  about  50  yd.  in  length,  extends  almost  to  the  high 
road.  On  the  other  side  of  the  road  is  a  meadow,  to  the 
west  of  which  is  a  very  boggy  bit  of  ground  at  the  head  of 
the  Meavy  Eiver,  S.W.  of  the  station.  The  boundary-line 
here  probably  deviated  slightly  to  the  west,  so  as  to  cross 
this  wet  ground  at  its  narrowest  part.  Just  beyond  it  is 
another  well-defined  bank  (D)  about  50  yd.  long  which 
reaches  to  the  railway  embankment,  pointing  N.W  by  N. 
directly  towards  North  Hessary  Tor,  which,  however,  cannot 
be  seen  from  here  owing  to  the  shoulder  of  the  hill. 
After  this  comes  an  interval  of  90  yd.,  and  then  another 
bank  and  ditch  (E)  nearly  250  yd.  long  extending  in  the 
same  direction.  This  is  ended  by  an  old  mining  gully 
running  east  and  west  across  its  course,  just  beyond  which 
the  bank  can  again  be  followed  for  fully  140  yd.  (F),  where 
it  forms  the  south-west  side  of  a  roughly-rectangular  area 
of  ground,  which  some  one  probably  intended  to  enclose. 

The  south-east  side  of  this  area  is  bounded  by  a  bank, 
which  forms  part  of  an  old  trackway  running  S.W.  b  S. 
towards  the  south  side  of  Leedon  Tor,  where  it  passes 
through  the  middle  of  a  large  group  of  hut-circles  and 
pounds ;  and  then,  altering  its  direction  rather  more  to  the 
south,  runs  straight  up  to  Sharper  Tor.  In  the  other  direc- 
tion this  bank  points  N.E.  straight  for  Beardown  Clapper 
Bridge,  which  is  about  1^  miles  distant,  and  near  which 
there  are  other  remains  of  the  ancient  trackway. 

Keverting  to  the  boundary-bank,  the  end  of  which  is 
about  one-third  of  a  mile  from,  and  pointing  directly  towards, 
North  Hessary  Tor,  it  will  be  seen  that  rather  more  than 
half-way  up  the  slope  the  dotted  line  marking  its  direction 
is  continuous  with  the  upper  end  of  the  western  boiindary- 
wall  of  a  large  field  belonging  to  the  prison. 

Beyond  North  Hessary  Tor  the  modern  boundary  of  the 
forest  is  marked  by  a  series  of  nine  granite  posts  running 
in  a  direct  line  to  Great  Mistor,  two  miles  distant.  The 
third  of  these  is  by  the  side  of  the  main  road  from  Ash- 
burton  to  Tavistock,  about  200  yd.  west  of  where  the  road 
to  Princetown  branches  off  at  the  top  of  the  hill.  The  few 
cottages  hereabouts  form  the  hamlet  of  Rundlestone,  which 
takes  its  name  from  a  notable  old  menhir,  mentioned  in 
various  documents,  and  also  in  the  curious  old  route-book 
called  "  Britannia  Depicta  or  Ogilby  Improved,"  the  fourth 
edition  of  which  is  dated  1736.  In  this,  on  page  180,  it  is 
mentioned  as  "  a  Great  Stone  call'd  Eoundle,"  and  is  placed 
rather  more  than  1^  miles  east  of  Men  vale  Bridge. 


414  THE  FOREST  BOUNDS   NEAR  PRINCBTOWN. 

The  third  of  the  granite  posts  mentioned  above,  by  the 
roadside,  is  by  some  persons  called  the  Bundlestone;  but 
I  am  sure  that  it  is  of  comparatively  recent  date,  and  it  is 
almost  exactly  like  some  of  the  other  modeim  boundary- 
posts.  It  would  hardly  be  described  as  a  "  Great "  stone, 
and  certainly  has  no  claim  to  be  considered  a  notable  object. 
Feeling  sure  that  if  there  had  been  a  large  menhir  here- 
abouts, it  must  have  shared  the  fate  of  many  another 
ancient  monument,  and  been  broken  and  carried  ofif  to  form 
part  of  some  comparatively  modem  building  or  wall,  I 
searched  carefully  every  likely  place  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood,  but  could  find  no  trace  until  one  day  I  saw 
a  pillar-like  block  (S)  of  granite,  8  ft.  5  in.  long  and  1  ft.  9  in. 
square  in  section,  lying  on  the  turf  by  the  roadside  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  east  of  the  modern  boundary-post,  and  close  to  the 
gate  of  one  of  the  prison  fields  on  the  north  side  of  the  road. 
Two  of  the  warders  of  the  prison  told  me  that  the  stone  was 
there  when  they  first  began  their  duties  more  than  twenty 
years  previously,  and  that  they  had  never  met  any  one  who 
remembered  how  it  got  there.  I  think  their  evidence  fairly 
outweighs  that  of  a  local  farmer  about  fifty  years  of  age, 
who,  in  an  off-hand  way,  said.  Oh,  yes,  he  knew  the  stone ; 
and  added  that  it  was  brought  from  the  quarries  beyond 
Merivale  Bridge  a  few  years  ago,  and  was  meant  for  a  gate- 
post, but  had  been  left  by  the  roadside.  That  any  one  would 
have  gone  to  the  expense  and  trouble  of  shaping  such  a  huge 
block  for  such  an  object,  and  then — after  bringing  it  up  a 
long  hill  to  a  place  over  500  ft.  higher — abandon  it,  is,  to 
say  the  least,  unlikely.  The  man  may  have  thought  it  a 
good  joke  to  invent  such  a  tale,  but  he  must  have  realized 
that  I  was  sceptical  before  we  parted.  Moreover,  examina- 
tion shows  that  the  surface  of  the  three  visible  sides  and  of 
one  end  of  the  block  is  distinctly  weathered  and  lichen- 
marked  to  such  a  degree  as  would  not  be  seen  in  the  case  of 
a  block  quarried  only  a  few  years  since. 

A  day  or  two  later  I  found  what  I  believe  is  the  hose  of 
the  menhir  embedded  in  the  turf  by  the  roadside  about 
50  yd.  west  of  where  the  branch  road  to  Princetown  leaves 
the  main  road.  Further  evidence,  however,  is  needed,  by 
digging  round  the  stone,  before  one  can  feel  quite  certain  on 
this  point. 

This  base-stone  is  close  to  the  line  of  a  boundary-wall 
half  a  mile  long  coming  N.N.W.  straight  down  the  hill  from 
North  Hessary  Tor ;  and  it  is  in  a  commanding  site  on  the 
crest  of  the  hill,  1500  ft.  above  sea-level,  with  a  long  descent 


THE  FOREST  BOUNDS   NEAR  PRINCETOWN.  415 

on  both  sides — to  the  west  to  Merivale  Bridge  over  the 
Walkham,  and  to  the  east  into  the  Blackabrook  Valley. 
From  the  opposite  side  of  the  road  another  boundary-wall 
runs  N.W.  b  N.  for  about  half  a  mile,  almost  in  a  direct  line 
towards  the  top  of  Great  Mistor.  Nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
beyond  its  end,  in  the  same  direction,  is  the  base  of  a 
tumulus,  most  of  which  has  been  used  to  build  the  neigh- 
bouring fence.  It  is  22  yd.  in  diameter ;  and,  before  its  de- 
struction, must  have  been  a  large  and  prominent  object, 
standing  on  ground  1590  ft.  above  sea-level.  The  summit 
of  Great  Mistor  is  three-quarters  of  a  mile  further  on,  in  a 
direction  slightly  to  the  west  of  the  line  hitherto  followed 
from  the  base  of  'the  Rimdlestone. 

The  evidence,  therefore,  seems  to  me  to  suggest  that  the 
ancient  boundary  of  the  forest  between  North  Hessary  Tor 
and  Great  Mistor  deviated  to  the  east  of  the  modem  straight 
boundary-line ;  and  that  its  course  is  indicated  by  the  two 
boundary-walls  mentioned,  between  the  ends  of  which,  in 
the  turf  by  the  roadside,  is  the  base  of  the  original  Eundle- 
stone.  The  large  tumulus  also  would  formerly  have  been  a 
very  useful  "  boimd." 

Supporting  this  view,  I  think,  is  the  fact  that  the  small 
farms  forming  the  hamlet  of  Bundlestone  are  all  on  the 
western  side  of  this  suggested  ancient  boundary.  No  part 
of  their  land  is  on  the  eastern  side ;  whereas  in  the  case  of  the 
modem  straight  boundary-line  between  the  two  tors,  these 
farms  extend  both  to  the  east  and  to  the  west  side  of  it,  i.e. 
they  are  partly  within  the  Duchy  boundary  and  partly  in 
the  domain  of  the  lord  of  the  manor  of  Walkhampton. 

In  the  future  I  hope  to  be  able  to  investigate  the 
boundary  on  the  confines  of  the  forest  in  other  districts ; 
and  shall  be  glad  of  any  hints  or  help  from  other  members 
of  our  Association. 


RALEGHANA. 

Part  VIL 

THREE  STATE  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  ARREST 
AND  EXECUTION  OF  SIR  W.   RALEGH  IN  1618. 

BY   T.    N.    BRU8HFIRLD,   M.D.,    F.8.A. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Part  II. 
THE  king's   "DECLARATION." 

We  pass  on  to  consider  the  third  and  most  important  of  the 
State  Papers  that  were  composed  and  published  in  justifica- 
tion of  the  action  of  the  King  and  Privy  Council  in  their 
treatment  and  condemnation  of  Ealegh.  Although  usually 
known  as  the  King's  "Declaration,"  and  by  the  general 
public  regarded  as  his  "Apology,"  the  reprint  in  the  Somers 
Tracts  is  headed, "  His  Majesty's  Reasons  for  his  Proceedings 
against  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  "  (II  (1809),  421).  It  was  issued 
as  a  small  quarto,  with  the  following  title-page : — 

"A  Declaration  of  the  Demeanor  and  Cariage  of  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh,  Knight,  as  well  in  his  Voyage,  as 
in,  and  sitheuce  his  Returne ;  And  of  the  true 
motiues  and  inducements  which  occasioned  His 
Maiestie  to  Proceed  in  doing  lustice  vpon  him,  as 
hath  bene  done.  (Printer's  device.) 
LONDON,  Printed  by  Bonham  Norton  and  lohn 
Bill,  Printers  to  the  Kings  most  Excellent  Maiestie. 
M.DC.XVIIL"     (Firfe  facsimile.) 

The  Royal  Arms  on  the  verso  of  the  title-page. 

As  to  its  authorship,  Edwards  affirms  "Bacon  suggested 
that  document.  He  penned  it,  and  published  it"  (I,  655. 
This  is  Gardiner's  opinion  also.  III,  66,  152);  but  this  is 
only  partly  correct.  Probably  he  prepared  the  draft  copy, 
much  in  the  same  way  that  a  secretary  of  a  committee 


A 

DECLARATION 

OF   THE  DEMEA- 
NOR  AND   CARIAGE   OF 
Sir    Walter    Raleigh, 
Knight,afweli  in  his  Voyagc,as 
in ,  and  Hcheoce  his  Recuroc$ 

fiAndofthetruemotiues  and  induce" 

mcnts  which  occafioncd  His  Maicftic 
to Preceeditt  doing  luff iee  vfonhim. 


as 


hathlene  dotK^* 


London, 

Printed  by  Bonham  Norton 

andloHN  Bill,  Printers  to  the 

Kin^s  moB  ExeeOeat  Mdiefik^ 

Mdc.  XVIII. 


VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  D 


418  KALEGHANA. 

does  at  the  present  time,  as  a  basis  for  a  report.  This 
seems  to  coincide  with  the  opinion  of  Spedding.     It  was — 

"penned  by  certain  Councillors  (Bacon  being  one),  allowed  by 
the  Council,  and  printed  by  authority.  Bacon's  rank  in  Council, 
together  with  his  concern  in  the  actual  composition,  entitle  us 
to  impute  to  him  a  large  share  of  the  responsibility  ;  but  as  he 
spoke  in  the  name  of  others,  and  his  authority  was  not  absolute, 
to  charge  him  with  the  sole  responsibility  is  a  mistake  "  (383). 

Brief  references  in  the  text  (additional  to  those  in  "Trans.  D.  A.," 
XXXVII,  285):— 

Fort  Pap.  =  "The  Fortescue  Papers"  (Camd.  Soc.,  1871),  ed.  S.  R. 
Gardiner. 

Inderwick  =  "Side-Lights  on  the  Stuarts,"  by  F.  A.  Inderwick  (1891). 

Camd.  Misc.  =  **  Documents  relating  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  last  Voyage," 
ed.  S.  R.  Gardiner  ("Camd.  Misc.,"  V  (1864),  pt.  ii). 

Howell  =  "  Familiar  Letters"  (ed.  of  1903),  tliree  vols. 

Apologie=  **  Sir  W.  Rawleigh  his  Apologie  for  his  last  voyage  to  Guiana." 
First  printed  in  "Judicious  and  Select  Essayes"  (1660). 

Arraignment=**The  Arraignment  of  S' Walter  Rawleigh  .  .  .  coppicd 
by  Sir  Tho  :  Overbvry  "  (1648). 

M.  Hume=**Sir  Walter  Ralegh."  by  Martin  A.  S.  Hume  (1897). 

Stud.  Hist,  of  Eng.=**A  Student's  History  of  England,"  by  S.  R. 
Gardiner  (1892). 

Canib.  Mod.  Hist  =  **  Britain  under  James  I,"  by  8.  R  Gardiner,  in 
"Cambridge  Modem  History,"  III  (1904) 

Cayley="Life  of  Sir  W.  Ralegh,"  by  A.  Caylcy,  Junr.  (1806),  two  vols. 

Even,  with  a  Rev.  =  "  Evenings  with  a  Reviewer,"  by  J.  Spedding  (1881), 
two  vols. 

Ediu.  Rev.  =  "  Sir  W.  Ralegh,"  by  Macvey  Napier  ("  Edinburgh  Review," 
CXLIII,  1840). 

That  the  Council  fully  assented  to  it  in  its  final  form  is 
proved  by  the  statement  at  its  close,  that  it  was  attested  by 
"sixe  of  his  Maiesties  priuie  Counseir*  (68).  Edwards 
appears  to  imply  tliat  the  King  had  nothing  to  do  with  its 
composition,  although,  as  Gardiner  notes,  it  was  drawn  up  by 
his  "  express  order  "  (III,  152) ;  but  James  would  never  allow 
any  State  document  to  be  printed  in  which  his  personality 
or  his  kingly  duties  were  concerned,  without  some  active 
interference  on  his  part,  and  the  "Declaration"  was  no 
exception  to  this  rule.  In  it  this  paragraph  is  printed  at 
p.  25 :  *'  This  Commission  so  drawne  and  framed  (as  you 
see)  his  Maiestie  himselfe  did  oft  peruse  and  reuise,  as  fore- 
seeing the  future  euents."  And  a  letter  from  Bacon  to  the 
Marquis  of  Buckingham,  dated  22  November,  1618,  contains 
this  note :  "  We  have  put  the  Declaration  touching  Ralegh 
to  the  press  with  his  Majesty's  additions,  which  were  very 
material,  and  tit  to  proceed  from  his  Majesty."^ 

Spedding  adds:  "There  are  no  marks  in  the  original  to 

'  Spedding,  378,  from  **  Gibson  Papers,"  VIII,  99. 


BALEGHANA.  419 

distinguish  these  additions.  But  I  suspect  them  to  be  the 
opening  and  the  coneluding  paragraph."  But  the  opening 
sentence,  "Although  Kings  be  not  bound  to  giue  Account 
of  their  Actions  but  to  GOD  alone/'  is  simply  a  repetition 
verb,  ct  lit.  of  that  which  had  appeared  in  the  Council's  letter 
of  18  October,  usually  assigned  to  Bacon.^  Then  in  his 
reply  to  this  letter,  James  certainly  suggested  some  of  the 
details  to  be  subsequently  embodied  in  the  "Declaration": — 

"After  the  sentence  for  his  execution  ...  a  declaration  be 
presently  putt  forth  in  print,  .  .  .  Wherein  we  hold  the  French 
Physitian's  confession  very  materiall  to  he  inserted,  as  allso  his 
own  and  his  consortes  confession  that,  before  they  were  at  tlie 
Islandes,  he  told  them  his  ayme  was  at  the  fleet,  with  his  son's 
oration  when  they  came  to  the  town,  and  some  touch  of  his  hate- 
full  speeches  of  our  person."  ^ 

In  his  reprint  of  this  letter,  why  did  Spedding  omit  the 
important  phrase  here  shown  in  italics  ?  (364). 

That  the  "Declaration,"  like  Stukeley's  "Petition,"  was 
not  prepared,  or  was  not  completed,  until  after  Ealegh  had 
been  executed,  is  shown  by  these  paragraphs  in  it : — 

"  Leaning  the  thoughts  of  his  heart,  and  the  protestations  that 
hee  made  at  his  death  to  God  that  is  the  searcher  of  all  hearts, 
and  ludge  of  all  Trueth  "  (2). 

"As  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  his  confession  at  his  Death,  wliat 
he  confessed  or  denied  touching  any  the  points  of  this  declaration, 
his  Maiestie  leaues  him  and  his  conscience  therein  to  God,  as  was 
said  in  the  beginning  of  this  Discourse.  For  Soueraigne  Princes 
cannot  make  a  true  iudgement  vpon  the  bare  speeches  or  asseuera- 
tions  of  a  delinquent  at  the  time  of  his  death,  but  their  iudge- 
ment must  be  founded  vpon  examinations,  re-examinations,  and 
confrontments,  and  such  like  reall  proofes,"  etc.  (67-8). 

Bacon  must  have  been  aware  that  at  Ealegh's  trial  in 
1603,  when  the  latter  requested  permission  for  a  "confront- 
nient "  (i.e.  "  the  advice  of  bringing  face  to  face,"  H.  E.  D.) 
with  Cobham,  the  only  witness  against  him,  he  was  refused. 

Of  the  extreme  haste  in  which  the  printing  was  effected, 
80  as  to  get  the  work  published  with  as  little  delay  as 
possible,  we  have  ample  evidence.  Bacon's  letter  of  22 
Xovember  (already  quoted  from)  implies  it  was  sent  to 
press  within  a  day  or  two  of  that  date.  And  on  the  day 
of  publication,  27  November,  Naunton  writes  thus  to  the 
Marquis  of  Buckingham : — 

"The  printer  hath  sent  me  two  copies  of  each  [i.e.  of  the 

1  ** Trans.  D.  A.,»  XXXVII,  294.  •      •  "Fort  Pap.,"  68. 

2d2 


420  RALEGHANA. 

"  Petition  "  as  well  as  of  the  "  Declaration  "]  for  his  Majestie  and 
the  Prince,  and  prayes  pardon  for  some  escapes  committed  in 
theyr  haste,  which  was  such  as  they  were  faine  to  watche  2  nights 
and  sett  20  presses  aworke  at  once."  ^ 

We  have  further  proof  of  this  on  collating  a  number  of 
copies  with  each  other.  As  at  that  period  stereotyping  was 
unknown,  the  twenty  presses  would  require  as  many  distinct 
settings  of  type ;  probably  each  worked  off  a  definite  number 
of  pages  or  sections,  as  apparently  indicated  in  the  occur- 
rence of  blank  pages  (8,  44),  which  were  otherwise  not 
needed.  We  may  accept  as  the  most  satisfactory  copy  the 
one  with  68  pages,  of  which  the  earliest  was  probably  that 
having  the  word  "which"  (line  12  from  top  on  p.  41) 
wrongly  placed,  but  amended  in  other  copies.  It  is  printed 
in  "Great  Primer,"  the  portion  between  pages  9  and  24 
being  in  italics.  The  signatures  are  A  to  H  in  fours,  I  two 
leaves,  and  it  ends  at  "  Finis,"  there  being  no  colophon. 

Another  copy  (penes  me)  has  only  63  pages,  all  in  "  Great 
Primer,"  except  pp.  46-58,  which  are  in  "English"  type. 
The  signatures  terminate  at  H  4;  and  the  work  ends  with 
this  colophon,  similar  to  the  imprint  on  the  title-page : — 

« Imprinted  at  LONDON  by 

Bonham  Norton  and  lohn 

Bill,  Printers  to  the  Kings 

most  excellent  Maiestie. 

Anno  1618." 

In  a  number  of  impressions  that  have  been  examined, 
some  are  wrongly  paged,  while  others  show  variations  in 
spelling ;  thus  the  surname  "  Stewkley,"  and  "  Stewkeley  '^ 
in  the  first  copy  noticed,  appears  as  "Stucley"  in  some  of 
the  others.  The  only  portions  in  all  where  no  variation 
has  been  detected,  consist  of  the  title-page  and  the  Eoyal 
Commission  (pp.  9-24).  A  singular  attempt  to  explain  the 
blank  page  44  is  thus  advanced  by  Spedding:  "In  the 
original  a  blank  page  is  interposed  here :  apparently  for  the 
purpose  of  distinguishing  what  follows  as  resting  only  upon 
the  testimony  of  Mannoury  "  (401) ;  but  the  joint  account 
of  him  and  of  Stukeley  commenced  on  page  42.  He  offers  no 
suggestion  why  page  8  also  is  blank.  A  due  examination 
of  these  circumstances  must  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
"Declaration,"  although  contemplated,  was  probably  not 
written,  from  being  deemed  unnecessary,  until  the  burst  of 

1  ''Fort.  Pap.,"67. 


RALKGHANA.  421 

popular  indignation  after,  and  in  consequence  of,  Ealegh's 
execution,  seemed  to  demand  a  State  explanation;  and, 
accordingly,  the  "Apology,"  as  the  public  regarded  it,  was 
hurriedly  composed,  and  as  hurriedly  printed  and  published. 
The  contents  of  the  *' Declaration "  may  be  thus  briefly 
enumerated : — 

Pages  1-7.  The  preliminary  proceedings  that  led  to  the 
King  granting  Ralegh  permission  to  undertake  the  voyage 
to  Guiana,  notwithstanding  the  remonstrances  of  the  Spanish 
Ambassador. 

Page  8.     Blank. 

Pages  9-24.  The  King's  Eoyal  Commission  for  Ealegh 
to  make  the  voyage  to  Guiana  for  the  purpose  of  mine 
exploration. 

Pages  25-40.  The  voyage,  proceedings  at  Guiana,  and 
the  return  to  England. 

Pages  41-65  (except  p.  44  blank).  Report  based  on  the 
proceedings  of  the  spies  Manourie  and  Stukeley. 

Pages  65-8.  Summary  of  Ralegh's  offences  and  con- 
cluding remarks. 

The  summary  is  thus  stated : — 

"  For  these  his  great  and  hainous  offences,  in  actes  of  Hostilitie 
vpon  his  Maiesties  confederates,  depredations,  and  abuses,  as  well 
of  his  Commission,  as  of  his  Maiesties  Subiects  vnder  his  charge, 
Impostures,  Attempts  of  escape,  declining  his  Maiesties  lustice, 
and  the  rest,  euidently  prooued  or  confessed  by  himself e ;  he  had 
made  himselfe  vtterly  vnwoorthy  of  his  Maiesties  further  mercy : 
And  because  he  could  not  by  Law  bee  iudicially  called  in  question, 
for  that  his  former  attainder  of  Treason  is  the  highest  and  last 
worke  of  the  Law  (whereby  bee  was  Ciuiliter  mortuus)  his 
Maiestie  was  inforced  (except  Attainders  should  become  priuiledges 
for  all  subsequent  offences)  to  resolue  to  haue  him  executed  vpon 
his  former  Attainder  "  (65-6).    • 

An  execution  characterized  by  Napier  as  "  unquestionably 
one  of  the  most  revolting  acts  that  stains  the  annals  of 
l>ritish  criminal  procedure."  ^ 

The  opening  pages  of  the  "Declaration"  are  devoted  to 
the  King's  explanation  of  his  reasons  for  releasing  Ralegh 
from  the  Tower,  after  the  latter  had  made  several  ineffectual 
efforts  to  procure  it  during  Salisbury's  lifetime  (ob.  12  May, 
1612).     But  with  the  appointment  of  Sir  R.  Win  wood  as 

1  **Edin.  Rev.,"  94. 


422  RALEGUANA. 

Secretary  of  State  (known  to  have  anti-Spanish  views) 
Ralegh  had  better  hopes  of  freedom.  Edwards  (I,  662) 
affirms  Ralegh's  release  to  have  been  effected  (1)  by  bribing 
Court  favourites,  and  (2)  to  enable  him  to  visit  Guiana  for 
the  purpose  of  gold  mining. 

Respecting  the  alleged  bribery,  Oldys  (1, 468)  states : "  That 
sir  William  St.  John  and  sir  Edward  Villiers  .  .  .  procured 
sir  Walter  Ralegh's  liberty,  and  had  fifteen  hundred  pounds 
for  their  labour."^  This  seems  to  be  corroborated  in  the 
following  extract  from  a  letter,  dated  17  March,  1615-16, 
from  Ralegh  to  Sir  G.  Villiers  (afterwards  Duke  of  Bucking- 
ham) : — 

"  You  have,  by  your  mediation,  put  me  again  into  the  world ; 
I  can  but  acknowledge  it ;  for  to  pay  any  part  of  your  favour  by 
any  service  of  mine  as  yet,  it  is  not  in  my  power.  If  it  sueceed 
well,  a  good  part  of  the  honour  shall  be  yours;  and  if  I  do  not 
also  make  it  profitable  unto  you,  I  shall  shew  myself  exceeding 
ungrateful."  2 

Gardiner  doubts  whether  bribery  was  necessary;  at  the 
same  time  he  mentions  that  Ralegh  was  "  liberated  through 
Buckingham's  influence."*  But  throughout  the  Stuart  period 
bribery  was  absolutely  necessary  to  procure  any  favour 
directly  or  indirectly  from  royalty.  Ralegh's  release,  the 
elder  D'Israeli  declared,  "was  effected  by  bribing  powerful 
Court  favourites,  who  worked  upon  the  avarice  of  James  I."* 

On  19  March,  two  days  after  his  letter  to  Sir  G.  Villiers, 
Ralegh  received  a  letter  from  the  Privy  Council,  commencing 
thus : — 

"  His  Majesty,  out  of  his  gracious  inclination  towards  you,  being 
pleased  to  release  you  out  of  your  imprisonment  in  the  Tower,  to 
go  abroad  with  a  keeper,  to  make  your  provisions  for  your  intended 
voyage^'  etc.^ 

The  following  curious  reasons  that  have  been  assigned  for 
his  release  will  show  how  little  the  real  cause  of  it  was 

*  Quoted  from  **  Obs.  on  Sanderson's  Hist,  of  King  James,"  4to,  p.  10. 
2  Oldys,  468  ;  Edwards,  II,  341. 

»  "  Student's  Hist,  of  England,"  485  (1892). 

*  **Cur.  of  Lit,"  III,  115  (1858).  Many  courtiers  and  others  who  were 
pensioners  of  Spain  have  been  already  noticed  ("Trans.  D.  A.,"  XXXV, 
670).  In  a  dispatch  from  Gondoraar  to  Philip  III  he  mentions  that  the 
Duke  of  Lennox  and  Lord  Hay  ...  are  of  the  French  party,  and  derive 
large  pensions  from  France  ("  Archaeologia,"  XLI,  2).  The  painful  example 
of  Lord  Bacon  shows  how  nmch  the  judges  were  open  to  bribery  (Gardiner, 
II,  217  ;  Inderwick,  16). 

*  Edwards,  I.  563.  Quoted  from  the  registers  of  the  Privy  Coancil. 
Italics  not  in  the  original. 


RALEGHANA.  423 

known  to  some  writers.  One  would  have  thought  that  Sir 
W.  Sanderson,  an  attendant  at  Court,  might  have  been  more 
accurate  than  in  the  following  distorted  relation : — 

"At  last,  by  meanes  of  the  French  Embassadour,  with  others  of 
our  own  Lords,  he  had  freedome,  to  repair  for  his  health,  to  his 
liouse  at  St.  James;  and  after  a  year  or  two,  he  procured  a 
Commission,  to  make  a  Voyage  to  Gueana  in  the  West-indies  for 
the  return  of  Gold  Oare  or  Mine."  ^ 

The  intercession  of  the  French  Ambassador  we  learn  for 
the  first  time,  and  as  it  is  unmentioned  by  any  other  writer 
we  may  pass  it  by.  The  condition  of  Ealegh's  health  had 
never  been  considered  throughout  his  Tower  confinement; 
and  so  far  from  waiting  for  **  a  year  or  two  "  before  he  received 
his  Commission,  it  was  granted  him  on  24  August  (probably 
two  months  earlier),  five  months  only  after  his  release. 

Another  singular  explanation  was  advanced  by  the 
historian  D.  Hume,  who  asserted  that  the  King  "thinking 
...  he  had  already  undergone  sufficient  punishment,  he 
released  him  from  the  Tower  and  gave  him  'permission  to 
try  the  venture.' "  ^ 

The  Eoyal  Commission  granted  permission  to  Ralegh  **  to 
vndertake  a  voyage  .  .  .  vnto  the  South  parts  of  America,  or 
elswhere  within  America  ...  to  discouer  and  finde  out 
some  commodities  and  merchandizes  in  those  Countries,  that 
be  necessary  and  profitable,"  etc.  To  be  "commanded  by  no 
other  then  himselfe  "  ;  with  "  full  power  and  authoritie,  and 
free  licence  and  libertie  out  of  this  Our  Realme  of  England 
or  any  other  Our  Dominions  ...  for  and  towards  his  said 
intended  voyage."  He  was  "to  be  the  sole  Gouemor  and 
commaunder  of  all  persons  that  shall  trauell,  or  be  with  him 
in  the  said  voiage";  with  *'fidl  power  and  authority  to 
correct,  punish,  pardon,  gouerne  and  rule  them";  and  "in 
case  of  rebellion,  or  mutiny  by  sea  or  land,  to  vse  and  exercise 
Marshall  law"^ 

This  occupies  pages  9-24  of  the  "Declaration,"  is  dated 
24  August,  1616,  and  was  issued  "  Per  breue  de  priuato 
Sigillo." 

According  to  Oldys,  the  "  commission  seems  to  have  been 
given  under  the  great  Seal  of  England,"  and  at  least  two 
months  earlier  than  the  one  just  cited,  which  was  issued 
under  the  Privy  Seal  (473)     This  is  corroborated  by  a  letter 

1  «*  Aulicua  Coquinariae,"  91-2  (1660). 

2  "Hist  of  Eng.."  III.  39  (1824). 
'  Italics  not  iu  the  origiual. 


424  RALEGHANA. 

of  Peter  Vanlore,  quoted  by  Oldys  on  the  same  page.^ 
Amongst  the  headings  of  the  charges  of  the  Attorney- 
General  at  the  Privy  Council  meeting  on  17  August,  1618, 
is  this  one :  **  His  Majesty  in  respect  of  his  countries  good 
licenseth  him  by  his  commission  under  the  great  seek  "  (Camd. 
Misc.,  9). 

This  was  not  the  only  alteration  that  was  made  in  the 
Commission.  Edwards  declares  that  Gondomar  "  persuaded 
James  to  have  certain  awkward  words  scratched  out "  from 
it.  and  "  the  words  were  erased — after  they  had  been  written,"* 
and  so  the  sentence  "  trusty  and  well-beloved  servant "  was 
omitted.  This  is  corroborated  by  the  following  extract  from 
a  letter  written  by  J.  Pory  to  Carle  ton  on  31  October,  two 
days  after  Ralegh's  execution.  At  the  Council  meeting  held 
on  28  October,  Ralegh  said  that 

"His  MsL^^  had  given  him  a  commission  to  be  his  lieutenant 
general  ouer  an  army  at  sea,  wherein  he  styled  him  our  beloved 
trusty  subjecte,  &  gave  him  power  of  life  and  death ;  as  his 
Ma^^  would  neuer  haue  done  to  the  man  he  should  esteeme  a 
Tray  tour;  ergo  his  commission  was  equivalent  to  a  Pardon."* 

That  the  terms  of  his  commission  implied  a  pardon  was 
the  general  opinion  of  those  writers  of  the  seventeenth 
century  who  devoted  any  attention  to  the  subject.  Thus 
F.  Osborne : — 

"The  most  honest  sort  of  Gown-men  .  .  .  maintained  that  his 
Majesties  Pardon  lay  inclusively  in  the  Commission  he  gave  him 
upon  his  setting  out  to  sea :  It  being  incongruous,  that  he,  who 
remained  under  the  notion  of  one  Dead  in  Law,  should  as  a 
Generall  dispose  of  the  lives  of  others,  not  beinge  himselfe  Master 
of  his  owne."* 

Howell  relates  the  well-known  anecdote  of  Bacon  having 
told  Ralegh — "  positively  " — that  a  pardon  was  unnecessary 
from  the  fact  of  the  powers  that  had  been  confeiTed  upon 
him  by  the  commission. 

"  The  knee  timber  of  your  voyage  is  money :  spare  your  purse  in 
this  particular,  for  upon  my  life  you  have  a  sufficient  pardon  for 
all  that  is  passed  already,  the  king  having  undei'  his  broad  seal 
made  you  admiral  of  your  fleet,  and  given  you  power  of  the 
martial  law  over  your  officers  and  soldiers."  ^ 

1  Cf.  Edwards,  II,  343. 

2  II,  591.     Cf.  Gardiner,  III,  42  ;  Stebbing,  801. 
»  **S.  P.  James  I,  Dom.,"  CIII,  61. 

*  *' Historical  Memoires,"  11,16-17(1658). 
»  II,  232.     Cf.  Shirley,  218. 


KALEGHANA,  425 

And  that  "  his  said  commission  was  as  good  a  pardon  for 
all  former  offences,  as  the  law  of  England  could  aftbrd  him."^ 

Although  this  conversation  was  fraught  with  the  greatest 
importance  to  Kalegh,  yet  it  is  not  referred  to  by  Spedding, 
although  he  accepts  as  trustworthy,  on  the  unsupported 
authority  of  the  spy  Wilson,  two  other  anecdotes  relating 
to  the  same  two  personages,  of  which  one  alludes  to  Kalegh's 
intended  piracy.  '*This,"  remarks  Spedding  (347),  "must 
be  supposed  to  have  been  spoken  in  jest/'^  That  is  to  say, 
he  could  cite  an  anecdote  reflecting  on  Ealegh,  but  with- 
held another  that  seemed  in  any  way  to  reflect  upon  his 
favourite,  Bacon.^ 

The  following  is  the  sole  notice  in  the  "Declaration"  of 
the  sentence  passed  upon  Ealegh  in  1603:  "in  respect  of 
the  perill  of  Law  wherein  the  saide  Sir  Walter  Ealiegh 
[sic]  now  standeth"  (10),  and  is  remarkable  for  bearing  no 
relation  to  the  context  which  either  precedes  or  succeeds  it. 
Tliere  are  good  grounds  for  believing  this  interpolation 
to  have  been  made  in  the  revised  form  of  the  commis- 
sion, and  most  probably  at  the  instigation  of  Gondomar.* 
To  his  counsel  may  also  be  attributed  the  two  months'  delay 
before  the  second  form  of  the  commission  was  framed,  as 
also  the  alteration  from  the  Great  to  the  Privy  Seal. 

Attention  must  be  directed  to  one  important  section  of 
the  King's  Commission,  as  it  discloses  the  principal,  perhaps 
the  sole,  underlying  motive  in  issuing  it.  Although  in 
the  preamble  only  "commodities  and  merchandizes"  are 
mentioned,  in  later  pages  the  precious  metals,  etc.,  receive 
special  notice,  as  being  proper  imports,  upon  which  large 
dues  were  to  be  paid  to  the  Crown. 

**  Paying  and  answering  vnto  Ys,  Our  Ileires,  and  Successours 
the  full  fift  part  in  fiue  parts  to  be  diuided,  of  all  such  gold,  and 
siluer,  and  bullion  and  oare  of  gold  or  siluer,  and  pearle,  and 
precious  stone,  as  shalbe  so  imported,"  etc.  [15,  and  repeated  on 
pages  17  and  22.] 

Similar  dues  were  to  be  paid  by  Harcourt  and  his  suc- 
cessors, when  they  took  possession  of  the  eastern  portion 
of  Guiana  in  1608.^  All  this  shows  "the  care  taken  to 
secure  his  majesty's  dividend."*    Even  Gardiner,  who  does 

^  '*0b3.  on  Sauderson's  History  of  King  James,"  p.  10. 

2  Quoted  from  *' Literary  and  frofessional  Works,**  II,  168-9  (1879). 

8  Cf.  Gardiner,  III,  47-8. 

*  Cf.  Lingard,  "Hist,  of  Eng.,"  VI,  165  (1825). 

*  Patent  Roll,  11  James  I,  pt  i.  n.  5. 

«  Oldys,  476 ;  cf.  Mrs.  Macaulay,  "Hist,  of  Eng.,"  I,  5  (1771). 


426  RALEGHAKA. 

not  often  support  Ralegh's  action,  confirms  this  view :  "  It 
can  hardly,"  he  remarks,  "  be  doubted  that  the  prospect  of 
sharing  in  the  profits  of  the  gold  mine  blinded  him  [James] 
to  the  risk  to  himself,  as  well  as  to  Raleigh,  by  which  the 
search  would  be  accompanied"  (II,  382).  In  the  opinion 
of  Spedding,  Ralegh  ''thought  that  if  he  had  brought  the 
gold  the  King  would  not  have  quarrelled  with  him  about 
the  means  employed  to  get  it ;  and  it  was  to  his  supposed 
cupidity,  not  to  his  sense  of  justice,  that  the  argument  was 
really  addressed"  (351).  But  James  wanted  money  very 
badly  ;  and  however  good  his  principles  may  have  been,  and 
as  recorded  by  himself  in  his  printed  works  (especially  in 
his  Basilicon  Doron\  his  actual  practice  was  directly 
antithetic  to  them,  especially  when  he  thought  they  were 
prejudicial  to  his  interests.  Examples  of  this  will  be  found 
in  Appendix  E,  and  will  show  what  "  his  sense  of  justice  '* 
was  worth. 

The  following  were  the  reasons  advanced  by  James  for  releas- 
ing Ralegh  from  prison,  as  recorded  in  tlje  "  Declaration  " : — 

"  Sir  W.  Raleigh  had  so  inchanted  the  world,  with  his  confident 
asseueration  of  that  which  euery  man  was  willing  to  beleeue,  as 
his  Maiesties  honour  was  in  a  manner  ingaged,  not  to  deny  vnto 
his  people  tlie  aduenture  and  hope  of  so  great  Riches,  to  bee 
sought  and  atchieued,  at  the  charge  of  Voluntaries,  especially  .  .  . 
to  nouriph  and  incourage  Noble  and  Generous  enterprises,"  etc.  (4). 

But  James  had  denied,  for  nine  years,  "the  aduenture 
and  hope"  here  expressed,  as  Ralegli  had  made  repeated 
though  unsuccessful  applications  of  a  similar  kind,  com- 
mencing in  1607.  Apart  from  this,  the  King  was  not  the 
kind  of  man  to  be  governed  by  such  sentiment;  and  the 
probability  of  obtaining  a  large  share  of  the  spoil  would 
prove  a  much  more  powerful  factor  in  inducing  him  to 
sanction  Ralegh's  scheme. 

The  "great  and  hainous  offences"  which,  according  to  the 
"Declaration,"  rendered  Ralegh  "vtterly  vnwoorthy  of  his 
Maiesties  further  mercy,"  consisted  of  two  classes,  and  com- 
prised the  following : — 

Primary.     1.  The  pretence  of  a  gold  mine  in  Guiana  as  a 
cloak  for  other  projects. 

2.  Attacking  the  Spaniards  in  their  own  territory , 

burning  and  sacking  the  town  of  St.  Thomas; 
and  thereby  endangering  the  peace  of  the 
two  countries. 

3.  Intention  to  capture  the  Mexico  fleet. 


RALEGHANA.  427 

Secondary,   4.  Attempt  to  abandon  his  ships  and  men. 

5.  Mutiny. 

6.  Impostures. 

7.  Attempts  to  escape. 

8.  Attempt  to  bribe  the  spies. 

9.  Speaking  ill  of  the  King. 

10.  French  Commission. 

11.  "And  the  rest." 

Of  these,  the  "Secondary"  offences  could  scarcely  even 
be  termed  acts  of  misprision,  and  yet  they  form  a  full  third 
of  the  printed  work.  What  the  last  on  the  list  ("  and  the 
rest ")  refers  to  is  unknown. 

The  first  charge  in  this  list  refers  to  the  mine  project,  to 
which  twenty  allusions  are  made.  These  deny  the  existence 
of  the  mine  altogether,  and  declare  that  Ealegh  knew  it  to 
be  "  imaginarie  "  (37).  Having  been  spared  "  from  his  Execu- 
tion" for  foui'teen  years,  he  '*fell  vpon  an  Enterprise  of  a 
golden  Mine  in  Guiana,"  being  "  recommended  to  his  Maiestie 
by  Sir  Ealph  Winwood,  then  Secretary  of  State,  as  a  matter 
not  in  the  Aire,  or  speculatiue,  but  reall,  and  of  certainty, 
for  that  Sir  W.  Kaleigh  had  scene  of  the  Oare  of  the  Mine 
with  his  eyes,  and  tried  the  richnesse  of  it"  (3).  One 
assertion  in  this  quotation  is  misleading.  It  is  stated  that 
after  his  long  incarceration,  Kalegh  "fell  vpon"  his  mine 
enterprise ;  but,  as  already  noted,  similar  requests  made  by 
him  in  former  years  had  been  disregarded,  and  no  valid 
reason  could  be  adduced  why  he  might  not  have  been  re- 
leased long  before  1616,  as  his  statements  concerning  the 
mine  were  almost  identical  on  each  occasion.  Winwood  having 
died  on  17  October,  1617,  the  "Declaration"  makes  him 
tlie  scapegoat  for  his  intercession  with  the  King  in  favour 
of  Kalegh,  whereas  his  advocacy  was  scarcely  necessary,  as 
James  was  swayed  by  his  own  personal  motives,  aided  by 
the  influence  of  the  favourite  Buckingham. 

The  "pretence  of  the  Mine"  was  advanced  by  him  "to 
procure  his  libertie,  and  then  to  make  new  fortunes  for 
himself e,  casting  abroad  onely  this  tale  of  the  Mine  as  a 
lure  to  get  aduenturers  and  followers,  hauing  in  his  eye  the 
Mexico  Fleete,  the  sacking  and  spoyle  of  Townes  planted 
with  Spaniards,  the  depredation  of  Ships,  and  such  other 
purchase  "  (26).  Eespecting  "  this  golden  baite  of  the  Mine  " 
(27) ;  ..."  it  is  true  that  his  Maiesty,  in  his  owne  princely 
iudgement,  gaue  no  beleefe  vnto  it;  as  well,  for  that  his 


428  -  BALEGHANA. 

Majesty  was  verely  perswaded,  that  in  Nature  there  are  no 
such  Mines  of  gold  entire  "  (3,  4). 

But  unless  James  possessed  the  gift  of  prescience  (Scottish 
second-sight),  it  is  difficult  to  credit  his  assertion  that  he 
"gaue  no  beleefe"  to  the  existence  of  a  mine.  A  similar 
claim  for  him  is  made  at  page  25  in  his  power  of  "  foreseeing 
the  future  euents."  That  is  to  say,  he  branded  Kalegh  at  the 
outset  as  an  impostor,  and  yet  assisted  him  to  carry  out  his 
project,  knowing  its  avowed  object,  the  place  he  was  to  visit, 
and  all  the  arrangements  that  had  been  made  for  carrying 
it  out !  Surely  an  attempt  to  prove  too  much.  There  is  no 
trace  of  any  such  belief  recorded  in  the  Royal  Commission, 
nor  of  any  until  the  failure  of  the  expedition  was  known. 
It  was  certainly  an  afterthought,  and  was  probably  one  of 
Bacon's  efforts  to  screen  James  from  the  consequences 
attached  to  the  ill-success  of  Ralegh's  voyage.  Spedding 
maintains  that  "  the  failure  of  the  search  for  the  mine  was 
only  the  misfortune  of  the  adventurers,  and  of  small  concern 
to  the  King,  who  had  built  no  extravagant  hopes  upon  it " 
(352).  No  other  writer  attempts  to  coincide  with,  or  to 
corroborate,  this  assertion ;  and  it  is  diametrically  opposed 
to  the  opinion  of  Gardiner,  who  had  studied  the  character 
of  James  more  deeply  than  Spedding  appears  to  have  done 
(vide  post). 

The  "Declaration"  endeavours  to  make  young  Walter 
Ralegh  a  witness  against  his  father,  as  being  "  likest  to  know 
his  father's  secret,"  by  asserting  that  as  he  was  leading  his 
soldiers  against  the  town  he  **  vsed  these  or  the  like  words, 
*  Come  on,  my  hearts,  here  is  the  Mine  that  ye  miist  expect, 
they  that  looke  for  any  other  Mine,  are  fooles"*  (34-5). 
And  is  thus  alluded  to  by  the  Attorney-General  at  the  Privy 
Council  in  August,  1618:  "His  sonnes  speeches  to  the 
soldiers  to  attend  the  spoile  of  S*  Thomas,  for  that  was  the 
mine  they  sought  after."  ^  On  what  authority  all  this  is 
based  we  know  not.  No  author  relates  any  trustworthy 
information  respecting  it,  or  gives  any  reference  to  it;  nor 
do  any  of  the  witnesses.  Oldys  disbelieved  it  (497).  More- 
over, Capt.  Parker,  who  was  one  of  the  attacking  party,  after 
rejoining  Sir  Walter  about  a  month  later,  sent  a  letter  to 
Capt.  Alley,  dated  22  March,  1617,  containing  particulars  of 
the  engagement,  but  he  does  not  allude  to  young  Walter's 
speech,  which  he  undoubtedly  would  have  done  had  it 
been  delivered,  as  at  the  time  he  was  smarting  under  the 
failure  of  the  expedition.*  Howell  declares,  "  there  is  a 
>  "Camd.  Misc.,"  10.  »  Spedding,  420. 


BALEGHANA.  429 

worthy  captain  in  this  town  (London),  who  was  a  co-adventurer 
in  that  expedition,  who,  upon  the  storming  of  St.  Thomas, 
heard  young  Mr.  I^leigh  encouraging  his  men  with  the 
speech  just  quoted  "  (II,  228). 

This  was  written  in  1645,  when  the  author  was  a  prisoner 
in  the  Fleet,  twenty-eight  years  after  the  occurrence,  a 
statement  unconfirmed  during  that  long  interval.  That  the 
speech  affirmed  in  the  "  Declaration  *'  to  have  been  made  by 
young  Walter  Ealegh  is  spurious  we  have  the  positive 
testimony  of  Capt.  Keymis,  who  was  present  in  the  action. 
He,  in  a  letter  to  Sir  Walter,  dated  8  January,  to  inform  of 
his  son's  death,  wrote  thus  of  him:  "With  the  constant 
vigour  of  mind  being  in  the  hands  of  death  his  last  breath 
expressed  these  words:  'Lord  have  mercy  upon  me  and 
prosper  your  enterprise.' "  ^ 

When  James  heard  of  the  failure  of  the  mine  project,  by 
which  all  his  hopes  of  obtaining  money  from  this  source 
towards  the  payment  of  his  debts  were  frustrated,  then  we 
learn  for  the  first  time  of  his  asserted  belief,  or,  rather,  the 
public  expression  of  his  belief,  in  the  fraudulent  character 
of  lialegh's  proceedings.  James  received  the  tidings  from 
Capt.  E.  North  on  23  May.  Then  on  11  June  the  King 
issued  a  Proclamation  commencing  thus  : — 

"Whereas  We  gave  Licence  to  Sir  Walter  Rawleigh  knight  and 
others  of  our  Subjectes  with  him  to  undertake  a  Voyage  to  the 
Countrey  of  Guiana,  where  they  pretended  great  hopes  and 
probabihties  to  make  discovery  of  certain  Gould  Mynes  for  the 
lawful!  inrichinge  of  themselves  and  these  our  Kingdomes,"  etc.  * 

On  19  June  a  Council  was  held,  when  James  spoke  at 
length  of  Ealegh's  crime,  and  Buckingham  asked,  "Was  it 
not  really  just  to  punish  those  *  traitors  who,  under  pretence 
of  gold  mines,  .  .  .  and  upon  other  pretexts  equally  false, 
had  brought  him  [the  King]  to  give  his  consent  to  the 
expedition  ?  "*  On  the  following  day  Gondomar,  apparently 
to  ease  the  King's  conscience,  attempted,  as  Buckingham 
had  already  done,  to  cast  the  onus  of  the  Commission  on 
some  members  of  the  Council,  and  added,  "  that  Ealeigh  and 
bis  followers  were  in  England,  and  had  not  been  hanged, 
and  that  the  councillors  who  had  advised  the  King  to 
consent  to  the  expedition  were  still  at  large."* 

All  this  shows  that  on  an  ex-parte  statement,  and  before 

1  "Apologie/'SS. 

-  Rynier'a  ''Foedera,"  XVII,  92.     In  the  "Cal.  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.," 
XCVII,  98,  the  date  9  June  is  recorded. 
»  Gardiner,  III,  133. 


430  RALE6HANA. 

Ralegh  was  examined  (it  is  doubtful  whether  he  had  arrived 
in  England  at  the  time),  he  was  practically  condemned.  It 
reminds  one  of  Lydford  Law, 

How  in  the  morn  they  hang  and  draw, 
And  sit  in  judgment  after. 

One  mistake  in  the  "Declaration"  is  thus  commented 
upon  by  Gardiner :  **  In  starting  from  the  theory  that  the 
mine  was  a  mere  figment  of  Baleigh's  imagination,  it  left  out 
of  sight  the  fact  that  he  had  reason  to  believe  that  the  mine 
existed"  (III,  153).  What  were  the  foundations  for  such  a 
belief  on  Ralegh's  part  ?  Even  the  most  cursory  student  of 
English  history  must  be  well  aware  that  Ralegh  made  his 
first  adventurous  voyage  to  South  America  in  1595,  of  which, 
under  the  title  of  "The  Discouerie  of  .  .  .  Gviana,"  he 
published  a  full  account  in  the  following  year.^  Naunton 
(1563-1635)  was  well  acquainted  with  him,  and  describes 
him  as  "  an  indefatigable  Reader,  whether  by  Sea  or  Land,"  * 
so  that  we  have  good  reason  to  believe  he  was  possessed  of 
ample  knowledge  of  the  exploits  of  Cortez  in  Mexico  in 
1522,  and  of  Pizarro  in  Peru  twelve  years  later.  That 
visions  of  El  Dorado — "  the  golden  land  " — the  country  from 
whence  the  King  of  Spain  drew  his  enormous  revenues,  led 
to  Ralegh's  memorable  expedition,  is  recorded  in  the  Epistle 
Dedicatory  of  his  work :  "  Many  yeares  since,  I  had  know- 
ledge by  relatid,  of  that  mighty,  rich,  and  beawtifull  Empire 
of  Guiana,  and  of  that  great  and  Golden  Citie.  which  the 
spanyards  call  El  Dorado,  and  the  naturals  Manoa"  (iv). 
Having  first  sent  Captain  Whiddon  with  an  exploring  party 
in  1594,  from  which  no  important  results  were  obtained,  he 
commenced  his  own  voyage  in  February,  1595,  and  returned 
to  England  in  the  August  following.  On  arriving  at  Trinidad 
he  captured  and  burnt  the  Spanish  settlement  of  San  Joseph, 
and  took  Berreo,  the  Governor,  prisoner,  for  having  ill-treated 
some  of  XJaptaiu  Whiddon's  men  during  the  previous  year. 
From  there  be  started  on  a  boat  journey  up  the  River 
Orinoco  (which  he  entered  by  the  Cano  Manamo  branch), 
and  ascended  it  as  far  as  the  large  tributary  river  Caroni 
(Caroli),  situated  about  three  hundred  miles  from  the  mouth 
of  the  former.     This  was  his  turning-point,  from  whence  he 

^  The  full  title  of  this  work,  together  with  much  information  relating  to 
the  existence  of  gold  in  Guiana  quoted  from  it  and  from  other  sources ; 
together  witli  the  information  he  received  of  the  fabled  city  and  lake  of 
Manoa,  will  be  found  in  Aj)pendix  A. 

^  "Fragmenta  Regalia,"  31  (1641). 


RALEGHANA.  431 

returned  to  his  ships  by  the  eastern  or  Capuri  branch. 
(His  route  is  marked  in  the  map  in  Schomburgk's  work.) 

Near  the  surface,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Caroni  River,  he 
discovered  much  white  spar  containing  gold,  specimens  of 
which  he  brought  away  with  him  (68).  He  heard  of  "a 
greate  siluer  mine "  (66) ;  and  Putijma,  a  lord  of  Guiana, 
informed  him  of  a  gold  mine  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Iconuri  Mountain,  and  offered  to  conduct  him  there,  but  as 
he  was  unable  to  leave  his  men  he  sent  Keymis  (93,  an  error 
for  83).  No  habitation  of  any  kind  was  to  be  seen  near  the 
river  at  the  time  of  Ilalegh's  visit,  but  when  he  sent  Keymis 
to  that  part  in  the  following  year  the  latter  found  it  occupied 
by  the  Spaniards,  as  thus  recorded  by  him:  "Here  the 
Spaniardes  haue  seated  their  Kancheria  of  some  twenty  or 
thirtie  houses.  The  high  rookie  Island,  that  lyeth  in  the 
middest  of  the  Riuer,  against  the  mouth  of  Caroli  is  their 
Forte  or  refuge."  At  the  mouth  of  the  river  they  had  placed 
*'a  secret  ambush,  to  defend  the  passage  to  those  mines, 
from  whence  your  Oare  and  white  stones  were  taken  the 
last  yeere."  ^ 

Owing  to  this  "remooue"  of  the  Spaniards  the  expedition 
failed  in  its  main  object,  and  had  to  return,  "not  without 
griefe  to  see  ourselues  thus  defeated.*' 

His  "  Pilot  .  .  .  offered  to  bring  vs  either  to  the  myne  of 
white  stones  neere  Winicapora,  or  else  to  a  gold  myne  [which 
Putijma  had  shewed  him  during  the  previous  voyage],  being 
but  one  dayes  iourney  ouerland,  from  the  place  where  we 
now  stayed  at  an  ancor."  His  Indian  showed  him  how 
"  they  gather  the  gold  in  the  sand  of  a  small  riuer  .  .  .  that 
springeth  .  .  .  from  the  rockes  where  this  myne  is."^  In 
October  of  the  same  year  Kalegh  sent,  under  the  command 
of  Leonard  Berrie,  "  a  pinnesse  called  the  Watte "  to  the 
same  place,  of  which  an  account  was  written  by  T.  Masham. 
In  it  he  alludes  to  "the  lake  called  Perima,  whereupon 
Manoa  is  supposed  to  stand  " ;  and  also  that  "  great  store  of 
gold  "  was  to  be  found  in  Wiana."  ^ 

Throughout  the  remainder  of  his  life  Salegh's  mind  seems  to 
liave  dwelt  continuously  upon  his  voyage  to  Guiana,  and  upon 
the  auriferous  rocks  he  saw,  or  heard  of,  there,  etc.  During  his 
Tower  imprisonment,  from  1603  to  1616,  he  made  frequent 
applications  to  be  permitted  to  send  another  expedition  to 
that  country,  and  as  shown  by  the  few  letters  that  have  been 
preserved,  he  held  out  every  possible   inducement  for   his 

1  "  Hakluyt'8  Voyages  (ed.  Goldsmid),  XV,  69-70  (1890). 

2  IhicL,  70-1.  »  Ibid,,  98-110. 


432  RALE6HANA. 

suggestions  to  be  adopted.    In  1607  he  offered,  in  a  letter  to 
Lord  Salisbury,  to  accompany  such  an  expedition  as  "a 
private  man  ...  the  charge  of  the  shipp,  .  .  .  the  master, 
and  all  other  officers"  being  appointed  by  others  than  by 
himself ;  and  added,  "  if  I  do  but  perswade  a  contrary  course 
to  cast  me  into  the  sea."    The  only  stipulation  he  made  was, 
"  that  uppon  the  land  they  may  be  directed  by  me,  or  by  any 
joynt  commissioners."     He  further  offered  to  pay  one-third, 
or,  under  certain  circumstances,  the  whole  of  the  cost.^     He 
made  a  similar  offer  and  suggestions  in  a  letter  to  Viscount 
Haddington  in  1610  (?),  with  tliis  addition,  "  when  God  shall 
permit  us  to  arrive,  If  I  bringe  them  not  to  a  mountaine 
(nire  a  navigable  river)  covered  with  gold  and  silver  care, 
let  the  comander  have  commissione  to  cut  off  my  head 
ther."2    Then  in  IGll,  or  the  year  following,  in  a  communi- 
cation to  the  Lords  of  the  Council,  he  reminded  them  of  their 
** offer  to  be  att  the  charge  to  transport  Keemish  into  Guyana"; 
and  if  he  "  faile  to  bringe  into  England  halfe  a  tunne  ....  of 
that  slate  gold  ore  whereof  I  gave  a  sample  to  my  Lord 
Knevett,"  then  all  the  cost  to  be  borne  by  him;  "yett  that 
your  Lonhhipps  iimy  he  satisfied  of  th^  truth  I  am  conteiiteil 
to  adventure  all  I  have,  but  my  reputacion,  upon  Keemishe's 
menwi-y.''^    The  importance  of  this  letter  (of  which  a  full 
transcript  will  be  found  in  Appendix  C)  cannot  be  over- 
rated.    Of  it  Schomburgk  remarks,  "We  cannot  help  express- 
ing our  astonishment  that  such  a  strong  case  for  his  defence 
should  have  been  overlooked   by  his   biographers"  (167). 
Neither  Oldys  nor  Gardiner  notices  it;  Stebbing  (290-1,  318) 
draws  attention  to  its  value ;  but  Spedding,  although  alluding 
to  it,  does  not  grasp  its  importance  (343-4, 433).    It  is  prob- 
able that  much  correspondence  on  this  subject  has  been 
lost.     For  example,  in  his  letter  of  1611,  lUlegh  alludes  to 
his  "  former  "  one  to  the  Lords  of  the  Council ;  and  in  the  one 
to  Winwood  of  1615  or  1616,*  he  notes  having  sent  "letters 
....  both  to  his  Majestic  and  to  the  Treasurer  Cecill.'*     Of 
these  the  former  is  unknown,  and  the  latter  was  apparently 
of  later  date  than  the  one  of  1607.     Moreover,  Sir  Joseph 
Jekyll,  Master  of  the  Ilolls,  once  possessed  in  his  private 
library  a  MS.  volume,  described  as  containing  "several  letters 
wrote  by  Sir  Walter  Kaleigh  in  relation  to  Guiana,  subscribed 
by  his  own  hand*';  which  have,  thus  far,  not  been  traced.^ 
All   the  correspondence  that  has  been  preserved  proves 

1  E<lwards,  II,  389-91.  ^  /^^y^^  392.4. 

'  Ibid.,  337-9.      Italics  not  in  original. 

*  Edwards,  II,  339-41.  *»  Ibid.,  II,  337. 


RALEGHANA.  433 

that  up  to  the  period  of  the  last  dated  letter  (1611  or  1612) 
the  mine,  and  nothing  else  than  the  mine  was  alluded  to,  or 
even  hinted  at,  in  any  conversation,  or  in  any  letter  written 
by  or  concerning  Ealegh,  as  to  his  suggested  visit  to  Guiana 
for  the  second  time. 

Before  proceeding  further,  it  may  be  as  well  to  complete 
the  later  history  of  the  mining  project.  After  the  return  of 
lialegh  a  Privy  Council  meeting  was  held  in  August,  at 
which  Ealegh  was  examined.  Among  the  "  Impostures,"  the 
Attorney-General  thus  accused  him  :  "  Hee  never  intended  a 
mine.  .  .  .  Hee  gave  no  order  to  seake  the  mine."  To  this 
lialegh  replied,  "  he  intended  a  mine,  and  trusted  Captain 
Kemish,  in  whom  also  they  confided,  to  find  the  mine,  and 
the  foi'ce  hee  sent  was  not  to  invade  them  of  S^-  Tliamas,  but  to 
kcape  betwene  them  and  the  mine,  least  the  Spaniards  should 
interrupt  them  in  theire  search  and  tvorkJ*^  The  portion 
shown  in  italics  formed  a  part  of  Ralegh's  instructions  to 
Keymis.  ( Vide  Appendix  B.)  On  this  point  the  evidence 
that  had  been  preserved  of  two  witnesses  is  printed  in 
Spedding's  work  (none  of  Ralegh's  replies  are  known),  from 
which  these  entries  are  transcribed.  Each  witness  was 
asked  this  question :  "  Whether  in  his  opinion  Sir  W,  Ralegh 
did  really  intend  a  mine,  or  did  pretend  it  only  to  abuse  the 
State  and  to  draw  followers'* 

W.  Herbert  "saith  that  ...  Sir  W.  Ralegh  was  verily 
persuaded  there  was  a  mine,  but  not  of  his  own  sight,  but 
upon  the  credit  which  the  said  Sir  Walter  gave  to  Keymis ; 
for  that  Keymis  told  this  Exam*«  that  Sir  W.  Ralegh  was 
never  at  the  mine." 

Captain  R.  North  **  saith  that  for  his  part  he  thinketh  that 
Sir  W.  Ralegh  did  not  believe  there  was  any ;  and  being 
asked  the  grounds  of  his  so  conceiving,  he  saith  that  it  was 
partly  out  of  Keymis  his  speeches  and  behaviour,  who  until 
such  time  as  the  Town  was  taken,  was  confident,  and  made 
no  doubt  in  all  his  speeches  of  finding  the  mine."  Further, 
that  "many  others  were  in  doubt"  as  to  the  existence  of  a 
mine.  If  "others"  could  so  testify,  there  is  no  record  of 
their  examination  on  this  important  point  (416-19). 

It  is  singular  that  neither  of  these  persons  replied  to  the 
latter  part  of  the  question,  marked  in  italics.  Captain  Parker, 
in  a  letter  dated  22  March,  1617-18,  makes  many  severe 
reflections  on  the  action  of  Keymis.  All  three  witnesses 
were  in  the  boat  expedition. 

1  *'Camd.  Misc.,"  9-12. 
VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  E 


434  RALBGHANA. 

The  examination  of  the  first  two  took  place  in  September, 
but  the  King  had  been  actively  engaged  in  his  investigations 
nearly  two  months  earlier,  for  on  22  June  (about  the  time 
of  Ralegh's  return),  according  to  Gardiner,  "  James  told  him 
(Gondomar)  that  he  had  been  for  two  hours  examining 
witnesses  who  had  been  inclined  to  lay  the  blame  on  Keymis, 
but  that  he  had  told  them  that  lialeigh  was  responsible  for 
all  that  had  been  done,  as  Keymis  had  acted  under  his 
orders"  (III,  133).  But  he  did  not  tell  him  that  Keymis  had 
acted  contrary  to  Ealegh's  instructions. 

To  his  dying  hour  Ralegh  never  faltered  in  his  great 
belief  in  the  existence  of  a  gold  mine  in  Guiana ;  a  belief 
that  was  fully  shared  by  Keymis.  It  was  based  on  his 
personal  examination  of  the  district;  on  the  specimens  of 
gold  ore  which  he  had  gathered  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Caroni  River;  on  the  reports  of  the  inhabitants;  on  the 
testimony  of  Keymis,  and  on  the  information  he  had  obtained 
from  Berreo.  He  had,  therefore,  good  grounds  for  feeling 
convinced  he  would  be  able  to  enrich  his  country,  his 
companions,  and  himself. 

He  made  this  entry  in  his  second  testamentary  note: 
"  My  true  intent  was  to  goe  to  a  Mine  of  Gold  in  Guiana. 
Itt  was  not  fained,  but  is  true  that  such  a  Mine  there  is, 
within  three  miles  of  St.  Tome  '*  ^ ;  followed  up  by  these  words 
on  the  scafifold :  "  I  protest  it  was  my  full  intent,  and  for 
gold,  for  gold  for  the  benefit  of  his  Majesty,  and  my  selfe, 
and  of  those  that  ventured,  and  went  with  me,  with  the  rest 
of  my  countreymen :  But  he  that  knew  the  head  of  the  myne 
would  not  discover  it,  when  he  saw  my  Sonne  was  slaine,  but 
made  away  himselfe."  ^  Finally  the  Caroni  gold  mine  where 
Ralegh  picked  up  his  specimens  has  been  identified  by  Dr. 
C.  Le  Neve  Foster  in  modern  days,  and  been  described  by 
him.     (  Vide  Appendix  A.) 

The  circumstances  under  which  he  was  released  from  the 
Tower,  and  the  preparations  for  his  voyage,  hindered  as  they 
were  by  Gondomar,  have  already  been  related.  The  fleet 
sailed  from  the  Thames  about  the  commencement  of  April, 
1617,  and  after  considerable  delays  finally  left  Cork  on  19 
August.  Before  tracing  its  subsequent  history  it  is  neces- 
sary to  draw  attention  to  some  important  circumstances, 
which  belong  to  the  period  before  Ralegh  left  the  Thames. 

I.  The  first  is  thus  advanced  by  Spedding : — 

*'  If  Ralegh  himself  had  been  asked  .  .  .  what  he  would  do  if 

1  Edwards,  II,  496.  «  "Arraignment,'*  32. 


RALE6HAKA.  485 

when  he  came  to  the  mine  he  found  a  Spanish  settlement  pre- 
pared to  resist  him,  what  answer  could  he  have  given  ?  .  .  .  And 
it  is  possible  that  some  such  questions  were  put  to  him  before  he 
went"  (346). 

Had  such  inquiries  been  made  they  would  assuredly  have 
beeu  noticed  in  the  *'  Declaration."  That  they  were  never 
asked  is  certain;  and  it  is  equally  certain  they  ought  to 
have  been.     In  his  "  Apologie  "  Ralegh  remarks : — 

"  If  the  Ambassadour  had  protested  to  his  Majesty  that  my  going 
to  Guiana  before  I  went  would  be  a  breach  of  the  peace,  I  am 
perswaded  that  his  Majesty  if  he  had  not  bin  resolved  that  Guiana 
had  been  his  would  have  stayed  me  "  (53). 

According  to  Gardiner,  James  "  told  Sarmiento  [Gondo- 
mar]  that  if  he  stopped  the  expedition  now,  the  whole 
nation  would  cry  out  against  him."  And  in  a  foot-note, 
*'  That  James  was  influenced  by  popular  clamour  is  plainly 
stated  in  the  King  s  *  Declaration,'  and  receives  full  confirma- 
tion from  Sarmiento's  despatches"  (III,  56). 

Here  is  the  paragraph  in  the  "  Declaration  "  referred  to : — 

'*  Sir  W.  Raleigh  had  so  inchanted  the  world,  with  his  confident 
asseueration  of  that  which  euery  man  was  willing  to  beleeue,  as 
his  Maiesties  honour  was  in  a  manner  ingaged,  not  to  deny  vnto 
his  people  the  aduenture  and  hope  of  so  great  Riches,  to  bee 
sought  and  atchieued,"  etc.  (4). 

When  did  James  ever  yield  to  public  clamour  ?  Did  he 
do  so  with  respect  to  the  subject  of  the  Spanish  marriage  ? 
Of  this  Hallam  remarked,  "  If  the  king  had  not  systematic- 
ally disregarded  the  public  wishes,  he  could  never  have  set 
his  heart  on  this  impolitic  match"  (I,  355).  Again,  "James 
little  heeded  the  popular  voice"  (I,  299.)  There  is  ample 
reason  to  believe  that  he  made  no  such  attempt,  and,  more- 
over, had  no  desire  to  prevent  Kal^h  from  proceeding  on 
his  voyage,  and  that  in  so  doing  he  was  influenced  solely  by 
mercenary  motives.  That  he  could  have  stopped  the  ex- 
pedition, and  would  have  done  so,  on  being  "  told  .  .  .  that 
euery  one  of  the  principals  that  were  in  the  voyage,  had 
put  in  security  one  for  another,  which  if  his  Maiestie  had 
knowen  in  tivxCy  hee  would  neicer  haue  accepted  of^'  is  afiirmed 
in  the  "Declaration"  (26).  Of  this  James  was  informed 
before  the  fleet  sailed :  the  words  are  "  till  they  were  vpon 
their  parting,"  and  confirm  the  statement  that  he  had  no 
intention  of  yielding  to  Gondomar's  urgent  wish  to  stop 
the  expedition.    Had  Ralegh  been  successful  in  bis  quest 

2s2 


436  RALEGHANA. 

for  gold,  James  would  have  been  independent  of  Spain  with 
respect  to  the  payment  of  his  debts. 

II.  James  was  fully  aware  from  many  sources  of  informa- 
tion (especially  from  Gondomar)  of  the  mine  on  the  Orinoco, 
and  of  the  Spanish  settlement  there.  Both  he  and  the 
Council  must  have  been  well  acquainted  with  the  "  Discoverie 
of  Guiana" ;  with  Keymis's  voyage  in  1596 ;  and  with  Bal^h's 
letters  on  the  subject,  of  1607,  1610,  and  1611  (the  last- 
named,  printed  in  Appendix  C,  mentions  "  St.  Thome,  where 
the  Spaniards  inhabite.")  ^  Oldys  points  out  that  the  King 
"  knew  where  Kalegh  was  going,  and  no  where  declines  his 
knowledge  that  the  Spaniards  were  settled  there  "  (479-80). 
Ealegh  owned  that  though  he  had  informed  James  of  his 
intention  to  land  in  Guiana,  he  had  not  acquainted  him  that 
the  Spaniards  had  any  footing  there  (letter  to  Lord  Carew 
in  Edwards,  II,  375-6).  But  he  had  already  given  him  full 
information  on  the  objects,  etc.,  of  the  expedition.  Writing 
from  St.  Christopher's  to  Winwood  on  21  March,  1618  (he 
was  unaware  of  Win  wood's  death  on  27  October,  1617),  he 
states : — 

"  It  pleased  his  Majestie  to  value  us  at  so  little,  as  to  commaund 
me,  upon  my  allegeance,  to  sett  downe  under  my  hand  the  countrey, 
and  the  very  river  by  which  I  was  to  enter  it ;  to  set  down  the 
number  of  my  men,  and  burden  of  my  ships ;  with  what  ordnance 
every  ship  caryed  which  being  made  knowne  to  the  Spanish 
ambassador,  and  by  him,  in  post,  sent  to  the  King  of  Spain,  a 
despatch  was  made  by  him  and  his  letters  sent  from  Madrill, 
before  my  departure  out  of  the  Thames ;  for  his  first  letter,  sent 
by  a  bark  of  advice,  was  dated  the  19th  of  March,  1617,  at 
Madrill;  which  letter  I  have  here  enclosed  sent  your  Honour." ^ 

A  list  and  survey  of  Ealegh's  ships  "taken  by  certaine 
Gentlemen  appointed  thereunto  by  the  Eight  Honourable 
Charles  Earle  of  Nottingham,  Lord  high  Admirall  of  England, 
the  15th  of  March  1616-17,"  first  printed  in  "Newes  of  Sir 
Walter  Eauleigh"  (1618),  is  quoted  in  full  in  Schomburgk's 
work,  171-2. 

Caiiew  informed  Howell  that  James  had  promised  "  upon 
the  word  of  a  king  to  keep  it  secret "  (II,  229).  After  reading 
the  foregoing  account  it  is  difficult  to  agree  with  Gardiner 
that  "  there  was  nothing  in  the  papers  placed  in  Gondomar's 
hands  which  was  not  perfectly  known  to  him  already  " ; 

1  Cf.  Stebbing,  338  ;  Schomburgk,  167. 

2  Kd wards,  fl,  353-4,  where  three  others  are  described  ;  referred  to  in 
Keyniis^s letter  to  Ralegh  of  S  January,  1(517-18 ;  and  in  the  latter'a  **  Aiwlogie,'* 
34,  41 ;  also  in  letter  to  Lady  Kalegh  on  22  March,  1618,  Edwards,  II,  362. 


RALEGHANA.  437 

yet  the  Spanish  Ambassador  affirmed  he  was  ignorant  of 
the  destination  of  the  expedition,  and  professed  to  be  unaware 
of  it  until  after  it  had  left  the  Thames  three  months; 
whereas  Ralegh  "had  been  reiterating  for  the  last  twelve 
months"  that  it  was  bound  for  a  mine  on  the  Orinoco 
(III,  56-7).  Gondomar's  ignorance  was  certainly  diplomatic,^ 
as  he  knew  from  the  very  commencement  of  everything 
relating  to  Kalegh,  and  his  intended  voyage,  and  made  it  his 
especial  business  to  obtain  as  much  information  about  him 
as  possible,  which  was  duly  forwarded  to  Spain.  The  phrase 
"  no  reliance  can  be  placed  on  his  mere  word,"  applied  by 
Gardiner  to  Ralegh,  was  certainly  more  strictly  applicable  to 
Gondomar.  While  some  authorities  deem  these  proceedings 
of  James  and  of  Gondomar  to  have  been  acts  of  treachery, 
they  are  not  so  considered  by  Gardiner,  Spedding,  and 
Macvey  Napier.  It  need  scarcely  be  said  that  the 
"Declaration"  does  not  allude  to  the  matter.  Oldys  tersely 
sums  up  the  King's  action  thus :  "  If  James  knew,  and  it  is 
certain  that  he  did  know,  of  the  place  where  Ralegh  was  to 
work  a  mine ;  also  that  he  affirmed  he  knew  it  belonged  to 
the  Spaniards,  then  he  issued  a  commission  to  plunder 
the  territories  of  a  King  with  whom  he  was  at  peace" 
(547). 

III.  The  "  Declaration  "  records  Ralegh's  expressed  promise 
and  intention  solely  to  visit  the  Guiana  gold  mines;  and 
that  he  "neuer  meant  or  would  commit  any  outrages,  or 
spoils  vpon  the  King  of  Spaines  subiects  "  (6,  7).  And  when 
he  called  at  Lancerato,  on  his  way,  he  informed  the  Governor 
there  he  "had  no  purpose  to  invade  any  of  the  Spanish 
Kings  territories  having  received  from  the  King  .  .  . 
express  commandment  to  the  contrary."  *  Ralegh  expressed 
no  desire  to  depart  from  this  promise;^  at  .the  same  time  it 
must  be  remembered,  as  the  result  of  his  first  voyage  there 
in  1595,  he  claimed  to  have  taken  possession  of  it  for 
England. 

"The  countrey  is  already  discouered,  many  nations  won  to  her 
Maiesties  loue  &  obediece,  Si  those  Spaniards  which  haue  latest 
and  longest  labored  about  the  conquest,  beaten  out,  discouraged 
and  disgraced,  which  among  these  nations  were  thought  to  bo 
inuincible."  * 

1  Cf.  ••Apologie,"49. 

2  Ralegh's  ''Journal  of  his  Voyage,"  in  Cottoa  MSS.,  Titus,  bk.  viii. 
fol.  153.     Quoted  by  Schomburgk,  180. 

3  Cf.  **Apologie,»*49. 

*  "Disc,  of  Guiana,"  93. 


438  RAI.EQHANA. 

A  letter  from  him  to  Lord  Carew  of  21  June,  1618, 
contains  this  statement : — 

'*  That  Guiana  he  Spanish  territory  can  never  he  acknowledged, 
for  I  myself  took  possession  of  it  for  the  Queen  of  England,  by 
virtue  of  a  cession  of  all  the  native  chiefs  of  the  country.  His 
Majesty  knows  this  to  he  true,  as  is  proved  hy  the  conoeasion 
granted  hy  him  under  the  great  seal  of  England  to  Harcourt."  ^ 

Again,  in  his  "  Apologie  "  we  find  the  following : — 

"  These  parts  hordering  the  Eiver  Orrenoque,  and  to  the  South 
as  farre  as  the  Amazones  doth  hy  the  Law  of  Nations  belong  to 
the  Crowne  of  England,  as  his  Majestie  was  well  resolved  when  I 
prepared  to  goe  thither,  otherwise  his  Majesty  would  not  have 
given  once  leave  to  have  landed  there."  * 

"  The  Guianians  before  their  planting,  they  did  willingly  resigne 
all  that  territory  to  her  Majesty,  who  by  me  promised  to  receiye 
them,  and  defend  them  against  the  Spaniards ;  and  though  I  were 
a  Prisoner  for  this  last  Fourteene  years,  yet  I  was  at  the  charge 
every  yeare,  or  every  second  yeare,  to  send  unto  them  to  keepe 
them  in  hope  of  being  relieved  "  (52). 

And  in  the  report  of  Keymis,  after  his  voyage  in  1596,  he 
remarks :  "  It  hath  pleased  God  of  his  infinite  goodnesse,  in 
his  will  and  purpose  to  appoint  and  reserve  this  empire  for 
vs."^  Then  in  1604  Charles  Leigh  sailed  to  Guiana,  "  where 
he  had  beene  in  a  former  voyage,"  and  took  possession  of  the 
country  on  the  day  he  landed,  "  For  the  prosecuting  of  this 
voyage,  in  such  sort  as  that  we  be  not  preuented  by  the 
Spaniard  nor  any  other  nation."  *  He  died  in  1605,  and  in 
1609  Robert  Harcourt  succeeded  him,  his  commission  under 
the  great  seal  bearing  date  13  February,  1609,  by  which  he 
was  granted  **all  that  parte  of  Guiana  or  continente  of 
America  lyinge  betweene  the  Eyver  of  Amazones  and  the 
Ey ver  of  Dessequebe  (Essequibo).'*  ^ 

In  the  account  of  his  voyage  he  mentions  that  if  "the 
Spaniards  disturb  our  plantation  and  endanger  the  lives  of 
those  that  shall  make  the  first  settlement  there,"  which  in 
the  writer's  opinion  could  only  be  effected  "  by  a  preparation 
out  of  Spain  itself " ;  then  such  attempt  is  to  be  frustrated 
either  by  a  fort,  or  by  "  setting  ourselves  above  two  or  three 

*  Quoted  by  M.  Hume,  387,  from  MS. 

'  49.  Rei)€ated  in  his  letter  to  Lord  Carew  printed  in  Edwards'  work, 
II.  376. 

»  Hakluyt's  "Voyages,"  XV,  98  (1890). 

*  Purchas.  "Pilgrims,"  IV,  1259-64. 

»  "S.  P.  James,  Dom.,"  LXXIV,  198.  Copy  of  grant  of  1609,  tranjcribed 
in  that  of  1618. 


RALEGHANA.  439 

of  the  overfalls  of  the  rivers  "  (175).  Full  power  is  granted 
in  the  above  commission  for  the  erection  of  "forts,"  etc, 
against  all  intruders. 

At  page  196  he  gives  particulars  of  the  manner  in  which 
he  took  possession  "of  a  part,  in  the  name  of  the  whole 
continent  of  Guiana,  lying  betwixt  the  rivers  of  Amazones 
and  Oroonoko,  not  being  actually  possessed  and  inhabited  by 
any  other  Christian  Prince  or  state."  The  claim  advanced 
in  the  last  paragraph  quoted  is  remarkable,  as  it  includes  all 
the  territory  between  the  rivers  Amazon  and  Orinoco, 
whereas  the  commission  limits  it  eastward  by  the  boundary 
of  the  Essequibo  River,  which  discharges  itself  into  the  sea 
far  to  the  south  of  the  latter  one. 

Up  to  this  period  Spain  seems  to  have  offered  no  impedi- 
ment to  foreigners  to  visit  or  even  to  colonize  those  parts  of 
South  America  which  had  been  claimed  by  it  since  the 
Pope  had  conferred  it  upon  that  country  in  1493 ;  but  with 
the  advent  of  Gondomar  as  the  Spanish  Ambassador  in 
1613  all  this  was  changed,  so  far  as  England  was  concerned. 

In  1619  James  granted  letters  patent  under  the  great  seal 
to  Eoger  North  (one  of  Ralegh's  old  captains)  to  enable  him 
**to  establish  the  King's  right  to  the  coast  and  country 
adjoining  the  Amazon  river,"  apparently  the  same  portion  as 
that  which  had  been  occupied  by  Harcourt.  This  met  with 
the  "determined  opposition  of  Gondomar,"  who,  beyond 
delaying  the  expedition  from  starting,  was  not  successful, 
as  North,  apart  from  "a  message  of  encouragement  from  the 
King,"  had  "  obtained  from  Buckingham  one  of  the  passports 
which  as  lord  high  admiral  it  was  his  privilege  to  seir*; 
and  he  sailed  from  Plymouth  in  May,  1620.  But  before  the 
end  of  the  month,  the  King  issued  a  proclamation  against 
him,  and  on  returning  he  was  imprisoned,  and  his  ship  and 
its  contents  were  confiscated.  Gondomar  "assailed  the 
King  with  bitter  remonstrance,"  and  James  laid  the 
blame  on  Buckingham.^  In  1626  or  1627  Gondomar  again 
opposed  North,  but  on  this  occasion  he  was  unsuccessful, 
when  North  transported  to  Guiana  "a  hundred  English 
settlers."  2 

Gondomar's  action  in  claiming  Guiana  (and,  in  fact,  the 
whole  of  the  South  American  continent)  was  in  striking 
contrast  to  the  wavering  conduct  of  the  King  throughout 
the  proceedings  with  North.  The  former  "spared  neither 
solicitation  nor  importunitie  to  stop  y*  voyc^e,  insomuch  as 

1  «*  D.  N.  B.,"  iuh  **  North,  Roger." 
>  "  D.  N.  B.,"  iub  «*  Harcourt,  Robert." 


440  RALEGHANA. 

he  came  to  y®  Counsel  Table  ^  for  this  only  busines,  and  did 
there  boldly  and  confidently  aflfirme  that  his  Master  had  y« 
actuall  and  present  possession  of  these  countries,  but  he 
would  not  hear  our  witnesse  to  y®  contrary."  ^  But  like 
weak  persons,  James  could  insist  at  times  on  having  liis  own 
way,  despite  either  the  cajolery  or  the  bullying  of  the 
Spanish  Ambassador,  as  in  the  instances  of  Kalegh's  expedi- 
tion, and  of  his  sanction  to  North's  application  in  1626—7. 

To  the  end  of  Elizabeth's  reign,  the  claim  of  Spain  to  the 
exclusive  possession  of  the  South  American  continent  was 
disregarded  by  Englishmen,  who  refused  to  accept  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Papal  Bull  of  1493,  by  which  "the  Pope  as 
Vicar  of  Christ  was  held  to  have  authority  to  dispose  of 
lands  inhabited  by  the  heathen."^  They  believed  them- 
selves to  have  as  much  right  to  territory  there  as  had  the 
King  of  Spain.  In  taking  possession  of  Guiana  in  1595 
Ealegh  "could  not  comprehend  by  what  right  they  (the 
Spaniards)  claimed  monopoly  of  its  sovereignty  for  theni- 
.selves  against  the  rest  of  Europe."  * 

Oldys  was  of  opinion  that  the  King  "waived  his  right  to 
Guiana,  at  least  till  Balegh  was  put  to  death  (for  then  he 
assumed  it  a^ain,  by  the  power  he  gave  to  another  expedi- 
tion [North's]  to  those  parts,  however  irresolutely,  according 
to  custom,  he  revoked  it)  "  (546-7). 

The  forcible  remark  of  Stebbing  that  "Unless  the  King's 
title  to  Guiana  were  clear,  his  [Kalegh's]  entrance  for  any 
purpose  could  not  have  been  sanctioned"  (351)  is  patent 
enough.  If  that  country  belonged  to  Spain,  clearly  Ealegh 
had  no  right  to  visit  it  for  mining  purposes  without  the 
knowledge  and  sanction  of  the  Spanish  King ;  whereas  if  it 
did  not,  and  as  Ralegh  claimed  it  was  English  territory, 
then  he  had  full  liberty  with  the  permission  of  James  to 
enter  that  country  for  the  purpose  named. 

The  onus  and  responsibility  of    Ralegh's  voyage   rested 
entirely  on  the  head  of  James,  who  could  have  stopped  the 
'expedition  had  he  cared  to  do  so,  and  as  he  ought  to  have 
done. 

After  the  destruction  of  St.  Thomas  was  known,  Gondo- 
mar  was  the  more  determined  to  effect  Ralegh's  condemna- 
tion, in  which   he  met  with  complete  success;  partly  by 

^  Gondomar  was  a  member  of  the  Privy  Council.     The  very  thought  of 
such  a  tiling  being  possible  would  havo  made  Queen  Elizabeth's  blood  boil. 
«  **D.  N.  B.,"  sub  "North,  Roger." 
»  Creighton,  **  Annals  of  the  Papacy,"  IV,  196. 
*  Stebbing,  110. 


RALKGHANA.  441 

acting  on  the  fears  of  the  vacillating  King  in  threatening  a 
war  with  Spain  unless  the  outrage  was  severely  punished, 
and  partly  by  working  on  his  cupidity  with  respect  to  the 
projected  Spanish  marriage.  In  this  manner,  notes  M.  Hume, 
•'  the  Spaniards  had  gained  their  point;  the  King  of  England 
had  admitted  that  all  South  America  was  sacred  to  them  " 
(419).  The  same  author  attributes  the  sacrifice  of  Ralegh 
not  to  any  injuries  he  may  have  committed  in  Guiana,  "  but 
to  serve  as  an  object  lesson  to  England  that  all  South 
America,  at  least,  belonged  to  Spain*'  (xi,  xii).  Probably 
enough  this  was  Gondomar's  idea.  It  is,  however,  singular 
that  the  asserted  right  of  Spain  to  Guiana  was  so  far  ignored 
by  the  King  and  Council  as  to  receive  no  mention  in  the 
"Declaration,"  or  in  the  patent  under  which  Kalegh  was 
authorized  "to  vndertake  a  voyage  by  Sea  and  shipping, 
vnto  the  South  parts  of  America,  or  elswhere  within 
America  "  (9).  Moreover,  even  in  directing  the  execution  of 
lialegh,  all  reference  to  the  Spanish  claim  was  carefully 
avoided.  This  is  clearly  shown  in  the  following  quotation 
from  the  earliest  separate  biography  of  Sir  Walter,  by 
J.  Shirley,  published  in  1677  :— 

"  King  James  was  willing  to  sacrifice  the  Life  of  Sir  Walter  to 
the  Advancement  of  Peace  with  Spain,  but  not  upon  such 
Grounds  as  the  Ambassadour  had  design'd :  for  he  desir'd  a 
Judgment  upon  the  pretended  Breach  of  Peace,  that  by  this 
Occasion  he  might  slily  gain  from  the  English  an  Acknowledgment 
of  his  Master's  Eight  in  those  Places,  and  hereafter  both  stop 
their  Mouthes,  and  quench  their  Heat  and  Valour.  Hence  upon 
his  old  Condemnation  ...  he  was  sentenced**  (216-17). 

Doubt  as  to  the  validity  of  the  Spanish  claim  is  even 
noted  by  Gardiner : — 

"  It  was,  indeed,  difficult  to  say  where  the  lands  of  the  king  of 
Spain  began  or  ended,  but  James  left  the  burden  of  proving  this 
to  Raleigh."  ^  The  King  "left  the  whole  responsibility  to  Ralegh, who 
was  given  to  understand  that,  if  he  meddled  with  any  part  of  the 
king  of  Spain's  dominions,  he  would  answer  for  it  with  his  head. 
Since  it  was  precisely  the  extent  of  those  dominions  that  was  in 
dispute,  this  practically  meant  that  if  Ralegh  brought  back  the 
assurance  of  large  quantities  of  gold  for  James,  the  site  of  the 
mine  would  be  held  at  Whitehall  to  be  outside  the  limits  of 
Spanish  territory."  ^ 

In  his  great  work  on  the  history  of  England,  Gardiner 
scarcely  alludes  to  this  matter.     In  that  of  1892,  he  intro- 

»  "Stud.  Hist  of  Eng.,"  489.         '     "  **Camb.  Mod.  Hiat,"  562. 


442  RAL1BGHAKA. 

duces  it  without  any  undue  prominence;  bnt  in  Uie  third 
above  quoted  be  is  remarkably  emphatic  on  the  probable 
action  of  the  King,  that  had  Ealegh  been  successful  in  his 
quest,  he,  James,  would  have  claimed  the  territory  for 
England.  This  volume  of  1904  contains  some  of  Gardiner's 
latest  writings,  and  is  noteworthy  for  his  criticisms  of 
Balegh  being  more  just  than  in  his  earliest  work.  In  it  he 
changed  the  name  of  "  Raleigh  "  to  "  Ralegh." 

IV.  According  to  the  **  Declaration,"  Gondomar  offered 

"  That  if  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  would  goe  with  one  or  two  ships  onelj 
to  seeke  the  said  Mine,  that  hee  would  mooue  the  King  of  Spaine 
to  send  two  or  three  ships  with  him  backe  againe  for  his  safe 
conuoy  hither  with  all  his  gold;  And  the  said  Ambassadours 
person  to  remaine  here  in  pledge  for  the  King  his  Master  his 
performance  thereof.  But  such  were  the  constant  faire  offers 
of  the  saide  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  specious  promises,  as  his 
Maiestie  in  the  end  reiected  the  importunate  Suit  of  the  said 
Spanish  Ambassadour  for  his  stay,  and  resolued  to  let  him  goe" 
(6,  7). 

This  offer  Ralegh  did  not  accept. 

"  What  reason  [he  remarked]  had  I  to  goo  unarmed  npon  the 
Ambassadours  promises,  whose  words  and  thoughts  that  they  were 
one,  it  hath  wel  appeared  since  then,  as  well  by  the  forces  which 
he  perswaded  his  Master  to  send  to  Guiana  to  encounter  me,  and 
cut  me  off  there ;  as  by  his  persecuting  of  me  since  my  returne."  ^ 

"James  .  .  .  knew  perfectly  well  that  the  Spaniards 
would  fall  upon  Raleigh  wherever  they  could  find  him," 
declares  Gardiner  (III,  55),  and  this  was  certainly  the 
prevailing  opinion;  e.g.  Lord  Carew,  writing  to  Sir  T.  Roe 
on  18  January,  1617,  in  alluding  to  Ralegh  having  set  sail 
for  South  America,  notes,  "The  Spaniards  will  lie  in  wait 
for  him,  but  he  will  have  a  good  fleet  of  500  men,  and  fears 
nothing.*' 2 

The  following  testimony  recorded  by  M.  Hume  is  sufiBcient 
to  prove  the  bitter  feeling  of  the  Spaniards  against  Ralegh. 
In  a  letter  from  Gondomar  to  the  King  of  Spain,  he  writes : — 

"  Pray  send  the  fleet  to  punish  this  pirate.  Every  man  caught 
should  at  once  be  killed,  except  Ralegh  and  the  officers,  who 
should  be  brought  to  Seville,  and  executed  in  the  Plaza  the  next 
day.    It  is  the  only  way  to  treat  such  pirates  and  disturbers  "  (333). 

*  **Apologie,"  51. 

«  "  Cal.  8.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  XC,  24. 


RALIGHANA.  443 

It  is  fairly  evident  that  if  Ealegh  had  accepted  Gondomar's 
offer,  some  little  difficulty  would  have  arisen  to  prevent  his 
return. 

We  now  continue  the  subsequent  history  of  Ralegh's 
voyage.  The  "Orders"  issued  to  the  officers,  and  dated 
Plymouth,  3  May,  1617,  have  often,  remarks  Gardiner, "  been 
quoted  as  a  model  of  forethought  and  perspicuity.  They 
show  his  anxiety  not  to  fight  unless  attacked  by  the 
Spaniards,  at  least  till  he  reached  the  Orinoco**  (III,  113). 
Was  there  any  reason  for  inserting  the  innuendo  marked  in 
italics?  The  "Orders"  are  printed  at  length  in  "Works," 
VIII,  682-8  (1829).  He  arrived  off  the  coast  of  Guiana 
in  November,  and  the  boat  journey  started  on  10  December, 
under  the  command  of  Keymis,  to  whom  Ealegh  had  given 
special  instructions  what  course  to  pursue  on  arriving  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  mine,  and  are  so  brief  and  concise  as  to 
suggest  they  were  inserted  in  his  work  in  abstract  foim 
only.     Attention  is  now  drawn  to  these  passages  in  it: — 

"  If  you  find  it  [the  mine]  Royall,  and  the  Spaniards  begin  to 
Warre  upon  you,  then  let  the  Serjeant  Major  repell  them,  if  it 
be  in  his  power,  and  drive  them  as  far  as  he  can.  .  .  .  If  .  .  . 
without  manifest  Perill  .  .  .  you  cannot  pass  toward  the  Myne, 
then  be  well  advised  how  you  land.  ...  I  would  not  for  all 
the  world  receive  a  blow  from  the  Spaniards  to  the  dishonour  of 
our  Nation"  ("Apologia,"  27-8). 

Gardiner  asserts  that  Ealegh 

"  Had  sent  his  men  up  the  Orinoco  without  any  instructions  which 
might  lead  them  to  suppose  that  he  thought  the  fulfilment  of  his 
promise  worth  a  moment's  consideration"  (III,  141), 

Surely,  on  all  the  known  evidence,  Gardiner  was  not 
warranted  in  making  such  a  reflection  on  Ealegh;  and  it 
is  hardly  a  matter  of  wonder  that  in  1892  he  softened  the 
accusation  in  this  modified  paragraph :  "  Ealeigh  .  .  .  sent 
his  men  up  the  river,  without  distinct  orders  to  avoid 
fighting."! 

Although  he  regarded  the  Spaniards  as  the  enemies  of  his 
country,  Ilalegh  endeavoured  to  avoid  any  conflict  with 
them  during  his  real,  as  also  in  his  projected,  voyages  to 
Guiana.  In  his  letter  of  1607  he  wrote:  "We  will  only 
trade  with  the  Indiens,  and  see  none  of  that  [Spanish] 
nation— except  they  assail  us."*    And  in  that  of  1611  he 

'  ''Stud.  Hist  of  Eng.,''  489.  «  Edwards,  II,  89U 


444  RALEGHANA. 

stated  he  did  not  desire  '*  to  begiune  any  quarrell  with  them 
[the  Spaniards],  except  themselves  shall  beginne  the  warra"^ 
Tlie  boats  under  the  command  of  Keymis  continued  their 
journey  up  the  river  for  twenty-three  days.  What  followed 
is  thus  related  by  Ralegh : — 

"They  agreed  to  land  and  encamp  between  the  Mine  and  the 
Towne,  which  they  did  not  suspect  to  be  so  neer  them  as  it  was, 
and  meaning  to  rest  themselves  on  the  Rivers  side  till  the  next 
day,  they  were  in  the  night  set  upon  and  charged  by  the  Spaniards, 
which  being  unlooked-for,  the  Common  sort  of  them  were  so 
amazed,  as  had  not  the  Captaines  and  some  other  valiant  Gentle- 
men made  a  head  and  encouraged  the  rest,  they  had  all  been 
broken  and  cut  to  pieces."  ^ 

This  account,  according  to  Edwards, 

"of  the  treachery  which  ensured  a  conflict  with  the  Spaniards 
before  any  attempt  could  be  made  upon  the  Mine  is  fully  and 
expressly  confirmed  by  the  Spanish  historian,  Pedro  Simon'* 
(I,  620). 

The  evidence  of  various  witnesses  testifies  to  the  Spaniards 
having  first  attacked  Keymis's  party.  Of  those  who  gave 
their  testimony  before  the  Privy  Council,  W.  Herbert  "  saith 
that  the  Spaniards  did  first  assaile  them  in  the  night  time, 
when  they  were  within  less  than  half  a  mile  of  the  Town." 
Capt.  R.  North  declared  "the  first  shot  upon  them  that 
lauded  was  from  the  wood  at  eleven  o'clock  at  Night."  And 
the  Rev.  S.  Jones  who  accompanied  the  expedition  in  the 
"  Chudleigh,"  stated :  **  Our  men,  ready  to  repose  themselves 
for  that  night,  were  assaulted  by  the  Spaniards  from  the 
skirt  of  a  wood,  in  pursuit  of  whom  they  were  brought  to 
the  town  almost  before  themselves  knew  of  it."^ 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  recorded  evidence  as 
to  the  Spaniards  being  the  original  transgressors,  as  well  as 
on  other  points  relating  to  the  expedition,  was  generally  in 
favour  of  lialegh's  account  of  what  took  place.  "Those 
who  gave  it,"  notes  Gardiner,  "were,  for  the  most  part, 
angry  and  disappointed  men  "  (III,  142).  Had  their  state- 
ments been  adverse  to  him,  it  is  certain  they  would  have 
occupied  a  prominent  position  in  the  "  Declaration.'* 

According  to  Spedding,  '*  the  soldiers  landed ;  found  them- 
selves in  the  neighbourhood  of  an  armed  force ;  attacked  or 
were  attacked  (for  accounts  differ  as  to  the  first  blow)  .  .  ."* 

1  Edwards,  338.  '^  •*Ai)ologie,"  29-80. 

.  »  Spedding,  417,  419,  423.  *  IbicLt  362. 


RALEGHANA.  445 

He  does  not  give  any  authority  for  the  latter  part  of  this 
assertion,  nor  has  the  writer  discovered  any  clue  to  it,  ex- 
cepting in  a  letter  of  Captain  Parker  dated  22  March,  1617, 
which  describes  the  assaults  on  the  town,  but  does  not  state 
which  side  commenced  the  attack.  Moreover,  it  is  in  direct 
opposition  to  all  the  known  evidence. 

The  importance  of  the  point  as  to  which  side  commenced 
the  attack  is  thus  remarked  on  by  Stebbing : — 

"The  whole  question  of  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  Kalegh  on 
James's  reading  of  international  law,  is  narrowed  to  the  minute 
issue  whether  the  Spaniards  or  the  Englishmen  on  the  particular 
scene  of  the  light  were  the  aggressors  "  (354). 

The  comments  of  Gardiner  upon  it  are  extremely  unsatis- 
factory.    He  asserts : — 

"  The  charge  against  the  Spaniards  of  having  rushed  upon  the 
English  when  quietly  resting  on  the  bank  was,  no  doubt,  an  after- 
thought.  The  English  were  preparing  to  attack,  but  the  Spaniards 
actually  struck  the  first  blow,  ...  It  must  be  remembered  that 
Raleigh  had  every  motive  to  falsify  the  narrative,  so  as  to  make  it 
appear  that  his  men  were  not  the  aggressors"  (III,  122-3.  Italics 
not  in  original). 

In  this  account  does  not  Gardiner  himself  attempt  "to 
falsify  "  the  matter  by  relying  on  the  statement  of  a  Spanish 
historian,  and  ignoring  the  direct  evidence  of  independent 
English  witnesses,  of  whom  some  were  present  at  the  attack? 
His  remarks  might  raise  some  doubt  if  his  description  had 
been  made  on  the  sole  authority  of  Ralegh. 

Spedding  descends  to  gross  misrepresentation,  in  asserting 
that  Ralegh  "  sent  his  men  up  the  river  with  instructions  to 
fight  any  Spanish  force  which  they  could  be  sure  of  defeat- 
ing" (350);  the  Spaniards  "having  ofiTered  no  provocation 
whatever  except  an  attitude  of  self-defence  "  (372).  Further, 
he  affirms  the  instructions  to  Keymis  were  "  in  themselves 
a  breach  of  his  Commission"  {vide  Index,  sub  "Sir  W. 
Raleigh"). 

Edwards  regards  them  as  "stringent  instructions"  to  the 
leaders  to  "do  their  best  to  reach  the  Mine  without  any 
conflict  with  the  Spaniards"  (I,  616). 

When  the  King  sanctioned  Ralegh's  project,  both  were 
fully  aware  of  the  Spaniards  being  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
mine,  who  would  assuredly  attempt  to  hinder  any  of  the 
English  from  reaching  it.  Owing  to  the  limitations  to 
Ralegh's  action  being,  through  Gondomar,  imposed  upon 
him  by  James,  Ralegh  became  conscious  of  the  difficult  task 


446  BALEGHANA. 

he  had  entered  upon.     Both  sides  were  cognizant  that  a 
conflict  with  the  Spaniards  was  almost  inevitable :  a  conflict 
that  Gondomar  did  all  in  his  power  to  provoke.    He  took 
steps  to  have  an  adequate  number  of   troops  sent  to  St. 
Thomas,  where  a  near  relative  (some  state  his  brother)  was 
Governor;  and  he  prepared  to  meet  Ealegh  there,  who  he 
intended  **  should  be  drawn  into  a  conflict  which  would 
afiford  a  pretext  for  the  Spaniards  to  claim  the  fulfilment 
of  the  King's  promise."^     On  arriving  at  liis  destination, 
Ralegh  found  "the  Spaniards  were  planted  all  along   the 
river."  2     Ralegh's  letter  to  Lord  Carew*  points  out  some 
of  his  doubts  as  to  his  plan  of  action,  but  whatever  may 
have  passed  through  his  mind  beforehand,  his  actual  in- 
structions  to  Keymis  were  "stringent"  enough,  so  as   to 
avoid  as  far  as  possible  any  contest  with  the  Spaniards. 
"Common  sense,"  states   Gardiner,  "should  have  warned 
Keymis  to  pass  the  town  on  the  further  side  of  the  river, 
and  to  take  up  a  defensive  position  near  the  mine"  (III, 
121-2).     "Presumably,  if  Ralegh's  expedition  had  landed 
at  any  other  place  than  in  the  neighbourhood  of  San  Thome, 
even  King  James  must  have  held  him  guiltless,"  is  M.  Hume's 
opinion  (392).     But   neither  of   these  plans  would   have 
obviated  the  necessity  of  driving  the  Spaniards  from  the 
approach  to  the  mine,  access  to  which  was  through  a  wood 
near  the  town. 

In  the  severe  fight  which  followed,  young  Walter  Ralegh 
was  killed,  and  it  is  not  surprising  that  the  excited  troops 
pursued  the  Spaniards  into  the  adjacent  town  of  St.  Thomas, 
and  set  it  on  fire,  the  destruction  being  completed  some 
days  later.  This  action  proved  the  principal  gravamen  of 
the  treason  charge  against  Ralegh,  which,  according  to  the 
"Declaration,"  consisted  in  "the  sacking  and  spoyle  of 
Townes  planted  with  Spaniards";  as  though,  in  imitation 
of  Drake,  Ralegh  had  attacked  important  towns,  etc.,  brought 
away  large  quantities  of  plunder,  and  lowered  the  prestige 
of  Spain.  Whereas  his  leading  captain  had  ascended  a 
river  for  nearly  300  miles,  and  had  burnt  an  insignificaat 
and  slightly-built  Spanish  town,*  because  the  garrison  had 

J  M.  Hume,  883-4. 

a  "  Cal.  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  XCVI.  10.       »  Edwards,  II,  375  et  seq. 

*  *'  In  his  *Apologie,*  Ralegh  calls  it  *a  village,*  and  *a  wooden  Towne* 
(29,  52) ;  and  describes  it  in  his  letter  to  Lord  Carew  as  'a  towne  of  staks, 
covered  with  leaves  of  trees*  (Edwards  II,  375).  Gardiner  terms  it  *« 
cluster  of  huts'  (III,  121);  and  this  agrees  with  the  name  'Rancheria* 
given  it  by  Keymis  (Hakluyt,  XV,  69).  That  a  collection  of  such  lightly 
constructed  dwellings  would  be  rapidly  destroyed  by  fire  is  certain." 


RALEQHANA.  447 

"laid  an  ambush  for  his  men,  to  hinder  their  access  to  a 
district  which  his  Sovereign  had  commissioned  him  to  enter, 
and  were  soundly  beaten  for  their  hostility."^ 

Although  the  "Declaration"  is  asserted  to  be  "not  founded 
vpon  coniectures  or  likelyhoods,  but  either  vpon  confession 
of  the  partie  himselfe,  or  vpon  the  examination  of  diuers 
vnsuspected  witnesses"  (66),  it  could  not  ignore  the  fact 
of  the  witnesses  having  testified  to  the  Spaniards  having 
been  the  aggressors,  but  had  to  own  it,  although  in  a  very 
specious  manner,  thus:  ** It  was  Uowne  abroad,  that  the 
assault  of  St.  Thome  was  inforced  by  a  kinde  c»f  necessity, 
for  that  our  Troupes  were  first  assailed  "  (30).  That  is  to 
say,  it  treats  the  testimony  of  those  who  were  present  as 
an  idle  rumour,  and  then  follows  the  assertion : — 

"It  appeareth  manifestly,  both  by  his  speech  at  London,  of  a 
Towne  indefinitely,  and  by  this  his  speech  earely  in  his  voyage  at 
Sea  of  St.  Thome  by  name,  that  it  was  an  originall  designe  of  his 
from  the  beginning  "  (30). 

The  only  known  basis  for  this  statement  will  be  found  in 
the  examination  of  Captain  North ;  one  example  of  the  idle 
gossip  that  took  place  in  the  fleet,  and  on  which  some  of  the 
serious  charges  against  Balegh  were  made.  Captain  North 
said  he 

"  Heard  Sir  W.  Ralegh  say  before  he  went  from  London,  that  he 
knew  a  place  where  they  might  make  a  saving  voyage  in  tobacco ; 
and  that  he  had  heard  him  also  say  as  they  were  in  the  voyage, 
that  if  [wc]  they  could  surprise  the  Town  in  the  river  Orenoque, 
they  might  be  sure  of  forty  thousand  pounds  weight  or  worth  of 
tobacco."  ^ 

In  the  endeavour  to  make  the  case  stronger  against  him 
must  be  reckoned  the  next  quotation  from  the  "Declaration." 
While  on  the  voyage,  when  in  conversation  with  his  ofificers, 

"Most  falsly  and  scandalously,  hee  [Ralegh]  doubted  not  with 
confidence  to  affirme  that  he  had  oroer  by  word  of  mouth  from 
the  King  and  his  Councell,  to  take  the  Town,  if  it  were  any 
hinderance  to  the  digging  of  the  Mine  "  (34). 

This  seems  to  be  a  paraphrase  of  two  charges  of  the 
Attorney-General : — 

"  Sir  Walter's  company  assaile  it  [St  Thomas],  and  by  direction 
from  Sir  Walter  Ralegh. 

1  Stebbing,  357. 

^  Spedding,  418.  It  must  be  borae  in  mind  tliat  private  trading  in 
tobacco  as  in  other  goods  was  not  prevented  in  Ralegh's  Commission, 


448  BALEGHANA. 

Hee  Bignified  to  his  companie  that  hee  had  a  commission  to  doe 
what  he  did."i 

Of  this  Gardiner  declares :  "  This  stands  on  the  authority 
of  the  Declaration,  upon  which  I  am  ready  to  accept  it" 
(III,  120.  He  adds  that  Ealegh  uttered  the  words  with 
"  unblushing  efifrontery  "). 

A  serious  charge  like  this  (as  well  as  the  one  respecting 
the  speech  asserted  to  have  been  made  by  young  Ralegh  just 
before  he  died)  would,  if  substantiated,  have  proved  strong 
evidence  against  Ralegh;  but,  on  the  contrary,  there  is  a  total 
absence  of  any  corroborative  testimony,  and  even  of  prob- 
ability, to  support  it.  The  more  the  "Declaration"  is 
examined,  the  less  trustworthy  it  is  found  to  be.  It  can 
record  the  names  of  witnesses  in  unimportant  points,  but  in 
a  serious  allegation  such  as  this  is  no  names  or  other  references 
are  noted.  The  writer  therefore  dissents  from  Gardiner  as 
to  the  truthful  character  of  this  passage  in  the  King's  Mani- 
festo, which  should  be  placed  among  what  Stebbing  has 
aptly  termed  "  unproved  assumptions  "  (337). 

Keymis  remained  for  some  days  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
St.  Thomas  in  making  a  fruitless  search  for  the  mine.  The 
cause  of  his  non-success  has  been  accounted  for  in  many 
ways.^  There  can,  however,  be  little  doubt  that  the  death 
of  young  Ralegh,  the  loss  of  so  many  of  his  soldiers  (Steb- 
bing says  250),  and  the  numerous  difficulties  he  had  en- 
countered, affected  him  greatly ;  so  seriously,  in  fact,  that  on 
being  reproached  by  Ralegh  soon  after  he  had  rejoined  him 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Orinoco  River,  he  committed  suicide. 

Amongst  the  many  pieces  of  gossip  that  were  disseminated 
after,  and  in  consequence  of  the  death  of  Keymis,  the 
following  extract  from  "  The  Life  of  James  I,"  by  A.  Wilson, 
published  in  1653,  will  be  found  interesting.  (The  author 
was  oet.  23  at  the  time  of  Ralegh's  beheadal.)  Ralegh 
"  Was  no  sooner  in  the  Tower,  but  all  his  Transactions  in  this 
business  are  put  to  the  Rack,  and  tenter'd  by  his  Adversaries. 
They  say  he  knew  of  no  Mine,  nor  did  Kemish  know  that  the 
Mine  ho  aimed  at  was  Gold ;  but  Kemish  bringing  him  a  piece  of 
Ore  into  the  Tower,  he  fobb'd  a  piece  of  Gold  into  it  in  dissolving, 
making  the  poor  man  beleeve  the  Ore  was  right,  that  by  these 
golden  degrees,  he  might  ascend  to  Libertie,  promising  the  King 
to  fetch  it  where  never  Spaniard  had  been.     But  when  Kemish 

'  "Camd.  Misc.,"  10. 

*  The  **Apologie,"  31-7,  contains  nmch  information  on  this  subject,  as 
also  does  a  letter  from  Ralegh  to  Lord  Carevv,  printed  for  the  first  time  in 
M.  Hume's  work  (383-8). 


BALEGHANA.  449 

found  by  better  (bitter  1)  experience  he  was  couzen'd  by  Rawleigh, 
he  came  back  from  the  Mine :  and  Rawleigh  knowing  that  none 
but  Kemish  could  accuse  him,  made  him  away.  This  Vizard  was 
put  upon  the  face  of  the  Action,  and  all  the  weight  of  the  Mis- 
carriage was  layd  upon  Rawleighs  shoulders"  (116).^ 

In  his  letter  of  1611  (vide  Appendix  C)  Ealegh  pointed  out 
the  difficulties  of  localizing  a  spot  after  the  absence  of  some 
years.  -  Upon  this  particular  subject  no  one  has  thrown  so 
much  light  as  Gardiner,  who  states,  "  it  is  curious  that  none 
of  Kaleigh's  biographers  have  seen  the  importance  of  fixing  the 
locality  of  the  mine"  (III,  44).  No  town  existed  at  or  near 
the  mouth  of  the  Caroni  River  when  Ealegh  visited  the 
vicinity  in  1595,  but  before  Keymis  went  there  in  the 
following  year,  Berreo  had  erected  the  town  of  St.  Thomas ; 
Kalegh  therefore  had  reason  to  believe 

"That  no  Spanish  settlement  would  be  reached  at  any  point 
lower  than  the  mouth  of  the  Caroni,  and  as  the  mine  which  had 
been  pointed  out  to  Keymis  was  situated  some  miles  before  the 
junction  of  the  rivers  was  reached,  he  had  no  difficulty  in  coming 
to  the  conclusion  that  it  would  be  possible  to  reach  the  spot  with- 
out a  conflict  with  the  Spaniards  "  (III,  43). 

An  excellent  sketch  map  *  (vide  facsimile)  with  a  description 
in  Gardiner's  work,  fully  explains  the  changed  position  of  the 
town,  and  the  altered  relative  one  of  the  mine,  which 
evidently  added  so  greatly  to  Keymis's  failure.  Ealegh 
instructed  Keymis  "  to  passe  to  the  Westwards  of  the  moun- 
taine  Aio,*  from  whence  you  have  no  lesse  than  three  miles 
to  the  Myne,  and  to  lodge  and  encampe  between  the  Spanish 
towne  and  you."^  But  between  the  visits  of  1596  and  of 
1617  a  great  change  had  taken  place,  as  between  those 
dates  the  town  had  been  shifted  to  the  east  side  of  the  Aio 
Mountain,  of  which  fact  neither  Ealegh  nor  Keymis  was 
aware  when  they  sailed  from  England  in  1617.  "The  whole 
of  the  evidence  upon  Ealegh's  voyage,"  remarks  Gardiner, 
"is  unintelligible  unless  it  is  admitted  that  he  knew  nothing 
of  the  change  of  site"  when  he  left  England  on  his  last 
voyage  (III,  45).     On   the   assumption   that   Ealegh  was 

^  The  account  of  Ralegh's  return  to  England,  and  what  followed  it,  will 
be  found  in  "Trans.  D.  A.,"  XXXVII,  287  et.  seq, 

^  Cf.  the  evidence  of  R.  Mering  in  Spedding's  work,  416. 

'  "With  the  kind  permission  of  Messrs.  Longmans,  Green,  k  Co. 

*  Sped(iing,  349,  quoting  from  a  volume  of  1702,  has  the  phrase,  **  to  the 
westwai-d  of  the  mountains,"  which  gives  a  different  meaning  to  the  text. 
The  Aio  Mountain,  according  to  Schomburgk*s  map,  would,  in  a  straight 
line,  be  about  twenty-five  miles  from  the  month  of  the  Caroni  River. 

«  *'Apologie,"26-7. 

VOL.  XXXVIIL  2  F 


450 


RALEGHANA. 


aware  of  the  altered  position  of  the  town,  and  that  James 
was  not,  Spedding  appears  to  get  somewhat  confused.^ 
There  is,  however,  good  reason  to  believe  in  these  positions 
being  reversed,  and  that  the  King  was  fully  acquainted  from 
time  to  time  of  everything  relating  to  Ealegh  and  to  his 
expedition,  including  the  altered  site  of  the  town,  of  which 
Bdegh  had  no  knowledge.  Instead  of  attempting  to  explain 
the  idtered  site  of  the  town,  the  framers  of  the  **  Declaration," 
to  whom  the  fact  must  have  been  well  known,  concealed 
their  knowledge  in  this  curious  paragraph :  *'  This  Mine  was 


not  onely  imaginary,  but  moueable,  for  that  which  was 
directed  to  bee  3  miles  short  of  Saint  Thomd,  was  after 
sought  30  miles  beyond  S.  Thom^"  (35).  Gardiner  notes: 
'*  It  was  the  town  that  was  movable,  not  the  Mine."  *  He 
further  notes  that  the  site  of  the  mine  "which  had  been 
pointed  out  to  Keymis  in  1595  by  the  Indian  guide"  was 
adjacent  to  the  new  town  in  the  vicinity  of  Mont  Aio,  some 

1  Cf.  p.  430  with  p.  434. 

^  III,  46.    Thia  author's  work  contains  a  mass  of  information  on  thia 
point  at  pp.  44-6. 


RALEGHANA.  451 

miles  from  "  the  mouth  of  the  Caroni  where  Ealeigh  picked 
up  his  specimens"  (III,  44). 

A  few  words  are  necessary  as  to  the  pillage  or  "  sack  "  of 
the  town  by  Keymis's  soldiers.  "  They  collected  some  spoil 
estimated  as  worth  40,000  reals  (  =  2Jd.  each  =  c.  £420)." 
Partly  it  consisted  of  church  ornaments,  and  a  couple  of 
gold  ingots  reserved  for  the  King  of  Spain's  royalty,  but 
chiefly  of  tobacco."^  This  hardly  tallies  with  the  report 
made  by  Gondomar  to  Philip  III :  "  Ealeigh  ...  has  brought 
back  with  him  enough  wealth  to  make  him  and  his  supporters 
rich." 2  Although  James  promised  in  the  ** Declaration"  to 
**  send  him  [Ilalegh]  .  .  .  bound  hand  and  foot  into  Spaine, 
and  all  the  gold  and  goods  he  should  obteine  by  Eobberie, 
and  bring  home,  were  they  neuer  se  great"  (5),  yet  very  little 
was  given  up,  some  compensation  for  tobacco  being  all  that 
is  recorded. 

Ealegh  strenuously  denied  having  directed  or  authorized 
the  burning  of  the  town.  **I  shall  be  content  to  suffer 
death,"  he  remarks,  "  if  I  had  any  part  or  knowledge  what- 
ever of  the  burning  or  sacking."*  In  his  letter  to  the 
King  he  affirms  he  could  "  finde  noe  reason  whie  the  Spanish 
Embassadore  should  complaine  "  of  him,  as  he  had  captured 
and  released  Spanish  barks,  and  **  without  spoile,"  and  "might 
have  taken  twentye  of  their  towns  on  the  sea  coast"  had 
plundering  the  Spaniards  been  his  only  object* 

"Hauing  in  his  eye  the  Mexico  Fleete,"  and  "the  depreda- 
tion of  Ships,"  according  to  the  "  Declaration,"  (26)  formed 
two  of  the  principal  motives  which  guided  Ealegh  to  make 
such  strenuous  efiForts  to  procure  his  liberty.  Its  later  pages 
contain  the  following  additional  accusations : — 

''  Before  hee  came  to  the  Islands,  hee  made  no  difficultie  to  tell 
many  in  express  termes,  that  hee  meant  to  surprise  and  set  vpon 
the  ^lexico  Fleete,  by  saying,  *  If  all  failed,  or  if  the  Action  of  the 
Mine  were  defeated.'  And  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  himselfe  being 
charged  with  these  speaches,  confessed  the  words,  but  saith,  that 
in  time,  they  were  spoken  after  the  Action  of  the  Mine  was  de- 
feated ;  and  that  it  was  propounded  by  him,  to  the  end,  to  keepe 
his  men  together,  and  if  he  spake  it  before,  it  was  but  discourse  at 
large"  (31-2). 

Again,  after  the  return  of  Keymis,  Ealegh 
"  Called  a  Councell  of  his  Captaines  .  .  .  where  hee  propounded  to 
them,  that  his  Intention  and  designe  was;  First  to  make  to  the 

>  Stebbing,  323.  «  M.  Hume,  367. 

3  M.  Hume,  891.     Cf.  Edwards,  II,  86S,  379. 
«  Edwards,  II,  86S. 

2f2 


452  RALEGHANA. 

New-foundlamlfl,  and  there  to  revictuall  and  refresh  his  Ships; 
And  thence  to  goe  to  the  Westeme  Islands,  and  there  to  lie  in  waite 
to  meete  with  the  Mexico  Floete,  or  to  surprise  some  Carrackes" 
(37-8). 

These  extracts  eoutain  three  separate  charges  against 
llalegh:  (1)  Prior  to  the  expedition;  (2)  during  the  voyage; 
and  (3)  after  the  return  of  Keymia  with  the  report  of  his 
failure. 

1.  Would  include  the  anecdote  asserted  by  Wilson  to  have 
been  held  between  Bacon  and  Ealegh,  to  which  reference  has 
already  been  made.  But  of  this  Gardiner  observes,  if  even 
true,  it  "may  have  been  said  partly  out  of  bravado  "  (III,  48). 

Gardiner  maintains  that  the  Council  "adopted  the  theory 
.  .  .  that  he  had  sailed  with  the  purpose  of  at  once  engaging 
in  a  piratical  attack  upon  the  colonies  and  fleets  of  Spain" 
(III,  141).  Wilson  relates  an  anecdote  asserted  to  have  been 
told  him  by  Ralegh,  of  an  intended  attack  on  the  Indian 
fleet  by  means  of  some  French  vessels.^ 

The  following  extract  is  taken  from  Gardiner's  work : — 

"  Winvvood,  there  can  be  little  doubt,  was  urging  him  [Ralegh] 
to  break  the  peace  at  all  hazards,  and  to  fall  upon  the  Mexico 
fleet  as  the  best  means,  if  all  others  failed,  of  bringing  the  King 
to  a  rupture  with  Spain  "  (III,  53). 

A  serious  allegation  such  as  this  is  should  not  have  been 
made  unless  based  upon  evidence  above  suspicion.  Gardiner 
relies  upon  the  statements  of  two  foreign  authorities,  one 

Spanish,  dated  -v"f  — ..-,  1618,  the  other  Venetian,  dated 

16  J^iy  5 

Oct.  H^,  1618.     No  English  authority  is  cited  in  support  of 

such  a  sweeping  charge,  and  the  foreign  ones  belong  to  the 
year  after  the  death  of  Winwood  (ob.  Oct.  27,  1617).  Bear- 
ing in  mind  the  exaggeration  and  misrepresentation  indulged 
in  by  Continental  diplomatists,  can  such  testimony  be  deemed 
trustworthy  ?  Even  Spedding  is  cautious  in  accepting  Gar- 
diner's assertion,  to  which  he  alludes  as  a  "  discovery  which 
was  new  to  Bacon,"  and  yet  adds : — 

*'  If  Mr.  Gardiner  is  justified  in  asserting,  as  a  fact,"  that 
Winwood  acted  in  the  manner  recorded,  "tliough  it  seems  too 
much  to  believe  of  any  man  on  no  better  authority  than  the 
report  of  an  ambassador,  yet  the  very  rumour  can  hardly 
have  gained  currency  respecting  one  in  his  place,  unless  he 

1  ''S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  CIII,  16. 


RALEGHANA.  453 

had  been  really  implicated  in  some  questionable  transaction" 
(170).  The  Memoir  of  Winwood  in  the  "  D.  N.  B."  accepts 
Gardiner's  statement,  that  Winwood  was  responsible  "for  the 
grant  to  him  [Ralegh]  of  permission  nominally  to  make  ex- 
plorations in  South  America,  but  really,  although  covertly,  to 
attack  and  pillage  the  Spanish  possessions  there.  Winwood's 
hatred  of  Spain  was  the  moving  cause  of  his  conduct,"  etc. 

It  is  difficult  to  suggest  from  what  source  this  accusa- 
tion sprang.  No  assistance  is  obtainable  from  Winwood's 
** Memorials"  (1725),  wherein  the  last  dated  document  is 
17  March,  1613-14.  There  are  two  letters  to  him  from 
llalegh  in  Edwards'  work,  of  1615  or  1616,  and  of  21  March, 
1618;^  but  neither  yields  any  information  concerning  it. 
Moreover,  as  he  was  appointed  Secretary  of  State  on  29 
March,  1614,  and  retained  it  until  his  death,  a  period  of  three 
and  a  half  years,  James  was  an  unlikely  man  to  keep  in 
office  any  one  who  he  thought  was  opposed  to  his  interests. 

2.  Among  the  matters  to  be  introduced  into  the  projected 
Manifesto  (vide  the  Khig's  letter  of  20  October,  1618),  is  the 
assertion,  "  His  own  and  his  consortes  confession,  that  before 
they  were  at  the  Islandes,  he  told  them  his  ayrae  was  at  the 
fleet."-  The  main  testimony  that  is  relied  on  for  charging 
Italegh  with  intended  piracy  (during  the  voyage  and  before 
arriving  at  Guiana)  is  the  following  item,  that  was  submitted 
to  the  Privy  Council  in  August:  "Being  confronted  with 
Captens  S^  Leger  and  Pennington,  confesseth  that  hee  pro- 
posed the  taking  of  the  Mexico  fleete  if  the  mine  failed."  ' 

Spedding  (who  as  a  rule  cannot  be  accused  of  favouring 
Ralegh)  shows  these  to  have  been  rough  and  incomplete 
notes,  made  by  Sir  J.  Caesar  for  his  own  private  guidance, 
and  which  needed  additional  evidence  (such  as  the  discovery 
of  "  the  lost  sheet  or  sheets  of  Sir  Julius's  notes  ")  to  make 
them  of  value  (365  et  seq.).  He  also  directs  attention  towards 
the  wording  of  the  paragraph,  which  appears  to  have  escaped 
the  notice  of  other  commentators.  Balegh  is  said  to  have 
"  proposed  "  to  attack  the  fleet ;  but,  as  Spedding  points  out, 
"  to  *  propose '  ...  is  not  necessarily  to  *  intend,'  and  it  is 
with  the  intention  with  which  we  are  concerned."*  It  is 
evident  Stebbing  is  incorrect  in  using  the  word  "  intention  " 
(364). 

^  II,  339,  350.  No  others  relating  to  this  subject  are  noted  in  the 
**Cal.  S.  P." 

2  "Fortes.  Pap.,"  58.  >  "Camd.  Misc.,"  X,  13. 

*  **AUeged  Confession  of  intended  Piracy  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,"  in 
"Gent's  Mag.,"  April,  1850,  p.  361.  Reprinted  in  the  same  author's 
*'  Reviews  and  Discussions,"  398  (1879). 


454  RALEGHAKA. 

3.  The  third  heading  relates  to  the  period  after  the 
return  of  Kejmis  to  HcJegh,  and  is  the  one  allied  against 
Sir  Walter  by  the  Attorney-General.  "When  hee  sawe  that 
the  towne  was  taken,  and  yet  got  little  by  it,  he  resolved  to 
revitaile  himselfe,  and  then  make  his  voyage  uppon  the 
Mexico  flete."^ 

"As  to  Raleigh's  explanation  [{vide  ante,  quotation  from  the 
'Declaration')  remarks  Gardiner]  of  his  proposal  for  attacking 
the  fleet,  no  reliance  can  be  placed  on  his  mere  word.  The  only 
external  evidence  I  can  And  is  in  a  petition  by  Pennington,  written 
after  his  return.  He  says  that  he  came  back  in  great  want,  *  without 
offending  any  of  his  Majesty's  laws,  though  much  incited  there- 
unto.' There  remains  the  test  of  probability;  and,  when  it  is 
remembered  that  Raleigh  had  been,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  play- 
ing with  the  idea  of  attacking  the  fleet  for  several  months,  it 
seems  hardly  likely  that  he  did  not  mean  anything  serious. 
Besides,  if  he  could  honestly  have  denied  his  intention  of  attack- 
ing the  fleet,  why  did  he  not  do  so  on  the  scaffold  1  He  certainly 
said  everything  which  could  be  urged  in  his  defence"  (128—9). 

Scarcely  a  fair  commentary  on  Ealegh's  character.  Surely 
his  "  mere  word  "  was  as  trustworthy  as  that  of  the  Spcmish 
Ambassador,  of  James  himself,  or  even  of  the  spy  Wilson, 
whose  "credibility"  Gardiner  relies  upon,  although  the 
Council  took  a  different  view  of  it  ?  It  is  not  easy  to  com- 
prehend why  the  quotation  from  Pennington's  petition  can 
be  termed  "  external  evidence."  It  might,  if  true,  be  applic- 
able to  any  member  of  the  fleet.  No  other  allusion  to  it  is 
included  in  any  other  portion  of  the  petition  ("S.  P.,  James  J, 
Dom.,"  XCVIII,  63).  How  "the  test  of  probability"  was  to 
tell  against  Ealegh  is  not  clear.  That  the  idea  of  attacking 
the  fleet  had  been  in  Ilalegh's  mind  for  several  months  is 
based  on  surmise  alone.  Had  it  been  correct  it  would 
assuredly  have  been  embodied  in  the  charge  list  of  the 
Attorney -General,  whereas  only  one  occasion  was  notified 
in  it,  viz.  the  period  after  the  failure  of  the  mine  was 
known.  The  reference  to  the  speech  on  the  scaflbld  was 
hardly  fair  to  be  urged  against  him.  The  few  hours  between 
his  being  sentenced  and  the  execution  were  fully  occupied, 
the  wonder  being  that  he  accomplished  so  much  during  that 
brief  period.^  He  had  prepared  a  final  testamentary  note 
in  case  he  was  not  permitted  to  speak.  "  He  was  left,"  states 
Spedding,  "to  make  his  last  speech,  under  circumstances 

1  "Camd.  Misc.,'*  10.  Cf.  Wilson's  letter  to  the  King,  21  September, 
in  **S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  XCIX,  68. 

«  Cf.  Stebbing,  372-4  ;  Edwards,  I,  694-7. 


BALSGHANA.  455 

which  would  have  ensured  an  indulgent  hearing  for  the 
most  unpopular  criminal "  (369),  but  there  was  good  reason 
to  believe  he  would  probably  have  been  prevented  from 
speaking  while  on  the  scafifold.  Thus  a  letter  from  Cham- 
berlain to  Carl^ton  of  7  November,  1618,  contains  this 
paragraph :  "  They  had  no  thancks  that  sufiTered  him  to  talk 
so  long  on  the  scaffold,  but  the  fault  was  laide  on  the 
sheriffes  and  there  y  t  rests."  ^ 

Tliere  is  no  substantial  reason  to  believe  that  the  sugges- 
tion, proposition,  or  whatever  it  may  be  termed,  was  any- 
thing more  than  idle  fleet-gossip,  although  Gardiner  declares 
**  there  was  strong  evidence  that  after  his  failure  he  had 
attempted  to  induce  his  captains  to  seize  Spanish  prizes,  or 
in  other  words,  to  commit  what  James  held  to  be  an  act  of 
piracy."  ^  But  the  only  approach  to  evidence  consisted  of 
the  incomplete  notes  of  Sir  J.  Caesar.  Even  James  and  his 
ministers  "  saw  the  difficulty  of  proving  to  the  country  the 
capital  criminality  of  the  avowal  if  ever  made  of  a  project 
never  acted  upon."  ^  Possibly  Gondomar  saw  this  difficulty, 
and  then  with  "unblushing  efifrontery"  wrote  thus  to 
Philip  III:-^ 

"Let  the  authorities  at  Seville — as  if  of  their  own  motion — 
draw  up  a  statement  that  an  English  fleet  bearing  the  King's 
commission  has  raided  the  Canaries,  and  that  pending  your 
Majesty's  orders,  they  have  embargoed  all  English  property  there 
(i.e.  at  Seville).  This  he  says  will  soon  bring  James  to  his  knees, 
but  he  will  be  very  insolent  if  it  be  not  done."  * 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  had  been  no  raiding,  and  what 
took  place  is  fully  narrated  by  Edwards.^ 

Another  unsupported  assertion  of  Gondomar  runs  thus : — 

"  That  the  Earl  of  Southampton  had  received  a  letter  from  Kalegh 
from  Canary,  saying  that  he  had  decided  that  the  beet  thing  to  do 
would  be  to  await  there  the  arrival  of  the  silver  fleet,  and  that 
he,  some  French  ships  having  joined  him,  is  now  so  strong,  that 
none  of  the  Spanish  ships  will  escape  him."^ 

The  following  is  an  accusation  made  by  Gardiner,  based 
solely  upon  Spanish  authority : — 

'*  Ralegh  made  one  last  eflbrt  to  escape,  by  throwing  the  blame  on 
his  supporters.    If  he  had  formed  a  plot  for  the  seizure  of  the  fleet 

»  ••  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  CIII,  73. 

2  **Ency.  Brit."  (1886),  sub  ''Sir  W.  Ealegh."  Cf.  **Stud.  ffist.  of 
Eng.,"  489. 

^  Stebbing,  344.  *  M.  Hume,  332-3. 

»  1,604-9.  •  M.  Hume,  888. 


456  BALSGHANJL 

during  his  last  voyage,  it  was  done,  he  said,  at  the  instigation  of 
Win  wood,  Pembroke,  £dmonde8,  and  others''  (III,  144). 

This  bears  its  o\Vd  condemnation  (apart  from  the  absence 
of  all  evidence  respecting  it),  as  Balegh  was  never  known  to 
shift  any  blame  from  his  own  shoulders  to  those  of  others. 

Ralegh  asks:  "If  I  had  had  a  purpose  to  have  turned 
Pyrate,  why  did  I  oppose  myself  against  the  greatest 
number  of  my  Company,  and  was  thereby  in  danger  to  be 
slaine  or  cast  into  the  Sea  because  I  refused  it  ? "  ^  Bal^h 
had  lost  many  men  by  disease,  as  well  as  during  the  expedi- 
tion of  Keymis.  Some  of  his  ships  had  left  him ;  and  in  a 
letter  to  Winwood  in  March  he  wrote :  "  I  shal  be  able,  if  1 
live,  to  keepe  the  sea  till  the  end  of  August,  with  fewer 
reasonable  good  ships."*  "  How  was  it  possible,"  observes 
Oldys,  "  that  with  such  small  force  he  intended  to  go  for  the 
western  islands,  to  attack  the  Mexico  fleet,  and  surprise  the 
carackes,  as  in  the  king's  Declaration  is  laid  to  Salegb's 
charge,  we  shall  leave  others  to  decide  "  (509).  To  this  may 
be  added  that  he  was  suffering  from  calenture,  his  officers 
were  dissatisfied,  and  his  crew  mutinous.  Moreover,  the 
Spanish  fleet  was  hovering  in  the  neiglibourhood.  There  is 
no  reasonable  ground  for  believing  that  Ralegh  had  any 
serious  "  intention  "  of  committing  an  act  of  piracy. 

According  to  the  Attorney-General,  Kalegh  '^ptirposed  to 
set  war  between  the  2  kings  of  England  and  Spaine."*  But 
in  the  "  Declaration "  this  is  modified  into  "  tending  to  the 
breach  of  the  Peace  betweene  the  two  Crownes"  (5),  and 
was  so  represented  by  Gondomar  as  the  probable  result  of 
the  **  Hostile  and  Piraticall "  expedition  of  Ealegh.  It  was 
used  by  the  Ambassador  simply  as  a  threat  in  his  endeavour 
to  induce  the  King  to  stop  Ealegh*s  voyage,  but  in  this  he 
failed.  It  will  be  shown  to  have  been  repeated  after  Salegh's 
return,  and  may  possibly  have  influenced  James  in  the  con- 
demnation of  Kalegh,  as  a  war  would  have  at  once  hindered 
the  Spanish  alliance. 

Abandonment  of  ships  and  men. — Among  the  wild  all^^- 
tions  made  against  Kalegh  in  the  ''Declaration"  is  the 
assertion,  that  while  waiting  at  the  Pont  de  Gallo  for  the 
return  of  Keymis,  he  endeavoured  to  abandon  his  ships  and 
the  land  troops,  "  hauing  his  thoughts  onely  vpon  Sea  forces, 
which  how  they  should  haue  beene  imployed,  euery  man 
may   iudge" — an    allusion    to   his   intended   piracy — "and 

1  **Apologie,"47. 
2  Edwards,  II,  868.  »  '»Camd.  Misc.,"  9. 


RALEGHANA.  457 

whereas  some  pretence  is  made  by  him,  as  if  hee  should 
leaue  some  w®rd  at  Pont  de  gallo  of  direction,  to  what  place 
the  land  Souldiers  should  follow  him ;  it  is  plaine,  he  knew 
them  at  that  time  so  distressed  for  victual!,  as  famine  must 
haue  ouertaken  them,  before  they  could  ouertake  him."  And 
''finding  no  consent  in  that  which  hee  propounded,  that 
cruell  purpose  was  diuerted"  (36-7).  The  Attorney- 
General's  charge  took  a  more  positive  form :  "  He  abandoned 
and  put  in  danger  all  his  companie."  We  learn  the  name  of 
the  author  of  this  assertion  or  rumour  from  Ealegh*s  reply. 
"Hee  abandoned  not  his  men  as  is  reported  by  Sir  John 
Feme,  nor  to  have  gone  away  and  left  them  in  the  Indies."^ 
This  is  repeated  in  his  second  Testamentary  Note :  "  I  never 
had  itt  in  my  thought  to  goe  for  Trinidado,  and  leave  my 
companies  to  come  after  to  the  Salvage  Hands,  as  hath  by 
Fern  bine  falsely  reported." ^  Even  Gardiner  owned  "in 
this,  no  doubt,  he  is  to  be  believed"  (III,  151);  but  even  if 
true  "it  would  be  hard  to  lay  too  much  stress  on  words 
perhaps  flung  out  in  a  moment  of  agony  "  (III,  125).  "His 
denial  was  distinct  enough,"  remarked  Spedding  (371). 

"  No  more  conclusive  proof  can  be  given  of  the  spirit  of 
the  King's  Declaration  of  November,  1618,  than  that  it 
alleges  him  not  to  have  minded,  but  rather  to  have  antici- 
pated, the  certain  starvation  of  the .  returning  land  forces 
through  such  a  removal  from  the  fixed  rendezvous."  So 
writes  Stebbing,  and  adds,  "  they  may  believe  it  who  will " 
(323,  330). 

Mutiny, — Why  the  account  of  the  mutiny  in  the  fleet 
when  at  Newfoundland  finds  a  place  in  the  "Declaration" 
(38-40)  is  difficult  to  suggest,  as  it  contains  little  that 
reflects  on  Ilalegh.  The  allegations  that  he  tried  to  persuade 
"a  principal  Comander"  to  accompany  him  to  the  East 
Indies,  also  that  he  offered  his  ship  to  his  company  if  they 
would  set  him  aboard  a  French  barque  (repeated  when  off 
the  coast  of  Ireland),  together  with  the  statement  made  by 
Sir  Warham  St.  Leger  to  the  Eev.  S.  Jones,  that  he  had 
been  told  by  Ealegh  "he  would  never  come  there  [to 
England],  for  if  they  got  him  there,  they  would  hang  him, 
or  to  that  purpose,"'  are  all  negatived  by  the  fact  that, 
despite  all  difficulties,  he,  as  he  had  promised  Lord  Arundel 
he  would  when  starting  on  his  voyage,  returned  to  England. 
"They  were  the  very  last  words  I  spake  unto  you,"  said 

1  **Camd.  Misc.,"  10,  12. 
3  Edwards,  II,  496.  '  Spedding,  424. 


458  RALBGHANA« 

Lord  Arundel  to  Ral^h  on  the  scaffold.^  Moreover,  we 
have  the  testimony  of  the  Sev.  S.  Jones  that  during  the 
mutiny**  Sir  Walter  .  .  .  read  his  Ma*y*»  commission  to  them, 
and  .  .  .  put  it  to  their  own  choice  by  most  voices  what 
they  should  do ;  giving,  as  I  hear,  his  own  voice  at  that  time 
very  confidently  for  [i.e.  to  return  to]  England."*  Even  on 
this  matter  Spedding  makes  the  rather  spiteful  innuendo: 
**  That  he  had  kept  his  promise,  was  an  apparent  fact  which 
could  not  be  disputed.  But  it  did  not  follow  that  he  would 
have  kept  it  if  he  had  found  he  could  do  better"  (371). 

Imposture, — While  Stukeley  was  conveying  Ralegh  to 
London,  and  had  arrived  at  Salisbury,  the  latter,  with  the 
help  of  Manourie,  feigned  sickness,  and  so  delayed  the 
journey, "  in  order  to  gain  a  little  time  on  the  road  "  (Gardiner, 
139).  "  I  intended  no  ill,"  said  Ralegh  on  the  scaffold,  "  but 
to  gaine  and  prolong  time  till  his  Majesty  came,  hoping  for 
some  Commiseration  from  him."^  During  this  period  he 
wrote  his  "Apologie/*  and  some  believe  the  object  of  his 
delay  was  to  afford  him  time  to  compose  it.^  A  detailed  and 
nauseous  account  of  this  feigned  illness,  in  which  he  was 
aided  by  Manourie,  occupies  p.  15  of  the  "Declaration." 
Now  an  astute  lawyer  like  Bacon  (although  the  draft  of  this 
State  Paper  may  be  fairly  attributed  to  him)  would  scarcely 
have  advised  the  insertion  in  it  of  such  a  weak  incident, 
which  neither  bore  upon,  nor  in  any  way  tended  to  strengthen, 
the  main  treason  charge,  but  which  would  be  more  likely  to 
have  a  contrary  effect.  Most  probably  it  was  done  by 
direction  of  the  King,  who,  in  his  letter  to  the  Commissioners 
of  20  October,  in  allusion  to  the  forthcoming  "  Declaration," 
wrote,  "  wherein  we  hold  the  French  Physitian's  confession 
very  materiall  to  be  inserted."  ^ 

Attempts  to  escape. — In  the  "  Declaration  "  we  read : — 

"About  this  time  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  was  comne  {sic]  from 
Ireland  into  England,  into  the  Port  of  Plimouth,  where  it  was 
easie  to  discerne  with  what  good  will  hee  came  thither,  by  his 
immediate  attempt  to  escape  from  thence.  For  soone  after  his 
comming  to  Plimouth,  before  he  was  vnder  guard,  he  dealt  with 
the  Owner  of  a  French  Barque  ...  to  make  ready  his  Barque 
for  a  passage.  .  .  .  Hee  had  a  purpose  to  flie  and  escape  from  his 
first  arriuall  into  England"  (41-2). 

1  "Arraignment,"  32.  ^  Siiedding,  425. 

8  •'Arraignment,"  30.  *  Stcbbing,  836. 

»  "Fort.  Pap.,"  58. 


RALEGHANA.  459 

But  the  Attorney-General  made  a  double  charge  against 
him : — 

"  (1)  His  purpose  of  flight  before  commandment  layd 
upon  him. 

"  (2)  .His  endeavour  to  flie  after  the  arrest  upon  him." 

Ealegh  replied,  **Hee  sought  not  to  escape  till  after  his 
arrest  by  Sir  Lewis  Stukeley,  and  afterwards  he  confesseth 
to  have  endeavoured  to  escape."  ^  We  have  to  bear  in  mind 
that  when  Ealegh  arrived  in  Plymouth  he  had  determined 
to  surrender  himself  to  the  King,  for  which  purpose  he  left 
for  London,  but  on  meeting  Stukeley  at  Ashburton,  and  on 
being  informed  by  him  of  the  orders  he  had  received  to 
arrest  him,  he  returned  with  him  to  Plymouth.  That  is  to 
say,  until  Stukeley's  arrival  he  had  made  no  effort  or 
preparation  to  escape,  and  was  not  "  vnder  guard  "  or  arrest 
prior  to  his  meeting  with  Sir  Lewis.  In  his  speech  on  the 
scaflfold  Ealegh  said : — 

"  I  did  labour  to  make  an  escape  from  Plymouth  to  France,  I 
cannot  denie,  but  that  willingly,  when  I  heard  a  rumour,  That 
there  was  no  hope  of  my  life,  upon  my  return  to  London  I  would 
have  escaped  for  the  safeguard  of  my  Life,  and  not  for  any  ill 
intent  or  conspiracie  against  the  State."  ^ 

Spedding  (428)  quotes  from  the  "Arraignment  of  Sir 
Walter  Ealegh,"  by  Sir  T.  Overbury  (1640),  28,  which  does 
not  mention  whether  the  attempt  was  made  prior  to  or 
after  his  arrest  by  Stukeley,  but  the  fact  remains  that  the 
latter  corroborates  Ealegh's  account  of  what  took  place 
''After  hee  was  .  .  .  committed  to  my  keeping."^  This 
agrees  with  the  report  of  Captain  King  (Oldys,  520-1) ;  of 
Gardiner  (III,  137-8),  and  is  accepted  by  Sir  E.  Eodd.* 
Edwards  accuses  Bacon  (as  the  supposed  author  of  the 
"  Declaration  ")  of  a  "  falsification  of  date  in  relation  of  the 
project  of  escape,"  by  assigning  it  to  the  period  before 
Stukeley  met  Ealegh.  He  adds  it  was  not  an  "involuntary 
error,"  but  was  done  to  effect  "  a  double  purpose  "  of  which 
he  gives  details  (I,  654-5).  Whatever  may  have  been  the 
motive,  it  is  certain  the  statement  in  the  "  Declaration "  is 
incorrect. 

Attempts  to  bribe  two  of  the  spies. — The  asserted  attempts 
to  bribe  Stukeley  and  Manourie  are  based  solely  upon  the 

1  "  Camd.  Misc.,"  11-12.  «  "  Remains,"  146  (1651). 

»  « *  Petition, "  6-6.  *  "  Life  of  Raleigh,"  274  (1904). 


460  RALEGHANA. 

statements  of  the  latter,  and  fail  to  be  corroborated  bj  any 
other  witness.    "  Hee  endeavours  to  corrupt  Manerj.     Hee 
endeavoured  to  corrupt  Stukeley  his  keeper/'  are  among  the 
charges  of    the    Solicitor -General,^   and   many    details  in 
support  of    it   are   related   in   the  "Declaration"   (61-3). 
Some  account  of    these   two  spies,  and  also   of    Wilson, 
will  be  found  in  Appendix  D.     It  points  out  the   craven 
character  of  Manourie.    Gardiner  affirms  that  Ralegh,  while 
on  his  journey  to  London,  attempted  to  bribe  Stukeley,  but 
was  met  with  a  refusal  (III,  139),  and  this  is  accepted  as 
correct  in  the  "D.  N.  B."  memoir  of  Stukeley.      If   this 
was  so,  how  is  it  that  it  is  unmeutioned  in  the  latter's 
petition?    As  he  was  careful  to  magnify  his  various  pro- 
ceedings, surely  he  could  not  have  praised  himself  more  than 
by  showing  he  was  incapable  of  being  bought  over.     On  the 
other  hand,  there  is  far  greater  reason  to  believe  that  after 
Manourie  had  left  him  Stukeley  accepted  jewels,  etc.,  from 
Ralegh  immediately  prior  to  his  final  arrest*    In  a  letter 
from  Wilson  to  Naunton  of   17  September,  1618,  is  this 
entry :  "  All  y^  he  had  S'  Lew.  Stukeley  tooke  fro  him,  saue 
only  a  saphire  ring  w*^^  is  his  seale  w^**  he  shewed  me."* 

Attention  may  here  be  directed  to  the  circumstance  that 
Sir  "Judas"  Stukeley,  on  finding  himself  snubbed  by  all 
with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  even  by  those  who  had 
previously  been  on  friendly  terms  with  him,  appealed  to 
the  King,  who  is  said  to  have  replied,  "  If  I  should  hang  all 
that  speak  ill  of  thee,  all  the  trees  in  the  country  would  not 
suffice."  *  Again,  in  a  letter  from  J.  Tory  to  Carleton,  dated 
7  November,  1618,  James  is  said  to  have  remarked  to 
Stukeley,  "I  have  done  amiss;  his  blood  be  upon  thy 
head."^  And  yet  three  weeks  ciftcr  the  date  of  the  last 
quoted  letter,  the  e\'idence  of  Stukeley  forms  the  basis  of 
several  of  the  accusations  against  Ralegh  in  the  "  Declara- 
tion." 

Slaiulcrmg  the  Kvi/j. — According  to  Manourie,  and  as 
related  in  the  '*  Declaration,"  Ralegh  on  one  occasion  "  brake 
foorth  into  most  hatefull,  and  Trayterous  words  against  the 
Kings  owne  Person,  ending  in  a  menace  and  brauerie,"  etc. 
(59).  This  is  repeated  in  Stukeley*s  "Petition"  (10)  as  having 
been  uttered  "  by  such  a  proude  vassall  against  your  sacred 

1  **Camd.  Misc.,"  11. 

2  "Trans.  I).  A.,"  XXXVII,  290. 

»  "S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  XCIX.  2.5. 

*  Letter  dated  5  January,  **  Gardiner,"  III,  153. 

»  "Cal.  8.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,''  CIII,  74. 


RALEGHANA.  461 

person  to  Monsieur  Manourij,  as  other  his  disloyal  deeds 
which  hee  intended  against  you." 

Manourie  is  the  sole  person  who  said  he  heard  Ralegh 
slander  the  King,  and  on  one  occasion  only.  Not  a  single 
corroboration  of  this  has  been  cited.  That  James  was  very 
sensitive  to  any  remarks  on  his  character,  person,  or  habits 
is  certain.  We  have  some  evidence  of  this  in  his  letter  of 
20  October  to  the  Commissioners,  in  which  inter  alia  he 
desires  to  be  inserted  in  the  "Declaration"  "some  touch  of 
his  hatef ull  speeches  of  our  person."  ^ 

In  the  most  solemn  manner  Ealegh,  while  on  the  scaffold 
a  few  minutes  only  before  he  was  executed,  said : — 

''As  I  hope  to  be  saved  at  the  last  judgement  day,  I  never  spake 
dishonorably,  disloyally,  or  dishonestly  of  his  Majesty  in  all  my 
life.  And  therefore  I  cannot  but  thinke  it  strange,  that  that 
Frenchman  being  so  base  and  meane  a  fellow  should  be  so  farr 
credited  as  he  hath  been  "  (29,  30). 

Spedding  accepts  Ealegh's  denial,  but  curiously  enough 
states  he  was  "  inclined  to  think  that  this  was  intended  for 
a  report  of  words  really  spoken,  but  that  the  reporter  mis- 
understood and  so  misreported  them,"  and  that  Ealegh 
meant,  not  James,  but  the  King  of  Spain !  (371,  408). 

Here  again  the  King's  allusion  in  his  letter  of  20  October, 
that  the  "  Declaration  "  should  contain  "  some  touch  of  his 
hatefuU  speeches  of  our  person,"  was  the  apparent  cause  of 
its  introduction  into  that  Manifesto,  Ealegh's  denial  being 
ignored. 

French  Commission,  —  Wilson  left  his  prisoner  on  15 
October,  and  on  the  18th  the  Council  wrote  to  the  King, 
**  for  that  which  concerns  the  French,  wherein  he  was  rather 
passive  than  active,  and  without  which  the  charge  is  com- 
plete, we  humbly  refer  to  your  Majesty's  considerayion,  how 
far  that  shall  be  touched"  (Spedding,  362);  then  on  the 
20th  a  letter  from  the  King  to  the  Council  has  this  para- 
graph: "for  the  French,  we  hold  it  not  fitt  that  they  be 
named  [in  the  "Declaration"],  but  only  by  incident  and  that 
very  lightly,  as  that  he  should  have  escaped  in  a  French 
barke"  ("  Fort.  Pap.,"  58).  This  projected  escape  is  alluded  to 
in  the  "  Declaration  "  (64-5),  and  was  not  denied  by  Ealegh. 
There  is  only  one  other  reference  in  it  to  the  French,  that 
when  at  Trinidad  he  told  his  oflBcers  "there  was  another 

1  **  Fort.  Pap.,"  68.  Cf.  **  Traditionall  Memoyres,"  by  F.  Osborne  (1668), 
II,  14. 


462  RALEGHANA. 

course  (which  hee  did  particularize  vnto  them  to  bee  a 
French  Commission),  whereby  they  might  doe  themselues 
most  good  vpon  the  Spaniards  **  (32-3). 

Bearing  in  mind  that  one  of  the  principal  duties  of  Wilson 
was  to  get  Ralegh  to  confess  his  dealings  with  the  French/ 
it  is  fairly  certain  that  his  reports  were  unsatisfactory, 
and  therefore  were  neither  utilized  nor  referred  to  in  the 
Manifesto ;  otherwise  how  can  the  remarks  of  the  Council, 
and  two  days  later  of  the  King,  be  explained  ?  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  wrote  Macvey  Napier, 

"The  Sovereign  and  his  agents — the  Secretary  of  State  and  the 
immediate  spy — were  thoroughly  baffled  in  their  expectations; 
but  their  objects  were  pursued  at  the  cost  of  a  most  harassing 
interference  with  the  privacy,  quiet,  and  occupations  of  the 
unhappy  proceedings.  It  is  impossible  to  view  their  ignoble  pro- 
ceedings .  .  .  without  strong  indignation. '^  ^ 

But  Gardiner  enters  very  fully  into  the  matter,  and  after 
accepting  as  true  Stukeley's  report  of  his  conversation  with 
Ealegh  relative  to  the  attempted  escape  in  a  French  barque, 
and  of  Wilson's  on  matters  concerning  the  Mexico  fleet,  he 
continues : — 

'*  Thus  did  the  wretched  game  of  falsehood  on  both  sides  drag 
on,  till  at  last  on  September  25,  Raleigh,  weary  of  the  struggle, 
wrote  to  the  King,  acknowledging  that  he  had  sailed  with  a 
commission  from  the  Admiral  of  France,"  etc.  (Ill,  144). 

This  asserted  confession  of  Ealegh  is  stated  to  be  con- 
tained in  a  letter  from  him  to  the  King,  but  "of  which, 
unfortunately,  only  a  Spanish  translation  has  been  pre- 
served"; but  "is  quoted  in  a  statement  in  the  Council 
Kegister,  27  September"  (III,  128,  144).  Of  this  a  trans- 
lation will  be  found  in  St.  John's  "Life  of  Ealeigh,"  II, 
331-3  (1868),  from  which  this  extract  is  taken : — 

"I  received  a  commission  from  the  Due  de  Montmorenci, 
Admiral  of  France,  to  go  to  sea,  which  was  given  to  me  by  a 
Frenchman  named  Farge  ...  I  have  now  resolved  to  make  an 
effort  to  save  myself  in  the  best  manner  I  can  by  disclosing  the 
truth  to  your  Majesty,  seeing  that  my  enemies  in  this  kingdom 
have  great  power  to  do  me  harm.  I  pray  you  humbly,  therefore, 
to  pardon  and  have  compassion  on  me,  and  if  it  may  please  your 
Majesty  to  grant  my  life,  even  in  imprisonment,  I  will  reveal 
things  which  will  be  very  useful  to  the  State,"  etc. 

^  Vide  his  letters  to  Naunton  of  16  and  21  September,  "CaL  S.  P., 
James  I,  Dom.,"  XCIX,  12,  68. 
«  "Edin.  Rev.,"93. 


RALEGHANA.  463 

Let  this  be  contrasted  with  the  copy  of  a  genuine  letter 
sent  by  Ealegh  to  the  King,  and  dated  on  the  day  previous 
to  the  one  just  cited  (printed  in  extenso  by  Edwards,  II, 
368-9),  and  any  unprejudiced  person  would  own  that  it  was 
scarcely  possible  that  the  two  were  the  composition  of  the 
same  person.  The  statement  in  the  Council  Kegister  re- 
ferred to  contains  no  mention  of  a  French  commission,  but 
relates  mainly  to  Ealegh's  asserted  attempt  to  escape  through 
the  offices  of  La  Chesn^e. 

Some  of  the  gravest  charges  against  Ealegh  are  only 
known  by  letters,  dispatches  of  ambassadors,  etc.,  preserved 
in  the  Simancas,  and  in  other  foreign  collections,  of  which 
the  above  letter,  quoted  of  25  September,  is  an  example.  It 
is  remarkable  that  an  important  State  document  like  this, 
or  a  replica  of  it,  should  not  have  been  preserved  amongst 
the  English  records.  The  misrepresentations,  exaggerations, 
and  something  worse  to  be  found  in  such  foreign  documents 
are  notorious.  Some  examples  have  already  been  given.  Of 
one  quoted  by  St.  John,  he  remarks :  "  The  Spanish  Secretary 
certainly  drew  upon  his  imagination  for  some  of  the  details 
he  forwarded  to  his  master  "  (II,  340), 

In  his  genuine  letters,  in  his  examinations,  in  his  second 
testamentary  note,  and  in  his  final  speech  on  the  scaffold, 
Kalegh  vehemently  denied  having  had  any  French  com- 
mission, and  there  is  no  valid  reason  why  his  word  should 
be  doubted. 

Spedding  regards  the  secondary  charges  for  the  most  part, 
either  as  not  affecting  the  main  points  against  Balegb,  or 
accepts  his  denial  of  them  (358-9,  371).  The  acts,  he 
affirms,  of  which  he  **  stood  convicted  by  his  own  admission, 
as  well  as  by  the  uncontradicted  evidence  of  all  the  witnesses, 
included  the  committing  of  many  murders  and  the  setting 
on  fire  of  many  houses"  (359).  His  condemnation,  says 
Gardiner,  was  "  formally  on  the  old  sentence  at  Winchester, 
in  reality  for  having  allowed  his  men  to  shed  Spanish  blood 
after  engaging  that  he  would  not  do  so."^  But,  singularly 
enough,  he  omits  all  reference  to  the  town  being  burned  and 
sacked. 

But  the  witnesses  prove  that  the  Spaniards  were  the 
aggressors,  and  it  was  in  consequence  of  this  that  the 
soldiers,  maddened  by  the  loss  of  some  of  their  number  by 
the  onslaught  of  the  ambuscaded  Spaniards,  followed  them 
into  the  town  and  burnt  it.  The  latter  act  was  disowned 
by  Balegh,  and  the  former  was  committed  against  his  special 
*  "Ency.  Brit,"  XXI,  264  (1886). 


464  RALBGHANA. 

instructions  for  Keymis  to  avoid  any  conflict  with  the 
Spaniards,  but  to  withstand  any  attack  from  them.  Ralegh 
made  no  engagement  to  prevent  his  soldiers  from  defending 
themselves. 

To  exonerate  the  King,  Spedding  states,  he  "  did  not  either 
intend  or  anticipate  any  aggression  upon  Spaniards ;  and  a 
man  caanot  be  thought  morally  guilty  of  an  act  which  he 
neither  meant  nor  foresaw,  however  he  might  be  legally 
answerable"  (359).  But  lialegh  "neither  meant  nor  fore- 
saw "  the  murders  by  the  Spaniards,  nor  the  destruction  of 
St.  Thomas  by  his  own  men.  Even  Spedding  would  scarcely 
deny  that  the  moral  law  would  apply  as  much  to  the  subject 
as  it  would  to  the  king. 

One  remarkable  assertion  in  the  title  of  the  "  Declaration  " 
seems  to  have  escaped  the  notice  of  Ralegh's  biographers, 
viz.  its  striking  contrast  to  the  statements  contained  in  the 
following  letter,  as  to  the  real  cause  why  James  sacrificed 
Ralegh.  Here  is  a  transcript  of  the  portion  of  the  title 
which  deserves  and  requires  especial  attention  to  be  directed 
to  it.  "  The  true  motiues  and  inducements  which  occasioned 
His  Maiestie  to  Proceed  in  doing  Justice  vpon  him,  as  hath 
bene  done"  (vide  facsimile).  Compared  with  the  contents 
of  the  following  transcript  of  a  letter  from  the  Marquis  of 
Buckingham  to  the  English  Ambassador  in  Spain,  the  title 
of  the  "  Declaration  "  expresses  a  deliberate  falsehood : — 

"  Good  Mr.  Cottington."  After  complaining  of  the  slow  pro- 
gress made  by  the  Spaniards  "  towards  the  effecting  of  the  main 
business  [the  Spanish  Alliance]  and  that  it  hath  not  been  sincerely 
intended,  but  merely  used  by  that  State  as  an  amuzement  to 
entertain  and  busie  his  Majesty  withal,  and  for  the  gaining  of 
time  for  their  own  ends  :  and  this  is  muttered  here  by  very  many," 
he  goes  on  to  say  that  if  they  do  not  act  according  to  "the 
Protestations  and  Profession  which  I  have  so  often  heard  them 
make  ...  I  shall  judge  them  the  most  unworthy  and  per- 
fidious people  in  the  World,  and  the  more,  for  that  His  Majesty 
hath  given  them  so  many  testimonies  of  his  sincere  intentions 
towards  them,  which  he  daily  continueth,  as  now  of  late,  by  the 
causing  Sir  Walter  Rawleigh  to  be  put  to  death,  chiefly  for  the 
giving  them  satisfaction  whereof  his  Majesty  commanded  me  to 
advertise  you,  and  concerning  whom,  you  shall  by  the  next 
receive  a  Declaration,  shewing  the  Motives  which  induced  his 
Majesty  to  recall  his  mercy,  through  which  he  had  lived  this 
many  years  a  condemned  man  ...  for  the  great  business  he 
hath  endeavoured  to  satisfle  them  in  all  things,  letting  them  see 
how  in  many  actions  of  late  of  that  nature  his  ^lajesty  hath 
strained  upon  the  affections  of  his  people,  and  especially  in  this 


RALEGHANA.  465 

last  concerning  Sir  Walter  Rawleigh,  who  died  with  a  great  deal 
of  courage  and  constancy ;  and  at  his  death  moved  the  common 
sort  of  people  to  much  remorse,  who  all  attributed  his  death  to 
the  desire  his  Majesty  had  to  satisfy  Spain. 

"  Further,  you  may  let  them  know  how  able  a  man  Sir  Walter 
Rawleigh  was  to  have  done  his  Majesty  service,  if  he  should 
have  been  pleased  to  employ  him ;  yet  to  give  them  content,  he 
hath  not  spared  him,  when  by  preserving  him,  he  might  have 
given  great  satisfaction  to  his  Subjects,  and  had  at  command, 
upon  all  occasions  as  useful  a  man  as  served  any  Prince  in 
Christendome  and  on  the  contrary,  the  King  of  Spain  is  not 
pleased  to  do  anything  which  may  be  so  inconvenient  unto  him, 
as  to  lessen  the  affections  of  his  people,  or  to  procure  so  much 
as  murmering  or  distractions  among  them."  ^ 

This  letter  is  undated,  but  as  it  refers  to  the  publication 
of  the  **  Declaration/'  which  was  issued  on  27  November, 
it  must  have  been  written  within  a  few  days  of  that  date. 
One  curious  paragraph  in  it  seems  to  contain  a  covert  threat: 
"The  decency  and  buen  termine  that  is  to  be  observed 
betwixt  great  Princes,  will  hardly  admit  of  Threats  or 
Revenge  for  a  wooing  language." 

Could  anything  be  more  condemnatory  of  the  action  of 
James  ?  In  Cayley's  opinion  it  was  "  a  proof  of  the  mean- 
ness and  cruelty  which  attended  the  sacrifice  of  Sir  Walter 
Ralegh  to  that  [Spanish]  Court.  .  .  .  Sacrificed  by  a  mean 
and  corrupt  court  to  a  foreign  power,  holding  an  absolute 
ascendant  in  the  councils  over  the  true  interests  of  the 
nation"  (II,  178,  211);  "and  surely,"  remarks  Macvey 
Napier,  "if  aught  done  against  his  own  and  his  people's 
honour  can  consign  the  memory  of  a  ruler  to  lasting  repro- 
bation," Buckingham's  letter  "ought  so  to  dispose  of  the 
name  of  James"  ("Edin.  Rev.,"  95).  When  Ralegh  wrote 
his  "Apologie,"  Gardiner  affirmed  it  stamped  him  "as  a  liar 
convicted  by  his  own  admission"  (III,  141).  In  the  writer's 
opinion  he  accused  Ralegh  wrongfully,  but  in  the  subject 
under  consideration  the  phrase  was  certainly  applicable  to 
James. 

Finally,  we  may  quote  the  words  of  Oldys  (568),  that 
Ralegh  was  "  made  a  sacrifice  of  state  to  the  enemies  and 
deceivers  of  the  state";  and  adds,  "we  have  reserved,  as 
most  convincing,  the  acknowledgments  of  an  enemy  [the 
King],  who  made  him  that  sacrifice,"  and  then  concludes 
with  a  quotation  from  Buckingham's  letter. 

1  '•Historical  Collections,"  J.  Rushwoitb,  9,  10  (1682). 
VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  G 


466  RALEGHANA. 

This  seems  to  be  strong  language  to  apply  to  a  king,  but 
it  is  not  the  only  instance  of  similar  language  being  applied 
to  him,  a  well-known  one  being  the  case  of  the  Aberdeen 
ministers  who  were  tried  at  Linlithgow  in  1606,  and  being 
found  guilty  were  first  imprisoned  for  some  months,  and 
then  were  condemned  to  perpetual  banishment.  On  this 
case  Gardiner  passes  the  most  scathing  censure  on  James, 
who,  he  states,  "  had  at  least  notified  to  all  who  cared  for 
honesty  and  truthfulness  that  it  was  only  by  falsehood  and 
trickery  that  he  had  succeeded  in  establishing  his  claims " 
(I,  315).     This  was  James's  "  kingcraft " ! 

Notwithstanding  that  Spedding  quotes  a  portion  of  the 
letter  to  Cottiugton  (438,  440),  he  contends  **that  it  was 
incumbent  on  Spain  to  demand  satisfaction  and  justice  to  be 
done  on  Ealegh  by  England  " ;  and  James  believed  "  it  was 
a  sacrifice  which  justice  demanded  of  him "  (438).  "  The 
popular  judgment,'*  he  notes,  "  gave  plausibility  to  the  asser- 
tion that  the  punishment  was  inflicted  upon  a  false  pretence, 
and  that  the  real  motive  was  to  give  satisfaction  to  the 
Spaniards"  (435). 

Ralegh's  "  execution  upon  the  antiquated  sentence,  seems 
to  be  a  gross  misrepresentation  of  the  spirit  of  the  whole 
transaction,"  alleges  the  same  author,  who  adds,  "Can  it 
with  more  justice  be  called  a  sacrifice  to  the  vengeance  of 
Spain  ? "  (437).  It  certainly  can,  and,  apart  from  all  other 
evidence,  the  letter  of  Buckingham  alone  proves  that  Ralegh 
was  executed  "  to  give  satisfaction  to  the  Spaniards,"  and  for 
710  other  purpose.  The  animus  of  Spedding  against  Ral^h 
is  so  markedly  shown  in  everything  relating  to  the  latter, 
that  he  not  only  defends  the  action  of  the  King  in  causing 
his  beheadal,  but  makes  the  unjustifiable  reflection  on  the 
scaffold  scene  that  "  no  tragic  scene  in  real  life  was  ever  so 
finely  acted  "  (370).  Again,  he  alludes  to  the  execution  as 
"  the  canonization  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  .  .  .  glorified  in  the 
popular  imagination,  and  regarded  as  little  less  than  a 
martyred  saint  .  .  .  merely  because  the  offence  for  which  he 
suffered  was  against  Spain."  ^ 

The  writer  has  been  unable  to  find  any  notice  of  Bucking- 
ham's letter  in  Gardiner's  "History,"  but  the  following 
extract  from  his  last  literary  work  seems  to  refer  to  it: 
"  Ralegh,  on  his  return  in  1618,  was  offered  as  a  sacrifice  to 
Spain  and  executed."  ^ 

How  the  news  of   Ralegh's  execution  was  received  in 

»  *•  Even,  with  a  Ecv.,"  II,  378-9. 
2  **Camb.  M<xl.  Hist.,*' 662. 


RALEGUANA.  467 

Spain  is  thus  related  in  a  letter  from  Sir  T.  Lake^  to  the 
Marquis  of  Buckingham,  containing  the  following  extract  from 
one  sent  by  Lord  (then  Mr.)  Francis  Cottington,  at  that  time 
English  Ambassador  in  Spain :  "  His  Majesties  proceading 
with  Sir  Walter  lialegh  hath  given  here  so  much  satisfaction 
and  contentment  as  1  am  not  able  to  expresse  it  unto  your 
honour,  but  all  men  doe  extoUe  his  Majesties  syncerity 
in  it."2 

Attention  might  be  directed  to  other  assertions  in  the 
King's  Manifesto,  such  as  the  want  of  gratitude  to  the  King 
on  Rale^ili's  part;  asserted  pardon;  living  in  liberd  custodid 
in  the  Tower ;  refusal  to  return  to  England  to  **  put  his  head 
vnder  the  King's  girdle,"  etc.  (38);  but  sufficient  has  been 
adduced  to  throw  some  light  on  the  misleading  statements, 
the  exaggerations,  the  innuendoes,  and  the  direct  falsehoods 
to  be  found  in  it.  It  satisfied  no  one,  and  was  looked  upon 
by  the  public  generally,  including  Ealegh's  biographers,  up 
to  a  recent  date,  not  as  an  explanation  or  a  justification  of 
his  execution,  but  as  an  attempt  at  an  Apology,  which  only 
served  to  increase  the  feeling  of  bitterness  against  Spain,  as 
well  as  against  those  who  sided  with  the  King  in  his 
strenuous  endeavours  to  bring  about  a  lioyal  alliance  with 
that  country. 

Two  well-known  modern  authors  (Spedding  and  Gardiner) 
have  taken  an  entirely  different  view  from  that  which  has 
just  been  expressed.    The  former  affirms : — 

"  Wherever  I  have  been  able  to  compare  the  statements  in  this 
Declaration  with  the  evidence  upon  which  they  were  made,  I 
have  found  them  to  be  very  careful  and  conscientious;  and  I 
have  no  doubt  that  the  narrative  may  in  all  parts  be  depended 
upon  for  strict  accuracy,  so  far  as  accuracy  was  attainable  by 
studious  comparison  of  conflicting  witnesses  "  (383). 

**  I  hold  the  Declaration  to  be  of  so  much  value  as  a  historical 
authority  that  the  correction  or  indication  of  any  error  in  it  is  a 
piece  of  good  service  "  (402). 

The  opinion  of  the  latter  is  thus  expressed : — 

'*  I  cannot  pass  over  the  ''Declaration"  in  so  cavalier  a  manner  as 
it  is  customary  to  do.  It  was  Bacon's  production,  and  I,  for  one, 
do  not  believe  that  Bacon  would  purposely  introduce  false  state- 
ments into  such  a  document "  (III,  56). 

**  The  Declaration  .  .  .  was  founded  on  the  evidence  which  had 
been  taken,  and  there  is  not  the  smallest  reason  to  suspect  that  any 

^  He  became  a  Spanish  pensioner  in  1615,  and  was  on  intimate  terms  with 
Goudomar.     "  D.  N.  B.,"  sub  **  Lake,  Sir  T." 
2  *»Fort.  rap.,"  80. 

2o2 


468  RALEGHANA. 

false    statement   was   intentionally    inserted    by    James    or    his 
ministers"  (III,  153). 

"He  [Bacon]  had  before  him  a  great  mass  of  evidence  which  is 
now  lost,  and  though  he  was  led  astray  on  the  question  of  Ralegh's 
belief  in  the  existence  of  the  mine,  it  is  impossible  to  deny,  that 
whenever  a  piece  of  fresh  evidence  turns  up,  it  conBrms  the  ac- 
curacy of  his  statements  "  (III,  56).^ 

It  may  seem  a  delicate  matter  for  an  unknown  writer  to 
suggest  that  neither  of  these  standard  authors  could  have 
made  an  especial  study  of  the  work  they  view  so  favourably ; 
but  the  foregoing  report  of  the  results  of  his  examination 
of  it  has  caused  him  to  entertain  an  opinion  wholly 
opposed  to  theirs.  In  the  portion  of  Spedding's  volume 
devoted  to  the  criticism  of  Ealegh,  the  aim  seems  to  have 
been  to  condemn  him,  and  to  praise  both  the  acts  and  the 
motives  of  James.  As  a  piece  of  legal  casuistry  it  is  a  great 
success,  no  doubt,  but  must  be  regarded  as  an  advocate's 
brief,  and  nothing  more.  He  "could  not,"  remarks  Stebbing, 
"  well  let  judgment  pass  against  his  idol  Lord  Bacon  without 
a  word  of  defence  for  one  of  the  worst  blemishes  in  a  pitiful 
official  career  "(393). 

The  introduction  of  "false  statements"  one  can  hardly 
make  Bacon  responsible  for,  as  although  he  drew  up  the 
draft  copy  of  the  Manifesto,  it  was  discussed  and  was  prob- 
ably much  altered  by  the  Council,  as  well  as  by  the  King. 
Bacon  could  not  have  originated  or  have  composed  the  long 
account  of  the  feigned  illness,  which,  with  other  secondary 
evidence,  must  be  attributed  to  James.  It  must,  however, 
be  borne  in  mind,  that  he  was  acting  as  the  King's  Advocate, 
and  in  that  capacity  he  would  naturally  relate  facts  bearing 
on  the  subject,  with  a  natural  tendency  to  omit,  or  to  modify, 
truths  that  might  prove  detrimental  to  his  client.  That  it  is 
strictly  founded  upon  "the  evidence,"  and  may  be  "depended 
upon  for  strict  accuracy,"  the  present  writer  has  shown  to  be 
terribly  incorrect. 

Gardiner  is  perhaps  one  of  the  most  severe  critics  of 
Ealegh's  proceedings,  but  he  is  frequently  unjust  in  his 
comments.  While  casting  grave  doubts,  and  even  denials, 
on  many  of  Ralegh's  explanations,  accounts  of  incidents, 
etc.,  and  in  unjustifiable  language,  yet  he  accepts  un- 
hesitatingly assertions,  o^ften  unsupported,  made  by  spies, 
or  contained  in  the  "  Declaration,"  many  of  which  are  ex- 

^  The  writer  has  been  unable  to  find  any  such  confirmatory  evidence  ;  on 
the  contrary,  any  "fresh  evidence"  that  has  l)cen  published  is  antagonistic 
to  the  "Declaration"  {vide  M.  Hume,  Preface  and  cha|)s.  xiv.  to  xvi.). 


RALEGHANA.  469 

aggerations  or  something  worse ;  at  the  same  time  derelictions 
of  duty  on  the  part  of  the  King  are  too  often  explained  away  or 
are  condoned.  (This- is  done  by  Spedding  to  a  much  greater 
extent.)  The  following  comprise  some  of  the  objectionable 
paragraphs :  That  with  respect  to  Ealegh,  "  no  reliance  can 
be  placed  on  his  mere  wordy*  has  been  already  referred  to 
(III,  128).  Yet  on  another  page  he  relates  that  when  off 
Trinidad,  and  unable  from  illness  to  accompany  the  boat  ex- 
pedition up  the  Orinoco,  Kalegh  remained  behind  in  charge 
of  the  rest  of  the  fleet,  to  ward  off  any  attack  of  the  Spanish 
navy,  his  officers, 

"  Who  knew  well  enough  what  his  value  was,  .  .  .  declared  that, 
unless  he  remained  behind,  they  would  refuse  to  go.  .  .  .  They  amid 
l^lare  roiifideiice  in  his  wordy  and  in  his  alone,  that  he  would  not 
expose  them  to  certain  destruction  by  leaving  the  entrance  to  the 
river  open  "  (III,  118-19). 

Again,  **  He  had  been  content  to  found  his  enterprise  upon  a 
lie,  and  his  sin  had  found  him  out.  To  all  who  knew  what  the  facts 
were,  he  stamped  himself  by  his  Apology  as  a  liar  convicted  by.  his 
own  admission"  (III,  141). 

(This  has  been  shown  by  Stebbing  to  be  based  on  "un- 
proved assumptions  '*  (337).) 
And  he  sums  up  thus : — 

**  Whatever  else  might  be  true,  it  was  plain  that  his  story  at 
least  was  false.  As  one  by  one  admissions  were  wrung  from  him 
which  were  utterly  fatal  to  his  honesty  of  purpose ;  as  the  Com- 
missioners heard  one  day  of  his  proposal  to  seize  the  Mexico  fleet, 
and  another  day  of  his  underhand  dealings  with  Montmorency,  it 
is  hardly  to  be  wondered  at  that,  exasperated  by  the  audacity  of 
his  lying,  they  came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  was  not  a  word 
of  truth  in  his  assertions,  and  that  his  belief  in  the  very  existence 
of  the  mine  was  a  mere  fiction,  invented  for  the  purpose  of  im- 
posing upon  his  too  credulous  Sovereign"  (III,  142). 

This  is  evidently  an  attempt  to  shield  the  Commissioners,  as 
well  as  the  King,  from  all  blame.  This  exaggerated  style  of 
assertive  criticism  was  unworthy  of  the  historian,  founded 
as  it  was  on  flimsy  statements  that  are  accepted  as  positive 
evidence.  Of  the  two  points  adverted  to,  that  of  the  Mexico 
fleet  has  been  already  examined ;  while  Stebbing  has  thrown 
a  different  light  on  the  so-termed  "underhand  dealings"  with 
Montmorency  (308). 

If  we  investigate  the  subject  a  little  more  closely,  we  are 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  the  recklessness  and  want  of 
common  honesty  in  money  matters  on  the  part  of  James 
formed  the  real  factors  in  bringing  about  the  condemnation 


470  RALEGHAKA. 

of  Balegh;  and  although  Gardiner  finds  great  fault  with  the 
latter,  he  is  especially  emphatic  in  blaming  James  for  his 
conduct  throughout  the  whole  of  the  transactions  that  led 
to  it.  The  following  quotations  from  his  works  will  testify 
to  this : — 

"  To  impartial  persons,  it  is  clear  that  the  king's  own  misconduct 
had  its  full  share  in  bringing  about  the  catastrophe.  ...  If  he 
sent  Raleigh  to  the  scaffold,  he  was  condemning  himself  for  the 
part  which  he  had  taken"  (III,  141). 

"  If  justice  demanded  the  execution  of  Ralegh,  it  also  demanded 
his  own."^ 

"James  sent  him  to  the  scaffold  for  a  fault  which  he  should 
never  have  been  given  the  chance  of  committing."^ 

[Ralegh  was  executed]  "nominally  in  accordance  with  the  sentence 
delivered  in  1603,  in  reality  because  he  had  failed  to  secure  the 
gold  of  which  James  was  in  need.  The  real  crime  was  the  King's, 
who  had  sent  him  out  without  first  defining  the  limits  of  Spanish 
sovereignty."^ 

Such  are  the  adverse  censures  passed  on  the  King  by  the 
historian  of  the  Stuart  period,  by  whom  James  is  deemed  to 
have  acted  as  a  particeps  criminis  in  the  matter  for  which 
lialegh  was  condemned  and  basely  sacrificed,  in  the  efforts 
made  by  the  King  to  gratify  the  Spanish  faction,  and  there- 
by to  facilitate  the  promotion  of  the  alliance  of  his  son  with  . 
the  Infanta,  which  terminated  in  such  a  complete  overthrow 
of  his  hopes. 

In  his  latest  writings  Gardiner's  estimate  of  Ralegh's 
character  was  less  severe  than  it  was  in  his  "  History  "  pub- 
lished forty  years  earlier.  In  his  article  of  1904  (in  "  Canib. 
Mod.  Hist.")  he  attributes  the  execution  of  lialegh  to  his 
failure  "  to  secure  the  gold  of  which  James  was  in  need  " ; 
and  this  really  expresses  the  keynote  of  James's  procedure. 

Throughout  his  occupancy  of  the  English  throne,  James 
incurred  enormous  debts  without,  despite  his  repeated 
promises,  attempting  to  make  any  personal  efforts  to  pay 
them,  or  to  limit  his  expenditure  in  any  way.  (Some  idea 
of  his  monetary  embarrassments  and  their  causes,  etc.,  will 
be  found  in  Appendix  E,  with  an  account  of  some  other 
points  in  his  character.)  He  was  quite  unscrupulous  as  to 
the  method  of  obtaining  money  from  any  quarter;  but  he 
soon  learnt  that  the  various  sources  of  his  revenue,  regular 

^  "P.  Charles  and  the  Spanish  Marriage,"  I,  141,  quoted  by  Speddiug, 
359. 

»  "Stud.  Hist,  of  Eng.,"  489  (1892).     Cf.  Hallam,  I,  354. 
»  "Camb.  Mod.  Hist,"  562. 


BALEGHANA.  471 

or  irregular,  did  not  relieve  his  "  financial  distress  "  to  any 
serious  extent.  Brighter  hopes  of  obtaining  additional 
pecuniary  aid  by  one  of  two  new  and  widely  different  events 
were  entertained  by  him  in  1617.  One  of  these  consisted 
in  Ealegh's  voyage  to  Guiana  in  quest  of  gold,  for  which  he 
had  issued  a  special  commission ;  the  other  in  the  proposed 
marriage  of  his  son  Charles  to  a  Spanish  princess  with  a 
large  dowry,  of  which  he  expected  to  obtain  a  share. 
Although  at  first  sight  any  connexion  between  these  events, 
differing  so  widely  in  character,  was  not  very  apparent,  they 
certainly  influenced  each  other  to  a  considerable  extent. 
Whether  the  vicinity  of  the  mine  in  Guiana  was  or  was  not 
in  "  the  King  of  Spain's  dominions  '*  was  left  an  open  ques- 
tion, notwithstanding  the  endeavours  of  Gondomar  to  prove 
it  was  within  them.  But "  James,  instead  of  deciding  the 
question,  left  the  whole  responsibility  to  Ealegh ;  .  .  .  this 
practically  meant  that  if  Ralegh  brought  back  the  assurance 
of  large  quantities  of  gold  for  James,  the  site  of  the  mine 
would  be  held  at  Whitehall  to  be  outside  the  limits  of 
Spanish  territory."^ 

So  long  as  all  seemed  to  promise  success,  no  depreciatory 
remarks  were  made  against  the  expedition ;  but  immediately 
on  its  failure  becoming  known,  and  prior  to  its  return,  the 
King  disowned  all  connexion  with  it,  said  that  he  had  been 
deceived,  and  before  Ealegh  reached  England  James  had 
practically  condemned  him,  and  from  this  settled  determina- 
tion he  never  swerved,  despite  all  the  efforts  that  were  made 
to  induce  him  to  be  merciful.  If  the  following  remarkable 
passage  in  a  letter  recorded  by  M.  Hume  to  have  been  sent 
by  Sir  T.  Lake  to  Gondomar  on  21  Oct.,  1617,  be  trust- 
worthy, the  King  had  even  at  that  early  date  resolved  to 
sacrifice  Ralegh,  who  could  not  have  reached  Guiana  until 
the  succeeding  month : — 

Viscount  Fenton  .  .  .  tells  me  that  his  Majesty  is  very  disposed 
and  determined  against  Ralegh,  and  will  join  the  King  of  Spain 
in  mining  him,  but  he  wishes  this  resolution  to  be  kept  secret  for 
some  little  while,  in  order  that,  in  the  interim^  he  may  keep  an  eye 
on  the  disposition  of  some  of  the  people  here  (334-5). 

At  that  time  Lake  was  a  pensioner  of  Spain,  and  may  have 
exaggerated  some  current  Court  rumours  he  had  heard,  so  as  to 
show  his  zeal  in  the  cause  of  that  country.  The  fact  of  our 
knowledge  of  it  being  derived  wholly  from  Spanish  sources 
certainly  detracts  from  its  value.     According  to  the  memoir 

1  "Camb.  Mod.  Hist.,"  662. 


472  BALBGHANA. 

in  the  "  D.  N.  B.,"  Lake's  character  was  not  altogether  satis- 
factory. Unfortunately  for  Ealegh,  the  King,  having  lost 
all  prospects  of  income  from  Guiana,  began  to  employ  the 
most  strenuous  efforts  to  promote  the  marriage  of  his  son 
with  the  Spanish  Infanta.  But  Gondomar  soon  showed  the 
King  he  was  master  of  the  situation,  and  made  him  under- 
stand that  unless  Kalegh  was  executed  for  his  ofiFences 
against  Spain,  not  only  would  the  idea  of  the  Spanish 
alliance  be  at  once  abandoned,  but  that  war  would  probably 
take  place  between  the  two  countries. 

Soon  after  the  treaty  with  Spain  in  1604,  James  was 
desirous  for  his  son  Henry  to  marry  a  Spanish  princess, 
but  the  Prince  did  not  favour  it,  and  his  early  death  on 
6  November,  1612,  put  an  end  to  the  project.  In  1614  and 
following  year,  the  marriage  of  Prince  Charles  with  the 
Infanta  was  mooted,  but  from  some  unknown  obstacles  the 
subject  was  abandoned  for  a  time,  to  be  reopened  in  the 
spring  of  1617. 

"When  the  opening  of  a  formal  negotiation  for  the  marriage 
treaty  was  discussed,  it  was  a  powerful  argument  that,  whereas 
the  portion  of  a  French  princess  would  be  but  £200,000,  the 
Spaniards  offered  £600,000  with  the  Infanta.  .  .  .  James  declared 
that  the  state  of  his  affairs  was  such  as  might  give  him  cause  to 
make  the  best  use  of  his  son,  thereby  to  get  some  good  portion 
towards  the  payment  of  his  debts."  ^ 

Some  curious  remarks  on  this  matter  will  be  found  in  a 
letter  from  Sir  J.  Digby,  English  Ambassador  at  Madrid, 
written  early  in  1617,  from  which  this  paragraph  is  taken : 
"His  Majestie's  necessities  shall  (by  the  greatness  of  the 
portion)  bee  the  most  relieved,  is  with  Spayne."^ 

In  March,  1623,  the  Prince,  accompanied  by  Buckingham, 
went  to  Madrid  to  further  the  proposed  marriage ;  and  on 
favourable  accounts  of  its  satisfactory  progress  being  re- 
ceived by  the  English  Court,  orders  were  given  for  Durham 
House,  Strand  (the  former  residence  of  Ralegh),  to  be  fitted 
up  for  the  reception  of  the  Infanta.  "  The  expenses  will  be 
heavy,"  notes  the  Lord  Chamberlain.^  This  order  had  to  be 
countermanded,  as  the  match  was  broken  off;  and  so  ter- 
minated "  the  ridiculous  fiasco  of  the  Spanish  match,  which 
made  James  and  his  son  the  laughing  stock  of  Europe."* 
Charles  returned  to  England  in  the  following  October,  and 
was  received  with  loud  acclamations  from  the  public,  as 

1  "Camb.  Mod.  Hist.,"  561.  ^  *♦  Arcliwologia,"  XLI,  156. 

»  "Traus.  D.  A.,"  XXXV,  574.  *  M.  Hume,  419. 


RALBGHANA.  473 

though  he  had  gained  a  great  victory.  "  They  saw  in  it  a 
pledge  that  the  prolonged  rule  of  Spanish  ministers  and  of 
Spanish  counsels  was  coming  to  an  end."^  And  so  James 
was  baulked  from  receiving  any  pecuniary  assistance,  either 
from  Guiana  or  from  Spain.  He  must  have  felt  convinced, 
not  only  of  having  sacrificed  Ealegh  needlessly,  but  that  also 
he  had  enabled  Spain  to  get  rid  "  of  her  old  and  inveterate 
enemy,  and  by  whom  he  had  been  outwitted,"  ^  without  re- 
ceiving any  compensation  in  return.  His  kingcraft  on  this 
occasion  had  failed  him.  James  died  on  27  March,  1625, 
and  his  son  Charles  married  a  French  princess  about  two 
months  after  his  coronation. 

Down  to  a  recent  period  authors  generally,  as  well  as  the 
public,  were  unanimous  in  their  condemnation  of  the 
*'  Declaration,"  which  they  regarded  simply  as  an  apology  of 
the  King  for  his  sacrifice  of  Kalegh  to  the  Spanish  faction. 
Scathing  remarks  upon  it  will  be  found  in  Stebbing's  work 
(392-3).  In  Cayley's  opinion  its  authors  '*  have  not  neglected 
the  advantage  which  they  enjoyed  of  culling  a  plausible  tale 
from  the  superficial  circumstances  of  the  case"  (II,  178). 
The  only  authors  who  dissent  from  this  view  consist  of  Mr. 
J.  Spedding,  the  biographer  of  Lord  Bacon,  and  Mr.  S.  R 
Gardiner,  the  well-known  historian,  who  greatly  differ  from 
each  other  in  their  standpoint  of  criticism,  if  criticism  it  can 
be  termed  on  the  part  of  the  former,  whose  aim  seemed  to 
1)6  to  find  grievous  fault  with  everything  that  Ealegh  said  or 
did,  or  that  could  possibly  be  attributed  to  him ;  apparently 
for  the  purpose  of  contrasting  him  with  the  King,  whom  he 
considered  as  everything  that  was  wise,  patriotic,  and  just. 
(  Vide  Appendix  E.)  On  the  other  hand,  Gardiner,  although 
a  severe  critic  of  Kalegh's  life  and  actions,  and  with  every 
apparent  desire  to  weigh  all  the  evidence  as  fairly  as  possible, 
yet  (in  the  opinion  of  the  writer)  he  is  too  often  harsh  and 
unjust  in  forming  and  in  expressing  his  opinions  respecting 
him.  The  cause  of  this,  so  far  as  regards  the  subject-matter 
of  the  present  paper,  is  not  far  to  seek.  He  assuredly 
reasoned  correctly  from  false  premises,  by  accepting  as 
trustworthy  the  contents  of  the  "  Declaration  "  ;  the  evidence 
of  the  paid  spies ;  and  the  exaggerated  and  often  unsupported 
accounts  in  the  dispatches  of  ambassadors,  etc.  In  all  these 
there  was  a  natural  bias  to  prove  or  to  affirm  anything  that 
was  required  to  ensure  the  condemnation  of  Ealegh. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  present  writer,  after  a  detailed 

»  Gardiner,  *'  Hist,  of  Eng.,''  V,  128. 
'  Cayley,  II,  136. 


474  RALBGHANA, 

examination  of  the  principal  statements  and  allegations  iu 
the  "  Declaration,"  the  results  of  which  are  fully  recorded  in 
the  foregoing  pages,  has  arrived  at  wholly  different  con- 
clusions from  those  advanced  by  the  two  great  authorities 
just  named.  That  State  Document  records  everything  that 
could  possibly  be  urged  against  Ralegh,  and  withholds  any- 
thing that  could  be  advanced  in  his  favour,  a  mode  of  depre- 
ciation that  would  be  included  under  the  heading  of  "  king- 
craft." This  was  fully  indicated  by  the  King  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Council  prior  to  the  arrival  of  Ealegh  at  the  Tower 
under  the  charge  of  Stukeley : — 

"All  he  wanted  the  Councirs  opinion  about  was  whether 
Ralegh  ought  to  be  punished  or  not.  Most  of  the  councillors 
answered  in  the  affirmative,  and  Ralegh's  friends  refrained  from 
voting.  Since,  said  the  King,  they  were  apparently  unanimous,  if 
ever  he  learnt  that  in  secret,  or  in  conversation,  any  of  them 
defended  Ralegh,  he  should  hold  them  as  traitors.  Let  this^  he 
added,  be  a  warning  to  others  who  wanted  to  assail  the  King  of 
Spain,  whose  friendship  was  the  most  desirable  thing  possible  for 
England  "(M.  Hume,  373). 

Such  were  the  threats  and  the  policy  of  James  in  his 
endeavours  to  "  make  the  vprightnesse  of .  .  .  his  intentions 
appeare  to  his  dearest  Brother  the  King  of  Spaine" 
("  Declaration,'*  67).  Even  after  the  publication  of  the  last- 
named  work  **it  was  well  known  that  no  surviving  friend 
would  dare  to  undertake  his  [Ralegh's]  defence  against  the 
sovereign  himself."^ 

On  the  principle  of  Audi  alteram  partem  it  has  been  the 
aim  of  the  writer  to  analyse  the  exaggerations,  distorted 
facts,  and  mass  "of  hearsay  evidence,"  etc.,  of  the  King's 
Apology  (as  the  '*  Declaration "  must  be  considered)  more 
fully  than  has  been  hitherto  effected  by  authors.  The  result 
of  this  examination  has  been  to  force  him  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  can  neither  be  "  depended  upon  for  strict  accuracy," 
nor  can  it  be  looked  upon  as  of  any  "value  as  a  historical 
authority."  So  far  from  considering  "  His  Maiesties  proceed- 
ings "  to  have  been  "  built  vpon  sure  and  solide  grounds,  .  . . 
wherby  it  wil  euidently  appeare  how  agreeable  they  haue 
beene,  in  all  points  to  Honour  and  lustice"  ("Declaration," 
1-2),  he  regards  the  entire  work  as  the  very  antithesis  of 
these  self-laudatory  assertions,  and  fully  accords  with  the 
terse  and  expressive  opinion  of  Stebbing  (392-3),  in  regard- 
ing it  as  "a  shuffling  excuse  for  a  baseness."     Despite  the 

1  L.  Aikin,  •*  Court  of  James  I,"  II,  105  (1822). 


RALEGHANA.  475 

severity  of  his  criticisms  of  Ealegh  when  pitted  against  the 
statements  contained  in  the  "Declaration,"  Gardiner  per- 
forms a  simple  act  of  justice  to  him  in  the  following  noble 
lines  with  which  this  paper  may  fittingly  close  : — 

It  was  no  mere  blindness  to  his  errors  which  made  all  England 
feel  that  Raleigh's  death  was  a  national  dishonour.  His  country- 
men knew  that  in  his  wildest  enterprises  he  had  always  before  him 
the  thought  of  England's  greatness,  and  that,  in  his  eyes,  England's 
greatness  was  iudissolubly  connected  with  the  truest  welfare  of  all 
other  nations.     They  knew  that  his  heart  was  right  (III,  152). 


APPENDIX   A. 

Sir  W.  Ealegh  and  the  Gold  in  Guiana, 
The  following  is  a  transcript  of  the  title  of  Ralegh's  work : — 
"The  Discoverie  of  the  Large,  Rich  and  Bewtifvl  Empire  of 
Gviana,  With  a  relation  of  the  Great  and  Golden  City  of  Manoa 
(which  the  Spaniards  call  El  Dorado)  And  the  prouinces  of 
Emeria,  Arromaia,  Amapaia  and  other  Countries,  with  their 
riuers,  adioyning. 

"Performed  in  the  yeare   1595,  by  Sir  W.  Ralegh,  Knight, 
Captaine  of  her  Maiesties  Guard,  Lo.  Warden  of  the  Stanneries, 
and  her  Highnesse  Lieutenant  of  the  Countie  of  Cornewall. 
"Imprinted  at  London  by  Robert  Robinson  1596." 

During  his  expedition  Ralegh  heard  from  Spaniards,  from  Indians, 
and  from  all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  of  the  abundance 
of  the  precious  metals  to  be  found  in  all  parts  of  Guiana,  but 
nothing  struck  him*  so  forcibly  as  the  information  he  received  con- 
cerning a  great  city  and  lake  said  to  exist  many  miles  to  the  south 
of  the  Orinoco,  and  thus  alluded  to  in  his  "  Discoverie  " : — 

"  I  haue  beene  assured  by  such  of  the  Spanyardes  as  haue  seene 
Manoa  the  imperiall  Citie  of  Guiana,  which  the  Spanyards  cal  El 
Dorado,  that  for  the  greatnes,  for  the  riches,  and  for  the  excellent 
seate,  it  farre  exceedeth  any  of  the  world,  at  least  of  so  much  of 
the  world  as  is  knowen  to  the  Spanish  nation:  it  is  founded 
vpon  a  lake  of  salt  water  of  200  leagues  long  like  vnto  mare 
caspiii"(10). 

The  existence  of  this  El  Dorado  was,  apparently  from  the  period 
of  Pizarro's  conquest  of  Peru,  believed  in  by  the  Spaniards,  who, 
for  the  purpose  of  reaching  and  obtaining  possession  of  it,  had 
sent  several  expeditions  long  prior  to  the  date  of  Ralegh's  voyage, 
all  of  which  had  ended  in  failure  and  disaster.  Ralegh's  faith  in 
the  truth  of  these  reports  seemed  to  be  confirmed  by  the  statement 
of  a  man  named  "  lohannes  Marlines  maister  of  the  munition  to 


476  RALEGHANA. 

Ordace,"  an  early  explorer,  who  was  "the  first  that  euer  sawe 
Manoa."  To  this  Ralegh  adds,  "At  a  port  called  Morequito  in 
Guiana  there  lieth  at  this  day  a  greate  ancor  of  Ordaces  shippe, 
and  this  porte  is  some  300  niUes  within  the  lande,  vpon  the  great 
riuer  of  Orenoque"  (13).  A  copy  of  his  statement  in  Berreo's 
possession  was  read  by  Ralegh,  to  whom  it  "appeared  to  be  the 
greatest  encouragement  as  well  to  Berreo  as  to  others  that  formerly 
attempted  the  discouerie  and  conquest"  (14). 

Martines  said  he  was  taken  prisoner,  and  after  residing  for  seven 
months  in  Manoa  he  was  allowed  to  leave,  and  his  attendants  took 
with  them  "  as  much  gold  as  they  could  carrie,"  which  had  been 
presented  to  him,  "  but  when  he  was  arriued  neere  the  riuers  side, 
the  borderers  which  are  called  Orenoqueponi  robbed  him  and  his 
Guianians  of  all  the  treasure"  (15). 

So  convinced  was  Berreo  of  the  truth  of  this  man's  assertions 
that  he  organized  an  expedition,  and  with  700  horsemen  attempted 
to  reach  the  lake  and  city,  needless  to  say  with  an  unsuccessful 
and  disastrous  result  {24:  et  seq.). 

Ralegh  heard  much  about  Manoa  from  Topiowari,  king  of  Arro- 
maia  (the  province  adjacent  to  the  Orinoco  and  Garoni  rivers),  who 
visited  him.  He  related  that  being  a  prisoner  of  the  Spaniards 
he  "paied  100  plates  of  Golde,  and  diuers  chaines  of  spleen  stones 
for  his  ransome  "  (77). 

The  British  Museum  Library  contains  a  map  (Addit.  MSS.,  17, 
940a)  believed  to  have  been  drawn  by  or  under  the  direction  of 
Ralegh  (probably  assisted  by  Thomas  Heriot)  with  some  of  the 
names  in  his  autograph.  This  must  have  been  completed  soon 
after  his  voyage.  A  facsimile  of  it,  with  description  by  L.  Fried- 
richsen,  was  published  at  Hamburg  in  1892,  and  a  portion  of  it 
is  shown  in  the  accompanying  illustration  (in  it  the  points  of  the 
compass  are  reversed,  so  that  the  north  occupies  the  lower  part). 
About  midway  between  the  rivers  Amazon  and  Orinoco  is  repre- 
sented "  The  lake  of  Manoa,"  about  200  miles  long,  with,  at  its 
eastern  end,  a  city  labelled  "  Manoa,"  with  "  II  Dorado  "  adjacent 
to  it.  Most  probably  this  map  is  the  one  mentioned  in  Ralegh's 
work : — 

"How  the  countrie  lyeth  and  is  bordrecfj  .  .  .  mine  own 
discouerie,  and  the  way  that  I  entred,  with  all  the  rest  of  the 
nations  and  riuers,  your  Lordship  (Lord  C.  Howard)  shall  receiue 
in  a  large  Chart  or  Map,  which  1  haue  not  yet  finished ''  (21). 

It  is  also  alluded  to  at  page  44,  as  well  as  in  letters  from  Sir 
Walter  and  from  T.  Heriot  respectively  of  13  November,  1595, 
and  of  11  July,  1596.  Among  the  articles  taken  from  him  at  his 
admission  into  the  Tower  on  10  August,  1618,  was  "One  Plott  of 
Guiana  and  Nova  Regnia,  and  another  of  the  river  of  Orenoque."^ 

The  fabled  lake  and  city  continued  the  current  belief  through- 

1  Edwards,  II,  110,  249,  497. 


River 
Amazon 


Ka^st 


Kiver 
l.)i  inoci> 


Am£ 
dire' 


RALEGHANA.  477 

out  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries.     Milton  alludes  to 

Guiana  whose  great  city  Geryon's  sons 
Call  El  Dorado.  1 

The  Count  de  Pagan  in  1655  published  a  "description  of  the 
Great  Country  and  Kiver  of  the  Amazones,"  translated  into 
English  by  W.  Hamilton  in  1661,  in  which  he  alludes  in  several 
pages  to  the  amount  of  gold  ornaments  worn  by  the  natives,  and 
to  places  known  to  be  fertile  in  that  metal,  especially  one  large 
tributary  called  the  Aguarique  River,  or  River  of  Gold ;  but  the 
place  he  speaks  most  highly  of  for  yielding  it  runs  thus : — 

"  The  great  Province  of  Suane  .  .  .  hath  this  singular  glory 
.  .  ."  that  it  is  "honoured  by  the  great  River  of  the  Amazones, 
to  carry  Gold  within  her  bowels.  The  famous  Mountain  that 
nourisheth  in  his  bosome  so  great  a  treasure  ...  is  two  hundred 
leagues  only  distant  from  the  Town  of  S'  Thomas,  a  Colony 
of  the  Spaniards  in  Orenoc.  Returning  to  the  G old-Mine 
of  the  Mount  of  Suane,  I  wonder  that  neither  the  Spaniards 
of  Hordas,  and  of  Berreo,  nor  the  English  of  Kemnits,  and  of 
Kalech  [sic]  have  never  met  with  it  that  have  searched  .  .  . 
alongst  the  great  River  of  Orenoc,  the  imaginary  Treasures  of 
the  fabulous  rather  than  famous  Lagodorado  [El  Dorado] ''  (60,  62). 

This  is  the  sole  reference  to  Keymis  and  to  Ralegh  in  the 
work.  The  fable  of  Manoa  was  dispelled  by  the  researches  of 
Humboldt. 

Returning  to  Ralegh's  "  Discoverie,'*  we  find  the  following 
important  statement : — 

"  I  was  resolued  that  golde  must  be  found  either  in  graines 
separate  fro  the  stone  (as  it  is  in  most  of  the  riuers  in  Guiana) 
or  else  in  a  kinde  of  harde  stone,  which  we  cal  the  white  Sparre, 
of  which  I  saw  diuers  hils,  and  in  sundrie  places,  but  had  neither 
time,  nor  men,  nor  instruments  fit  to  labour.  Neere  vnto  one 
of  the  riuers  [Caroni]  I  founde  of  the  saide  white  Sparre  or  flint 
a  verie  great  ledge  or  banke,  which  I  endeuoured  to  breake  by 
al  the  means  I  could,  because  there  appeared  on  the  out  side 
some  smal  graines  of  gold,  but  finding  no  meane  to  worke  the 
same  vpon  the  vpper  part,  seeking  the  sides  and  circuit  of  the 
said  rock,  I  founde  a  clift  in  the  same  from  whence  with  daggers, 
and  with  the  head  of  an  axe,  we  gotte  out  some  small  quantitie 
therof,  of  which  kind  of  white  stone  (wherein  gold  in  gendreth) 
we  sawe  diuers  hils  and  rocks  in  euery  part  of  Guiana  wherein  we 
trauelled  "  (Address  to  the  Reader,  X). 

Other  accounts  of  the  evidences  of  gold  he  met  with  are 
related  in  the  body  of  the  work;  e.g.  "Rocks  of  hard  stone, 
which  we  call  the  White  spar"  (50).     "The  rocks  being  most 

1  "  Paradise  Lost,"  XI,  411  (1666). 


478  RALEGHANA. 

hard  of  that  minerall  sparre  aforesaid  "  (68).  "  Myselfe  sawe  the 
outside  of  many  mines  of  the  white  sparre,  which  I  know  to  be 
the  same  that  all  couet  in  this  worlde"  (81). 

Of  this  spar  (ore)  samples  were  "  assaide  hy  Master  Westwood 
a  refiner  dwelling  in  wood-street,"  London,  as  well  as  by  several 
others,  and  all  proved  to  be  rich  in  gold  (Address  to  the  Reader, 
X).  Schomburgk  (162-3)  quotes  from  "Chymical  receipts  of 
Walter  Rawleigh,"  in  Sloane  MSS.,  359,  52\  a  report  of  an 
analysis,  made  by  Sir  Walter,  of  a  sample  of  "  the  oare  of  Guiana," 
which  yielded  gold.  This  is  probably  the  one  referred  to  ia  "Aji 
Inventory  of  such  things  as  weare  found  on  the  Body  of  Sir 
Walter  Rawley,  Knight,  the  10th  day  of  August,  1618.    .   .    . 

"A  Tryall  of  Guiana  oare,  with  a  description  thereof.  Fyve 
assayes  of  the  Silver  Mine  "  (Edwards,  II,  497). 

The  King  gave  the  Spanish  Ambassador  two  pieces  of  gold, 
who  returned  this  receipt  for  them  : — 

"I  have  received  from  the  hands  of  his  Majesty  the  King 
of  Great  Britain  two  pieces  of  rough  gold  that  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  brought  from  the  Indies."  ^ 

And  in  1736  Oldys  records,  that  "some  of  the  ore  which  sir 
Walter  Ralegh  brought  from  Guiana  .  .  .  has  been  so  carefully 
preserved  in  his  family,  that  it  is  now  in  the  possession  of  captain 
William  Elwes"  (221). 

One  of  the  most  interesting  and  convincing  reports  of  the 
truth  of  Ralegh's  statements  was  read  by  Dr.  C.  Le  Neve  Foster, 
at  the  Exeter  meeting  of  the  British  Association  in  1869,  of 
which  an  epitome  appears  in  the  "Transactions,"  II,  162-3  (the 
paper  was  not  printed  tw  extenso),  and  of  which  the  following  is  a 
transcript : — 

"The  author  advanced  his  own  experience  as  acquired  in  a 
recent  journey  to  the  Garatal  gold-mines  of  the  Orinoco,  as  con- 
firming the  veracity  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  so  coarsely  impugned 
by  the  historian  Hume,  who  says :  *  On  his  return  Raleigh  pub- 
lished an  account  of  the  country  full  of  the  grossest  and  most 
palpable  lies  that  were  ever  attempted  to  be  imposed  on  the 
credulity  of  mankind.' ^  Schomburgk,  in  defending  Raleigh's 
statements,  had,  in  his  time,  no  positive  evidence  of  the  existence 
of  gold  in  Venezuelan  Guiana.  The  gold-mines  which  the  author 
visited  last  year  were  discovered  in  1849  by  Dr.  Louis  Plassard, 
in  the  bed  of  the  Yuruari,  near  the  old  Spanish  Mission  of 
Tupuquen.  The  Yuruari  falls  into  the  Yuruan,  a  tributary  of 
the  Cuyuni,  which  enters  British  Guiana,  and  eventually  pours 

1  **  Life  of  Ralegh,"  by  St.  John,  480  (1869). 

«  "History  of  England,"  V,  377  (1812).  Thus  supported  by  Lingard : 
**The  accouut  which  he,  Ralegh,  published  after  his  return,  proves  him  to 
have  been  a  master  in  the  art  of  puffing"  (**Hi8t.  of  England,"  VI,  164 
(1825). 


RALEGHANA.  479 

its  waters  into  the  Easequibo.  In  1857  people  began  to  flock  to 
the  place,  and  washed  for  gold  in  the  river-bed,  establishing  the 
settlement  of  Caratal.  The  author  had  given  the  geological  details 
of  these  mines  in  a  paper  recently  read  before  the  Geological 
Society.  He  maintained  that  the  present  Caratal  gold-field  was 
the  one  of  which  Raleigli  heard  such  wonderful  accounts.  The 
*  white  spar  *  in  Raleigh's  detailed  description  was  undoubtedly 
quartz ;  for  spar  is  the  name  still  used  for  quartz  in  Devon  and 
Cornwall,  and  the  author  had  himself  seen  outcrops  of  lode  in 
Caratal  where  gold  was  visible  in  blocks  of  quartz  rising  up  from 
the  surface.  There  could  be  no  mistake,  also,  in  identifying  the 
locality — *the  Caroli'  mentioned  by  Raleigh  as  the  Caroni — for 
he  mentions  the  falls,  which  are  close  to  the  point  where  the 
Caroni  joins  the  Orinoco.  The  other  details  of  locality  and 
distance  in  Raleigh's  account  were  shown  by  the  author  to  agree 
closely  with  the  facts  that  have  now  come  to  light." 

Lastly,  "  the  gold  field  in  Venezuela,  which  was  comprised  in 
Ralegh's  Guiana,  a  Government  Inspector  of  Mines  stated  in 
1889  that  he  believed  we  had  in  it  Sir  Walter's  el  Dorado  itself" 
(Stebbing,  121). 

Sir  R.  Schomburgk's  edition  of  Ralegh's  "  Discoverie,"  with 
extensive  notes  and  Introduction,  contains  a  large  mass  of  in- 
formation on  this  subject. 

These  various  statements  not  only  testify  to  the  abundance  of 
gold  in  Guiana,  especially  in  that  part  visited  by  Ralegh;  but 
also  confirm  the  accuracy  of  his  accounts  in  his  "Discoverie  of 
Guiana." 


APPENDIX  B. 

RcdegKa  Instructions  to  Keymis, 

(First  published  in  * 'Judicious  and  Select  Essayes,"  by  Sir  Walter 
Kaleigh  (1660),  pt.  iv.  pp.  26-9.) 

"Keymis,  whereas  you  were  resolved  after  your  arrivall  into 
Orrenoque  to  passe  to  the  Myue  with  my  Cousen  Harbert  and  six 
musketteers,  and  to  that  end  you  desired  to  have  Sir  John  Femes 
shallop,  I  doe  not  allow  of  that  course,  because  you  cannot  Land 
so  secretly  but  that  some  Indians  on  the  River  side  may  discover 
you,  who  giving  knowledge  of  your  passage  to  the  Spaniards  you 
may  be  cut  off  before  you  can  recover  your  Boate,  I  doe  therefore 
advise  you  to  suffer  the  Captaines  and  the  Companies  of  the 
English  to  passe  up  to  the  Westwards  of  the  mountain  AiOy  from 
whence  you  have  no  lesse  than  three  miles  to  the  Myne,  and  to 
lodije  and  encamps  between  the  Spanish  Towne  and  you,  if  there  be 
any  Town  neer  it,  that  being  so  secured  you  may  make  tryal  what 
depth  and  bredth  the  Myne  holds,  and  whether  or  no  it  answer 
our  hopes.     And  if  you  find  it  Royall,  and  tJie  Spaniards  begin  to 


480  RALEGHANA. 

Warre  upon  yoUy  then  let  the  Serjeant  Major  repell  them  if  it  be  in 
his  power,  and  drive  them  as  far  as  he  can. 

"  But  if  you  find  that  the  Myne  be  not  so  rich  as  it  may  perswade 
the  holding  of  it,  and  draw  on  a  second  supply,  then  shall  you 
bring  hut  a  basket  or  two  to  satisftj  his  Majesty,  that  my  desifme 
was  not  Imaginatory  but  true,  though  not  so  answerable  to  his 
Majesties  expectation,  for  the  quantity  of  which  I  never  gave 
assurance,  nor  could. 

"  On  the  other  side,  if  you  shall  find  that  any  great  number  of 
Souldiers  be  newly  sent  into  Orrenoque,  as  the  Cassique  of  Caliaua 
told  us  that  there  were,  and  that  the  Passages  be  already  Forc'd  so 
that  without  manifest  Peril  1  of  my  sonne,  your  selfe,  and  other 
Captaines,  you  cannot  passe  toward  the  Myne,  then  be  well  advised 
how  you  land,  for  I  know  (that  a  few  Gentlemen  Excepted)  what 
Scummo  of  men  you  have,  and  /  woiUd  not  for  all  the  world  receive 
a  blow  from  the  Spaniards  to  the  dishonour  of  our  Nation  ;  I  my 
self  for  my  weaknes  cannot  be  present,  neither  will  the  Company 
land,  except  I  stay  with  the  ships,  the  Gallioones  of  Spaine  being 
daily  expected.  I'igott  the  Sergeant-Major  is  dead.  Sir  Warrham 
my  Leiftenant,  without  hope  of  life,  and  my  Nephew  your  Ser- 
geant-Major  now  but  a  young  man :  It  is  therefore  no  [sic]  your 
judgement  that  I  Rely  whom  I  trust  God  will  direct  for  the  best. 

*'  Let  me  heare  from  you  as  soon  as  you  can,  you  shall  find  me  at 
Puncto  Gallo  dead  or  alive,  and  if  you  finde  not  my  ships  there, 
yet  you  shall  find  their  Ashes :  For  I  will  fire  with  the  Gallioones 
if  it  come  to  extreamity.     But  runne  away  I  will  never." 

There  was  nothing  unreasonable  in  this,  but  an  addition  to  it 
was  made  in  the  "Declaration,"  which  reflected  on  Ralegh :  here 
is  the  passage  : — 

"  Hee  professed  that  if  hee  brought  home  but  a  handfull  or 
basketful  of  Oare,  to  shew  the  King,  hee  cared  for  no  more,  for  it 
was  enough  to  save  his  credit;  and  being  charged  therewith,  hee 
confessed  the  iij)€ech,"  etc.  (29).  It  is  unlikely  that  Ralegh  used  the 
words  placed  in  italics,  and  the  entire  meaning  of  the  instruction  to 
Keymis  is  perverted.  Captain  North,  whose  animus  against  Ralegh 
was  made  evident  in  his  examination  as  a  witness,  gives  a  different 
account  of  it.^  The  charge  made  by  the  Attorney-General  ran 
thus :  "  He  desired  onely  to  have  a  piece  of  ewer  (ore  ?)  to  please 
the  King's  eyes."  - 

^  Spedding,  418.     Italics  not  in  the  original. 
2  *'Camd.  Misc.,"  9. 


RALEGHANA.  481 


APPENDIX  C. 

Letter  from  Sir  W,  RcUegh  to  the  Privy  Council,  1611  [or  1612], 

(Printed  in  Sir  R,  H.  Schomburgk's  edition  of  Ralegh's  *'  Disco verie  ...  of 
Gviana"  (1595),  pp.  165-7,  from  Harl.  MSS.,  fols.  340-50.) 

"  An  agreement  betweene  S'  Wa :  Raleigh  and  the  Lords  for  the 
journey  of  Guiana,  to  be  performed  by  Captain  Keemish  in  Anno 
1611. 

"  Your  Lordshipps  as  I  remember  did  offer  to  be  att  the  charge  to 
transport  Keemish  into  Guyana  with  such  a  proportion  of  men  in 
twoe  shipps  as  should  be  able  to  defend  him  against  the  Spaniards 
inhabiting  vpon  Orenoke  if  they  offered  to  assaile  him  (not  that  itt 
is  meant  to  offend  the  Spaniards  there  or  to  beginne  any  quarrell 
with  them  except  themselves  shall  beginne  the  warre), 

"  To  knowe  what  number  of  men  shall  be  sufficient  may  itt  please 
your  Lordshipps  to  informe  your  selves  by  Captaine  More  (Moatt), 
a  servant  of  Sir  John  Watts,  who  came  from  Orenoke  this  last 
spring,  and  was  oftentimes  ashore  at  St.  T^home,  where  the  Spaniards 
inhoMte,  which  numbers  made  knowne  to  your  Lordshipps  and  to 
the  Captaines  which  you  shall  please  to  imploy  with  Keemish 
those  Captaines  shall  be  able  to  judge  with  what  force  they  will 
vndertake  to  secure  Keemishes  passage  to  the  Mine  which  is  not 
above  five  miles  from  the  navigable  River  taking  the  neerest  way. 

"  Now  your  Lordshipps  doe  require  of  mee  that  if  Keemish  live 
to  arrive  [and  shall  be  guarded  to  the  place"]  and  shall  then  faile  to 
bring  into  England  halfe  a  Tunne  or  as  much  more  as  he  shall  be 
able  to  take  upp  of  that  slate  Gold  ore  whereof  I  gave  a  sample  to 
my  Lord  Knevett  That  then  all  the  charge  of  the  journey  shall  be 
laid  vpon  mee  and  by  mee  to  be  satisfied  whereto  1  willingly  con- 
sent, and  though  itt  bo  a  difficult  matter  of  exceeding  difficulty  for 
any  man  to  find  the  same  acre  of  ground  againe  in  a  country  desolate 
and  overgrowno  which  he  hath  seene  but  once  and  that  sixteene 
yeares  since  which  were  hard  enough  to  doe  vpon  Salisbury  Plaine 
yett  that  your  Lordshipps  may  be  satisfied  of  the  truth  /  am  con- 
tented to  adventure  all  I  have  (but  my  reputacion)  vpon  Keemish 
memory,  hoping  that  itt  may  be  acceptable  to  the  Kings  Majestie 
and  to  your  Lordshipps  soe  to  doe  considering  that  if  keemish 
misse  of  his  marks  my  poore  Estate  is  vtterly  ouerthrowne,  and  my 
wife  and  children  as  utterly  beggared. 

"  Now  that  there  is  noe  hope  after  the  Tryall  made  to  fetch  any 
more  riches  from  thence  I  have  already  given  your  Lordshipps  ray 
reasons  in  my  former  letter  and  am  ready  vpon  a  Mappe  of  the 
Country  to  make  demonstracion  thereof  if  itt  shall  please  your 
Lordshipps  to  give  me  leave,  but  to  the  kings  Maiesties  wisdome 
and  your  Lordshipps  I  submitte  my  self e. 

"  But  that  which  your  Lordshipps  doe  promise  is  That  halfe  a 
Tunne  of  the  former  oare  being  brought  home  that  then  I  shall 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  H 


482  RAXEGHANA. 

have  my  Libertie  and  in  the  meane  while  my  free  pardon  vnder  the 
create  Scale  to  be  left  in  his  Maiestics  hands  till  the  end  of  the 
Journey." 

'  Is  printed  in  Edwards*  work,  11,  337-9,  where  it  is  stated  as 
not  *^n  Agreement,"  but  as  "tending  to  one,"  and  the  paragraph 
enclosed  in  [  ]  is  omitted.     (Italics  not  in  original.) 


APPENDIX   D. 

The  Three  Spies — Wihon,  Stukelet/y  and  Manourie, 

Sir  Thomas  Wilson,  the  Keeper  of  the  Records,  was  knighted 
on  20  July,  1618,  and  on  11  September  (or  14)  was  appointed  care- 
keeper  of  Ralegh,  and  to  report  to  the  Council  all  the  information 
he  could  obtain  from  him.  He  continued  in  this  office  till 
15  October.  What  he  received  for  his  services  has  not  been 
found  recorded  in  the  State  Papei-s,  but  Stebbing  notes  he  "  was 
driven  to  importunities  three  quarters  of  a  year  later  for  payment 
of  his  wages  for  the  six  A^eks  attendance  upon  Ralegh  "  (384). 

On  19  January,  1619,  James  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Fellows 
of  Gonville  and  Caius  College,  Cambridge,  respecting  a  successor 
to  Dr.  Branthwaite,  then  Master,  who  on  that  date  was  "danger- 
ously sick,  and  not  likely  in  any  man's  judgment  to  recover."  He 
appears  to  have  died  prior  to  30  January,  as  on  that  date  the 
King  sent  another  letter  to  the  Fellows,  and  "orders  them  to 
elect  Sir  Thos.  Wilson  ...  in  the  room  of  Dr.  Wm.  Branthwait, 
deceased;  will  take  no  denial,  he  being  a  man  of  learning  and 
sufficiency,  and  having  performed  long  and  faithful  service.  En- 
dorsed [by  Wilson]  with  note,  that  the  letter  was  not  sent."^ 

Probably  Wilson  had  received  some  intimation  that  the  request 
could  not  be  granted,  and  the  Fellows  elected  Dr.  J.  Gostlin  to 
the  mastership  on  16  February,  1619.- 

Baulked  of  this  appointment,  Wilson  returned  to  the  Record 
Office,  and  retained  his  appointment  there  until  his  death  in  July^ 
1629. 

This  was  not  the  only  snubbing  James  received  from  Oxford, 
for  on  the  day  after  Ralegh's  beheadal,  he  wrote  to  desire  the 
authorities  of  Wadham  College  to  "admit  to  the  next  vacant 
Fellowship,  W.  Durham,  m.a.,  of  St.  Andrews,  *  notwithstand- 
ing anie  thing  in  your  Stiitutes  to  the  contrarie/"  But  this 
attempt  "to  *job'  a  Scotchman  into  a  Fellowship"  was  unsuc- 
cessful. ^ 

The  following  transcripts  of  entries  in  the  "  Pells  Order  Book," 
No.  18,  1618-19,  fos.  17b,  36b,  relative  to  the  payments  made  to 

1  "Cal.  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  CV,  70. 

a  "  Hist,  of  Oonville  and  Caius  Coll.,"  by  J.  Venn,  III,  75  (1901). 

*  ''  Hist,  of  Wadham  Coll.,  Ox.,"  by  T.  G.  Jackson  111  (1898). 


KALEGHANA.  483 

Manourie  and  to  Stukeley,  contain  matters  of  much  interest,  and 
do  not  appear  to  have  heen  printed  hefore. 

"By  Order  dated  ix"  Xovembris  1618. 

"  To  William  ^fannourry  frenchman  Practitioii?  in  Phisick  the 
some  of  twentie  poundf  in  reward  for  his  chargf  travell  and  at- 
tendance being  latelie  sent  for  from  Plymouth  for  his  Ma^e 
seruice  by  Warrant  from  the  Lordf  of  the  Councell  and  here 
attending  w*'*out  accompt  imprest  or  other  charge  to  be  sett  vppon 
him  for  the  same  \}  fre  date  vj^  Novembris  1608  (i)  et  j}  authorit 
Comissioii  dal  xxj^  Julii  1618 xx**." 

"  l^y  Order  dated  29  Dec  1618.  That  whereas  S'  Lewes  Stuke- 
ley K.  viceadmirall  of  the  County  of  Devon  did  by  his  ma*e 
comandm^  latelie  arrest  <fe  bring  vpp  hither  out  of  Devon?  the 
j>son  of  S*"  Walter  Kawleigh  lO  latelie  executed  ^  did  sequester 
and  mak  stay  of  his  shipp  called  the  destiny  w**»in  the  harbor  of 
Plymouth  vppon  the  returne  of  the  said  Rawleigh  from  his  late 
voyadge  from  Guiana  In  the  pformance  of  w*^  service  the  said 
Stukly  disbursed  sondrie  soines  of  money  aswell  to  pay  marrin^s 
of  the  said  shipp  vpon  their  discharge  &  other  occasions  of  the 
Ship,  as  also  for  other  charges  of  the  said  Rawleigh  at  Plymouth 
Si  in  his  iourney  hither  &  for  his  owne  attendance  here  vntill  the 
22^^  of  this  present  Dec.  amounting  in  all  to  965'.  6'  3**  as  he 
hath  made  ai)peare  vnto  his  Ma^*'*,  whereof  the  said  Stukely  hath 
received  344^  raised  by  the  sale  of  a  c?taine  quantity  of  Tobacco 
found  K^  taken  aboard  the  said  Ship  as  also  54'.  18*  for  a  Halser 
c?ten  boltf  of  Canvas  Emptie  Cask^'  &  other  |?visions  belonging 
to  the  Shipp  by  him  likewise  sold  at  Plymouth,  so  there  resteth 
due  to  him  the  sorne  of  vlxvj*  xiij'  iij"*  w*=**  his  ma**®  is  gratiously 
pleased  should  be  paid  vnto  him  Theis  are  therefore  to  require 
yo"  of  such  his  Ma^e  treasure  as  remaineth  in  yo'  charge  to  deliiC 
<fe  pay  vnto  the  said  S*"  Lewes  Stukeley  the  said  some  of  566.  8.  3 
The  same  to  be  taken  to  him  as  of  his  ma*e  princely  guift  and 
reward  w**^out  accompt  &c.  j>  tre  dat  xxviij  Dec  1618." 

Manourie  for  his  services,  which  lasted  about  three  weeks,  was 
well  paid ;  but  the  sum  received  by  Stukeley,  even  deducting  the 
necessary  exi)enses  of  the  journey  of  himself  and  prisoner,  seems 
to  have  been  excessive. 

It  is  difficult  to  say  how  much  or  how  little  of  their  testimony 
against  Ralegh  is  to  be  believed;  nevertheless,  it  seems  to  have 
been  wholly  worked  into  the  "  Declaration,"  whereas  no  reference 
is  made  to  that  of  Wilson,  notwithstanding  all  his  efforts  to  wrest 
evidence  from  Ralegh.  "Mannoury's  evidence  is  of  very  little 
importance,"  affirms  Spedding;  but  James  was  of  a  contrary 
opinion,  and  declared  "  the  French  Physitian's  confession  "  to  be 
"  very  material  "  ;  and  the  framers  of  the  "  Declaration  "  thought 
so  too,  hence  the  reason  why  it  occupies  so  many  of  its  pages. 

Not  long  after  Stukeley  and  Manourie  hod  received  their  pay, 

2h2 


484  RALE6HANA. 

letters  from  the  Bev.  T.  Lorkin  to  Sir  T.  Puckeridge  record  their 
subsequent  criminal  acts : — 

"1618/9.  Jan.  12.  .  .  .  Vpon  Twelf  night  Stukely  was 
comitted  close  prisoner  to  y®  Gatehouse  for  clipping  of  gould. 
He  had  receyved  of  y*  Exchequer  some  weeks  before  500**  in 
recompence  of  y*  seruice  he  had  performed  in  y®  buisnies  of  Syr 
Walter  Rauleigh,  and  beganne  (as  is  said)  to  exercise  y*  trade 
vpon  that  ill  gotten  mony  (y®  price  of  bloud).  The  manner  of 
discouery  was  strange  (if  my  occasions  would  suffer  me  to  relate 
y«  particulars).  Vpon  his  examination  he  endeavored  to  avoyd  it 
from  himself,  by  casting  y«  burthen  either  vpon  his  sonne  or 
man.  The  former  playes  least  in  sight  and  can  not  be  found.  The 
seruant  is  comitted  to  y®  Marshalsey,  who  vnderstanding  (as  they 
say)  that  his  Master  would  shift  over  the  buisnies  to  him,  is 
willing  to  sett  y*  saddle  vpon  y«  right  horse,  and  accuses  his  M^"^ 

In  the  memoir  of  Stukeley  in  the  "  D.  N.  B."  (of  whose  char- 
acter a  more  favourable  view  is  entertained  than  that  which  is 
generally  accepted),  allusion  is  made  to  the  "doubtful  evidence  of 
a  servant  who  had  formerly  been  employed  as  a  spy  on  Ralegh  " ; 
but  the  implication  (on  the  father's  testimony)  of  the  son  is 
omitted.  Stukeley 's  condemnation  (for  which  the  King  pardoned 
him)  and  miserable  ending  are  recorded  in  all  histories. 

The  above  was  not  the  only  occasion  on  which  he  was  sum- 
moned to  answer  some  serious  charge,  for  the  following  entry 
appears  in  the  "Council  Register,"  James  II,  fol.  115 :  "Another 
Warraunt  to  Rob.  Browne  one  of  the  Messingers  of  his  Ma* 
Chamber  to  bringe  S'  Lewis  Stukeley  of  the  Countie  of  Deuon 
Knight  before  the  Lordes  to  aunsweare  to  such  matters  as  shalbe 
obiected  against  him."  The  result  of  this  examination  is  not 
recorded. 2 

The  next  letter  shows  Manourie  to  have  been  even  a  more  con- 
temptible character  than  Stukeley  : — 

"1618/9.  Feb.  16.  Manoury  the  french  Apothecary  (who 
joigned  w^**  Stukely  in  y*  accusation  of  Syr  Walter  Rauleigh) 
is  ...  at  Plymouth  for  clippyng  of  gould,  as  was  his  campanian 
[sic]  ...  his  examination  was  sent  vp  hether  to  y*  King, 
wherin  ...  (as  I  hear  from  Syr  Rob.  Winde,  cupbearer  I  thinck 
to  his  Ma***,  who  saith  he  read  y«  Examination)  that  his  accusa- 
tion ag*  Rauleigh  was  false,  &  that  he  was  wonne  ther  to  by  >• 
practise  &  iniportunit  of  Stukely,  and  now  acknowledges  this  his 
present  miserable  condition  a  judgm'  of  god  vpon  him  for  that."  * 

J  Harl.  MSS.,  7002,  fol.  438.  Cf.  Chamberlain  to  Carleton,  9  January, 
"S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  CV,  7. 

2  Cf.  Edwards,  I,  663. 

»  Harl.  MSS.,  7002,  fol.  450.  Cf.  letter,  Sir  T.  Wynn  to  Carleton,  28 
January,  in  '*  S.  P.,  Jamca  I,'*  CV,  67. 


RALEGHANA.  485 

Both  letters  are  printed  at  length  in  "Court  and  Times  of 
James  I,"  by  T.  Birch  (1849),  I,  122-3,  137-41.  In  the  latter 
is  the  following  comment  on  the  importunity  of  Stukeley :  **Likely 
enough ;  but  who  moved  Stukeley  1  The  fact  is  plain  enough,  that 
the  original  mover  of  the  treachery  was  more  treacherous  than 
either,  and  was  ashamed  of  his  tools  after  he  had  employed  them '' 
(140). 

APPENDIX  E. 

James  I,     Hia  Delta  and  Character, 

From  what  has  already  been  stated  there  can  be  little  difficulty 
in  attributing  the  condemnation  of  Ralegh  to  the  endeavour  of 
James  to  extricate  himself  from  his  embarrassed  position  in  money 
matters.  He  thought  that  the  sacrifice  would  gratify  the  Spanish 
Court,  confirm  his  son's  marriage  with  the  Infanta,  and  so  enable 
him  to  defray  some  of  his  debts,  by  appropriating  a  portion  of  the 
dowry.  Despite  his  impecunious  position,  he  continued  throughout 
his  reign  to  squander  large  sums  on  his  favourites  (especially  on  his 
worthless  handsome  male  ones),  and  on  others,  without  any 
attempt  beyond  promises,  to  limit  either  his  ordinary  or  his  e-\tra- 
ordinary  expenses.  In  the  year  after  his  accession  '*he  had 
already  incurred  debts  which  he  had  no  means  of  paying,"  and  in 
1606  they  were  reported  to  be  increasing.  In  1613  they  amounted 
to  £500,000,  and  in  1617  to  £726,000.1  He  certainly  engaged 
on  many  occasions  to  reduce  his  expenditure,  but  it  was  not  until 
1610  that  he  "for  the  first  time  showed  a  desire  to  economise." ^ 
The  weakness  of  the  King  in  squandering  "  large  sums  of  money 
upon  useless  purchases  of  plate  and  jewels,"  especially  upon  his 
favourites,  can  only  be  regarded  as  flagrant  dishonesty.  How 
determined  Spedding  was  to  sec  that  James  was  incapable  of 
doing  anything  wrong,  is  shown  by  the  "great  failings"  of  the 
latter  being  condoned  on  the  plea  that  "  he  could  not  disappoint 
his  inclinations  "  ^ — a  good  excuse  to  be  made  for  a  kleptomaniac, 
but  a  paltry  one  for  a  king.  Examples  of  "  the  King's  extrava- 
gance "  are  thus  noted  by  Gardiner : — 

In  1616  "about  40,000 Z.  were  annually  given  away,  either  in 
presents  or  in  annuities  paid  to  men  who  had  done  little  or 
nothing  to  merit  the  favour  which  they  received.  ...  In  February 
(1617)  he  granted  to  six  favourites,  four  of  whom  were  of  Scottish 
birth,  no  less  a  sum  than  34,000  Z."  (I,  295 ;  II,  1 1 1).  In  November, 
1617,  he  gave  Lord  Hay  10,000/.  for  his  wedding  charges.*  In 
the  memoir  of  Lord  Hay  in  "  D.  N.  B."  this  gift  is  unmentioned, 
as  well  as  the  fact  of  his  having  been  a  French  pensioner.^ 

1  Gardiner,  I,  186,  293-5 ;  H,  199  ;  III,  198. 

a  Ibid.,  II,  200  ;  III,  198.     Cf.  «*  Cabala,"  268  (1663). 

»  *•  Even,  with  a  Rev.,"  I,  207  (1881). 

*  **  Cal.  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  XCIV,  13. 

'  "Archaeologia,"  XLI,  5. 


486  BALEGHANA. 

"In  1613  the  king  gave  17,000Z.  for  jewels  presented  to  Lady 
Frances  Howard  on  her  marriage  to  Lord  Rochester,  while  his 
personal  guard  and  his  postmen  from  Koyston  were  still  unpaid. 
He  gave  2500Z.  for  a  single  jewel  for  the  queen,  and  3200/.  for 
one  for  the  prince,  while  the  pay  of  the  navy  was  so  much  in 
arrear  that  the  wives  and  children  of  the  sailors  were  hardly  kept 
from  making  an  outcry  at  the  gate."^ 

The  State  Papers  contain  many  items  of  letters,  petitions,  and 
projects  for  the  payment  of  the  King's  debts;  e.g.  the  Eaxl  of 
Salisbury  received  a  letter  from  Sir  J.  Spilman  for  a  debt  "  due 
to  him  two  years  past  from  the  King.  Has  long  paid  interest  for 
the  pearls  that  were  the  Queen's  last  new  year's  gift "  (from  the 
King).  And  a  petition  from  A.  Compton,  "  for  payment  of  7,277/. 
12«.  3d.  the  surplus  of  his  accounts  due  from  the  King  and  prince 
for  the  past  three  years. "^  Among  the  numerous  shifts  and  base 
methods  resorted  to  by  James  to  increase  his  revenue  were  the 
sale  of  knighthoods  and  peerages ;  also  of  immense  quantities  of 
Crown  timber,  which  should  have  been  reserved  for  ship-building. 
Then  in  1608 

"a  scheme  was  proposed,  and  a  Bill  was  drafted  for  selling  the 
Crown  lands  by  bastardizing  Queen  Elizabeth,  an  act  of  perfidy, 
of  ingratitude,  and  of  baseness,  from  which  the  memory  of  the 
king  has  only  been  saved  by  the  total  collapse  of  the  scheme  on 
its  first  suggestion  to  the  House  "^  (Inderwick,  14). 

One  of  the  most  dishonourable  acts  in  his  treatment  of  the 
Roman  Catholics  with  respect  to  the  fines  demanded  from  them 
as  Recusants  was,  that  some  of  the  sums  to  be  collected  were 
farmed  out  to  the  exactions  of  speculators,  of  which  the  following 
is  a  glaring  example : — 

"1610.  jNIay  28.  .  .  .  Sir  Jo.  Savile  offers  SfiOOl  per  ann. 
for  Yorkshire  recusants.  Sir  Geo..  Manners  and  Sir  Thos. 
Grantham,  2,000Z.  per  ann.  mai-e  than  be/orey  for  Lincolnshire."* 

Of  this  form  of  proceeding,  Gardiner  makes  the  feeble  excuse  : 
"It  is  quite  possible  that  James's  only  motive  was  his  extreme 
want"  (I,  224) — a  peculiarity  which  appears  to  have  extended 
throughout  the  time  he  reigned  in  England. 

How,  in  the  face  of  all  these  facts,  Spedding  could  regard 
James  as  a  kind  of  idol,  a  pattern  of  what  a  king  should  be,  is 
difficult  to  imagine.     Here  are  his  words : — 

1  Inderwick,  12-13.  "S.  P.  Dom.  James  I,"  LXXV,  18.  Cf.  "Hist  of 
First  Fourteen  Years  of  K.  James,"  69-70  (1692).  Of  his  lavishness  to  his 
daughter  Elizabeth,  vide  T.  Carte.  **  Hist,  of  Eng.,"  IV,  6  (1755). 

«  "Cal.  S.  P.  James  I,  Dom.,"  LXIV,  48 ;  LXVII,  135. 

*  Another  example  of  the  ingratitude  of  James  to  the  memory  of  his 
predecessor  will  be  found  in  *' England  as  Seen  by  Foreigners,"  by  W.  B. 
Bye,  121,  270-1  (1865)» 

*  **  Cal.  S.  P.,  James  I,  Dom.,"  LIV,  78.     Italics  not  in  oiiginal. 


RALEGHANA.  487 

"The  more  I  become  acquainted  with  him,  the  more  I  feel  not 
only  a  great  personal  kindness  for  him,  but  a  conviction  that,  as 
a  governor,  he  was  both  wise  and  patriotic : — wise  in  his  views, 
patriotic  in  his  desires  and  purposes.  But  then  he  had  three 
great  failings.  One  of  these  runs  thus :  *  If  he  had  not  talked 
so  much,  I  question  whether,  even  now,  his  acts  would  have  been 
thought  foolish."*  He  was  fond  of  writing  and  of  talking 
platitudes,  containing  many  praiseworthy  promises,  which  he 
failed  to  carry  into  execution.  "  He  had  pure  Notions  in  Concep- 
tion, but  could  bring  few  of  them  into  Action,  though  they  tended 
to  his  own  Preservation."-  Among  the  "  Instructions  to  his  dearest 
Sonne,"  these  maxims  will  be  found  : — 

"  Justice,  which  is  the  greatest  vertue,  that  properly  belongeth 
to  a  King." 

"  Vse  Justice,  but  with  moderation,  as  it  turns  not  in  tyrannic  " 
("  Basilicon  Doron,"  139). 

"Justice  I  will  give  to  all,  and  favour  to  such  as  deserve  it," 
he  said  in  his  first  speech  to  his  English  Parliament  in  1604 
(Gardiner,  I,  191).  How  he  applied  these  principles  in  Scotland 
has  already  been  related  in  the  case  of  the  Linlithgow  ministers ; 
while  in  England  his  earliest  act  was  to  direct  a  thief  to  be  hanged 
without  trial  (Hallam,  I,  296). 

According  to  Spedding  (359)  "  Justice  demanded  "  that  James 
should  condemn  Ralegh  for  "  the  committing  of  many  murders " 
at  St.  Thomas ;  but  when  the  latter  complained,  as  he  did  in  his 
letter  to  the  King  dated  24  September,  1618  (Edwards,  II,  368), 
of  the  Spaniards  having  murdered  in  cold  blood  many  English 
seamen,  Spedding  refrains  from  making  any  comment.  In  his 
**  Apologie  "  Ralegh  thus  relates  what  took  place : — 

"  Why  did  .  .  .  those  Spaniards,  which  were  now  encountered 
in  Guiana,  tye  six  and  thirty  English  men  out  of  Master  Walls 
Ship  of  London  and  mine  back  to  back,  and  cut  their  throats, 
after  they  had  traded  with  them  a  whole  month,  and  came  to  them 
a  shore ;  having  not  so  much  as  a  sword,  or  any  other  weapon, 
among  them  all"  (54-5 ;  and  ihid,  61-2,  in  letter  to  Lord  Carew). 

No  action  or  remonstrance  of  any  kind  is  recorded  to  have  taken 
place  on  the  part  of  the  English  Government,  and  yet  out  of  the 
most  barefaced  audacity  this  incident  is  actually  cited  in  the 
"  Declaration  "  as  evidence  that  Ralegh  knew  of  the  existence  of 
St.  Thomas,  and  that  it  was  inhabited  by  Spaniards  !  Here  is  the 
passage :  "It  appeares  notably  in  a  letter  of  his  owne  hand 
[apparently  the  one  sent  to  the  King],  written  since  his  retume 
from  his  voyage,  wherein  hee  complaines  that  the  Spaniards  of 
the  same  place,  did  murder  diuers  of  his  men,  which  came  in 

1  **  Even,  with  a  Rev.,"  I,  207. 

2  A.  Wilson,  "Hist,  of  James,"  I,  289  (1658). 


488  BAUBGHANA. 

peace  to  trade  with  them,  some  seuen  yeeres  past"  (30-1).  And 
yet  Spedding  makes  no  allusion  to  it,  although,  as  we  have  seen, 
he  is  ready  enough  to  accuse  Ralegh.  Surely  he  most  liave 
possessed  a  distorted  idea  of  justice ! 

The  same  fear  of  offending  Spain  continued  to  prevail  in  the 
English  Court  to  a  later  period,  as,  according  to  a  letter  from 
Rev.  T.  Mead  to  Sir  M.  Stuteville  of  10  March,  1620-1,  Dr.  Evans 
had  recently  preached  a  sermon  from  Genesis  xlix.  5,  "  and  here- 
upon digressing,  to  show  the  Spanish  cruelties  in  the  West  Indies, 
was,  for  it,  by  the  lords  of  the  council,  committed  to  the  Gate- 
house."^ 

The  sole  comment  of  Spedding  on  James's  dishonesty  in  money 
matters  is  this  remarkable  paragraph :  "  I  am  not  going  to  defend 
either  the  profusions  of  the  King  which  had  exhausted  his 
exchequer,  or  the  methods  which  he  had  used  to  replenish  it"* — 
a  convenient  way  to  dismiss  an  inconvenient  subject. 

In  forcing  the  exactions  of  the  Impositions  and  the  Benevo- 
lences upon  the  people,  he  must  have  forgotten  his  advice  to  his 
son,  "  Aboue  all,  enriche  not  yourselfe,  with  exactions  vpon  your 
subjectes."^ 

Apart  from  his  unscrupulous  methods  of  obtaining  and  of 
squandering  money,  does  James  merit  all  or  any  of  the  encomiums 
of  Spedding  for  his  wisdom,  patriotism,  and  justice?  Were  these 
qualities  exhibited  in  his  treatment  of  the  Roman  Catholics,  and 
which  led  to  causes  that  produced  the  Gunpowder  Plot?  Were 
they  displayed  in  the  disgraceful  proceedings  connected  with  the 
divorce  of  the  Countess  of  Essex ;  with  her  subsequent  marriage 
to  Rochester  (Somerset)  the  King's  handsome  favourite ;  with 
the  discreditable  imprisonment  of  SirT.  Overbury,  and  its  terrible 
culmination  in  his  murder,  one  of  the  most  atrocious  that  were 
ever  committed  in  the  Tower  1  In  all  these  transactions  James 
was  in  one  way  or  other  mixed  up,  and  Ilallam  arrived  at  the 
conclusion,  based  on  details  fully  described  by  him,  that  "some 
important  secret  being  disclosed,  he  had  pusillanimously  acquiesced 
in  the  scheme  of  Overbury's  murder,"  in  which  his  confidant,  the 
Earl  of  Northampton,  had  taken  such  a  leading  part.  This  con- 
clusion appears  to  be  borne  out  by  the  King's  terror,  displayed  by 
him  throughout  the  trial,  and  by  his  letters  written  during  his 
"  anxiety  and  suspense,  whether  Somerset  could  be  prevailed  on 
to  confess  his  guilt,  which  would  have  prevented  the  public 
appearance  of  the  witnesses,  and  anything  which  Somerset  might 
reveal."  But  Somerset  stoutly  refused  to  do  so.  Gardiner  re- 
marks, "  the  tricks  to  which  he  [James]  condescended,  in  order  to 
attain  the  desired  end,  were  innumerable"  (II,  351).  Some  idea 
of  James's  idea  of  justice  may  be  gleaned  from  his  attempt  to 

1  "Court  and  Times  of  James  I,"  by  T.  Birch,  II,  237  (1849). 

2  **  Even,  with  a  Rev.,"  II,  284. 
»  "Basil.  Dor.,"  146. 


RALSGHANA.  489 

pardon  the  two  principal  prisoners  (regarded  by  Gardiner  as  "  a 
want  of  delicate  moral  perception  ") ;  and  while  all  the  secondary 
agents  in  the  murder  were  executed,  the  Earl  and  the  Countess 
were  reprieved,  and  sent  to  the  Tower,  where  they  remained  about 
five  years,  and  were  then  pardoned  and  released.  Nor  was  this 
all,  for  after  his  condemnation  James  gave  Somerset  £4000  a 
year  in  land,  which  he  took  grants  of  in  the  names  of  his  servants; 
corresponded  with  him  after  his  release,  "and  seems  to  have  given 
him  hopes  of  being  restored  to  his  former  favour." ^ 

Was  the  character  of  James  elevated  by  his  treatment  of  Arabella 
Stuart  1  A  case,  notes  Hallam,  as  "among  the  hard  measures  of 
despotism,  even  if  it  were  not  also  grossly  in  violation  of  English 
law"  (I,  350).  Having  incurred  the  King's  displeasure  for  her 
marriage  with  Lord  Seymour,  she  was  sent  to  the  Tower  in  1611, 
where,  notwithstanding  her  piteous  appeals  to  be  released,  she 
remained  till  her  death  on  15  September,  1615.  For  nearly  three 
years  she  had  been  insane,-  but  the  immediate  cause  of  her  decease 
was  dysentery — Tower  dysentery.  Her  remains,  unattended  and 
uncared  for,  were  removed  to  Westminster  Abbey,  and  buried  like 
those  of  a  dog.  The  coffin,  placed  on  that  of  Mary  Stuart,  was 
"  without  a  plate,  and  so  frail,  that  the  skull  and  bones  were  seen, 
as  far  back  as  the  record  of  visitors  extends,  visible  through  its 
shattered  frame."  ^  The  reason  is  thus  recorded  by  James's  apolo- 
gist :  "  Because  to  have  a  great  funeral  for  one  dying  out  of  the 
King's  favour  would  have  reflected  upon  the  King's  honour,  and 
therefore  it  was  omitted."*  The  "King's  honour"  was  in  abeyance 
when  James  despoiled  Arabella  during  the  latter  part  of  the  pre- 
ceding century,  "of  her  paternal  earldom  with  its  broad  lands,  and 
even  of  her  mother's  jewels,  which  had  fallen  into  his  hands  on 
occasion  of  the  death  of  Thomas  Fowler."  ^ 

Then  we  have  the  cases  of  Ralegh,  of  Cobham,  and  of  Northum- 
berland, the  "diabolical  triplicity  " ;  whose  ruin  was  mainly  effected 
by  means  of  the  malignant  letters  of  Lord  H.  Howard  (afterwards 
Earl  of  Northampton),  written  on  behalf  of  himself  and  of  Cecil 
to  James,  during  the  last  two  years  of  Elizabeth's  reign.*  The 
asserted  plot  of  1603,  of  which  Gardiner  declared  in  his  latest 
work  that  Kalegh  was  "undeniably  innocent,"^  and  yet  caused 
the  ruin  of  himself  and  of  Cobham.  The  opportunity  for  accom- 
plishing that  of  Northumberland  was  created  by  the  Gunpowder 
Plot,  with  which  he  was  accused  of  suspected  complicity.  But 
notwithstanding  all  the  misleading  assertions  and   sophistry  of 

1  Hallam,  I,  852-4;  "  Archaologia,"  XVIII,  862-8;  Gardiner,  II,  840 
ei  seq, 

2  Vide  **  Life  of  A.  Stuart/'  by  E.  T.  Bradley,  II,  68  (1889). 

«  **Hi8tor.  Memorials  of  Westminster  Abbey/' by  Dean  Stanley,  157  (1882). 

*  Bp.  Goodman,  "Court  of  James  I,"  I,  209  (1839). 

»  Edwards,  I,  298. 

«  *•  Trans.  D.  A.,"  XXXV,  669. 

'  *'Camb.  Mod.  Hist,"  562. 


490  AALEGttANA. 

Coke,  no  proof  or  evidence  could  be  produced  to  show  that  he 
"had  the  slightest  cognisance  of  it."  Nevertheless,  he  was  pro- 
nounced guilty,  and  received  the  severe  sentence  of  being  deprived 
of  all  his  offices ;  of  being  fined  £30,000  ;  and  of  being  imprisoned 
"  during  His  Majesty's  pleasure."  He  remained  in  the  Tower  for 
eleven  years,  and  paid  £11,000  to  the  King.^ 

On  reviewing  the  foregoing  statements  in  illustration  of  James's 
kingcraft,  could  it  be  considered  as  probable  or  possible  for  the 
King  to  have  treated  Ralegh  differently  from  others,  when  in  his 
opinion  the  higher  qualities  of  wisdom,  ])atriotism,  and  justice 
were  in  any  way  detrimental  to  his  interests? 

The  termination  of  his  unworthy  reign  is  thus  related  by  James 
Welwood  (1652-1727)  in  his  "Memoirs" :  "King  James  went  off 
the  Stage  not  much  lamented ;  and  left  in  legacy  to  his  Son,  a 
discontented  People ;  an  unnecessary  expensive  War ;  an  in- 
cumbred  Revenue,  and  an  exhausted  Treasury  ...  in  fine,  he 
entail'd  upon  his  Son  all  the  Miseries  that  befel  him"  (ed.  1749, 
p.  17). 

»  Memoir  of  Northumberland  in  "  D.  N.  B.";  **  The  House  of  Percy,"  by 
G.  Brenan,  II,  116  d  seq.,  199-200  (1902). 


BOTANICAL  NOTES. 

No.  III. 

BY   HELEN    SAUNDERS. 

(Rewl  at  Lyuton,  July,  1900.) 


Continuing  the  plan  I  have  hitherto  adopted,  I  do  not  intend 
to  record  plants  which  are  generally  common  in  Devon,  or 
which  have  been  mentioned  in  my  former  papers,  unless 
there  is  some  particular  interest  attached  to  them. 

BIDEFORD. 

Mr.  Evans,  formerly  Master  of  the  United  Service  College 
at  Westward  Ho,  published  in  1881  his  hand-list  of  plants 
occurring  within  seven  miles  of  the  College,  and  added 
supplementary  pages  in  1881,  1883,  1886,  and  another  in 
1894,  for  which  the  radius  was  extended  in  some  directions 
to  twelve  or  thirteen  miles ;  therefore,  no  doubt,  the  list 
contained  all  the  wild  flowers  of  the  neighbourhood  of 
Bideford.  But  I  must  mention  some  I  have  observed  there 
which  I  have  not  previously  reported  in  my  notes. 

Pa2)aver  duhium      .         .  .  I^ng-headed  l)oppy. 

Fumaria  pdlluliflora        .  .  Pale-flowered  fumitory. 

Cochlearia  danica   .         .  .  Danish  scurvy  grass. 

Erysimum  orientale  (West- 
ward Ho)  .         .  .  Hare*8-ear  cabbage. 

Sinapis  alba  .         .  .  White  mustard. 

S,  nigra  ....  Common  mustard. 

Lepidium  pfrfoliatum      .  .  Perforated  pepper  wort. 

Vlolu  OuHisii         .         .  .  Sea  pansy. 

Lychnis  vesj)ertina  .         .  .  Evening  campion. 

Sagina  maritima    .         .  .  Sea  pearl-wort. 

Eroffium  maritimum        .  .  Sea  stork's-bill. 

TrifoUum  hyhridum         .  .  Alsike  clover. 

Antfiyllis  viUneraria,  var. 

coccinea       ....  Lady's  fingers. 


492  BOTANICAL  NOTES. 

Rosa  stylosa    ....  Columnar-styled  dog-rose. 
Carum  Carui  (Fremington)      .  Caraway. 
Valerianella  dentatck        .         .  Narrow-fruited  lamb's  lettuce. 
Artemisia  mariiima         .         .  Sea  wormwood. 
Senecio  squalidus     .         .         .  Inelegant  ragwort. 
Olaux  maritima      .         .         .  Sea  milkwort. 
Beta  mantima        .         .         .  Sea  beet. 
Triglochin  palustre  (Mr.  Evans)  Marsh  arrowgrass. 
T.  maritimum         .         .         .  Sea  arrowgrass. 
Carex  pendula         .         .         .  Great  pendulous  sedge. 
Calamagrostis    JSpigeios    (Fre- 
mington)    ....  Wood  small-reed. 
Phragmites  communis      .         .  Common  reed. 
Sclerochloa  rigida   .         .         .  Hard  meadow-grass. 
Triticum  acutum     .         .         .  Decumbent  sea  couch-grass. 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  charming  little  plant  Senecio 
squalidus  deserves  a  better  title,  being  a  pretty  as  well 
as  rare  plant  growing  on  bare  walls  and  rocks,  attracting 
admiration  by  its  bright  yellow  florets  rising  from  a  cup- 
shaped  involucre,  with  leaves,  some  drooping  and  others  erect. 
The  only  reported  British  stations  are  Oxford,  Berkshire, 
Warwick,  and  Cork.  It  is  said  to  be  a  native  of  Sicily. 
It  was  first  published  in  Oxford  by  Paul  Boccone  in  1674  in 
his  book  of  the  rare  plants  of  Sicily.  It  was  discovered 
at  Bideford  about  1842.  As  Linnaeus  so  named  it  in  his 
"Species  Plantarum,"  published  in  August,  1753,  and  also 
quoted  in  his  earlier  work,  "Hortus  Upsaliensis"  (1749),  we 
must  allow  he  had  a  good  reason  for  doing  so.  Mr.  Hiem 
considers  it  to  be  on  account  of  its  peculiar  odour;  and 
although  I  have  not  noticed  anything  unpleasant  about 
it  myself,  it  is,  no  doubt,  disagreeable  to  some  persons.  It 
is  sometimes  called  Oxford  ragwort. 

I  found  Zepidium  perforatum  near  the  sea  at  Westward 
Ho ;  it  is,  no  doubt,  an  alien  and  only  recently  introduced. 
I  have  not  heard  of  its  having  been  discovered  at  any  other 
station  in  the  county. 

SIDMOUTH. 

I  am  sorry  I  had  very  little  time  for  collecting  specimens 
at  Sidmouth,  which  locality  possesses  a  rich  flora.  I  refer 
those  who  wish  to  become  acquainted  with  it  to  Mr.  W.  H. 
CuUen's  "Flora  Sidostiensis,"  in  which  he  has  recorded 
many  plants  which  are  rare  in  the  county  of  Devon. 

On  the  rocks  by  the  sea  I  noticed  Daucus  maritimus, 
which  Professor  Babington  placed  as  a  synonym  of  Daiccus 


BOTANICAL  NOTES.  493 

Carota.  It  is  found  on  the  sea-coasts  of  Devon  and  Cornwall, 
but  it  seems  to  be  rare  in  other  counties. 

In  Harpford  Wood,  a  short  distance  from  the  railway 
station,  I  observed  an  Ajuga  of  an  unusual  form,  but  not 
having  secured  a  good  specimen,  it  could  not  be  named  with 
certainty. 

I  gathered  Sagina  maritima,  sea  pearlwort,  and  many 
other  flowers  which  are  common  in  the  county  and  have 
been  reported  from  other  places. 

TEIGNMOUTH. 

The  flora  of  Teignmouth  has  been  fully  reported  in 
Ravenshaw's  "  Flowering  Plants  of  Devonshire  "  and  in  the 
"  Handbook  to  the  Flora  of  Torquay,"  by  Robert  Stewart, 
published  in  1860.  Miss  Larter  has  also  written  a  charm- 
ing and  descriptive  book  on  the  plants  growing  wild  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Torquay  for  many  miles  in  all  directions 
("  Manual  of  the  Flora  of  Torquay,"  published  in  1900). 

RapJianus  viaritimus        .         .  Sea  radish 

Silene  maritima       .         .         .  Sea  campion. 

Oxalis  comiciUata   .         .         .  Yellow  wood  sorrel. 

Medicago  sativa  (two  shades)  .  Common  Lucerne. 

Tnfoliuvi  suffocatum        .         .  Dense-flowered  trefoil. 

T.  suhterraneum  (Dawlisli)       .  Subterranean  clover. 

Vicia  hithynica       .         .         .  Bithynian  vetch. 

Lathynis  Nissolia    .         .         .  Grass  pea. 

L.  sylvestris     ....  Everlasting  pea. 

JSedum  glaucum  (albescens)       .  Glaucous  stonecrop  (Mr. 

Griffith). 

Scabiosa  colum^HiHa         .         .  Small  scabious. 

Inula  conyza  .         .         .  Ploughman's  spikenard, 

Salanum  inarinum  .         .         .  Sea  nightshade,  bitter-sweet. 

UMcularia  vulgaris         .         .  Common  bladderwort. 

Chenopodium  inurale        .         .  Kettle-leaved  goosefoot. 

A  triplex  arenaria    .         .         .  Sand  orache. 

Trich onevm  Columrue  (RomtUea)  Columna's  trichonema. 

Lemna  gibba  ....  Gibbons  duckweed. 

Sderochloa  loliacea  (Poa)         .  Darnel  wheat-grass. 

Triticum  2>ung€ns    ,         .         .  Seashore  wheat-grass. 

Uordeum  maritimum       .         .  Sea  barley. 

I  have  gathered  Eomulea  ColurriTwc  early  in  the  spring  on 
Dawlish  Warren.  It  is  very  rare  in  England;  Dawlish 
is  almost  the  only  station.  It  is  found  in  Jersey  and 
Guernsey,  and  has  been  reported  from  Cornwall     It  is  a 


494 


BOTANICAL  NOTES. 


small  plant  of  the  order  Iridaceae,  having  flowers  of  a  pinkish- 
violet  shade,  with  darker  stripes,  yellow  anthers,  and  very 
slender  leaves. 

Illecebrum  verticHlatum  is  mentioned  by  Bavenshaw  as 
growing  in  Devon  by  the  Dart  and  on  the  east  side  of  Shute 
Hill,  near  Axminster ;  but  I  do  not  know  if  this  has  been 
confirmed  by  other  botanists.  It  has  been  recorded  from 
Braunton  Burrows  and  from  Looe  and  Marazion  in  Cornwall, 
and  I  have  been  lately  informed  that  it  is  still  to  be  found 
in  the  marshes  near  the  latter  place. 


SOUTH  MOLTON. 


The  discovery  of  thirty-three  plants  growing  wild  in  this 
neighbourhood,  including  Holland,  Knowstone,  and  Eomans- 
leigh,  since  July,  1901,  has  increased  the  number  to  603. 
They  are : — 


Fumaria  muralis     . 

F,  Borcei  .... 

Braasica  Napiis 

Spei'gula  sativa 

Malva  borealis  (pwdlld)  . 

Geranium  striatum  {versicolor) . 

Ulex  Gallii    .... 

Melilottis  pnrviflora  (Indica)    '. 

Trifolinm  striatum  . 

T,  agrarium    .... 

Spirma    Ulmaria    (double- 
flowered)     .... 

Afjrimonia  odr/rata . 

Pijrus  communis      \ 

Callitrirhe  stagnalis 

Peplis  Portula 

Ejnlohium   ayigustifolium,    var. 
hi'achycarpum 


Rampant  fumitory. 
Borean's  fumitory. 
Rape,  cole  seed. 
Corn  spurrey. 
Small-flowered  mallow. 
The  painted  lady. 
Planchon's  furze. 
Small-flowered  melUot. 
Soft-knotted  trefoil. 
Golden  trefoil. 

^feadow  sweet. 

Fra<^rant  agrimony. 

Wild  pear. 

Water  starwort(Romansleigli). 

Water  purslane. 

Rose-bay. 


E.  monianumy  a  variety  of,  or  perhaps  E,  durim. 


E,  roseum 

Peucedanum  satimim 
Gnaphalium  sylvaticum  . 

Petasites  fragrans   . 
Hieracium  murorum,,  var.  ere- 

hridens        .... 
Euphrasia  nemorosa  (per  Mr. 

Hiem)         .... 
Lamium  mactdatum 


Pale  smooth-leaved  willow- 
herb. 

Common  parsnip. 

Upright  cudweed  (Romans- 
leigh). 

Winter  heliotrope. 

Wall  hawk  weed. 

Wood  eyebright. 
Spotted  dead  nettle. 


BOTANICAL  NOTES.  495 

Scleraiithus  annuus .         .         .     Annual  knawel. 
Vinca    major    (probably    an 

escaj)e)         ,         .         .         .     Larger  periwinkle. 
Lilium  Martcujoii    .         .         .     TurkVcap  lily. 
Juncus  hulhosus  (supinus)  in  a 

viviparous  st^ite    .         .         .     Lesser-pointed  rush. 
J.  Imfuiiius,  var.  fanciculaius    .     Toad-rush. 
Scirpus  setaceus       .         .         .     Slender  clul>rush  (Ronians- 

Icigh). 
Car  ex  Goodenovii    .         .  .A.  sedge  (do.). 

C.  hiiiervis       ....     Green-ribbed  sedge. 
Liidreay  a  variety  near  (jlandulosa, 

Lilium  Martago7i^  which  was  found  in  North  Molton 
parish,  is,  no  doubt,  a  garden  escape,  although  growing 
apparently  wild  and,  as  I  was  informed,  self-sown  where 
1  discovered  it. 

Epilohium  roseum  seems  to  be  very  rare  in  North  Devon, 
but  as  in  appearance  it  much  resembles  E,  montanum  and 
growing  as  a  garden  weed,  it  has  probably  been  passed  over 
or  rooted  up  before  flowering.  It  differs  from  JS,  monianum 
in  having  an  entire  stigma,  leaves  mostly  alternate  with 
longer  petioles,  and  two  or  four  raised  lines  on  the  stem. 

Epilohium  angustifolium,  var.  brachycarpum,  flourishes  in  a 
wood  in  the  parish  of  Knowstone ;  it  differs  from  the  more 
common  form  viacrocarpuvi  in  having  root-stocks  with  long 
stolens,  pistils  one-quarter  longer  than  the  stamens,  and  the 
capsules  very  much  shorter  and  spreading. 

Sderanthtcs  annuus  I  had  previously  discovered  at  Oke- 
hampton ;  it  seems  to  be  a  rare  plant  in  North  Devon,  but 
not  having  an  attractive  appearance,  it  may  have  been 
passed  unobserved.  Mr.  Hiern  has  reported  it  from  Countis- 
bury. 

An  account  of  the  discovery  of  Hieracium  crehridens  on 
Sheepwash  Hill,  MoUand,  has  been  given  in  the  "Journal 
of  Botany"  for  August,  1904. 

Fetasites  fragi'ans,  although  not  indigenous  in  Britain, 
grows  so  wild  where  it  is  established  as  to  become  a  trouble- 
some weed,  especially  in  shrubberies,  where  it  destroys 
other  plants.  It  flowers  in  January.  It  is  termed  the 
winter  heliotrope,  from  the  resemblance  of  its  perfume 
to  that  of  the  true  heliotrope  of  gardens,  which  belongs 
to  quite  another  family  (the  Borage). 

Minudus  vioschatiis,  which  I  reported  in  1894,  still  main- 
tains its  position.  I  have  seen  a  considerable  quantity  of  it 
lately  growing  on  the  banks  of  a  stream  a  short  distance 


496  BOTANICAL  NOTES. 

from  the  town,  and  it  also  grows  by  the  River  Mole  some 
distance  away.  The  species  tiow  known  as  MimiUus  Langs- 
dorffii  (Donn's  monkey-flower)  flourishes  near  the  same 
place.  In  my  list  of  plants  growing  wild  in  the  parish 
of  South  Molton  I  recorded  it  as  Mimulus  luttus,  which 
name  is  now  considered  incorrect. 

For  the  year  1906  I  am  able  to  add  seven  discoveries, 
making  the  total  610 : — 

Ophioglossum  vulgatum  in  the  parish  of  Charles,  near  the 
habitat  of  the  daffodil,  Narcissus  eystettensis, 

Nasturtiumsii/oliu7n(Filleigh)yAlysstimalyssoides{CheLr^^ 

Orobanche  major  (great  broomrape)  which  is  a  parasitical 
plant  growing  on  the  roots  of  leguminous  plants,  chiefly 
broom  or  furze. 

Silene  Ctccubalus,  var.  puberida  (bladder  campion). 

Vicia  angusti/olia,  probably  var.  Bohartii  (common  vetch), 
and  a  bramble  "  with  rather  large  white  flowers,  namely,  the 
dewberry,  or  perhaps  a  hybrid  of  it  with  another,  and 
approaching  in  character  the  bramble  R.  Bal/ouriamis," 

I  had  little  opportunity  for  botanizing  on  Dartmoor  last 
July,  but  I  have  recorded  some  of  the  plants  found  in  that 
district  under  Okehampton,  I  must,  however,  mention  a 
beautiful  luminous  moss,  Schistostega  pennata,  which  was 
pointed  out  to  me  by  Mr.  Amery  on  one  of  the  excursions 
made  from  Princetown.  My  attention  was  called  to  a  cave 
or  well  in  a  rock  in  the  shape  of  a  cloamen  oven  of  rather 
large  dimension,  which  was  lined  with  an  even  layer  of  fine 
moss.  The  sun  was  shining  across  the  cave  and  giving 
it  a  splendid  metallic  appearance,  which  is  said  to  be  caused 
by  the  reflection  of  the  light  by  the  minute  cells  of  the 
young  branches  or  threads.  This  moss  is  found  near  Notting- 
ham and  in  Lancashire  and  in  other  parts  of  England,  but 
it  is  rare  in  Devonshire. 

The  Public  Botanical  Walking  Party  from  Barnstaple 
made  some  excursions  in  this  neighbourhood  in  the  year 
1905.  I  accompanied  them  on  several  occasions,  when  some 
of  the  above-named  plants  were  discovered.  From  other 
parts  of  North  Devon  they  have  added  some  rare  species 
to  the  flora. 

In  conclusion,  I  beg  to  thank  Mr.  Hiem  for  the  kind 
assistance  he  has  given  me. 


East  tiinl  uf  6L  Andrtw^fi  Uhurch,  South  Taw  ton,  with  Burf^oyrie  Able  on  South, 
taxteHsion  of  1S81,  and  Vcatry  addeil  1903,  an  North, 


iind 


'  . 

BHRnVM^teAftiAiJ 

•if* 

«irk' 

1  iT* 

Ancient  Granite  Font  removed  iVom  Cliurch  iu         Broken  Cro.^s  fit  Wijit  Wftk.  ^ihowing  Gaiew*jr 
iUstoi'a  lion  of  1 8  8  L  a  n  d  oM  H  o  u  se  -  froii  t. 


The  Cax3»cHV{KUDiEsift'  \ccovj«t8  of  South  Tawtos.— To  fact  p.  497. 


THE  CHUECHWARDENS'  ACCOUNTS  OF 
SOUTH  TAWTOK 

BT     ETHEL    LEGA-WEBKES. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  accounts  of  the  churchwardens  of  South  Tawton  are 
replete  with  matter  of  general  as  well  as  lopal  antiquarian 
interest;  for,  beginning  as  far  back  as  1524^ — a  period  prior 
to  the  Eeformation — they  illustrate  almost  step  by  step  the 
changes  in  doctrine,  in  ritual,  in  legislation,  and  in  adminis- 
tration of  the  Church  of  England,  while  their  quaint  lan- 
guage abounds  in  treasure  for  the  etymologist. 

Those  of  the  earlier  years — down  to  1540 — are  written  in 
Latin  (of  a  sort !),  mostly  contracted,  and  interspersed  with 
English  or  quasi-English  words;  but  they  are  not  as  diffi- 
cult to  decipher  as  some  of  the  English  ones  of  later  years, 
where  the  handwriting  is  more  careless  and  irr^ular,  the 
words  crowded,  and  lines  interlocked  in  an  evident  desire  to 
economize  parchment,  and  the  spelling  so  eccentric  that  some 
of  the  most  familiar  words  long  defied  recognition.  I  have, 
however,  revised  my  transcripts  by  the  originals,  for  un- 
restricted access  to  which  I  am  greatly  indebted  to  the  kind- 
ness of  the  Eev.  J.  Foulkes-Clarke,  the  present  incumbent. 

VoL  I  comprises  three  divisions,  of  which  the  last  in 
order  of  binding  is  the  earliest  in  date,  being  the  accounts  of 
the  head  wardens  from  1524  to  1568 — with,  however,  a 
lamentable  hiatus  from  1540  to  1555,  nine  or  ten  pages 
having  been  written  on  and  afterwards  cut  away.  They  are 
continued  in  the  middle  division,  1569  to  1612,  and  again  on 
page  23,  as  modernly  numbered,  where  they  terminate  with 
the  year  1613,  to  be  resumed  in  Vol.  II  with  the  year  1648. 

In  the  first  division  of  VoL  I  the  first  page  after  two  fly- 

^  In  the  parish  registers  the  christenings  begin  in  1540,  the  marriages  and 
burials  in  1558. 

VOL.  XXXVIII.  2  I 


498   THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

leaves  is  numbered  "  5/'  and  ten  appear  to  have  been  cut  out 
before  the  next,  which  is  marked  "  7." 

This  portion — pages  7-22  (covering  the  period  1550-71) 
— is  occupied  by  a  distinct  class  of  accounts,  namely  those 
of  divers  "Instaura"  or  "stores,"  i.e.  stocks  of  money  and 
goods,  dedicated  in  honour  of  certain  saints  to  special  de- 
votional or  charitable  objects  and  administered  by  their 
respective  wardens,  who  were  appointed  in  pairs  for  a  twelve- 
month, and  were  answerable  to  the  head  wardens. 

As  to  the  titles  of  the  wardens,  it  may  be  noted  that  from 
1524  to  1540  the  keeper  of  the  principal  accounts  is  described 
as  the  warden  ("custos")  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the 
store  ("  iustaur")  of  St.  Andrew.  After  that  he  is  called  the 
"  Hed warden  "  (or,  as  in  1562,  "Chief  warden  "),  and  separate 
accounts  are  rendered  by  "St.  Andrew's  Wardyns."  In  1556, 
among  the  receipts  of  John  Dunning,  "Hed  Warden,"  occurs 
the  item  of  "x  s.  from  St.  Andrew's  warden."  Among  the 
subsidiary  warden's  accounts  we  find,  in  1552,  Simon  Downe 
and  John  Ascot  "gardiani  Instaur*  Sci  Andrei,"  and  a 
list  of  arrears  names  Walt.  Gidlegh,  Gustos  honor'  p'ochianor* 
in  Staur'  no'is  Jhesu',  36  Hen.  viii ;  and  Joh.  Moore  &  Joh. 
Mannyng,  Ousted'  eccl'ie  p'ochial'  in  staur'  no'is  S'ci  Audree, 
A°  D'ni,  1568.  Later,  1569-71,  the  term  "Hedwarden"  is 
replaced  by  "  Warden  "  ("  Gustos  ")  "  of  the  goods  and  chattels 
of  the  parish  church  "  (cf.  titles  of  J.  Battishill  in  accounts  of 
1601  and  1602),  and  from  1571  to  1590  by  "Warden  and 
Gollector  [one  man]  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the  parish 
church,"  while  concurrently,  from  1586  to  1591,  separate 
accounts  are  rendered  by  two  men  "  Keceiver(s  ?)  and  Col- 
lector(s?)  of  goods  for  the  repair  of  the  church,"  and  for 
some  years  following,  sums  are  acknowledged  from  "  collec- 
tors for  the  courche,"  "  for  the  common  store,"  and  "  for  the 
reparation  of  the  church";  and  long  lists  of  arrears  due 
from  parishioners  for  that  object  are  carried  forward.  In 
1580-2-3  the  first  warden  alludes  in  his  account  to  two 
others,  "Eccl'ie  Gustod'";  in  1585  he  receives  from  two  men 
a  sum  "de  pecunia  collect'."  The  Eev.  Hilperic  Friend 
("Bygone  Devonshire,"  p.  108),  in  his  notes  on  the  accounts 
of  Milton  Abbot,  expresses  surprise  that  money  gathered 
about  the  parish  to  pay  for  bread  and  wine  for  the  Holy 
Gommunion  "  should  have  passed  through  the  hands  of  such 
an  official  as  the  Hay- Warden."  It  would  indeed  be  curious, 
seeing  that  the  Hay-Warden's  duty  was  to  look  to  the 
hedges  (Fr.  "haie";  A.S.  "hag")  and  to  impound  straying 
animals,  but  in  this  case  the  word  must  certainly  be  inter- 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     499 

preted  •*  High  warden."  In  the  same  accounts  we  find  the 
speUings  "Hey-"  and  "Heigh-";  in  those  of  Morebath 
"  Hye-"  warden  ('*  Uev.  N.  &  Q.,"  Morebath,  p.  99). 

In  the  Tavistock  Accounts  (edited  by  R.  N.  Worth)  I 
notice  first  in  1561  two  "  wardens  of  the  parysche  churche"; 
at  an  earlier  date  the  head  warden  (as  I  suppose),  John  Nyle, 
is  described  as  "Governor"  ("gubernator")  of  the  church.  In 
the  Somerset  Accounts  two  men  in  1526  were  "hye  wardens 
of  the  hye  store  of  St.  George"  (the  saint  to  whom  the  church 
was  dedicated),  and  at  Pilton,  it  is  stated,^  until  the  year  1530 
a  single  warden  administered  the  parish  funds  and  alone  was 
responsible  to  the  visiting  authority,  but  under  him  there  were 
no  fewer  than  four  pairs  of  wardens,  viz.  **  Our  Lady  Wardens," 
"  Wardens  of  St.  John's  Brotherhood,"  "  Warden  of  the  high 
light  on  the  Rood-loft,"  and  those  of  the  "Key,"  "Kye,"  or 
"  Cows."  In  another  Somerset  parish,  1525,  etc.,  besides  the 
accounts  of  the  high  wardens  there  are  concurrent  accounts 
"  of  the  Five  men."  ^ 

To  return  to  South  Tawton,  it  may  be  observed  that  the 
head- warden's  account  of  1559  is  made  '^  coram  Joh'i  Wyks, 
Armigero,  Will'mo  Battishill,  Georgio  Milford,  Ric.  Estbroke, 
Rob'to  Wonston,"  etc.,  and  that  succeeding  accounts  down 
to  1594  are  similarly  witnessed  or  audited  by  the  same  or 
other  leading  parishioners.  These  must  have  included,  I 
think,  the  "Questmen"  or  "Sidesmen"  (a  term  generally 
held  to  be  derived  from  "  Synods  men  "),  who  in  most  large 
parishes  acted  as  a  sort  of  assistant  wardens.  At  Hevytree, 
in  certain  articles  dated  1586,  four  persons  (named)  "now 
being  Sidemen  or  ffoxvcr  men  of  the  same  parish  "  agree  to 
"  faithfully  deale  in  churche  causes  for  the  best  mayntenance 
of  the  said  church,  and  other  necessaryes  concernynge  the 
coinon  utilitye  of  the  parishe."  The  "stronge  chest"  with 
three  locks  and  three  keys,  containing  "the  parishe  stock, 
and  all  such  wrytynge  and  Evidence  as  belongeth  to  the 
said  paryshe"  .  .  .  "shall  remayne  alwaies  in  the  custody 
of  one  of  the  Sidemen." 

The  churchwardens  are  to  render  account  annually  to  the 
sidemen,  and  to  deliver  to  them  any  of  the  "church  store 
remaining  in  their  hands  "  ("  D.  N.  &  Q.,"  VoL  I,  ii.  37). 

In  the  Chagford  accounts,  1521, "  the  Eight  men  "  delivered 
to  (S*  Michael's)  Wardens  48"  4**,  "which  remain  from 
the  hogner's  store."  .  .  .  The  functions  of  the  "Church 
Council"   (or   "Vestry"   in    modern   parlance)   are    to    be 

1  Somerset  Record  Society,  Vol.  IV,  **Som.  Ch.  W'dena*.  Accts.,"  edited 
l)y  Bishop  Hobhouse,  p.  49,  '  /&kf.,  p.  210. 

2i2 


500    THB  CHUKCHWARDKNS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON. 

gathered,  says  the  editor  of  the  Somerset  Accounts  (Som. 
Rec  Soc,  Vol.  IV,  p.  xi),  from  the  things  entered  as 
done  ''coram  parachianis,**  As  to  the  management  of  the 
church  fabric  or  accessories  great  freedom  was  left  to  the 
people,  but  they  were  under  the  inspection  of  rural  deans 
and  archdeacons,  and  the  wardens  (or,  according  to  other 
authorities,  sidesmen)  were  sworn  to  the  Visitation  Ck>urt  to 
make  presentment  of  every  defect;  for  the  duty  of  the 
parish  to  maintain  and  furnish  the  House  of  God  was 
enforceable  in  the  Church  Courts.  Wardens  and  sidesmen 
were  also  charged  with  the  responsibility  of  presentment  to 
the  Archdeacon's  Court  of  moral  delinquencies  in  their  vicar 
and  the  flock. 

Among  the  most  constantly  recurring  expenses  in  the 
South  Tawton  accounts  are  those  for  four  men  riding  to 
Exeter  to  the  Episcopal  and  Archidiaconal  Visitations.  I 
conjecture  these  men  to  have  been  the  head-warden  and 
sidesmen.  That  they  did  not  include  wardens  of  subsidiary 
stores  or  guild-wardens  may,  I  think,  be  inferred  from  an 
item  in  one  of  the  subsidiary  accounts  (1550)  alluding  under 
the  head  of  expenditures  to  ''the  four  men,**  A  similar 
class  of  entries  relates  to  the  journeys  to  Exeter  of  several 
men  (generally  four)  in  charge  of  moneys  that  had  been 
levied  on  the  parish,  such  as  the  king's  subsidies  and 
"  Peter's  Pence."  We  also  hear  very  often  of  "  four  men  " 
riding  to  Chagford  or  to  Dunsford,  to  military  musters  or  on 
business  connected  with  them,  and  of  their  going  before 
justices  or  commissioners  on  divers  matters.  Whether  these 
four  men  were  always  the  same  whatever  their  mission, 
or  whether  the  functions  of  sidesman  and  of  constable  or 
tithing-man  or  other  such  offices  might  be  combined  in  one 
person,  I  do  not  know,  but  there  seems  to  me  to  be  some  in- 
dication that  one  at  least  of  the  party  of  money-bearers  was 
customarily  a  constable.  A  Star -Chamber  Proceeding 
(Ph.  and  M.  Bund.  I,  No.  22)  contains  the  statement  that 
John  Wykes  of  South  Tawton,  gentleman,  was  constable  of 
the  parish  of  South  Tawton  in  the  reign  of  Philip  and  Mary^ 
and  in  1572-3,  as  is  recorded  in  the  Court  Roll  of  the 
Borough  of  Zeal  ("Trans."  XXXV,  536),  he  ("John  Wykes 
Armiger  ")  was  elected  "  bailiff." 

In  another  Star-Chamber  Proceeding  (Bund.  32,  No.  57) 
it  is  asserted,  more  than  once,  that  in  1533  John  Battishill, 
Henry  Gidley,  Thos.  Yeoland,  and  Kichard  Waleys  were 
"constables  of  the  Parish." 

In  the  head- warden's  account  of  1562  occurs  the  item  "  to 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     501 

iij  men  to  ryde  to  exeter  before  the  co'stabel  of  the  Hundred." 
In  this,  as  in  several  similar  ones,  the  ambiguity  of  the  word- 
ing leaves  me  in  doubt  whether  the  men  accompanied  the 
constable  or  went  to  him.  William  Battishill  appears  re- 
peatedly in  these  accounts;  e.g.  1555,  "paid  unto  William 
Battyshell  for  fettyng  home  the  church  harnes."  1556,  "to 
William  Battushill  &  John  Donnyng  for  there  expences  to 
appere  before  the  comyssyoners,  xv  d."  1567  (Subs.),  "paide 
unto  Mr  Battyshill  &  Richard  Wycks  for  ffyfty  doUe,  iiij 
li.  xij  s.  xd."  1559  (in  connexion  with  expenses  of  Institu- 
tion and  Induction), "  p'd  for  the  chargesse  of  mayster  batty- 
shil  &  the  vicar,  xxx"." 

It  is  disappointing  not  to  find  in  the  earlier  South  Tawton 
accounts  any  explicit  reference  to  a  parish  clerk.  It  is  true 
that  the  word  "  clerk  "  occurs  a  few  times,  but  as  this  was  a 
term  applied  to  any  person  in  holy  orders  in  contradistinction 
to  laymen,  it  might  here  indifferently  designate  the  chaplain 
of  Zeal  (of  whom  more  anon)  or  the  vicar  himself,  though  a 
certain  item  of  1575,  the  payment  of  **  8d.  to  the  clerke  for 
fetching  more  tile  from  North  Wyke,"  would  seem  to  relate 
to  a  subordinate.  In  the  Registers  of  Burials,  under  date 
15  January,  1622,  I  find  (to  translate)  "James  Beard,^ 
formerly  Parish  clerk  of  this  church."  John  Beard  was  then 
vicar.  Possibly  both  were  sons  of  the  George  Beard,  who  in 
1607  contested  the  vicarage  against  Henry  Bowker  ("  Trans." 
XXXIII,  437),  the  King's  presentee,  and  who  is  named  in 
these  registers  as  vicar  of  South  Tawton  from  1594  to  1604. 
In  1696  was  buried  "Richard  Marks  ye  Parish  clerk." 

In  the  Decretals  of  Alexander  III^  it  is  written:  "A 
Presbyter  cannot  alone  perform  the  solemn  service  of  the 
Mass  and  other  offices  without  the  support  of  an  assistant," 
and  Bishop  Grosseteste^  (1235-53)  commands  that  "in  every 
Church  of  sufficient  means  there  shall  be  a  deacon  or  sub- 
deacon,  but  in  the  rest  a  fitting  and  honest  clerk  to  serve  the 
priest  in  a  comely  habit."  The  distinction  between  either 
subdeacon  or  colet  (acolite)  and  parish  clerk  is  not  a  very 
rigid  one,  for  no  one  might  hold  the  latter  position  who  was 
not  in  one  of  the  minor  orders  at  least  (the  successive  stages 

^  In  1615  James  Beard  married  Jane  Lug. 

In  Vol.  Ill  of  the  "Cal.  of  Early  Chancery  Proceedings"  (undated,  but 
mostly  1485  to  1500),  Bund.  118,  No.  24,  I  note  ''Margaret  Berde  k  James 
lier  son,  Plaintiffs,  v,  John  Speke  K^  re  the  manor  of  Talbottyswyke  in 
North  Tawton  k  three  tents,  in  George  Hamme,  late  belonging  to  John 
Talbot,  Esq." 

2  **The  Rise  of  the  Parochial  System  in  Eng.,"  the  Rev.  0.  J.  Reicbel, 
Exeter  Dioc.  Arch.  Soc,  ser.  3,  Vol.  II,  pt  iiL  p.  110. 

3  Ibid.,  citing  Brown,  Fasc.  II,  412. 


502   THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

being  in  the  words  of  Caxton,  "  fyrst  benet,  then  colet,  sub 
deeon,  deacon,  and  then  preest),"^  and  as  Bishop  Hobhouse 
remarks,  and  as  Mr.  Chanter  has  shown  in  an  instructive  paper 
(*•  Trans.  Dev.  Ass."  XXXVI,  391)  on  this  subject,  the  parish 
clerk  was  occasionally  raised  to  the  subdiaconate,  which  was 
the  lowest  of  the  major  orders.  The  chief  practical  difiference 
appears  to  have  been  that  whereas  for  those  in  training  for 
the  priesthood  there  was  no  endowment  (Som.  Rea  Soc., 
Vol.  IV,  p.  19),  and  the  maintenance  of  such  for  the  assist- 
ance of  the  priest  was  not  compulsory  (the  expenses,  if  any, 
in  this  connexion  being  defrayed  by  the  priest  himself),  the 
parish  vxts  obliged  to  support  the  paHsJi  clerk. 

The  duties  of  the  ideal  parish  clerk  were  multifarious. 
He  was  to  sing  with  the  priest,  to  read  the  epistle  and 
lesson,  and  presumably  to  join  the  clergy  in  ringing  the 
church  bells — a  task  which  in  pre-Eeformation  times  might 
not  be  delegated  to  any  layman,  and  was  performed  in 
surplice.^  He  was  to  be  a  scholar  and  to  act  as  schoolmaster 
to  the  boys  of  the  parish,  to  attend  the  priest  inside  the 
church  and  out,  and  particularly  in  funeral  and  other  proces- 
sions, carrying  a  vessel  of  holy  water  which  he  sprinkled 
about  him  by  means  of  a  long  brush.  Indeed,  his  distinctive 
office  was  that  of  '*aqu8e  bajalatus," — the  so-called  benefice  of 
the  holy  water,^ — which  entitled  him  to  goabout  theparish  with 
his  holy  water  *  at  certain  seasons  (there  is  frequent  mention 
of  the  "  holy  water  bucket "  in  the  South  Tawton  accounts) 
and  claim  from  each  house  "  a  stetch  of  clean  corn  " ;  or  ("  at 
Lammas"  say  some,  i.e.  1  August),  "when  men  have  shorn 
their  sheep  .  .  .  some  wool  to  make  him  cotts  to  goo  yn  the 
parishs  livery"  (Som.  Rec,  IV,  223). 

1  find  no  mention  of  a  sexton  in  the  South  Tawton  accounts, 
but  in  1529  John  Well,  and  in  succeeding  years  John  Veale 
(probably  the  same  man,  and  by  trade,  apparently,  a  joiner), 
appears  as  "  Keeper  of  the  Bells,"  being  succeeded  in  that 
capacity  in  1559  by  John  Ascot;  and  from  1526  to  1531 
Henry  Smith  receives  two  shillings  a  year  as  "  Keeper  of  the 
Cemetery,"  and  sometimes  a  few  pence  for  care  of  hedges,  etc. 

Another  church  office  was  that  of  dog-whipper,  the  first 
reference  to  this  being,  I  think,  in  1583:  "Pd.  Connyby  for 
kepyng  out  of  the  Doges  out  of  the  courche,  xvj  d."   Similar 

*  The  Orders  temp.  Bp.  Vescy  were  Tonsurati,  Accoliti,  etc. — W.  E.  M. 

2  *'N.  and  Q.,"  Istser.,  Vol.  XI,  p.  33. 
»  O.J.  R.,  "Par.  Syst,"  111. 

*  This  reminds  me  of  the  ceremony  of  blessing  and  asperging  houses  which 
I  have  witnessed  in  Como. 


THE  CHUKCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTOX.     503 

entries  and  payments  for  "  a  cord  for  a  whippe  "  for  the  same 
purpose  recur  down  to  comparatively  modern  times  in  these, 
and  are  to  be  met  with  in  many  other,  churchwardens'  ac- 
counts. Some  delightfully  quaint  woodcuts,  showing  a  vigorous 
application  of  the  whip  (or  scourge,  rather,  for  it  appears  to 
have  two  thongs)  upon  canine  intruders  at  the  very  foot  of 
the  altar,  are  given  in  a  little  work  of  1507,  entitled  "  Dat 
Boexken  van  der  Missen,"  recently  reproduced  for  the 
Alcuin  Club  and  edited  by  Percy  Dearmer  (1903).  Very 
probably  in  the  times  when  secular  business  was  commonly 
transacted  in  the  body  of  the  church  the  dogs  were  in  the 
habit  of  accompanying  their  masters  into  the  building ;  and 
perhaps  at  first  it  was  only  if  they  were  noisy,  or  if  they 
ventured  into  the  chancel,  that  forcible  ejection  was  resorted 
to.  May  not  the  use  of  the  hinged  doors  and  gratings,  said 
to  have  been  features  of  some  of  the  old  "  squints,"  have  been 
to  prevent  dogs  and  cats  from  leaping  through  these  apertures 
when  the  chancel  gates  were  closed  ? 

In  1561  there  is  an  entry  which  presents  a  very  pretty 
problem  for  arithmeticians !  It  distinctly  reads :  "  I  ask 
allowans  of  xij®  in  batyng  the  farthynge*  off  ij  pens  ferthynge 
cooyng',  which  is  the  suine  of  xviij  d."  ^  The  subs,  wardens' 
account  of  1550  contains  a  defective  item,  presumably  of  the 
same  nature:  "xvj  d.  for  the  change  of  a  ffortye.  .  .  ." 
And  that  of  1562  records  a  loss  of  three  shillings  on  four 
"pysterlyns"  {rpicvi'e,  diminutive  of  pistoles?)  "and  Spanish 
money  "  received  from  the  previous  wardens.  In  the  Pilton 
account  for  1508  I  note,  "  Item  for  a  lowans  of  badde  grotes 
cryppe  iij  s.  ij  d."  The  clipping  of  hammered  coin  was  a 
l)ersistent  offence.  Henry  VII,  in  an  endeavour  to  check  it, 
coined  new  groats  and  twopenny-bits  with  outer  circles,  and 
ordered  that  the  "hole  scripture"  (i.e.  whole  inscription) 
should  be  &bout  every  piece  of  gold;  but  the  clipping  as 
well  as  counterfeiting  went  on  well  into  the  seventeenth 
century. 

As  to  the  value  of  money  at  the  period  of  Edward  VI  and 
Elizabeth,  the  editor  of  "Somerset  Chantries"  lays  down  the 
rule  that  to  get  at  the  modern  equivalent  of  the  prices 
quoted  we  should  multiply  by  twenty:  this  would  be,  he 
adds,  rather  low  for  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  prelude  a  further  discussion  of  the 
contents  of  the  South  Tawton  accounts  with  an  outline  of 
the  history  of  the  church  and  benefice.     The  dedication  is 

^  12s.  =64  coins  val.  21d.  each  ;  64  farthings = Is.  4d.,  not  Is.  6d. 


504    THE  CHURCHWARDBNS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTOK. 

to  St.  Andrew,^  a  saint  whose  cult  was  probably  introduced 
into  England  by  the  monks  of  the  Benedictine  order  sent 
•over  from  the  monastery  of  St.  Andrew,  at  Rome,  by  Pope 
Gregory  (himself  a  monk  of  that  house),  c.  600  A.D.  St 
Augustine,  the  first  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  was  a  prior 
of  St.  Andrew's,  and  not  only  that  metropolitan,  but  all  the 
other  cathedrals  in  England,  besides  many  monasteries  and 
churches,  were  founded  by  Benedictines. 

The  style  of  the  edifice  is  in  the  main  "Perpendicular," 
though  several  stages  of  work  (apart  from  obviously  late 
additions)  may,  I  think,  be  detected  in  the  masonry — that 
of  the  small  turret  for  ascending  to  the  leads,  and  the  walling 
of  the  south  aisle  as  far  as  the  Burgoyne  Chapel  and  ex- 
clusive of  the  south  porch,  appearing  to  be  of  the  oldest 
Near  the  top  of  the  turret  is  a  stone-faced  sundial  inscribed 
with  the  motto  from  Juvenal — o(r)brepit  .  NON  .  intellecta 
.  SENECTUS  .  (Age  creeps  on  unperceived).  Perhaps,  though, 
the  earliest  material  relics  are  the  disused  font  and  a  taper- 
ing slab  (22  in.  high,  13^  wide  at  head,  12^  at  foot)  with 
a  cross  cut  upon  it  in  slight  relief,  discovered  during  the 
alterations  of  1903  and  set  by  Mr.  Clarke,  for  its  preservation, 
in  the  stopped-up  north  doorway.  I  take  it  to  be  a  stone 
coffin-lid  or  monumental  slab.  A  drawing  of  one  closely  re- 
sembling it,  but  measuring  3  ft  8  in.  by  2  ft  2  in.,  is  given 
on  p.  79  of  Alfred  Pope's  "  Old  Stone  Crosses  of  Dorset" 
Others,  short  in  proportion  to  their  width,  and  one  or  two 
nearly  square,  as  well  as  many  of  normal  height,  are  shown 
in  "  The  Eoyal  Forests  of  England,"  by  J.  C.  Cox,  "  Some 
Feudal  Coats  of  Arms,"  by  Joseph  Foster,  and  in  Bouteirs 
"Manual  of  British  Archaeology."  Their  dates  range  from 
the  Saxon  period — of  which  1  have  seen  examples  at  Peter- 

^  Mr.  William  Crossing,  in  his  "Crosses  of  Dartmoor"  (p.  125),  Las  re- 
marked on  the  coincidence  that  tlie  two  inscribed  posts  in  the  villaf^e  of 
Sticklei>ath  (near  to  the  boundaries  resj>ectively  of  Belstone  and  Sampford 
Courtenay)  bear,  among  other  figures,  crosses  of  St.  Andrew ;  and  that  the 
church  of  S.  T.,  not  a  mile  distant,  is  dedicated  to  that  saint.  I  may  observe 
further  that  the  church  of  Sampford  Courtenay  is  also  named  after  St.  Andrew. 
Now  in  *  *  D.  B. "  the  manor  of  S.  C.  — including,  I  suppose,  then  as  now,  Stickle- 
path — and  the  manors  of  Belstone  and  "Coic"  were  held  {inter  alia)  o{  Ba\dwm 
the  Sheriff,  lord  of  the  barony  of  Okehampton  (Whale,  **  Analysis  of  Domes- 
day," Nos.  367,  368,  456),  and  the  church  of  Cowick,  with  lands,  was  bestowed 
by  Baldwin's  son,  William,  on  the  great  Benedictine  monastery  of  Bee,  in 
ifoi-mandy,  and  thereupon  became  a  "cell"  to  that  foreign  house.  The 
priory  at  Cowick  was  also  dedicated  to  St.  Andrew,  but  whether  l)eforc  or 
only  after  the  affiliation  I  do  not  learn.  The  chapel  of  Stickleptth  was  for  a 
time  attached  to  it  (see  Tanner's  "Mouasticon,"  Nasmyth ;  Bridge's  "His- 
tory of  Okehampton,"  p.  115 ;  Oliver's  ^'Coll'n.,"  p.  10 ;  "Abbots  of  Tavistock," 
E.  247).  The  suggestion  was  once  offered  by  an  antiquary  that  S.  T.  Church 
ad  belonged  to  Cowick,  but  Preb.  Hingeston-Randolph  confuted  this  theory. 


THE  CHURCHWARDBNS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     505 

borough  Cathedral  and  at  Okehampton  Church — into  the 
fourteenth  century ;  but  Boutell  says  that  stone  coffins  "  for 
the  interment  and  also  for  the  memorial  of  persons  of  emi- 
nence and  wealth  "  came  into  general  use  about  the  close  of 
the  eleventh  century.  They  were  often,  he  explains,  buried 
so  close  to  the  surface  of  the  ground  in  the  church  or  yard 
that  the  lid  was  exposed.  Some  of  the  slabs,  he  remarks,  are 
of  very  small  divunsions,  and  may  possibly  be  memorials  of 
persons  who  have  died  at  an  early  age.  But  I  have  noticed 
that  some  of  the  short  ones  are  carved  with  insignia  of  rank 
or  occupation,  such  as  the  sword,  the  pilgrim's  staflf  and 
wallet,  the  forester's  axe,  the  wool-merchant's  shears — as  if 
commemorating  an  adult. 

The  font,  I  am  told,  has  been  pronounced  Anglo-Saxon. 
It  is  of  rude  surface  and  simple  form — a  square  block  of 
granite  with  the  angles  chamfered  off  and  with  a  large 
round  basin  cut  in  it,  the  rim  showing  mortice-slots  and 
peg-holes,  doubtless  for  the  attachment  of  the  cover, 
of  which  we  read  in  the  head  warden's  account  of  1538. 
The  irregular  stump  of  granite  on  which  it  now  stands  in 
the  vicarage  garden  (whither  it  was  removed  during  the  re- 
storation of  1881)  cannot,  I  think,  be  the  original  pedestal 
It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  proposed  reinstatement  of  this 
venerable  object  will  not  be  long  deferred. 

We  have  not  here,  as  in  so  many  Devonshire  villages, 
an  ancient  granite  cross  within  the  churchyard,  though 
possibly  one  may  have  stood  just  outside  the  lich-gate, 
where  an  oak  growing  in  a  square,  walled  bank  is  called 
by  the  inhabitants  "  the  Cross  Tree."  I  must  add  the  warn- 
ing that  the  name  "Cross"  hereabouts,  as  in  the  case  of 
"  Spitlars  Cross,"  often  simply  means  cross-roads,  and  that 
two  lanes  open  nearly  opposite  to  each  other  into  the  road 
not  far  from  the  tree. 

The  nearest  cross  now  remaining  (and  that  only  as  a  base 
and  stump  of  shaft)  is  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  south- 
ward— its  name,  "Moon's  Cross,"  perpetuating  that  of  the 
Mohun  family,  who  once  held  lands  in  the  parish. 

There  was  another  at  the  junction  of  the  road  from  Moon's 
Cross  with  that  to  Sticklepath,  known  as  "Townsend,"  or 
"  Zeal  Head,"  or  "  Head  Hill  Cross,"  but  this,  I  read,  was 
entirely  destroyed  some  seventy  years  ago  by  a  man  who 
was  shortly  afterwards  hanged  for  felony. 

In  his  work  on  the  "Stone  Crosses  of  Dartmoor"  Mr. 
William  Crossing  has  described  all  such  monuments  now 
extant  in  South  Tawton,  i.e.  Zeal  Cross,  Oxenham  Cross, 


506    THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH   TAWTON. 

Cross  on  Einghole  Copse,  Cross  at  Addiscott,  and  Croas  a 
West  Wick. 

I  may  not  here  enlarge  upon  the  various  purposes  an< 
uses  of  wayside  crosses — as  guide-posts,  as  manorial  or  othe: 
boundary  marks,  as  memorials  of  the  preaching  centres  o 
early  Christian  missionaries,  as  prayer-stations,  or  as  pointi 
of  sanctuary  privilege. 

"  The  ancient  manner  of  founding  [some]  parish  churches,' 
we  are  told,^  "  was  that  the  founder  applied  to  the  bishof 
of  the  diocese  and  obtained  his  licence,  then  the  bishop  or  his 
commissioner  set  up  a  cross,  and  set  forth  the  ground  where 
the  church  was  to  be  built,  and  the  founders  might  proceed ; 
and  when  the  church  was  finished  the  bishop  was  to  conse- 
crate it/'  2 

Of  the  date  or  nature  of  the  foundation  of  South  Tawton 
church  we  can  learn  nothing.^  Inferentially,  it  was  not  col- 
legiate but  donative,  or,  if  I  may  coin  the  expression,  Capel- 
lanal  in  origin.  I  follow  Mr.  Reichers  use  of  the  termfi 
"  collegiate  "  and  "  donative  "  (in  his  "  Eise  of  the  Parochial 
System,"  pp.  14,  15,  etc.),  meaning  by  the  first,  "  churches 
equipped  with  a  staff  of  clergy  holding  office  by  election  and 
performing  worship  solemnly  after  the  ancient  model,"  and 
by  the  second,  "lesser  churches  or  chapels"  [founded  bj 
private  persons], "  and  comprising  all  administered  by  a  singk 
'  clergyman,  whether  priest  or  deacon." 

In  modern  lexicons  the  definition  of  a  Donative  is  much 
the  same  as  that  of  a  Free  Chapel  or  Peculiar  (see  "  N".  E.  D." 
'  "  (2)  spec,  a  benefice  which  the  founder  or  patron  can  bestOMi 

,j  without  presentation  to  or  investment  by  the  Ordinary") 

I  Without  presentation,  institution,  or  induction,  says  Jacol 

I  ("  Law  Diet."),  and  exempt  from  the  bishop's  jurisdiction  oi 

»  visitation.     The  king,  he  further  states,  might  of  ancient 

'■»  time  found,  or  might  by  his  letters  patent  give  licence  to,  s 

f  common  person  to  found  such  a  church  or  chapel. 

But  though  South  Tawton  was  a  "  Terra  Eegis,"  its  bene< 
fice  was,  apparently,  never  a  Donative  in  this  latter  sense — 
certainly  not  since  the  time  of  Bishop  Bronescombe. 

The  fact  that  "Domesday  Book"  does  not  mention  any 

i"  church  in   either  of  the    Tauetonas   does  not   necessarily 

!' 

I  1  Crippa'  "Law  Rel.  to  the  Ch.  and  Clergy,"  p.  389. 

}  ^  **  .  .  .  When  Cliristianity  came  a  second  time  into  [England]  it  came 

iin  the  guise  of  monachism.     The  monk  and  the  missionary  were  one.  .  .  , 
Almost  every  large  cliiirch  was  attached  to  a  monastery,  and  in  the  first 
instance  the  monks  were  tlie  parish -priests  of  the  diocese  "   (Smith,  **  Diet. 
Chr.  Ant"). 
'  ^  Mr.  Mugford  lias  been  unable  to  find  any  record  at  Exeter  of  consecra* 

tion  or  dedication  at  South  Tawton. 


Anuiont  (Iranite  Cross  at 
Ringhole  Co[>se. 


Cross  by  roadside  new 
Oxenhain. 


KiMiiains  of  Moon's  Cross  at  fork 

of  roa<ls  abont  a  quarter-mile 

South  of  Cliureh. 


Ancient  Monumental  Slab  recently 
discovered,  and  now  set  in  dis- 
used North  Doorway. 


The  LiitRiHWAKi  en.-.'  At  counts  of  Jiouth  Tawtc  k.— 7'o /(Otr  p. 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     507 

imply  its  non-existence,  but  only  proves  that  there  was  no 
endowment  of  a  benefice  with  a  manor  or  freehold  estate. 
This,  indeed,  we  are  told,  was  a  rai*e  form  of  endowment  in 
Devon,  the  lord  in  some  cases  granting  the  priest  only  a 
copyhold  tenement  to  hold  at  his  will  (0.  J.  R,  "  Paroch. 
Syst.,"  p.  3). 

Mr.  Keichel's  list  ("Par.  Syst.,"  p.  17)  of  the  churches 
ascertained  to  have  existed  in  Devonshire  at  the  date  of 
"Domesday"  (1086)  includes  very  few  of  the  "donative"  class; 
but  I  suppose  there  must  have  iDeen  more  such,  the  records 
of  which  have  perished.  Edward's  Ecclesiastical  Law  in 
1064  (Law  9)  declared  that  there  were  then  three  or  four 
churches  in  many  places  where  formerly  there  was  but  one, 
and  this  increase  was,  as  Mr.  Keichel  explains,  promoted 
by  the  facility  with  which,  after  the  Norman  Conquest, 
manorial  chapels  or  domestic  oratories  were  converted  into 
burial  churches,  often  in  defiance  of  the  prior  claims  of 
mother  churches. 

Eight  of  burial,  let  it  be  remembered,  not  only  entailed 
fees  for  interment  and  for  obituary-masses  (for  which  soul- 
shot  was  paid  at  the  open  grave),  but  carried  with  it  certain 
other  advantages  that  gave  the  church  a  quasi-independent 
status.  Edgar's  Law,  a.d.  958,  says :  "  If  any  Thane  hath 
on  land  booked  to  him  a  church  with  a  burying-place,  let 
him  pay  the  third  part  of  his  tithes  unto  his  own  church. 
If  he  hath  a  church  with  no  burying-place,  let  him  give  his 
priest  wliat  he  will  out  of  the  nine  parts;  but  let  every 
church  due  go-to  the  ancient  minster."  ^ 

To  prevent  the  impoverishment  of  the  older  burial- 
churches  the  Twelfth  Canon  published  at  the  Legatine 
Council  of  Westminster,  A.D.  1138,  ordained:  "By  Apos- 
tolical authority  we  forbid  any  man  to  build  a  church 
or  oratory  on  his  own  estate  without  his  Bishops  license." 
"  The  Cathedraticum  or  See-due  still  paid  by  many  churches 
was,"  says  Mr.  Keichel,  "  a  composition  for  this  licence,  i.e. 
for  leave  to  bestow  the  tithes  on  a  local  church  and  to  treat 
it  as  a  burial  or  parochial  church." 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  how  the  inhabitants  of  South 
Tawton  can  have  disposed  of  their  dead  when  (or  if)  they 
were  without  local  burial  privilege.  There  is  a  tradition 
of  ancient  interments  having  been  discovered  at  Wickiug- 
ton  and  at   Crook   Burnell,  and   I  recall,  further,  having 

^  A  law  of  Cnut,  1017,  alludes  to  lesser  churches  that  have  a  burial-place 
where  little  service  is  done,  and  country  churches  where  there  is  no  burial- 
place  (see  O.  J.  R.,  *•  Rise  Par.  Syst.,"  p.  15. 


508    THB  CHUKCHWARDBNS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON, 

been  told  by  an  old  resident,  Mrs.  Mary  Dunning,  that 
an  ancient  **lich-way"  or  "lich-path"  ran  through  the 
hamlet  (of  East  Wyke  ?),  passing  "  right  through  a  great  old 
barn  there,"  and,  I  think  she  said,  "out  over  the  Moor." 

Lydford  Church  (as  Mr.  Brooking-Bowe  reminds  me)  was 
the  burial-place  for  all  the  inhabitants  of  that  parish,  which 
extended  over  the  whole  of  Dartmoor  (a  few  tenements 
only,  lying  at  a  great  distance,  obtaining  permission  to  bury 
at  Widecombe) ;  but  South  Tawton  being  outside  the  bounds 
of  the  parish  of  Lydford,  could  not,  on  the  score  of  its 
situation,  have  claimed  burial  there. 

Whether,  by  the  time  of  its  bestowal  by  Henry  I  on 
Constance  de  Bellomonte,  South  Tawton  was  the  "shrift- 
shire"  of  a  "mass-priest"  charged  with  "cure  of  souls" 
(see  0.  J.  R,  "Paroch.  Syst.,"  pp.  3,  5,  11),  or  whether  its 
people  depended  for  ordinary  religious  ministrations  (and, 
as  I  understand,  for  baptism  of  infants)  on  a  private 
chaplain  maintained,  subject  to  the  bishop's  sanction,  by 
the  lord  of  the  manor,  I  can  find  no  record.  In  the  latter 
case  they  must  have  had  to  travel  to  a  fully  privil^ed 
parish  for  Mass  on  High  Festival  days,  as  well  as  for  buriala 

King  John's  gift,  when  Earl  of  Mortain,  of  the  rents 
of  four  men  in  AUinges ton  ("Trans.  Devon.  Assoc,"  XXXIV, 
p.  594),  in  South  Tawton,  to  the  distant,  and  then  recently 
founded,  priory  of  Canonlegh,  might  lead  one  to  suspect 
either  that  a  church  did  not  then  exist  in  South  Tawton, 
or  that,  if  existing,  it  was  an  offslioot  from  that  collegiate 
institution.  But  gifts  to  monasteries  were  so  commonly  a 
matter  purely  of  personal  predilection  that,  I  think,  little 
or  no  importance  could  attach  to  such  a  conjecture. 

John's  grant  in  1199  to  Koger  de  Tony  ("Trans.  Devon. 
Assoc,"  XXXIV,  590),  though  containing  no  mention  of  a 
church  or  advowson,  defines  Aielrichescot  as  "in  paroch*  de 
Suthawthune,"  and  we  may  pretty  safely  accept  the  word 
"  parochia  "  ^  at  that  date,  and  in  that  context,  as  equivalent 

^  Although  the  parochial  system  was  more  or  less  developed  in  many — per- 
haps most — parts  of  England,  before  the  year  1000,  there  is  no  word  formed 
from  '*  parochia"  nor  any  directly  answering  to  it  in  Old  English,  the  nearest 
equivalents  being  *' preost-scir"  and  **scrift-scir,"  both  of  eleventh  or  late 
tenth  century,  the  latter  rendered  ** parochia"  in  the  thirteenth  century, 
Latin  version.  The  laws  of  Wni.  Conq.  have,  "  E  de  mere  iglise  de  parosse 
XX  souz,  6  de  chapele  x  souz,"  but  the  English  word  "parish"  has  not 
been  found  before  the  thirteenth  century  (**N.  E.  D."). 

**At  what  time  parochial  tithes  were  separated  from  the  mother  church 
and  affixed  to  the  parish  church  does  not  appear.  Selden,  Cap.  xir,  on  tithes, 
says  that  in  the  Saxon  times  we  find  ecclesiae  simply,  and  not  until  the  Nor- 
man dynasty  *ccclesiae  cum  decimis*"  (Smith,  "Diet.  Chr.  Ant."). 

The  Exceptions  of  Egbert,  Archbishop  of  York,  a.d.  750,  directs  the  priests 


THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     509 

to  "parish"  in  the  modern  signification.  South  Tawton 
was  unquestionably  a  fully  privileged  parish  in  the  thirteenth 
century. 

In  1309  Robert  de  Tony  died,  and  his  sister  and  heir 
Alice  brought  the  manor  of  South  Tawton  to  her  husband, 
Guy  de  Beauchamp,  Earl  of  Warwick.  The  Inq.  p.m. 
("  Trans.  Devon.  Assoc,"  XXXIII,  411)  names  Geoffrey  de 
Tony  as  having  paid  rents  to  Robert  for  lands  and  tenements 
in  Sele  and  South  Tawton.  It  has  been  suggested  that 
Geoffrey  was  his  son.  He  is  evidently  identical  with  the 
Geoffrey  Tony  who  occurs  in  the  Episcopal  Registers  (Stapel- 
don's  Register,  p.  261)  as  "Rector  of  Tawytone,  26  May, 
1310,"  and  as  the  patron  under  whom  Nicholas  Walwayn, 
clerk,  was  instituted  26  April,  1314.  Geoffrey  must  have 
died  before  1339,  for  in  that  year  we  find  in  Grandisson 
(ibid.,  p.  907),  under  "Procurations  of  the  Cardinals," 
"  Nicholas  [Walwayn]  Rector  Ecclesia  de  Southetautone  pro 
Vicaria  que  quondam  ibidem  fuit  jam  consolidata  cum 
Rectoria  sua,  taxa  xlvj  s.  viijd  "  (in  margin  "  xiijd.").  As  to 
this  consolidation  of  the  rectory  and  vicarage.  Dr.  Pearson 
remarks :  "  Until  the  time  of  Henry  VIII,  the  Bishop  and 
patron  together  had  almost  unlimited  power  in  such  matters, 
and  could  make  the  two  separate  appointments  or  consolidate 
them,  but  even  in  the  fifteenth  century  the  action  of  the 
common  law  made  the  proceedings  diflBcult  and  uncertain." 

On  20  March,  1349,  Thomcis  Beauchamp,  Earl  of  Warwick 
(who  had  presented  John  de  Chalveston,  clerk,  to  South 
Tawton  in  1344),  made  a  gift  of  the  advowson  and  rectory 
of  South  Tawton  to  the  College  of  St.  George,  Windsor. 
On  28  June,  1349,  Edward  III  gave  his  licence  to  them  to 
appropriate  the  rectory  to  their  own  uses,  and  on  1  August, 
in  the  same  year,  Bishop  Grandisson  (Episc.  Reg.,  Hinges- 
ton-Randolph)  at  Chudleigh  gave  his  licence  for  the  appro- 
priation. He  says  he  had  learnt  that  the  whole  annual 
income  derivable  from  the  rectory  did  not  exceed  £20  a 
year,  and  of  this  the  vicar  was  henceforth  to  have  £10 
a  year.  On  every  voidance  one  mark  (13s.  4d.)  was  to  be 
paid  to  the  dean  and  chapter  of  Exeter.  The  dean  and  chapter 
of  Exeter  gave  their  sanction  to  this  arrangement  2  August, 
1349.  From  that  day  to  this,  as  I  am  informed,  the  rectory 
with  advowson  has  belonged  to  the  chapter,  except  during 
the  Commonwealth,  when  this  and  other  properties  were  sold 

to  receive  tithes  and  write  down  the  names  of  those  who  pay  them  ;  they  are 
to  be  divided  into  three  parts— for  church  ornament,  for  the  poor,  for  the 
clergy  (Smith,  **Dict.  Chr.  Ant."). 


510   THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

away.  In  a  previous  paper  (**  Trans.  Dev.  Assoc,"  XXXV, 
516)  I  have  transcribed  in  full  from  a  Close  Roll  (At.  RO., 
part  12,  No.  13)  of  the  year  1651  the  grant  by  the  trustees 
nominated  in  an  Act  of  the  then  ** present  Parliament"  to 
Robert  Aldridge  of  Ailesbury,  Bucks,  of  "All  that  the  Manor 
of  the  Rectory  &  Parsonage  of  S.  T.  with  all  the  Appurts. 
etc.,  thereof ...  &  all  the  quit  rents  to  the  said  Manor  belong* 
ing."  The  rectorial  tithes,  I  am  told,  were  always  let  on 
lease  by  the  Chapter  of  Windsor  till  1863,  but  the  advowson, 
or  right  of  presentation,  was  not  generally  included  in  any 
such  leases.  In  fact,  the  only  known  instance  of  its  being 
so  included  was  when  the  rectory  and  advowson  of  South 
Tawton,  with  all  emoluments,  all  manner  of  tithes,  etc.,  were, 
in  6  Elizabeth  (1563  ?),  gi-anted  to  John  Wyke,  of  North 
Wyke,  armiger,  for  a  term  of  three-score  years.  That  at 
least  one  vicar  was  presented  by  him,  and  one  by  him  and  by 
William  Wyke,  gent.,  may  be  seen  in  the  Episcopal  Registers; 
and  he  and  his  sons  were  involved  in  several  lawsuits  touch- 
ing their  claims  to  tithes  in  kind.  In  1613  presentation  was 
resumed  by  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Windsor,  and  has  been 
in  their  name  ever  since. 

I  think  it  probable  that  the  Wyke  family  had  for  many 
generations  before  "  Warrior's"  time  enjoyed  the  "  Farm  of 
the  Rectory,"  i.e.  the  lease  of  the  glebe  and  tithes,  and  that 
many  a  tenth  stitch  of  corn  had  been  piled  in  the  ancient 
barn  at  North  Wyke.  It  is  a  typical  tithe-barn,  22  ft.  wide, 
66  ft.  long  (and  originally  38  ft.  longer,  as  Mr.  Stanbury  tells 
me  is  shown  by  foundations),  its  high-pitched  roof  (until 
recent  repairs)  supported  by  lofty  arched  couples  of  adze-hewn 
and  chamfered  oak,  the  posts  of  which  rest  on  masonry  about 
4  ft.  from  the  ground,  above  which  the  walls  are  of  cob  and 
about  2  ft.  thick. 

Such  a  lease  was  certainly  held  by  a  Richard  Wykes, 
presumably  the  one  who  appears  as  uncle  of  ("Warrior") 
John  in  Vivian's  pedigree.  And  if  not  possessed  of  the 
advowson  also,  he  must  have  had  sufi&cient  influence  to 
obtain  his  own  appointment  to  the  vicarage,  for  in  a  suit  very 
similar  to  that  which  I  have  previously  condensed  (*'  Trans." 
XXXIII,  437),  and  dated  1608.  one  of  the  "Interrogatories 
(Exch.  Depus.  Q.R.,  6  Jas.  I,  Hil,  No.  17)  to  be  ministered 
to  the  witnesses  of  the  part  &  behalf  of  the  D.  &  C.  of 
St.  George's,  Jane  Weekes,  widow,  John  Wekes,  Esq.  [her 
son]  and  George  Bearde,  clarke,  defts.  against  Henry  Bowker, 
Clarke,  complt."  runs :  "  Have  you  heard  that  one  Richarde 
Wykes,  Clarke,  did  holde  the  farme  of  the  benefice  of  S.  T.  of  the 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     511 

D.  &  C.  of  W.,  and  did,  after  his  tearme  therein  ended,  one  a 
tyme  when  he  had  saydd  Mattyns  in  the  church  of  S.  T., 
saye  openlye  in  the  sayde  p'she  church  that  he  woulde  not 
saye  Masse  before  he  did  knowe  how  he  shoulde  have  &  be 
payed  of  his  wages  ? " 

He  had  been  ordained  "  Sub  Diaconus,"  1498,  and  appears 
(I  am  told)  in  the  Book  of  Institutions,  as  Kichard  Wekys, 
Chaplain,  presented  to  S.  T.  November  18,  1508,  on  death  of 
John  Slier.    Witnesses  depose  that  he  resided  there  60  years. 

Some  peculiar  arrangements  would  seem  to  have  attended 
the  appointment  of  his  successor,  Sir  John  Servys,  who  was 
instituted  7  December,  1558,  "on  death  of  last  incumbent'* 
(presumably  Richard),  and  was  succeeded  on  his  own  death 
by  John  Brawler,  16  March,  1576-7. 

The  exceedingly  unsettled  and  troublous  state  of  affairs  at 
the  period  of  Servys'  institution,  between  the  death  of  Mary 
and  the  coronation  of  Elizabeth  might  conceivably  have 
occasioned  a  reluctance  on  the  Impropriator's  part  to  bear 
the  responsibilities  of  patronage,  or  a  desire  on  the  part  of 
the  parish  to  exercise  local  choice  in  the  matter  of  the  in- 
cumbency. Be  that  as  it  may,  though  presented  in  the  name 
of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Windsor,  the  new  vicar  appears 
to  have  been  extraordinarily  dependent  upon  the  parish. 
(A  perhaps  parallel  case  appears  in  the  Churchwardens' 
Accounts  of  St.  Matthew,  Friday  St.,  London  ["  Journ.  Brit. 
Arch.  Assoc,"  XXV,  359] : "  1547-8,  P^  to  Sir  Henry  Coldwell, 
pryst,  for  a  quarter  wag's  due  o'r  Lady  within  the  tyme  of 
this  accompt,  xxxiij  s.  iiij  d.") 

It  has  been  suggested  to  me  that  a  lease  of  the  benefice 
had  probably  been  taken  by  the  wardens  of  St.  Andrew's 
Store,  and  that  in  accordance  with  custom,  the  clerical 
stipend  was  disbursed  by  the  lessees ;  but  that  they  assumed 
other  responsibilities,  and  bore  divers  expenses  that  were 
usually  defrayed  by  the  clergyman  himself,  is,  I  think,  shown 
by  the  following  items  in  the  South  Tawton  accounts : — 

"  1559,  Pd  unto  Bartelmew  Gidelegh  for  the  Avoysome 
for  the  vicary,  xix  s.  iij  d." 

**  pd.  for  the  Institution  &  Inductyon  unto  ye  Bishoppe 
and  for  the  chargesse  of  Mayster  battyshil  &  the  Vicar, 

XXX  8." 

"  1559,  pd  of  free  will  of  the  parysshe  for  the  Vicar  at  the 
Visitation,  x  s." 

"  1560,  pd.  unto  ye  Vicar  to  helpe  paye  his  subsidy e  and 
tenth  unto  the  queyns  maiestie,  xx  a" 

1561,  same,  but  sum  "xiij  s.  iiij  d." 


512    THB  CHURCHWARDKNS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTOK. 

Warrior  Wyke's  son  Soger,  when  patron  of  the  rectory 
in  1589,  took  a  more  high-handed  course,  for  he  "made  staie 
of  some  part  of  the  wages  of  the  Curate  of  the  parish  "  (to 
whom  he  gave  £10  a  year)  "  because  he,  being  a  stipendia^ 
preest  chargeable  to  pay  subsidue  to  H.M.,  did  not  pay  the 
some." 

"  1560,  pd.  unto  barthelmew  gidlegh  for  to  ryde  to  Wyn- 
sore,  V  s." 

In  1561  (Subs.)  one  of  the  ale-wardens  is  stated  to  have 
''delivered  unto  Bartolamu  gedleght  xxxi  s.  vj  d.  wch  was 
Eeceved  before  mychelmas  for  xliij  s.  vj  d.  of  the  old 
wardyns." 

In  the  court  rolls  of  the  borough  of  Sele  of  the  only  year 
extant,  1572,  I  note:  "Barthus  Gidlegh,  in  mia  quia  sect' 
debet."  The  above  payments  to  Bart.  Gidleigh  were  pre- 
sumably made  to  him  in  some  official  or  intermediary 
capacity.  He  was  not  a  churchwarden.  I  wonder  whether 
he  can  have  succeeded  Henry  Gidleigh  as  constable  ?  The 
name  of  the  latter  occurs  in  the  subsidiary  accounts  of  1550- 
1-2.  That  of  Wat  Gedlegh  in  1562.  The  surname  was 
of  course  derived  from  the  neighbouring  parish,  where  it 
long  continued  prominent. 

The  word  "  Avoysome  "  in  the  first  item  might  be  rendered 
either  "  Advowson  "  (which  I  see  is  spelt  "  Avoweisoun  "  in 
a  quotation  of  1300  in  the  "N.  E.  D.")  or  "Avoidance"  (ie. 
vacancy  of  the  vicarage).  It  has  been  pointed  out  to  me 
that  whereas  the  advowson  of  South  Tawton  would  never 
have  been  sold  so  cheap  as  198.  3d.  (for  a  next  presentation 
generally  fetched  three  years'  purchase),  this  sum  might 
represent  the  stipulated  payment  of  13s.  4d.  to  Exeter  at 
every  avoidance  of  the  vicarage,  plus  some  smaller  fee. 

It  may  be  recalled  that  '*  Warrior  "  Wyke,  when  in  posses- 
sion of  the  rectory,  declared  that  "  one  yerely  pencon  of  xij 
bushels  of  rye  and  xx  bushels  of  wheat  ought  to  be  paid  to 
the  fermor  of  the  parsonage  of  S.  T.  by  the  fermor  of  the 
parsonage  of  Chagford" — at  that  date  Eobert  Fisher,  gent. 
("Trans."  XXXIII,  citing  Chan.  Pro.  EUz.  W.W.  ff). 

In  connexion  with  this  statement,  I  may  note  that  in  the 
"  Valor  Ecclesiasticus,"  26  Hen.  VIII,  it  is  recorded  that  an 
annual  pension  of  128.  per  ann.  was  due  from  Chagford 
rectory  to  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  the  College  of  Windsor. 

The  following  extracts  set  forth  the  value  of  the  living 
of  South  Tawton  at  divers  times : — 

1288-91,  Taxation  of  Pope  Nicholas  (Epis.  Eeg.,  Brones- 
combe,   p.   65)   [in   margin   words   "habet  plura"   against 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     513 

entry] :  Ecclesia  de  So :  Tautone :  Vicaria  eiusdem.  Taxacio 
xiij  li.  xlvj  8.  viij  d.  Decima  xxvj  a.  viij  d. 

1399,  the  Procurations  of  the  Cardinals  [Vicarage  consoli- 
dated with  Rectory,  v^ide  ante] :  Taxa  xlvj  s.  viij  d.  [in  right 
margin  viij  d.]. 

1536,  Valuations  of  Religious  Foundations,  Dioc.  Exon. 
(Brit.  Mus.  Add.  MS.  32,342,  f.  8). 

Decanat'  Dunsford,  Vicaria  de  Sowth  Tawton,  Ric*us 
Wycks  est  Vicariu,  x  li. 

(1536  ?)  Valor  Ecclesiasticus,  Tem.  Hen.  VIII,  Vol.  II,  p. 
322. 

Vicaria  de  S.  T.  unde  Ric'us  Wek  est  vicarius  p'petuus, 
var  co'ibj  a^,  videlit : — 

In  quad'm  annual'  penc*  rec'  p.  an.  de  decano  &  capit' 
Collegio  de  Wynsore,  x  li.  Et  in  reddii  assie  de  le  Glebe- 
lond,  p.  an.  xiij.  s.  j  d.  Summa  x  li.  xiij  s.  j  d.  inde  resolut' 
d'no  epo  Exon'  &  success'  suis,  p.  p'cur'  co'ib}  a'is,  ij  s.  viij  d. 

Et  solut'  archi'o  Exon.  &  succes'  suis,  p.  p'cur'  co'ib}  a'is 
viij*-  Et  solut  d'co  archi'o  Exon  &  succ'  suis,  p.  sino~  &  cath<» 
p.  aunu'  ij  s.  v  d.     Summa  xiij  s.  j  d.    Et  rem'  clar'  x  IL     In 

p.  X™*  XX  s. 

[Translation  of  above — 0.  J.  R.] 

The  Vicarage  of  S.  T.  of  which  Richard  Weke  is  perpetual 
vicar  (i.e.  not  removable  at  will,  but  in  for  life)  is,  in 
general,  worth  annually  from  a  certain  rent-charge  received 
from  (i.e.  payable  by)  the  dean  and  chapter  of  the  college  at 
Windsor,  £10 ;  and  from  the  assessed  rent  of  the  glebe-land 
yearly,  13s.  Id,  making  a  total  of  £10  13s.  Id.  Out  of  which 
has  to  be  paid  to  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Exeter  and  his  succes- 
sors by  way  of  procuration,  in  general,  every  year,  28.  8d. 
And  to  the  Archdeacon  of  Exeter  and  his  successors  by  way 
of  procuration,  in  general,  every  year,  8s.^  Also  payment  to 
the  said  Archdeacon  of  Exeter  and  his  successors  by  way  of 
synod-due  (sinodaticum)  and  see-due  (cathedraticum)  yearly, 
2s.  5d.  (the  amount  was  limited  to  2s.).  Total  13s.  Id. 
There  remains  a  clear  sum  of  £10,  on  which  the  tenth  is  20s. 

1563,  Grant  ("Trans.  Dev.  Asso.,"  XXXIII,  437)  to  John 
Wyke  of  North  Wyke  of  the  rectory  and  parsonage  of  South 
Tawton  with  all  the  patronage,  presentation  of  the  vicarage, 
all  manner  of  tithes,  fruits,  emoluments,  etc.,  for  a  term  of 
three-score  years,  paying  therefor  yearly  £18  13s.  4d. 

Roger  W.  afterwards  paid  his  father  £24  yeariy  "  for  the 
rectory   alone,   or  for   the   rectory  &   glebe-land,"  witness 

*  28,  8d.  X  3  =  88.  every  third  year.— W.  E,  M. 

VOL.  xxxvm.  2  K 


514    THE  CHURCHWARDENS'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON. 

"  thinks  it  was  for  both,"  out  of  which  John  offered  to  paj 
£4  yearly  to  Walter  Ware,  when  he  was  vicar  there,  in 
addition  to  the  £10  a  year  which  he  received  from  Boger. 

Koger,  it  is  testified,  "had  the  glebe  lands   except  iij 
acres." 

1622,  List  of  Benefices  in  England  and  Wales.  (Add.  Ma 
36,776.) 

South  Tawton  Vic.  Decanus  Windsor,  Ric.  Curson  P  Jaa 
X  li.     li*  irapropriat*. 

1650,  Grant  ("Trans.  Dev.  Asso.,"  XXXV,  515)  of  the 
manor  of  the  rectory  and  parsonage  of  South  Tawton  with 
all  the  appurts.,  etc.,  to  Eobert  Aldridge  of  Ailesbury,  Bucks, 
for  £37-1.  The  lands,  etc.,  late  parcel  of  the  possessions  of 
the  D.  C.  of  W.,  are  enumerated  in  two  groups,  the  first  of 
which  is  said  to  be  of  the  yearly  value  of  £14.  148.,  the 
second  of  the  yearly  value  of  £4. 

1782,  "  Thesaurus  Ecclesiasticus  Provincialis,  or  a  Survey 
of  the  Diocese  of  Exeter,"  ed.  by  B.  Thorn. 

South  Tawton,  V.  (St.  Andrew's). 

First  Fruits  x  li.  0  s.  ij  d.  Reprisals  of  Bishop's  Procura- 
tions viij  8.  [marginal  note^ — "None  ever  paid,  vide  M'  Ecton's 
book  "].  Synodals  ij  s.  v  d.  Archdeacon's  Procurations  viij  s. 
Eeputed  value  £70.  Patron  Dean  and  Canons  of  Windsor. 
Vicar,  Mr.  Thomas  White. 

Explanation  of  terms  (ibid.,  p.  11). 

Synodals-Cathedratic :  an  annual  pension  paid  by  the 
parochial  clergy  to  the  bishop  in  honour  of  the  Cathedral 
Church,  and  in  token  of  submission  to  it  as  the  Bishop's 
Fee ;  these  payments  are  now  sometimes  called  also  synodals, 
because  generally  paid  at  the  Bishop's  Synod  at  Easter. 

Procurations:  certain  sums  paid  to  the  bishop  and  arch- 
deacon at  their  respective  Visitations,  a  kind  of  composition 
in  lieu  of  those  entertainments  the  clergy  were  obliged  to 
find  for  their  Ordinaries  when  their  Visitations  were  not 
general  but  parochial. 

Reprisals  :  certain  payments  to  which  the  parochial  clergy 
in  general  are  subject,  besides  First  Fruits  and  Tenths. 

First  Fruits :  the  first  year's  entire  income  of  a  living,  and 
Tenths,  the  annual  tenth  part  of  the  same,  were  originally 
paid  to  the  pope,  but  after  the  Act  of  1534  to  the  kings, 
until  1708,  since  when  they  have  been  paid  to  the  Governors 
of  "  Queen  Anne's  Bounty "  Office,  for  the  benefit  of  poor 
clergy.  These  "Tenths"  are  not  to  be  confounded  with 
"Tithes,"  wliich  were  originally  claimed  from  parishioners 
for  spiritual  uses. 


THE  CHURCHWARDENS'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     515 

A  statute  of  1st  Elizabeth  (cap.  54)  enacting  that  the 
Dean  and  Chapter  of  Windsor  and  all  the  possessions  there- 
of shall  be  discharged  of  First  Fruits  and  Tenths,  applied,  I 
am  told,  only  to  their  personal  possessions,  and  did  not  con- 
fer immunity  on  the  vicars  of  South  Tawton. 

1786,  Bacon,  Liber  Regis,  vel  Thes.  Kerum  Eccl'm. 

South  Tawton,  Kings'  books,  £10.  V.  (S*  Andrew)  cum 
Zele  Cap'  (S*  Mary).  Yearly  Tenths  £1.  Episc'  Prox. 
2s.  8d.,  Archid'  Prox.  8s.,  Cath.  2s.  5d.,  Annual  pens*  rec'  de 
D.  &  C.  Col.  W.  £10,  &  terr  gleb  ad  valor'  13s.  Id. 

1844,  Introduction  to  the  Apportionment  of  the  Eent- 
Charge  in  lieu  of  tithes  in  the  parish  of  S.  T.  .  .  . 

We  find  that  the  Glebe  lands  in  the  possession  of  the 
Vicar  containing  by  estim"  3  acres,  and  the  Glebe-lands  (of 
which  the  particulars  are  stated  in  the  schedule  hereunto 
annexed)  in  the  poss"  of  the  D.  &  C.  of  Windsor  or  their 
lessees  containing  by  estim"  31  ac.  3  r.  21  p.,  are  hy  prescrip- 
timi,  or  other  lawful  means,  absolutely  exempt  from  the 
payment  of  all  manner  of  tithes  in  kind.  .  .  .  The  esti- 
mated quantity  in  statute  measure  of  all  the  lands  of  the 
parish  exclusive  of  glebe-lands  amounts  to  6097  acres  3  r. 
15  p.,  and  all  the  lands  of  the  sd.  parish,  except  the  Glebe- 
lands,  are  subject  to  all  manner  of  tithes  in  kind;  and 
whereas  the  D.  &  C.  of  W.  are  entitled  to  the  tithes  arising 
from  all  the  lands  except  the  glebe-lands,  .  .  .  and  that 
Dame  Maria  Palmer  Hoare,  Widow,  and  Thomas  Palmer 
Acland,  Esq.,  hold  a  lease  of  the  sd.  tithes  under  the  D.  &  C, 
the  annual  sum  of  £709  ...  [in  Commutation]  .  .  .  etc., 
shall  be  paid  to  the  lessees  during  the  continuance  of  the 
sd.  lease  .  .  .  and  after  ...  to  the  D.  &  C.  of  Windsor. 

Particulars  of  the  glebe  lands  in  possession  of  the  Dean 
and  Chapter  of  Windsor : — 

Three  fields  near  Dartmoor,  called  higher 
Sanctuary,  including  Culover  or  Culafords 

One  field  called  Long  Sanctuary 

Three  fields  called  Sanctuary  Coombes 

One  field  called  Sanctuary  Meadow 

Garden  of  Seven  Stars  Inn     . 

Two  fields  called  Water  Cleaves 

One  Garden 

One  Garden 

Blacksmith's  shop  garden 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jope  (old  residents),  having  been  requested 
to  ascertain  for  me  where  these  were  situated,  reply  as 
follows : — 

2k2 


Ac 

R. 

p. 

14 

0 

0 

3 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

1 

2 

0 

0 

0 

30 

4 

0 

0 

0 

0 

7 

0 

0 

12 

0 

0 

12 

516   THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

Higher  Centory  (the  local  pronunciation  of  Sanctuary.- 
E.  L.-W.)  including  Centory  Copmbes  are  joining  Dartmoo 
There  are  three  fields  joining  the  vicarage  of  South  Tawto 
called  Centory  Combs,  also  one  meadow  which  is  calle 
Centre  Meadow,  two  fields  called  Water  Cleaves  joiniu 
Centre  Comb  Meadow.  The  blacksmith's  shop  is  the  on 
near  the  church.  CuUaford  is  three  miles  from  Sout 
Tawton  villt^e,  joining  the  parish  of  Spreyton.  We  canno 
find  out  anything  about  a  garden  or  piece  of  glebe  that  [a 
I  had  told  them  I  had  heard. — R  L.-W.]  .  .  .  used  to  b 
called  "Fiddlers'  Green." 

The  dispersed  situation  of  the  glebe-lands  calls  to  min< 
the  A.-S.  system  of  husbandry  by  which,  as  I  understand,  eacl 
villein  (or,  as  we  should  say,  farmer)  holding  a  homestead  o: 
a  certain  size  and  contributing  a  certain  number  of  oxen  U 
the  co-operative  tillage,  had  allotted  to  him  for  his  own  cultiva 
tion  a  certain  proportionate  measure  of  arable  land  in  ead 
of  three  open  fields,  the  spring,  the  autumn,  and  the  fallow. 
I  should  doubt  whether  the  irregularities  of  the  ground  ii 
this  part  of  the  country — the  steep  granite-strewn  hills,  th< 
copses, and  the  "mashes" — would  have  permitted  of  the  typica 
division  of  such  fields  into  regular  acre  and  half -acre  "  strips,' 
but  at  any  rate  the  original  priest's  share  would  appear  U 
have  amounted  to  the  typical  "  virgate  "  of  "  about  30  acres,' 
which  was  the  quantum  of  the  man  who  contributed  twc 
oxen  to  the  year's  ploughing. 

In  541  A.D.  it  was  enacted  by  4  Cone.  Aurel.  that  churches 
I  founded  by  private  persons  should  be  sufiBciently  endowed 

,^  St.  Gregory  (Epist.  12)  permitted  an  oratory  to  be  foundec 

■i  and  consecrated  within  a  certain  castle,  provided  the  propei 

:;  endowment  were  given^  and  he  specifies  this  as  "  a  farm  wit! 

';  its  homestead,  a  yoke  of  oxen,  two  cows,  four  pounds  of  silver 

':  a  bed,  15  head  of  sheep,  and  the  proper  implements  of  « 

ij  farm"  (Smith,  "Diet.  Chr.  Ant."). 

May  we  not  suppose  that  such  was  the  endowment  of  the 
early  presbyters  at  South  Tawton  ? 

From  the  article  on  Visitations  in  Phillimore*s  "Ecclesi- 
astical Law,"  and  from  other  sources,  and  particularly  from 
a  letter  of  the  Eev.  Dr.  Pearson's  on  the  subject,  I  learn  that 
the  ancient  custom  of  bishops  and  archdeacons  visiting  in 
person  the  parishes  within  their  diocese  and  archdeaconry, 
had  by  the  time  of  Lyndwood  (1422)  been  superseded  by  a 
system  of  Visitations  of  several  deaneries  at  a  time,  by  the 
archdeacon  every  year,  and  the  bishop  every  third  year,  at 
some  market-town  or  other  convenient  centre,  to  which  the 


THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     517 

clergy,  churchwardens,  and  sidesmen  of  all  the  parishes  in 
such  deaneries  were  summoned  to  appear.  The  citation  was 
served  (probably  in  person)  by  an  officer  styled  the 
**  Apparitor,"  who  was  also  sent  from  time  to  time  to  examine 
into  the  condition  of  the  fabric  (Som.  Eec.  Soc.,  IV.,  91) — 
whether  as  deputy  of  the  archdeacon  or  of  the  rural  dean 
(whose  office  was  disciplinary,  and  who  was  required  to 
report  oflences  to  the  Ordinary),  or  of  both,  I  am  not  clear. 
The  Apparitor  had,  further,  to  verify  any  complaint  of  irregu- 
larities in  the  divers  parish  churches.  These  inquisitorial 
visitations  became  more  and  more  frequent,  until  in  the 
seventeenth  century  they  amounted  to  an  intolerable 
nuisance,  and  made  the  Apparitor  the  most  unpopular  of 
characters !  The  item  in  1585,  "  P'd  to  the  Pater  for  warn- 
ings iiij  d.,"  no  doubt  refers  to  this  officer. 

At  the  same  time  that  the  visitations  ceased  to  be  parochial, 
the  local  entertainment  in  meat  and  drink  of  the  bishop 
and  his  retinue  was  commuted  for  fixed  sums  called 
"  Procurations,"  varying  in  different  places  from  5s.  to  10s. 
per  church.  j?he  parishioners  had,  moreover,  to  disburse  for 
the  diet  of  their  own  clergy  and  wardens  at  the  centre.  Dr. 
Pearson  mentions  that  in  his  own  parish  of  Whitstone  the 
expense  of  the  rector's  dinner  on  such  occasions  was  included 
in  the  church-rate  down  to  1846,  when  the  then  incumbent 
declined  to  accept  the  7s.  6d.  or  10s.  that  was  regularly 
allowed.  The  official  charge  for  diet  at  the  centres  in  the 
seventeenth  century  appears  from  the  registers  to  have 
been  2s.  6d.,  and  Mr.  Mugford  remarks  that  that  is  the 
customary  price  of  a  Visitation  dinner  nowadays.  I 
fancy  that  in  the  case  of  South  Tawton  the  half-crown 
must  have  sufficed  for  the  vicar  and  the  "  Four  Men "  as 
well! 

For  *'  6d.  for  the  Vicars  dinner  "  is  a  very  common  entry, 
and  in  one  instance  at  least  this  is  definitely  stated  to  have 
been  "  at  the  Visitation."  The  cleric  who  preached  at  the 
centre  on  the  occasion  of  a  Visitation  was,  I  am  informed 
by  Mr.  Mugford,  exempt  from  charge  for  **  Dieta  "  until  the 
period  beginning  at  1622. 

The  earliest  volume  of  the  Registers  of  Visitations  at 
Exeter  opens  'with  the  year  1622.  They  concern  only  the 
Episcopal  Visitations  (not  the  Archidiaconal),  and  unfor- 
tunately here  and  there  accounts  appear  to  be  missing,  as 
there  is  not  one  for  every  third  year.  South  Tawton,  which 
is  now  in   the   rural  deanery  of   Okehampton  and  arch- 


518  THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

deaconry  of  Totnes,  was  then  in  the  rural  deanery  of  Dun 
ford  (since  abolished)  and  archdeaconry  of  Exeter. 
A  typical  entry  is  the  following: — 

1622,  Mar.  26,  Tuesday.  Vis"  of  Deanery  of  [inter  ali^ 
Dunsford,  at  S*  Mary  Major's  Church,  Exeter. 

viij*  rec.  [for  Procuration]  M'  Eichus  Curston,  artium  m 

Vic Weekes,  fir.  [Le.  farmer  of  the  rectory]  Dieta  ij  s,  vj  c 

Registrario  ij  s.  Ap're  Gen*^  [Apparitor-General]  xij  d 
Viij  d.  Eec. 

These  were,  as  I  understand,  the  fees  from  the  clergyman 
Mr.  Mugford  tells  ine  that  the  ancient  fees  ''^  in  this  diocese 
from  the  wardens  were :  To  the  Bishop's  Apparitor,  4d. ;  U 
the  Chancellor,  8d. ;  to  the  Registrar,  3s.  4d. — in  all  48.  4d 
He  further  informs  me  that  the  exhibits  at  a  "  First  Visita 
tion"  were  costlier  than  at  subsequent  ones:  and  by  thi 
term  is  to  be  understood  either  (a)  the  first  visitation  of  i 
bishop  after  his  election  (Primary  Visitation),  or  (6)  th( 
clergyman's  first  visitation  after  entry  into  a  benefice ;  thi 
fees  in  such  cases  being:  Is.  each  for  letters  of  orders,  in 
stitution,  and  induction  (4s.),  and  registration  fee,  Ss.  6d 
making  7s.  6d.  in  all;  or,  if  the  benefice  were  worth  mor 
tlian  £30  in  the  king's  book,  then  88.  6d.  at  first  VisitatioE 
and  at  succeeding  Visitations  only  5s.  6d.*  or  6s.  6d.  re 
spectively.  In  the  case  of  perpetual  curates,  who  wer 
appointed  by  licence  without  induction,  the  fees  would  b 
6s.  6d.  for  first  Visitation,  and  5s.^  afterwards.* 
.1  As  to  the  places  in  which  the  bishops'  and  archdeacons 

f  Visitations   were  respectively  held,  I   have  not  been  abl 

'i  within  the  time  at  my  disposal  to  satisfy  myself. 

i|.  I  should  have  supposed,  from  my  gleanings  on  this  subject 

i!''  that  for  the  former,  at  least,  it  would  have  been  in  a  Cathedra 

Consistory  or  Court  House. 


(iJ  Jacob's  "  Law  Dictionary,"  for  instance,  states :  "A  Bisho 

hath  his  Consistory  Courts  to  hear  Ecclesiastical  causes  an 
to  visit  the  clergy*'  .  .  .  "in  his  Cathedral  Church  or  othe 
convenient  place,"  and  in  the  Somerset  accounts,^  under  ai 
item  of  1452,  Bishop  Hobhouse  makes  the  remark,  "  Under 

^  In  addition  to  this  Is.,  wliich  was  paid  by  the  registrar,  I  believe  eac 
parish  also  i>aid  the  A.-G.  28.  This  extra  Is.  appears  to  have  been  fc 
licence  as  preacher. 

'  i  e.  6d.  each  only  for  the  four  papers  plus  the  3s.  6d.  fee. 

'  i.e.  6d.  each  for  the  three  papers  plus  the  Ss.  6d. 

*  But  by  a  curious  mistake  4s.  6d.  only  was  in  modem  tiroes  charged  fc 
several  yeai-s  at  Visitations  other  than  the  "First." — W.KM. 

'  Som.  Rec,  IV,  p.  94.  See  also  p.  140.  I  am  not  sure  whether  th; 
parish  did  not  come  under  the  Cons.  Court  of  Wells  as  a  **  Peculiar." 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     519 

stand  some  suit  in  the  Consistorial  Court  of  the  Chapter  of 
Wells,  touching  the  fabric  or  ornaments  of  the  church." 

The  registers,  however,  show  that  the  Bishop  of  Exeter's 
Visitations  in  the  seventeenth  century,  at  least,  were  held 
in  the  church  of  St.  Mary  Major.  On  this  subject 
Mr.  Mugford  writes :  "  I  presume  the  Visitation  Court  is  a 
perambulatory  Consistory  Court.  The  Bishop  acts  at  the 
Visitation  Courts  through  his  Chancellor,  who  is  the  Judge 
of  the  Consistory  Court,  and  the  Mandates  for  election  of 
Eural  Deans,  and  the  Inhibitions  of  the  Archdeacon  for  a 
certain  time  (anciently  two  months  from  visiting)  are  all 
passed  under  the  seal  of  the  Consistory  Court  and  signed  by 
its  Registrar,  not  the  Reg'  of  the  Diocese." 

The  Episcopal  Consistorial  Court,  Mr.  Mugford  further 
informs  me,  had  jurisdiction  re  wills,  etc.,  in  contested  cases 
over  the  bishop's  own  "Peculiar"  parishes  (fourteen  in  Devon, 
twenty- three  in  Cornwall),  and  these  parishes  are,  prior  to 
1660,  roughly  taken  note  of  in  the  registers  of  the  Ordinary 
Visitations. 

Again,  whether  the  rural  dean  visited  the  parishes  in 
person,  as  originally  intended  (or  whether,  in  his  case  also, 
the  mountain  came  to  Mahomet  l\  I  cannot  ascertain.  Several 
items  in  the  South  Tawton  accounts  relate  to  journeys  to 
Dunsford,  but  some  at  least  of  these  seem  to  have  been  on 
business  connected  with  musters.  There  is  one  puzzling 
reference  to  a  ''court  at  Chagford."  South  Tawton  had  no 
manorial  relations  with  that  place  that  I  know  of. 

By  ecclesiastical  law  (Jacob,  "  Law  Diet.,"  inter  alia),  an 
"Inhibition"  restrained  the  bishop  from  acting  during  the 
archbishop  s  Visitation,  and  the  archdeacon  during  the  bishop's. 
This  did  not,  however,  prevent  each  from  visiting  at  different 
times  in  the  same  year,  as  is  proved  by  the  following  entries 
in  the  South  Tawton  accounts  of  1561 : — 

For  the  makyng  of  our  bil  &  lyeng  yn  of  ye  same  at  the 
bisshope's  visitation,  xviij  d. 

unto  iiij  men,  to  ride  unto  ye  same  visitation,  iiij  s. 

for  the  Bishop's  iniunctions,  ix  d. 

to  iiij  men  to  ride  at  Exceter  to  the  Archdeacon's  visita- 
tion after  Easter  . . . 

for  makyng  of  a  bill  &  layeng  in  the  same,  vj  d.  ob. 

unto  iiij  men  to  Ride  unto  the  bisshoppe  of  Canterbery's 
visitation   .   .    . 

for  makyng  of  our  bil  &  for  layng  in  of  the  same,  viij  d. 

for  the  Iniunctyons  xij  d. 

In   the    Morebath   accounts   for   the   same  year,    1561 


520     THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON* 

("D.  N.  Q./*  Vol.  Ill,  p.  210)  we  have:  "  It.  to  my  Lord  of 
Cownterbery's  visitaeon,  iij  s.  iiij  d.,"  and  in  the  same  accounts 
there  is  a  *'memo"  (ibid.,  p.  247)  that  (in  1571)  "  ther  was 
iij  visitacons  y t  yere ;  that  was  the  Officiallis  visitaeon  after 
ester,  ye  byschoppis  visitaeon  then  at  medsumer  then  foUyng, 
&  my  lord  of  Conterberye  at  michelmas  the  same  yere." 

In  the  South  Tawton  accounts  of  the  pre-Reformation 
period,  we  find  every  third  year  an  entry  of  3s.  4d.  for  the 
expenses  of  two  Visitations,  i.e.  of  the  bishop  and  the  arch- 
deacon, and  in  intervening  years  only  20d.  in  expenses  of 
that  of  the  archdeacon.  In  1531,  for  the  first  time,  the 
expenses  of  the  "four  men"  are  added.  Later  the  charges 
are  more  varied  and  seem  to  amount  to  more. 

Queen  Elizabeth's  Visitation,  in  1559,  is  duly  com- 
memorated in  South  Tawton  accounts,  the  cost  and  charges 
on  this  occasion  for  "Eyding  at  Exeter**  being  over  128. 
No  doubt  such  an  event  called  for  a  little  extra  display. 
Bishop  Hobhouse  (Som.  Rec,  IV,  174,  Yatton  Accounts)  has 
commented  on  the  parade  with  which  the  ordinary  Visitations 
were  honoured,  "the  officers  marching  into  Ilchester  with 
banners  before  them,**  etc. 

A  noteworthy  tax  was  that  of  "Peter's  Pence,"  leviable 
(at  the  rate  of  Id.  from  every  householder  having  30d. 
annual  rent  in  land)  on  1  August,  the  Feast  of  St.  Peter 
ad  Vincula,  whence  its  name.  Originating  in  A.-S.  times 
as  a  voluntary  offering,  in  part  to  the  pope  and  in  part 
towards  the  support  of  an  English  college  in  Rome,  it  was, 
like  other  tributes  to  Rome,  abolished  by  the  Act  of  25  Henry 
VIII,  1533,  and  though  temporarily  renewed  in  the  reign 
of  Mary,  was  finally  abolished  by  1  Elizabeth. 

The  appearance  therefore  of  "Peter's  Pence*'  in  the 
Churchwardens*  Accounts  of  South  Tawton  and  several 
other  Devonshire  parishes,  during  Protestant  reigns,  demands 
some  explanation,  and  this  is  afforded  in  a  valuable  paper 
on  the  subject  by  the  Rev.  Edward  Freeman  ("Exeter  Diocesan 
Arch.  Soc.  Trans.,"  ser.  3,  II,  132). 

In  Mr.  Freeman's  opinion  the  "  Peter's  Pence "  of  post- 
Reformation  times  was  distinct  in  origin  from  the  old 
"  Peter's  Pence "  (ali/is  "  Rome-shot "  "  Hearth  Penny," 
"Rome  Penny,"  etc.),  the  familiar  title  having  gradually 
come  to  be  applied  (possibly  as  a  corruption  of  "^^^^w^^io," 
i.e.  charge,  fee)  to  another  old  due,  that  of  "Peter's  Farthings." 
The  latter,  as  Mr.  Freeman  shows  from  documents  preserved 
by  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Exeter,  was  a  payment  claimed 
from  all  men  and  women  householders  in  the  city  and  diocese, 


THE  churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     521 

for  the  upkeep  of  the  fabric  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of 
St.  Peter,  Exeter.  A  sheet  dated  1453,  and  headed  "  Venia 
Beati  Petri  Exon  collecta  in  Archidiaconata  Tottonensi," 
gives  a  list  of  the  payments  in  each  deanery,  amounting  in 
all  to  £11  13s.  6id.,  and  a  grant  from  Henry  VIII  confirms 
"the  long  godly  custom"  of  "tlie  gathering  of  the  said 
farthings.'* 

It  would  seem  that  the  archdeacons,  from  being  the  official 
collectors,  probably  by  arrangement  with  the  dean  and 
chapter,  eventually  acquired  the  proceeds  of  this  impost, 
as  part  of  their  own  revenue.  The  amount  due  from  each 
parish,  e.g.  from  Barnstaple  2s.  6d.,  Chittlehampton  2s.  6d., 
Winkleigh  Is.  8d.,  Zeal  Monachorum  Is.  2d.,  Dolton  lOd., 
Bondleigh,  lOd.,  Wear  Giffard,  7d.,  Ashford  4d.,  must,  con- 
jectures Mr.  Freeman,  have  become  fixed  by  commutation, 
for  in  the  accounts  from  1672  to  1712  the  items  under  each 
deanery,  year  by  year,  are  invariable. 

Uniquely  in  the  archdeaconry  of  Barnstaple,  the  charge 
of  "  Peter's  Pence  "  was  levied  down  to  as  recent  a  date  as 
1897  (or  later),  but  it  has  since  been  abolished  by  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners. 

The  earliest  South  Tawton  account  that  mentions  "  Peter's 
Farthings  "  is  that  of  1605-7.  They  occur  t^ain  in  1608-9- 
10-13.1  In  1609-10  besides  "  ij  s  for  Peter's  Farthings,"  there 
is  a  payment  of  "  ij  s.  for  Peters  pence."  Unless  one  of  the 
items  belongs  properly  to  another  year,  this  would  seem  to 
conflict  with  the  idea  that  the  "pence"  and  "farthings"  were 
interchangeable  denominations  of  the  same  tax. 

The  South  Tawton  Account  of  1529  is  the  first  that  refers 
to  the  pence.  The  Latin  is  too  contracted  to  make  the 
meaning  certain,  but  it  seems  to  concern  the  charges  of  four 
men  [?for  riding  to  Exeter]  to  defend  Peters  Pence  [?from 
robl^ry  on  the  road]. 

In  1540  we  find  viij  d.  paid  for  "Pets  Pens,"  and  on  a 
loose  sheet  (1556?)  "for  Peters  Peny  xx  d."  In  1611  the 
item  "  paid  for  a  brief  to  Peter  Spence,"  is  very  suggestive 
of  "Peter's  Pence,"  but  no  doubt  really  relates  to  a  man 
of  that  name.* 

In  the  Ac'ts  of  the  Store  of  St.  Michael,  Chagford,  I  note 
1499,  "  13J  d.  for  Peter's  Pence,"  and,  presumably  identical 
with  this,  in  1519,  "  for  indulgences  of  St.  Peter,  13J  d." 

^  There  may  be  further  examples  ;  my  seyenteenth  and  eighteenth-century 
notcp  are  not  as  yet  exhaustive. 

'  It  was  common  at  this  period  to  carry  the  last  letter  of  a  word  on  to 
tlie  beginning  of  the  next ;  vide  in  Morebath  Accounts,  *' A  nox,'*  etc 


522    THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH   TAWTON. 

To  remark,  finally,  upon  the  tax  called  the  "  Fifty  Dole  " 
(a  term  which  I  have  not  been  able  to  find  anywhere  except 
in  these  and  a  few  other  Devonshire  accounts),  and  upon 
the  "Subsidies"  of  ** Tenths  and  Fifteenths"  that  were  in 
certain  years  granted  by  Parliament  to  the  sovereign,  being 
rated  on  nominal  values  of  property  as  assessed  in  every 
township,  borough,  etc.,  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III  (see 
Blackstone's  "  Commentaries,*'  Vol.  I,  pp.  275-7).  I  am  not 
sure  whether  the  designation  ** Fifty  Dole"  may  not  be  a 
colloquial  variant  of  the  "Fifteenth"  or  "Fifteen";  and 
again  whether  either,  if  not  both,  may  not  be  derived,  as 
suggested  by  Mr.  T.  W.  Eundle,i  from  A.-S.  "  fif tha,"  or 
"  fif ta-dael " ;  i.e.  fifth-share.  The  "  Fifty  Dole  "  is  mentioned 
in  the  South  Tawton  Head  Warden's  Accounts  of  1540-1  and 
1564,  and  in  the  Subwardens'  of  1556,  1564,  and  1567.  In 
1559  (Head  Warden's)  we  find  "  the  xv  Doole." 

The  Rev.  J.  H.  Chanter*  has  printed  some  extracts  re- 
lating to  this  tax,  showing  its  incidence  and  amount  in 
the  tithings  of  Eastdown  and  Churchill  in  1589,  and  the 
Kev.  F.  W.  Win  tie  ^  has  stated  that  in  the  Churchwardens' 
Accounts  of  Bere  Ferrers,  from  1603-11,  payments  of  the 
"ffiftie  dole"  occur  not  quite  annually,  though  sometimes 
twice  in  one  year,  and  has  transcribed  two  examples.  In 
the  Morebath  Accounts  it  is  called  in  1546  "the  V  Dole." 

Mr.  Brooking- Rowe  kindly  sends  me  the  following  extract — 

"(1624.  Oct.  28.)  Memorandum  :—15d.  paid  the  Bailifif 
of  the  Hundred  of  Ermington  in  discharge  of  the  fifty  dole 
for  lands  in  Ermington.  (Fifty  dole.)  Same  day  pd  the 
Tythingman  of  Brownston  for  the  x***  and  15"*,  xviij*  that 
is  for  my  tenant  in  ]3rownston  xijs,  for  Boundmore  iijs.,  and 
for  my  land  at  Ellson  iijs.     A/c  Adrian  Swete." 


ACCOUNTS  OF  WARDENS 

OF   SUBSIDIARY    STORES. 

Transcript  in  full. 

[1550]  M*^  that  the  Beneyth  named  Eob'rt  Wonston  & 
Eychard  levaton  have  made  full  paym't  of  the  iiij  li  xviij 
by  them  ress  ...  at  the  hands  of  hughe  Battyshill  & 
Willm  hole  in  the  p'sens  of  the  hole  p'isshe  as  yt  appeyreth 
aft*  the  ende  of  the  Account. 

*  See  *'D.  N.  and  Q.,'*  pt.  iii.  p.  82;  iv,  p.  103;  and  vii.  pp.  220 
and  224. 

a  Ibid.  »  Ibid. 


THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS  OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     523 

Rychard  lange,  John  hole,  Eobt  Langworthy,  John  at 
Scale,  p'  me  George  Burgeyn. 

[1550  ?]  Compot'  Rob'ti  Wonston  &  Eic'i  levaton  Custod* 
honor'  &  cat'  instauri  illustrissimi  no'is  Jh'u  &  Beate  Marie 
Virgi's  in  eccFie  par^hial's  de  Sowthtawton  fact'  Cora' 
Georgio  Bur  gei  .  .  .  Gydley  &  aliis  xxj  die  Septembris  A® 
quart'  K's  Edwardi. 

[Rec]  Id'm  Comp'  respond'  de  iiij  li.  xviij  s.  recept'  sup' 
det'  ace'  Hugo'is  Battishill  &  Will'i  Hole. 

S'm'  iiij  li.  xviij  s. 

[Exp]  Unde  Id'm  compot'  pet'  Alloc'  de  xlvij  s.  viij  d.  payd 
to  Joh  ...  of  the  fewer  me'  by  the  hands  of  det*  Rob' 
Wonsto'.  Et  de  xxxvj  s.  payd  to  the  sayd  Joh'  by  the  hands 
of  the  sayd  Richard  Levaton  .  .  .  Rob'to,  xvj  d.  for  the 
change  of  a  ffortye.  .  .  . 

S'ma  alloc  iiij  li.  v  s. 

Et  sup'  nunc'  co'pot  xiij  s.  q'  soluer'  ad  .  .  .  Smyth 
Gardiano  xs. 

Et  sic'  quiet'. 

[1551]  Compot'  Thome  Kellond  Jun'  &  Henr'  Gydley  J'. 
Gardiani  instauri  Sci  Georgii  capt'  cora'  Georgio  Burgein, 
Henr'  Gydley  &  aliis  xxj  die  Septefer  A®  quart  R's  Edw' 
vi. 

[Rec]  Id'm  Comput'  r'  de  iiij  li.  recept'  p  m'  Ric'i  Ascott 
&  Joh'is  Baron  sup  det'  ac  eor'  Compot'. 

Sin  iiij  li. 

[Exp]  Id'm  Computant*  petit  Alloc'  de  xxxiij  s.  iiij  d. 
solut'  ad  m'  Johis  Wode  unde  Quatuor  (ho?)  p  (a<>.  det'?) 
Her'  Gydley,  et  de  xx  d.  solut'  p  mandat'  diu'sor's  p'ochianor' 
et  de  xxxiij*  iiij^ — solut  ad  m'  Thome  Kellond,  Sen.  ad  usu 
pochianor',  et  de  viij  d  payed  to  the  sawdyers. 
Sfn  alloc*,  iij  IL  ix  s. 

Et  debet  Sup  nunc  C'oput'  xj  s.  q'  soluer'  ad  m'Will'i 
Smyth  Gardiano. 

Et  sic  q[ui]et'  recesser*. 

[1552]  Co'put'  Simonis  Downe  &  Joh'is  Ascott  Gardiani 
instauri  Sci  Andrei  capt'  coram  Georgio  Bur  ...  &  Henr' 
Gydle  &  aliis  xxi  die  Septe'bris  A°  quarto  rr. 

Id'm  comput'  respond*  de  x  d.  ob.  rec*  de  Ric*o  Wethe- 
broke  p  candel  sic  vendit. 

Et  de  X  d.  ob.  rec'  de  Johne  Gydley  p  candelis. 

xviij  d.  rec  de  Ric*o  Wethebroke  p  caseo  sic  ei  vendit. 

ij  s.  rec'  de  Bened'co  hore  &  Ric'o  Clarke  p  p  .  .  .  sic  eis 
vend'. 

xij  d.  rec'  de  Hugone  Battyshyll  p  .  .  . 


524  THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton, 

xij  d.  rec'  de  Wiiro  lebeott  &  Ric'o  Walys  p  pa  .  .  .  8J 
eis  vedit. 

xij  d.  rec.  de  Wiiro  flfrynde  p  pa*e  ei  ve'dit 

viij*  viii^  rec'  de  WiU'o  Herneman  p  la  .  .  .  sic  ei  ve'dil 

xiij  d.  ob.  p  gr.  .  .  .  vendit*  Joh'e  Dunnyng. 

xxi  d.  p  candelis  d'co  J  ,  .  .  veudit/ 

xij  d.  p  pane  ve'dit  eod'  Johe. 

vj  8.  p  came  vendit*  Joh'ne  Weyks. 

xij  d.  p  pa'e  vend'  Thome  More  &  Rico  long*. 
Sm'  xxvij  8.  ix  d.  ob. 

Unde  pet'  alloc'  de  xiij  d.  ob.  q'  re'  in  m'  Joh'is  .  .  •  Sol't 

Et  de  xxj  d.  q'  re'  in  m'  d'ci  Johis  p  ca  .  .  .  sol't 

Et  de  xij  d.  q*  re'  in  m'  d'ci  Joh'is  p  .  .  .  sic  ei  vendit, 

Et  de  vj  8.  q'  re'  in  .  .  .  Joh'e  Weykes  p  car'e  .  .  .  sol't 

Et  de  xij  d.  .  .  .  in  m'  Tho'e  More  &  Eico  (logis  ?)  p  pa'e 
.  .  .  sol't. 

Ss  al'  respect'  e    x  s.  x  d.  ob. 

Sup'  nunc  Comput'  xvj  s.  xj  d.  q'  soler'  ad  m*  Will'. 

Smyth,  Gardiano  sp  det*  ac  h's  co'pot  &  sic  (ultr  ?)  respect. 
Quiet  recesser' 

[1551]  The  Comte  of  Hugh  Dychco  &  Willya'  Ware  .  .  . 
Memora'du' :  lieceued  of  Wyllia'  mackelegh  &  John  Sloma' 
iij  8.  X  d  Itt'.  thatt  we  Receued  for  our  alle  &  gethered 
mony  x  (1  ?)  s.  ix  d  off  thys  sumes  We  asckes  a  lowens 
xxxvij  8  iiij  d. 

Itt'  we  payd  to  Eoberte  polleslonde  &  phylype  barone 
vij  8. 

[1554]  The  Connt  off  Phyllyppe  Baron  &  Robert  polslond 
jjdra  fjjg  ^  fQj.g  g^yj  philippe  Baron  &  Robert  polslond  hath 
paid  unto  Wylliam  kellond  &  Thomas  Bryght  Ivj  s. 

[1555]  The  Connt  of  Willia'  Kellond  &  Thomas  Bryght. 

They  made  of  there  ale  &  other  thyngs  gyven  &  gethered 
Iiij  s  vd  M^™  The  said  William  Kellond  &  Thomas  Bryght 
hath  delu'ed  unto  the  new  warde'  Wyllam  Caseley  &  Nicholas 
Yeollaud  iij  IL  xiiij  s.  vij  d. 

[1556]  The  connt  of  Wyllyam  Caseley  &  Nicholas  Yoellond 
yonge  men,  anno  dm.  1556. 

They  have  made  of  there  ale  clere  w*  other  thynges  gyven 
&  gethered,  iij  li. 

The  charges  that  Wylliam  caselye  &  Nicholas  yoellond 
hath  bestowed.  In  p'mis  paid  unto  John  Baron  senior  for  ye 
fyfty  Doole  xl  s. 

Item  paid  unto  a  man  to  serve  a  carpenter  iij  dayes  which 
found  hymselfe,  ij  s. 

M**°*  that   the  afore  said  Wylliam  Caselye  &  Nicholas 


THE   churchwardens'  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TAWTON.     525 

YoUand  have  delyured  unto  the  new  Wardens  John  Moore 
and  Ey chard  Smythe  iiij  li.  xij  s.  v  d. 

[1561]  The  Connt  of  John  more  &  Eyehard  Smyth  anno 
Dni  M.  ceccc.  Ixj. 

They  have  of  there  ale  clere  w^  other  thynges  geven  & 
gatheryd,  iij  li.  vij  s.  viij  d. 

Eyehard  Smyth  delyuered  unto  Bartolamu  gedleght  xxxj 
s.  vij  d.  ob.  w*^  was  Eeceved  before  myghelmas  for  xliij  s.  vj 
d.  of  the  old  Wardyns. 

John  More  Eeceved  of  the  old  wardyns  xlvj  s.  whereof 
he  lost  but  iiij  s. 

M^°»  That  the  aforesaid  John  More  &  Eyehard  Smyth 
have  delyuered  unto  the  new  wardens  Eyehard  Stronge  & 
Barnade  ffrend  v  li  xij  s. 

[1562]  The  Connt  of  Eyehard  Stronge  &  Barnarde  flfrende 
the  yere  of  our  lorde  god  M.  ccccc.  Ixij. 

They  have  made  of  there  ale  clere  wt  other  thynges  geven 
&  gatheryd  iiij  li. 

Wereof  they  aske  alowans  of  xvii  d.  spend,  &  dyd  losse 
by  iiij  pysterlyns  &  Span'ys  mony  wyche  they  had  of  the 
olde  Wardyns  iij  s. 

jjdm  rpj^^^  |.j^g  aforesayd  Eyehard  Stronge  &  Barnarde 
Frend  have  delyuered  unto  the  new  Wardens  George  frend 
&  Thomas  gla'fifeld  x"  viij*. 

[1563]  The  comte  of  george  Frend  &  Thomas  glamfield 
made  in  the  yere  of  our  lord  god  M.  ccccc.  Ixiij. 

They  have  made  of  there  alle  &  gatheryng  of  other  thyngs 
clere  Ivij  s.  viij**.,  weroff  they  aske  a  lowans  of  xviij  d.  spend 
and  also  pade  unto  Wat  Gedlegh  for  sawldyers  xxxiij  s.  iiij  d. 

&  also  payde  unto  John  Borne  att  hys  com'yng  yn,  x  s. 

&  also  payde  unto  Eycharde  Walleys  V  when  hys  Wyffe 
was  buryed,  ij  s.  iiij  d. 

&  also  payd  for  a  key  for  ye  churche  hose  vi  d. 

&  also  payd  unto  Master  Battyshyll  for  Sawldyers  cottes 
vs. 

&  also  payd  for  a  bebtocke,  v  s. 

&  the  hole  sum  of  alowens  ys  Ivij  s.  viij  d. 

j^dm  That  the  afforesayd  george  ffrend  &  Thomas  Glan- 
ffeld  have  delyuered  unto  the  new  wardyns  Walter  Wonstone 
&  Wyllyam  gerde,  x  11  viij  s. 

[1564]  The  cowntt  of  Wat'  Wonston  &  Wyllya'  gerde  made 
the  XV  day  of  October  In  the  yere  of  our  lord  m.v.  hondred 


[Eec]  In  primis  Eecevyd  of  the  olde  Wardyns  Thomas 
glanfeld  &  george  ffrend  x  1.  viij  g. 


526  THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

Also  we  made  of  our  alle  &  gatheryng  xlviij"  viij* 

The  hole  Sume  of  Recettes  xj  1.  xvj  s.  viijd. 

[Exp.]  The  Expe'sses  payd  by  the  sayd  Wardyns : — 

It'm  payd  flfor  the  fyf ty  dolle  to  Rycharde  Estbrooke  hany 
Wethebrocke  &  Rychard  Wyckes  iijl  ix  s.  iiij  d. 

Also  payd  for  a  nother  flfyftye  doll'  to  Rychard  Wycks  xl*. 

Also  payd  for  Reparyng  of  the  churge  howsse  xxij  s.  ij  d. 

Also  payd  for  ye  makyng  of  Bottes  xiij  d. 

Also  payd  for  expe'ssys  appone  the  olde  Wardyns  &  other^ 
yong  men',  &  the  makyng  of  theyr  cowntt  xxij  d. 

Also  payd  for  Wrytyng  of  the  cowntt,  iiij  d. 

The  hoUe  sume  of  expe'ssys,  vj  b.  xxiiij  s.  ix  d. 

And  theyr  Remaneth  unto  the  new  wardyns,  Thomas  Bor- 
gene  &  George  venycu'  v  li.  xxiij  d. 

[1565]  The  conte  of  Thomas  Burgoye  and  gorge  Wenekon 
the  XV  day  of  October  A®  1565. 

It'  the  alle  mony  xl  s.  vj  d. 

It*  reseved  of  gyrde  &  yonsoe  v  li  xxiij  d. 

Sm.  totl. 

It'  payd  for  makyn  of  the  conte  and  for  expenses  xvj  d. 

It*  payd  to  the  nou  wardens  that  ys  to  say  Richard  holl  & 
Markes  sloeman  vij  IL  ij  s.  iiij  d. 

[1566]  The  cont  of  donston  Slouman  &  Richard  hole  the 
XV  daye  of  October. 

It*m  made  of  our  ale  this  yere  iij  li  &  iij  d. 

It*m  receved  of  Thomas  borgen  &  venycon  vij  IL  &  xx  d. 

It'm  payd  to  Richard  estbroke  &  Thomas  kelond  x  s. 

It*m  payd  for  makyng  of  the  cont  &  for  expens'  xvj  d. 

Itm  payd  to  the  nou  wardens  Wyllam  Bryght  John  W 

viij  li  x  8  viij  d. 

[Half  sheet  cut  ofif.] 

[1567]  The  Acompt  of  Wyllyam  bright  &  John  Ware 

made  the  xxvj  *^  day  of  October  in  the  yere  1567. 

[Rec]  It'm  Recy  ved  of  the  old  wardens  Dunstone  Slowman 
and  Rychard  hole,  ix  li.  x  s.  vij  d. 

The  hole  sum  of  our  Receyttes  xij  li.  ij  s.  viij  d. 

[Exp]  The  expences  paide  by  the  saide  wardens : — 

In  prim's  paide  unto  M  Battyshill  &  Richard  Wycks  for 
ffyfty  dolle  iiij  li.  xij  s.  x  d. 

It'm  paide  to  a  dome  child  that  could  nether  speake  nor 
heare  xij  d. 

It'm  for  repayringe  of  the  churche  howse  viij  d. 

It'm  paide  for  wrytinge  of  our  account  and  for  expences 
xvj  d. 

The  hole  some  of  expences  iiij  li  xv  s.  x  d. 


THE  CHURCHWARDENS*  ACCOUNTS   OF  SOUTH  TA\VTON.     527 

And  ther  Eemayneth  unto  the  new  wardens  Hugh  polly- 
slande  &  Wyllam  burne  vij  li.  vj  s.  x  d. 

[1568]  The  aconnt  of  WylFam  burne  &  huge  pollysland, 
made  the  laste  daye  of  October  in  the  yere  1568. 

[Rec]  M*^  Eecyved  of  the  old  wardens  wyllam  bryght  & 
John  Ware  vij  li.  vj  s.  x  d. 

It'm  we  made  of  our  ale  money  &  o'  gatherynge  iij  li.  vj  s. 
viij  d. 

The  hole  some  of  Eecy ts  x  li.  xiij  s.  vj  d. 

[Exp.]  The  expenc's  paid  by  the  sayde  wardens : — 

Inpm's  paid  to  Wyllam  haywood  of  Spreyton  for  bords  & 
tymber  for  the  church  house  viij  s.  v  d. 

It'm  for  the  caryenge  home  of  the  sayd  tymber  ij  s.  xj  d. 

It'm  pU  to  Roger  Conybye  &  John  Somer  for  4  dayes 
worke  w'th  their  meat  drynke,  vj  s. 

It*m  for  the  hyre  of  a  man  4  dayes  to  tend  the  carpenters  ij  s. 

It'm  payd  for  bares  for  the  church  howse  &  for  other  yren 
worke  w*  naylles  v  s.  iiij  d. 

It'm  Pd  to  bamard  Lockson  for  xviij  hundred  of  Shynell 
xiij*  vii**. 

It'm  for  a  hundred  of  shynell  to  Jo(mn?)  Can,  and  for 
bryngynge  home  of  yt,  xij  d. 

It'm  p'd  for  bringynge  home  of  the  shynnell  from  Wynck- 
ley  vj  8.  vij  d. 

It'm  pd.  to  Roger  Reed  for  Layenge  of  the  Shynnell  ix*  viij^ 

It'm  for  taken  downe  of  the  old  shynnell  and  settynge  up 
of  Scaffolds  viijd. 

It'm  p'd  to  Ry chard  bucher  for  vij  dayes  worke  with  hys 
meat  &  drinke  vij  s. 

It'm  pd  for  a  man  to  tend  hime  vij  dayes  iiij  s.  j  d. 
„       „   ij  bushells  &  half  of  lyme  iij  s. 
„       „   caryenge  of  earth  &  cleye  ij  s.  vij  d. 
„       „   latyses  for  the  church  howse  wyndowes  ij  s.  iiij  d. 

It'm  p'd  to  the  maken  of  o'  account  and  to  the  clarke, 
XX  d. 

The  hole  Some  of  expens'  iij  IL  xvj  s.  vij  d. 
So  ther  Remayneth  unto  the  new  wardens  George  Ascott  & 
John  Ascott  vj  li.  xvj  s.  xj  d. 

1569.    The  Acount  of  George  ascott  and  John  ascott 
made  the  syxt  daye  of  November  in  the  yere  of  o'  lorde  1569. 

[Rec]  M**  Receved  of  the  old  wardens  wyllam  burne  and 
hugh  pollyslande  vj  li.  xvj  s.  x  d. 

It'm  we  made  of  our  ale  money  &  our  gatheringe  xxxvj  s. . . . 

The  hole  some  of  Recyt  viij  li.  xiij  s  ij  d. 

[Exp]  The  expenc's  paid  by  the  Sayde  wardens. 


528  THE  churchwardens'  accounts  of  south  tawton. 

Itm  paide  to  Nycolas  Soper  xiij  s.  iiij  d. 
to  M'  Esbroke  for  the  costletts  ij  IL  vj  a.  viij  d. 
for  strawe  for  the  church  howse  xxj  (d.  ?). 
for  caryenge  of  the  strawe  iiij  d. 
for  thattchine  of  the  church  howse  xij  d. 
for  a  shert  for  John  Smale  ij  s.  viij  d. 
for  John  Smale  in  money  viij  d. 
for  another  shert  of  cres  ij  s.  vj  d. 
for  tendynge  of  the  Thattcher  vj  d. 
for  maken  of  o'  account  &  for  expenc's  xvj  d. 

The  hole  Some  of  expenc's  iii  li.  x  s.  ix  d. 

So  ther  Eemayneth  unto  the  new  wardens,  John  Kellond 
&  John  gerde,  v  li.  ij  s.  v  d. 

[1570]  The  Aconnt  of  John  Kellond  &  John  £rerde  made 
the  iiij  or  daye  of  June  in  the  yere  of  o'  Lorde  god,  1570. 

[Rec]  It'm  receved  of  the  old  wardens  George  Ascott  & 
John  Ascott  the  full  some  of  v  li.  ij  s.  v  d. 

Itm  made  of  our  Ale  money  this  yere  Iv  s.  iiij  d. 
The  hole  some  of  Eecyts,  vij  li.  xvij  s.  ix  d. 

[Exp.]  Expenc's  paid  by  the  sayd  wardens : — 

It'm  paid  to  the  new  wardens  bartholomew  northmore  & 
wyllam  Ascott  of  Scale  xl  s. 

It'm  p*d  to  Eychard  bucher  for  footinge  of  the  churche 
howse  &  for  a  man  to  serve  hime  xviij  d. 

Itm  paid  for  chargs  at  the  maken  of  our  account  xij  d. 

„       „     the  clarke  for  wrytinge  of  our  account  iiij  d. 

S*ma  totallis  paid  xl  s.  x  d. 

So  ther  Eemayneth  upon  this  Account  the  w*^**  was  paid 
unto  Henry  Taw,  beynge  hed  warden,  v  li.  xiij  s.  xj  d. 

[1571]  The  Accompte  of  Wyllam  Ascott  &  Bartholomewe 
northmore  wardens  of  the  staure  of  S^  George,  made  the  ij 
daye  of  novemb'  1571,  before  John  Wik's  esquyer,  Wyllyam 
Battishill,  &  others. 

Impmis  Eeceyved  of  the  olde  wardens  John  kellond  & 
John  Gerde  xl  s. 

It'm  made  of  o'  ale  xlvij  s.  viij  d. 

S'm  iiij  li.  vij  s.  viij  d. 

Solut  et  expences : — 

Imprimis  payed  to  the  newe  wardens  John  Wonston  & 
lauenc  hole  xl  s. 

Itm  payed  to  Henrye  Tawe  xl  s. 

So  ther  Eemayneth  uppon  the  accompt  w*'^  was  payed  to 
Thomas  Venycomb  being  Hed  warden  of  the  saied  p'ishe 
vij  s.  viij  d. 

[End  of  this  division  of  the  book.] 


EXAMPLES   OF  WEST-COUNTRY  WIT 
AND   HUMOUR 


BY   J.    D.    PRICKMAN. 
(Read  at  Lynton,  Jtily,  1906.) 


In  continuation  of  stories  of  West-country  wit  and  humour, 
the  following  are  believed  to  \ye  original  and  founded  partly 
on  fact. 

An  old  man  summoned  a  lad  for  using  abusive  language 
to  him,  and  in  due  course  the  case  came  up  before  the  Bench 
of  County  Justices  for  adjudication. 

The  Bench  happened  to  have  as  chairman  a  somewhat 
impatient  military  gentleman.  The  complainant  was  very 
garrulous  in  his  statement — told  their  worships  at  length 
how  that  he  lived  in  the  village. 

"  Maybe  you  know  it,  zer,  down  tu  the  bottom  ov  South 
Street,  not  quite  close  to  the  police-station,  but  you  go  up 
auver  the  turn,  up  auver  the  hill,  and  then  you  come  to 
another  turning";  and  just  as  he  was  going  on  to  give 
further  details  of  the  way  in  which  his  home  was  reached 
he  was  asked  to  finish  there,  and  get  on  and  tell  what  be 
had  the  boy  before  the  Court  for. 

Then  the  old  gentleman  again  started  off,  giving  particu- 
lars of  his  family  history,  how  he  had  a  wife  and  several 
children,  and  lived  down  at  the  bottom  of  South  Street, 
down  by  the  police-station,  yet  not  quite  by  the  police- 
station  ;  and  then  again  the  Chairman  interrupted  the  old 
man  and  told  him  to  tell  the  story  of  his  complaint  against 
tlie  boy. 

His  only  reply  was,  **  Why,  zer,  I  be  tellin'  it  to  'ee  as 
vast  as  ever  I  can  if  you  will  only  let  me  get  on  f urder  '* ; 
and  after  he  had  fairly  got  under  way  again,  he  continued 
by  saying  that  he  lived  "  up  by  the  police-station,  yet  not  quite 
by  the  police-station,"  and  was  a  shoemaker  by  trade,  and  he 
was  sitting  in  the  door.     By  this  time  the  Court  was  con- 

VOL.  xxxviii.  2  L 


530       EXAMPLES  OF  WEST-COUNTBT  WIT  AKD   HUMOUR. 

vulsed  with  laughter  at  the  old  man's  eccentric  behavioor 
and  way  of  telling  his  story,  and  then  at  last,  proceeding,  he 
demonstrated  how  he  was  sitting  at  his  doorsteps  mending 
a  pair  o£  shoes. 

"When  that  there  little  rascal,"  he  said,  "he  there" 
(pointing  to  the  defendant),  "put  he's  head  round  the 
corner  of  the  house  and  screeched  out,  *  Whose  cat  ait  the 
milk?'" 

It  took  some  time  before  the  Court  could  settle  themselves 
to  business.  Needless  to  say  the  case  against  the  boy  was 
dismissed. 

The  story  of  an  old  man's  will  may  be  interesting.  He 
was  a  bachelor  with  many  nephews  and  nieces,  and  in  due 
course  was  gathered  to  his  fathers,  leaving  a  brother  and 
several  nephews  and  nieces  surviving  him. 

His  will  gave  considerable  legacies  to  the  nephews  and 
nieces,  and  when  the  amounts  of  the  legacies  were  read  out 
after  the  funeral,  they  clapped  their  handkerchiefs  to  their 
faces  and  one  and  all  of  them  in  turn  exclaimed,  "  Oh,  dear, 
dear  uncle ! "  thereby  expressing  perhaps  for  the  first  time 
for  many  years  any  affection  for  the  poor  old  gentleman. 

But  the  old  gentleman  had  made  a  codicil  to  his  will  by 
which  he  revoked  all  these  legacies,  and  gave  the  whole  of 
his  property  to  his  brother:  and  of  this  his  brother  was 
aware,  and  he  sat  in  the  room  listening  to  the  will  being 
read  with  a  grim  smile  on  his  keen,  shrivelled-up  face,  and 
as  the  legacies  were  read  and  one  or  other  of  the  nephews 
or  nieces  in  turn  burst  out  with  those  expressions  of 
regret  for  the  loss  of  their  dear  uncle,  he  got  restless,  and 
at  last  could  contain  himself  no  longer,  so  up  he  stood  and 
screamed  out — 

"  Stap,  stap  there  a  minute  vor*  there,  harkey  a  bit,  harkey 
to  what  the  crocodile  zaith  ! " 

The  "  crocodile,"  of  course,  was  the  codicil,  which  put  such 
a  different  construction  on  matters. 

An  old  man  consulted  his  solicitor  as  to  whether  he  was 
entitled  to  anything  under  a  will.     He  did  it  in  this  way  : — 

"  I  have  brought  'e  een  Mr. *s  will.     I  want  to  know 

what  I  du  geet  under  en." 

He  then  took  from  his  inner  pocket  a  red  handkerchief, 
carefully  unfolded  it  and  disclosed  a  brown-paper  parcel  in 
which  was  the  will.  He  handed  it  over  to  his  solicitor,  who 
in  due  course  perused  it,  and  said — 


EXAMPLES   OF   WEST-COUNTRY   WIT   AND   HUMOUR,        531 

"  Why,  you  get  nothing  under  this  will ;  your  name  isn't 
mentioned." 

The  old  man  said,  "Aw,  haven't  I  let  you  'ev  the  little 
'  corridors '  ?  I  awt  to  a  let  'e  have  'em.  I've  got  'em  in  t*other 
pocket  for  sure.  They  be  the  wans  which  I  thinks  I  get 
something  by." 

In  due  course  the  two  little  "  corridors  "  were  produced, 
which  verified  the  old  gentleman's  surmises. 

There  is  a  good  story  of  a  man  brought  up  before  the 
justices,  and  on  being  asked  what  his  occupation  was,  said 
he  was  a  haymaker  by  trade,  but  "  twadden  'ees  season  vor 
wurk." 

A  police-constable,  after  describing  turning  a  man  out  of 
a  public-house  who  objected  to  being  turned  out  and  whose 
friends  joined  in  his  protests,  thus  continued — 

"  I  says,  says  I,  you  must  go  out,  I  says.  He  says,  *  I 
shan't,'  and  all  his  friends  says,  *  He  shan't  go ' ;  but  I  says, 
says  I,  I  have  my  dooty  to  perform,  I  says,  and  I  won't  be 
*  interpeded '  by  nobody." 

An  old  gentleman  used  to  tell  an  amusing  story  of  a 
reply  given  to  him  by  his  keeper,  who — having  once  married 
one  of  the  cooks  at  the  house — after  he  became  a  widower 
came  courting  one  who  held  the  like  situation. 

The  squire  objected,  and  said,  *'  Look  here,  Tom,  I  don't 
mind  your  coming  up  after  the  maids,  but  you  took  away 
one  cook,  and  that  ought  to  sutfice.  You  ought  to  go  after 
the  housemaid  now  and  not  go  after  the  cook  again." 

His  reply  was:  "Aw,  squire,  I  hop'  you'll  excuse  it  for 
this  yer  wance,  vor  I  do  like  the  smell  aw  the  griddle  a 
gude  dale  better  thin  the  dishclout." 

An  old  lady  who  was  caretaker  of  a  church  was  expostu- 
lated with  for  also  attending  a  chapel,  and  being  inter- 
rogated by  the  rector  as  to  whether  such  was  the  case, 
replied — 

"  Why,  you  see,  ser, — ees,  ser,  I  does  go  to  the  church  and 
I  du  go  to  the  chapel;  you  see,  ser,  there's  no  'bigamy' 
about  me,  ser." 

On  the  occasion  of  a  parish  gathering  one  old  lady  was 
considerably  missed.  Not  seeing  her  there,  the  vicar  in- 
quired of  another  old  lady  whether  she  had  seen  her. 

She  too  was  surprised  at  the  non-appearance  of  her  friend. 

2l2 


532       EXAMPLES   OF  WEST-COUNTRY   WIT  AND   HUMOUB. 

"  I  be  put  out ;  I've  been  luking  everywhere  vor  ur,  and 
can't  see  ur.  I  thought  for  sure  her  would  be  here,  ur  is 
such  a  brave  un  for  *  spectifying '  too/* 

A  good  story  is  told  me  from  Uflfculme.  A  poor  old  man 
had  met  with  many  misfortunes — ^luck  was  against  him; 
domestic  and  business  afflictions  had  come  upon  him  in  great 
numbers.  A  good  lady  who  visited  him  as  district  visitor 
heard  the  tale  of  his  woes,  and  said,  "  Yes,  yes,  indeed  Provi- 
dence does  seem  to  have  been  hard,  very  hard,  upon  you"; 
but  the  old  man's  reply,  *'  Ess,  ess,  mum,  but  there's  a  power 
above  'ee  which  111  stop  en  'fore  he  goeth  too  far,  thank 
goodness  ! "  gives  room  for  reflection. 

A  vicar  told  me  a  good  story  apropos  of  his*  church,  to 
wliich  he  had  appointed  a  new  sexton,  whom,  on  his  ap- 
pointment, he  had  warned  not  to  allow  anybody  other 
than  tourists  to  go  over  the  church  without  being  accom- 
panied. 

He  found  him  shortly  after  holding  a  terrible  altercation 
with  some  people  who  came  to  go  over  the  church. 

"  Be  you  tories  ?  I've  a  been  ordered  by  the  new  vicar  to 
allow  nobody  except  'tis  *  tories '  to  go  over  the  church,"  he 
was  heard  to  say,  when  the  vicar  came  up  and  explained;  but 
for  some  time,  until  his  general  kindness  of  heart  overcame 
and  lived  it  down,  the  vicar  was  thought  to  have  tinges  of 
clerical  intolerance  and  anti-radicalism. 

Another  good  political  story  is  told  of  a  good  old  servant 
who  spoke  to  his  master  and  said  he  was  very  sorry  to  have 
to  vote  against  him,  for  he  was  told  as  how  he  was  a  Union 
man  and  wanted  to  put  every  one  in  the  union,  which  was 
his  somewhat  erroneous  description  of  a  Unionist. 

It  was  an  old  moorland  friend  who  always  used  to  say : 
*'Aw,  yes,  that  did — ees  't  did  make  matters  worse — that 
did.  As  vather  used  to  zay,  'twas  like  puttin'  pepper  to 
zore  eyes." 

To  those  who  have  visited  "  Cranmere "  the  following 
slory  told  me  by  an  old  gentleman  of  Princetown  is  rather 
amusing. 

He  was  asked  if  he  had  been  out  to  visit  the  celebrated 
Cranmere  Pool,  situated  in  the  heart  of  the  bogland  of 
Dartmoor,  lately.  His  reply  was,  "  No,  not  very  lately,  sir ; 
funny  thing,  when  I  took  a  gentleman  out  there  the  last 
time  I  went,  there  was  actually  five  or  six  folks  there; 
never  seed  so  many  there  in  my  life  to  wanst.     There  was 


EXAMPLES   OF  WEST-COUNTRY    WIT  AND   HUMOUR.       533 

one  man  there  with  a  wooden  leg,  too ;  however  he  got  there 
I  don't  know.  There  was  a  'oman  there  w*im — his  wife, 
I  s'pose,  for  he  was  terrible  cross  w'her.  'Tis  a  wisht  old 
place,  Cranmere  Pool,  for  a  man  with  a  wooden  leg,  you 
know,  sir !    No  wonder  he  was  a  bit  tedious  and  maggoty." 

A  very  old  friend  who  used  to  use  quaint  words  always 
had  a  knack,  when  he  differed  from  any  one  with  whom  he 
was  talking,  of  saying,  "  With  all  due  inditference  to  what 
you  are  saying,"  meaning  of  course  **  due  deference,"  and 
then  continuing  his  argument. 

The  more  you  look  at  it  the  more  do  you  appreciate  the 
'*  due  indifference." 

An  old  lady  who  was  driving  and  met  with  a  trap  accident 
was  asked  why  she  was  so  frightened,  and  why  she  didn't 
trust  altogether  to  Providence.     She  said — 

"  Aw,  ees,  zo  I  did  triste, — I  did  triste  tu  Providence  till 
the  breechin'  brok',  and  then  I  hollered  out ;  I  was  *  foosted  ' 
to." 

Tlie  story  of  an  old  servant  who,  after  the  annual  spring 
cleaning,  was  listening  to  her  mistress's  plan  for  the  adjust- 
ment of  carpets,  under  which  there  were  to  be  no  carpets 
for  the  back  stairs,  remarked:  "Be  they  little  back  stairs 
to  go  naked,  ma'am  ?  "  has  a  humorous  touch. 

Pvather  a  good  story  is  told  of  a  stout  lady  who  was  much 
given  to  hunting. 

Two  farmers  were  discussing  her. 

"  Fine  woman  to  ride,  hain't  her  ? "  says  one. 

"  Zo  her  be,  an'  a  brave  plucky  wan  tu,'*  returned  the  other. 

Then  as  if  to  qualify  his  remark,  "  Pretty  big  joint  vor 
the  dish,  hain't  it?" 

An  old  friend,  who  was  very  much  averse  to  gossip  or 
tittle-tattle,  always  wUien  anybody  inquired  about  his  neigh- 
bours used  to  say — 

'  Don't  know,  don't  know  ;  can't  say,  can't  say  ;  they  live 
hundreds  of  miles  off." 

He  also  used  to  have  a  habit  of  speaking  of  any  man 
guilty  of  spendthrift  ways  as  follows : — 

"  Law,  law,  puts  his  money  on  to  a  gridiron  and  lets  it 
run  through  the  bars,  he  do." 

An  old  saying  is  possibly  worth  recording :  "  Never  travel 
without  a  bit  of  string,  a  knife,  and  a  shilling,  for  there  you 
have  something  wherewith  to  tie,  to  cut,  and  to  buy." 


534       EXAMPLES  OF  WKST-CX)UNTBY  WIT  AND  HUMOUIL 

An  old  auctioneer  friend  on  congratulating  a  new  landlord 
on  going  into  an  hotel,  said  there  were  two  rules  which  if 
he  obeyed  would  make  his  fortune.  The  first  was,  "  Keep 
good  liquor  " ;  the  second,  "  See  that  other  people  drink  it" 

A  farmer  after  listening  to  the  complaint  of  his  work- 
man, who  said  it  was  too  hard  work,  or  he  had  too  much  to 
do,  or  something  like  that,  said — 

"  I  won't  hear  anything  about  it ;  I  don't  like  to  hear 
anything  about  too  too's.  There's  nothing  good  about  too 
too's." 

"  Aw,  yes,  there  is,  master,"  was  the  man's  reply,  for  he 
was  an  old,  valued  employee ;  "  two  glasses  of  beer  is  better'n 
wan  any  day,  isn't  it,  master,  and  specially  on  a  hot  day  ? " 

Here  is  rather  a  curious  political  incident  which  occurred 
in  a  small  village. 

In  one  of  the  public-houses  a  village  politician  was  laying 
down  the  law. 

"Everything  comes  out  of  the  land,"  he  said,  and  his 
opponent  was  equally  assertive  that  such  was  not  the  case. 

The  argument,  or  rather  reiterated  statement,  of  one  and 
the  other  got  warmer  and  warmer  and  louder  and  louder 
until  at  last  the  quarrel  became  great,  and  the  man  who  had 
made  the  statement  that  everything  came  out  of  the  land 
left  in  a  heat. 

The  other,  a  little,  dry,  wizened-up  man,  after  his 
opponent  had  gone,  scored  by  saying — 

"An  'ee's  no  High  Churchman,  iz  a?  I  dawn't  suppose  'e 
ever  heard  tell  of  a  vish  dinner !  " 

The  following  was  recently  sung  at  a  village  gathering  at 
Zeal  Monachorum,  and  possibly  is  worth  preserving,  as  I 
can  find  no  trace  of  its  having  been  previously  recorded. 

My  father  died  I  can't  tell  liow, 

And  left  me  six  oxen  and  a  ])loiigh  ; 

I  sold  olf  my  oxen  and  bouf^lit  myself  a  cow. 

Thinks  I  to  myself,  I  sliall  luivc  a  dairy  now. 

I  sold  off  my  cow  and  bought  myself  a  calf. 

Thinks  I  to  myself,  I  have  lost  myself  half. 

I  sold  off  my  calf  and  hou<{ht  myself  a  cat, 

And  down  in  the  corner  the  little  thing  did  squat. 

I  sold  off  my  cat  and  bought  myself  a  rat ; 

With  lire  to  his  tail  he  burnt  my  old  hat. 

I  sold  off  my  rat  and  bought  myself  a  mouse, 

And  with  tire  to  his  tail  he  burnt  down  my  house. 

The  chorus  after  each  line  was : — 

Whim-wham-jam-stram  stram  along,  boys,  down  along  the 
room,  etc. 


THE   STONE   EOWS   OF  DAKTMOOK. 

Part  VIL 

BY    H.    HANSFORD   WORTH. 

(R«ad  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


Yet  another  row  has  to  be  added  to  the  long  list  which  has 
slowly  accumulated ;  and  again  it  is  to  be  found,  not  in  the 
inmost  recesses  of  the  moor,  but  in  a  locality  much  and 
frequently  visited. 

THE  MEAVY   VALLEY. 

Ordnance  Survey,  Devon,  CVI,  S.E.,  long.  4**  0'  46^",  lat. 
50"  31'  Ti".  Near  the  Princetown  road  and  326  ft.  S.W., 
approximately,  from  the  junction  of  the  Eoutrundle  track. 
Here  are  the  remains  of  a  ruined  cairn,  about  36  ft.  in 
diameter.  Running  K  89"  20'  E.  from  this  cairn  is  a  short 
double  row,  somewhat  imperfect.  Measuring  from  the  cairn 
centre  in  each  case  the  remaining  stones  are :  at  21  ft.  9  in. 
two  stones ;  at  39  ft.  7  in.  one  stone,  the  northern  member 
of  the  row ;  at  67  ft.  9  in.  two  stones,  one  of  which  is  the 
largest  in  the  row,  and  measures  10  in.  by  14  in.  by  18  in. 
high ;  at  77  ft.  two  stones ;  at  87  ft.  6  in.  one  stone ;  and  at 
110  ft.  one  stone.  The  two  rows  are  but  10  in.  apart, 
which  is  an  unusually  small  distance.  The  elevation  of  the 
Western  horizon  is  2"  50',  and  of  the  Eastern  1*  10'. 

THE  LONG   STONE  ROW,   ERME  VALLEY. 

The  Long  Stone  Eow  on  the  Erme,  extending  from 
Stall  Moor  to  Green  Hill,  has  recently  received  attention 
in  more  than  one  quarter.  The  writer  described  this  row 
accurately,  but  not  in  detail,  in  a  paper  published  in  the 
"Transactions"  of  the  Plymouth  Institution  in  the  year  1892. 
Last  year,  in  our  own  "Transactions,"  Mr.  T.  A.  Falcon,  by  a 
geographical  error,  removed  its  northern  termination  from 
Green  Hill  to  Cater's  Beam,  a  distance  of  7000  ft.,  and 
suggested   inaccuracy  on   the  part  of  previous  observers. 


536         THE  STONE  BOWS  OF  DARTMOOB. 

Subsequently,  when  this  was  corrected  in  "  Devon  Notes 
and  Queries/'  Mr.  Falcon  still  claimed  an  "additional  exten- 
sion—the essence  of  the  matter."  This  is  a  mistake:  the 
total  length,  as  the  writer  described  it  in  1892,  measured  on 
the  map  11,150  ft.,  and  that  same  length  is  accurate. 

Sir  Norman  Lockyer  has  also  devoted  some  attention  to 
the  monument  in  question.  And  since  it  refuses  to  adapt 
itself  to  his  astronomical  theory,  he  suggests  that  it  may 
have  been  a  footpath.  The  writer  has  dealt  with  this 
matter  in  an  address  to  the  Plymouth  Institution,  delivered 
last  year,  and  does  not  propose  to  repeat  his  arguments  at 
the  present  time.  But  it  is  well  to  point  out  that,  except 
to  those  requiring  astronomical  significance,  this  row  would 
be  an  absolutely  typical  example.  It  does  appear  hard  that 
our  best  Dartmoor  example  should  be  refused  recognition 
and  even  miscalled. 

The  accompanying  plan,  although  to  a  small  scale,  will 
at  least  serve  to  remove  geographical  misapprehensions, 
and  enable  those  interested  to  judge  the  character  of  a 
row  which  refuses  to  adjust  itself  to  the  latest  astronomical 
hypothesis. 

It  should  be  explained  that  "  Middle  Mire "  and  "  Dry 
Lake  *'  are  alternative  names  for  the  same  valley,  or  rather 
that  the  one  is  the  name  of  a  portion  of  the  valley,  and  the 
other  that  of  its  watercourse. 

The  following  notes  may  supplement  the  plan : — 

Starting  at  the  South  end  of  the  row.  From  the  centre 
of  the  circle  only  180  ft.  in  length  of  the  row  can  })e  seen. 
The  elevation  of  the  North  horizon  is  1**  30',  and  of  the 
South  horizon  0*  50'.  Looking  north,  on  the  next  hillside 
the  alinement  reappears  true  with  the  short,  near  portion 
of  row  visible,  but  at  once  deviates  toward  the  east. 

At  point  A,  marked  on  plan,  the  bank  of  a  gully  which 
crosses  the  row,  the  North  horizon  has  an  elevation  of 
4°  20',  and  the  South  horizon  1**  30'.  A  cairn,  marked  on 
the  plan  (shown  as  "hut  circle"  on  the  Ordnance  Survey), 
breaks  the  North  horizon  to  the  west  of  the  row. 

From  point  B,  near  the  cairn  above  mentioned,  looking 
Southward,  the  circle  on  Stall  Moor,  at  the  commencement 
of  the  row,  can  be  seen,  and  the  whole  row  between.  But 
the  near  part  is  4**  15'  out  of  the  direction  of  the  circle. 
Northward,  the  row  can  be  followed  some  little  distance  on 
this  hill,  and  then  is  lost  to  sight  in  a  valley,  reappearing 
on  the  south  slope  of  the  next  hill,  quite  out  of  line,  and 
deviating  still  further  eastward  until  it  reaches  the  brow 


C/PZTiTA      NfLl. 


TuK  Stonk  Rows  of  uartmoor  —  7o  S'^^^  p.  536. 


THE  8T0NK  ROWS   OF  DARTMOOR.  537 

of  this  latter  rise.  The  angle  between  the  point  at 
which  it  disappears  in  the  valley  and  the  point  it  reaches 
at  the  crest  of  the  next  rise  is  10**  30'.  From  B  the  eleva- 
tion of  the  Northern  horizon  is  1**  45',  and  of  the  Southern 
0-  40'. 

A  little  north  of  B  the  row  crosses  a  small  stream 
shown  on  the  plan.  Southward  from  the  brink  of  the 
gully  in  which  this  stream  lies  only  100  ft.  of  the  row  are 
visible. 

Point  C  indicates  the  crossing  of  Bed  Lake  stream  by 
the  alinement.  Here  the  whole  Southward  portion  visible 
is  considerably  convex  to  the  East.  No  irregularity  of  the 
ground  exists  which  should  explain  this.  From  C  the 
elevation  of  the  Northern  horizon  is  7**  20',  and  of  the 
Southern  T  5'. 

Towards  its  Northern  extreme  the  alinement  has  some 
curious  deviations,  which  cannot  be  explained  by  irregu- 
larities of  the  ground.  The  portion  immediately  before 
the  end  makes  a  fair  attempt  to  point  to  the  circle  on  Stall 
Moor,  although  minor  irregularities  partially  obscure  these. 
The  Stall  Moor  circle  cannot  be  seen  by  the  naked  eye 
from  the  tumulus  on  Green  Hill  (point  D  on  plan),  and 
the  matter  has  not  been  telescopically  examined,  but  at 
least  the  row  very  near  the  circle  must  be  in  the  field  of 
vision. 

From  the  barrow  on  Green  Hill  the  Northern  horizon  is 
practically  without  elevation  or  depression ;  the  Southern 
horizon  is  depressed  1*  0'. 

The  azimuth  of  the  row  at  various  parts  ranges  between 
N.  23*  E.  and  N.  12*  W.,  thus  swinging  through  thirty-five 
degrees. 

The  next  edition  of  the  Ordnance  Survey  will  show  this 
row  in  its  whole  length,  the  survey  agreeing  with  that 
given  in  the  plan  annexed-  Practically  every  known  Dart- 
moor row  will  also  be  added  to  this  edition. 


THE   EUDE   STONE   MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOK 
AND   ITS   BOEDEES. 
Part  II. 

BY   RBV.   J.    F.    CHANTBB,    M.A.,    AND   R.    HANSFORD   WORTH. 

(Read  at  Lynton,  July,  1906.) 


In  continuation  of  the  paper  printed  in  last  year's  "  Trans- 
actions/' we  now  present  plans  and  descriptions  of  some 
further  monuments  on  Exmoor  and  its  borders,  our  surveys 
for  which  were  made  for  the  most  part  May  14th  to  19th 
last. 

One  slight  variation  has  been  introduced  into  our  methods: 
on  some  of  the  plans  it  has  been  found  inconvenient  to 
place  each  elevation  of  the  horizon  on  its  sight  line,  and  in 
each  of  these  cases  a  small  circle  has  been  drawn  repre- 
senting the  horizon,  and  the  elevations  on  varying  bearings 
have  been  indicated  around  its  circumference. 

HADDOCKS    DOWN. 

Our  attention  having  been  directed  to  an  additional  stone 
still  existing  at  Maddocks  Doivn,  we  searched  the  neigh- 
bourhood thoroughly,  but  have  found  nothing  beyond  one 
prostrate  menhir  indicated  to  us  by  Mr.  Pearse  Chope. 

There  lies,  in  a  field  adjacent  to  Hi{fher  Maddocks  Doxcn 
Farm,  a  large  spar  or  quartz  block,  10  ft.  in  length  by  4  ft. 
in  width  and  3  ft.  4  in.  in  depth ;  the  exact  location  is  long. 
3°  59'  54^",  and  lat.  51'  10'  37^".  Its  shape  is  very  irregular. 
We  are  informed  by  the  tenant  of  this  farm  that  five  smaller 
stones  have  of  late  years  been  broken  up  and  removed,  but 
none  of  these  appear  to  have  been  standing  at  the  time  of 
their  destruction. 

We  understand  that  Mr.  Smyth  Eichards,  the  owner  of 
the  estate,  has  given  instructions  guarding  against  all  inter- 


PLATE  I. 


% 

^ 

X 
Y. 


StOSV.  MOSV^VIVT^  OV  F.XMOOIt   ASn  ITS  BORDKRS.— To  /if^  ;».   5S9. 


8T0NB  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS   BORDERS.      539 

ference  with  the  great  mSnhir  described  in  our  last  con- 
tribution.   This  is  a  matter  for  congratulation. 

HANGMAN   HILL. 

PoLWHKLE^  has  a  reference  to  certain  Hanging-stones  near 
Combe-Martin  ;  it  runs  thus : — 

Mr.  Badcock  seems  to  have  been  of  opinion  that  those  ancient 
pillars  at  Coombe-Martin,  that  were  called  the  Hanging-stones, 
were  some  Druidical  remains  of  a  temple ;  and  the  Hanging-stone 
is  the  Stonehenge  or  Balanced-stone^  which  was  remarkable  in  all 
these  edifices.  It  is  said  that  there  is  but  one  pillar  left — which 
served  as  a  boundary  between  Coombe-Martin  and  the  adjoining 
parish. 

In  Plate  I,  fig.  1,  we  give  a  photograph  of  the  menhir 
which  now  crowns  the  Hangman  Hill,  in  long.  4°  0'  6",  lat. 
5P  12'  14",  about.  The  stone  is  5  ft.  3  in.  in  height;  its 
breadth  points  N.  59**  E.  The  N.W.  side  measures  33  in. ; 
the  N.E.  side,  18  in. ;  the  S.E.  side,  32^  in. ;  the  S.W.  side, 
16  in. ;  at  the  top  the  stone  is  somewhat  thinner,  the  N.E. 
side  being  12  in.  and  the  S.W.  side  11  in. 

This  is  probably  the  "one  pillar  left,"  according  to 
Badcock  ;  but  we  cannot  find  evidence  on  which  to  discuss 
the  possibility  of  its  having  formerly  had  companions.  We 
do  not  doubt,  however,  that  it  has  given  its  name  to  the 
hill ;  it  does  not  now  form  a  parish  bound. 

LONGSTONE   DOWN,  WEST  LYN. 

A  little  distance  South-east  from  West  Lyn  is  an  enclosure 
now  about  to  be  broken  for  cultivation,  but  formerly 
assigned  to  turbary  allotments;  it  adjoins  Cheriton  Road 
and  Shamble  Way.  Numerous  stones  are  scattered  over  its 
surface,  the  greater  number  of  which  are  the  bond  stones 
of  the  turf  allotments.  But  towards  its  South  end  there  are 
two  menhirs  of  a  character  different  frpm  their  companions, 
and  the  larger  of  which  is  known  as  the  Longstone.  The 
smaller  menhir  has  long  been  prostrate,  but  the  Longstone 
itself,  although  always  leaning  within  living  memory,  has 
only  recently  completely  fallen.  On  Wednesday,  the  16th 
of  May  last,  we  visited  this  field,  and  found  preparations 
being  made  for  bringing  it  into  cultivation.  The  workmen 
engaged — Mr.  E.  Bowden,  of  Lynton,  and  White — informed 
us  that  by  the  instructions  of  the  owner  of  the  land — 
Colonel  Lean,  of  East  Lyn — these  two  menhirs  were  to  be 

*  "Historical  Views  of  Devonshire,"  p.  95. 


540      STONE  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR   AND  ITS   BORDERS. 

re-erected  to  ensure  their  preservation.  We  understand 
also  that  Mr.  H.  Medway,  the  tenant,  has  interested  him- 
self in  their  safety. 

The  Longstoiie  is  no  mean  weight  to  manage  in  the 
absence  of  proper  lifting  tackle,  but  as  Mr.  Bowden  was 
anxious  to  get  the  best  information  as  to  the  proper 
position  of  this  menhir,  we  stayed  with  him  and  aided 
in  the  work.  In  all  there  were  five  of  us,  and  our  appliances 
were  limited  to  an  iron  bar,  two  iron  gates,  and  an  oak  pole 
from  an  adjacent  copse.  The  smaller  stone  was  easily  set 
up.  The  larger,  which  is  9  ft.  6  in.  in  length,  and  measures 
2  ft.  6  in.  by  9  in.  at  the  base,  proved  an  arduous  and  anxious 
undertaking. 

In  the  case  of  each  menhir  the  original  hole  occupied  by 
its  base  in  the  subsoil  was  readily  found.  The  breadth  of 
each  stone  had  been  in  a  line  pointing  to  the  other,  and  so 
they  were  refixed.  The  smaller  block  measured  5  ft.  4  in. 
in  length,  by  1  ft.  6  in.  wide  and  10  in.  thick  at  base,  and  it 
now  stands  3  ft.  11  in.  above  ground.  As  re-erected,  the 
LoTigstone  stands  7  ft.  above  ground,  and  measures  27  in.  by 
9  in.  at  ground  level;  it  points  to  the  smaller  menhir, 
which  is  55  ft.  10  in.  distant  in  a  direction  S.  76'  47'  E. 
On  this  alinement  the  Western  horizon  has  a  depression 
of  0"  30',  and  the  Eastern  horizon  is  neither  elevated  nor 
depressed. 

Plate  I,  fig.  2,  gives  a  view  of  these  menhirs,  the  Lojig- 
stone  being  the  nearer,  and  Plate  II,  fig.  1,  gives  a  plan. 
The  Loiigstone  is  marked  on  the  six-inch  quarter-sheet  of  the 
Ordnance  Survey,  Devon,  III,  S.W.,  in  long.  3"  49'  24i'',  and 
lat.  oV  12'  42r. 

The  re-erection  of  these  stones  was  absolutely  essential 
to  their  preservation,  and,  although  they  may  prove  hin- 
drances to  agriculture,  the  gratitude  of  all  archaeologists  is 
due  to  Colonel  Lean. 

Whether  or  no  the  smaller  stones  used  to  mark  out  the 
allotments  have  been  stolen  in  past  days  from  some  pre- 
historic monument  we  cannot  say ;  they  have  been  so 
arranged  in  any  event  that  their  preservation  is  now  of  no 
importance. 

There  is  a  tradition  that  the  Loiigstone  was  erected  by 
some  gipsies  to  mark  the  grave  of  a  child  of  that  tribe. 
Like  most  traditions,  it  claims  for  itself  an  antiquity  that 
places  inquiry  out  of  all  question. 


STONE  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  BORDERS.      541 
WHIMB,  FURZEHILL. 

South-west  of  Hill  Cottage  or  Whivib,  at  Furzehill,  there 
stands  a  small  menhir  on  Ilkeston  Ridge,  The  Ordnance 
Survey  quarter-sheet  is  Devon,  VII,  KW.,and  the  position  of 
the  stone,  which  is  not  marked  thereon,  is  long.  3"  49'  51  J", 
lat.  51*  11'  \2V,  Whether  this  menhir  ever  had  companions 
we  cannot  say ;  it  stands  3  ft.  3  in.  in  height,  and  measures 
14  in.  by  7  in.  Its  width  points  N.  4**  17'  W.  There  are 
barrows  in  the  neighbourhood,  one  of  which,  South  and  a 
little  East  from  the  menhir,  is  not  marked  on  the  Ordnance 
Survey.  It  should  be  placed  in  long.  3*  49'  26",  and 
lat.  51'  11'  41".  The  extreme  diameter  is  24  ft.,  and  the 
diameter  across  the  top  12  ft. 

LITTLE   ROWLEY. 

In  a  field  North-west  of  Little  Rowley,  and  near  the  western 
hedge,  stands  a  stone  marked  on  sheet,  Devon,  VI,  S.W.,  of 
the  Ordnance  Survey,  long.  3''  55'  46",  lat.  51'  10'  llf . 
Its  present  height  is  2  ft.  9  in.,  but  it  has  apparently  been 
broken ;  its  width  is  24  in.,  and  thickness  3  in.  The  direction 
of  its  width  points  approximately  North-west. 

TRIANGLES. 

We  have  no  triangles  to  record  as  the  result  of  our 
survey,  although  by  recent  robbery  a  quadrilateral  on 
Trout  HUl  has  been  reduced  to  this  form,  but  this  group 
will  be  found  under  the  next  heading. 

QUADRILATERALS. 

Of  these  we  have  to  record  two,  both  marked  on  the 
Ordnance. 

Brcndon  Two  Gates. — The  first  is  shown  on  Ordnance 
Survey,  Devon,  VII,  S.E.,  and  lies  about  1250  ft.  distant, 
and  a  little  East  of  North  from  Brejidoii  Two  Gates,  Long. 
S'*  45'  56i",  lat.  51'  10'  11".  Three  stones,  including  the 
central,  still  stand ;  one  has  fallen,  but  its  place  is  marked 
^Y  triggers.  The  East  and  West  sides,  measured  within 
the  stones,  are  31  ft.  5  in.  and  30  ft.  9  in.  respectively.  The 
North  and  South  sides  are  29  ft.  and  29  ft.  5  in.  The  outer 
four  stones  all  appear  to  have  pointed  to  the  centre,  as  the 
three  standing  still  do.  At  Chapman  Barrows,  it  will  be 
remembered,  all  five  stones  point  East  and  West,  and  at 
Woodharrow  Arms  three  of  the  outer  stones  point  athwart 
the  diagonals,  the  fourth  along  one  side,  and  the  centre 


542      STONE  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS   BOJEUDERS. 

stone  is  parallel  to  this  latter.  Thus  in  this  respect  ther 
is  no  agreement  between  the  various  quadrilaterals  so  fa 
surveyed. 

The  centre  member  is  the  tallest  still  standing,  reaching  i 
height  of  38J  in.  above  the  ground,  and  measuring  9  in.  h] 
4^  in.  at  the  base. 

One  diagonal  bears  N.  52°  17'  W.,  and  the  othei 
K  34**  43'  E. 

[See  Plate  II,  fig.  2.] 

Trout  Hill,  near  fence. — A  second  quadrilateral  is  showt 
on  Ordnance  Survey,  Devon,  VII,  S.E.,  long.  3"  43'  31^" 
lat.  51**  10'  29}".  When  the  survey  was  made,  in  1887-8 
five  members  were  in  place.  There  may  have  been  more 
stones,  some  of  which  were  overlooked  by  the  Ordnance 
surveyor.  The  three  which  we  found  and  measured  will 
not  accord  with  the  plan  given  on  the  ^^Vir  sheet.  Undei 
the  circumstances  we  have  given  our  survey  on  Plate  III 
fig.  1,  and  an  enlargement  of  the  Ordnance  Survey  on  the 
same  Plate  III,  fig.  2. 

A  barrow  lies  196  ft.  distant  from  the  North-west  angle 
of  the  triangle  now  left,  and  bearing  S.  42"  E.  from  it. 

The  tallest  stone  now  standing  is  28J  in.  above  the  ground, 
and  measures  10  in.  by  6  in. 

[See  Plate  III,  figs.  1  and  2.] 

PARALLELOGRAMS. 

We  propose  extending  this  term  to  include,  not  onW 
groups  of  nine  stones  arranged  in  three  rows  of  three  each, 
but  also  double  rows  of  three  stones  each  when  the  members 
are  paired  thus — 


and  the  width  between  the  rows  bears  some  considerable 
ratio  to  their  length.  Our  nomenclature  must  necessarily 
be  artificial,  and  it  is  not  desirable  to  bring  into  existence  a 
multiplicity  of  new  terms. 

Little  Toms  Hill. — Shown  on  Ordnance  Survey,  Devon, 
VII,  S.E.,  long.  3"  42'  5U",  lat.  51"  10'  32|".  Described  by 
Page,  see  literature  cited  in  Part  I.  (Where,  by  the  by, 
the  second  word  in  last  line  of  p.  381  should  be  "  Chalk.'') 
Page's  description  is  not  minutely  accurate;  and  it  is 
curious  that,  having  recognized  this  one  group,  he  should 


LONGSTONEl,    LYN    DOWN.  PLATE  II. 

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STONB  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS   BORDEBS.      543 

have  thought  it  a  solitary  specimen.  Within  half  a  mile 
three  other  monuments  exist,  in  addition  to  two  cairns  and 
a  barrow. 

We  have  here  six  stones,  arranged  in  two  rows  of  three 
each.  The  breadth  of  each  member  points  along  its  row. 
The  spacing  in  the  alinements  varies  from  26  ft.  7  in.  to 
31  ft.  9  in.,  and  between  the  pairs  from  24  ft.  4^  in.  at  the 
North  to  19  ft.  7  in.  at  the  South. 

The  centre  line  of  the  group  bears  N.  3'  W.,  the  North 
horizon  having  an  elevation  of  0**  45',  and  the  South  horizon 
an  elevation  of  1°  30'. 

The  largest  stone  forms  the  centre  of  the  Eastern  side, 
and  stands  26i  in.  high,  measuring  14  in.  by  5  in.  at  ground 
level.  The  greatest  length  of  the  parallelogram,  measured 
to  the  centres  of  the  stones,  is  58  ft.  4  in. ;  its  greatest 
width,  between  the  stones,  is  24  ft.  4^  in. 

[See  Plate  IV.] 

East  Pinford. — Another  parallelogram,  shown  on  Ord- 
nance Survey,  Devon,  VII,  S.E.,  but  only  as  having  five 
stones,  whereas  all  six  are  stauding.  Long.  3**  43'  18",  lat. 
51'  10'  14". 

This  Ls  a  more  compact  collection  than  the  last,  which  it 
resembles,  however,  in  having  the  spacing  at  one  end  of  the 
rows  somewhat  less  than  at  the  other.  Interspaces  in  the 
alinements  from  12  ft.  7  in.  to  17  ft.  8  in.,  between  the  aline- 
ments from  11  ft.  10  in.  to  13  ft.  4  in. 

The  stones  only  approximately  point  along  the  rows,  the 
corner  members  being  somewhat  irregular  in  this  respect. 
The  centre  line  of  the  group  bears  N.  90**  30'  E. 

The  Western  horizon  has  an  elevation  of  3**  20',  and  the 
Eastern  an  elevation  of  2^  The  largest  stone  is  situate  at 
the  North-western  angle,  and  stands  2  ft.  6  in.  above  ground, 
measuring  14  in.  by  6  in.  at  ground  level. 

One  hundred  and  fifty-nine  feet  distant  from  the  South- 
eastern corner  stone,  and  bearing  S.  36"  23'  W.  from  it,  is  a 
small  cairn,  marked  on  the  Ordnance  Survey  as  a  hut  circle. 
East  and  a  little  North  of  the  group,  and  distant  about 
500  ft.,  is  another  cairn,  also  marked  as  a  hut  circle  on  the 
Ordnance  Survey. 

The  greatest  length  of  the  parallelogram,  measured  to 
the  centres  of  the  stones,  is  31  ft.  9  in. ;  its  greatest  width, 
between  the  stones,  is  13  ft.  4  in. 

[See  Plate  V.] 


544      STONB   MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR   AND  ITS   BORDERS. 
STONE  ROWS. 

As  in  Part  I,  we  include  under  the  heading  of  "  Stone 
Rows"  some  possibly  fragmentary  groups  which,  when 
complete,  would  perhaps  have  fallen  under  another  desig- 
nation. 

JS^ar  JExe  Head, — Not  shown  on  Ordnance,  Devon,  VII, 
S.W,  long,  y  47'  22J",  lat.  51'  9'  39J". 

Between  the  Chains  Valley  and  Exe  Head  we  have  found 
a  collection  of  stones  more  nearly  recalling  the  Dartmoor 
stone  rows  than  any  other  group  which  we  have  seen  on 
Exmoor. 

The  total  length  of  this  monument  is  162  ft. ;  it  may  very 
possibly  be  the  remains  of  a  triple  row.  The  soil  is  peat, 
and  some  stones  have  sunk  until  the  tops  only  are  visible ; 
probably  others  might  be  found  beneath  the  surface  by  care- 
ful probing. 

The  centre  row  is  the  most  perfect,  and  six  stones  are 
visible;  the  least  spacing  is  12  ft.  6  in.,  the  greatest 
64  ft.  10  in. ;  the  average  appears  to  have  been  about  15  ft., 
and  if  so,  five  stones  are  missing.  Of  the  Western  row  four 
stones  remain,  and  of  the  Eastern,  three.  At  the  South, 
the  last  stone  is  out  of  place  for  any  row. 

The  largest  stone  occurs  in  the  central  alinement,  and 
near  its  centre ;  it  stands  2  ft.  9  in.  in  height,  and  mea- 
sures 1 2  in.  by  5  in.  at  ground  level.  Its  width  is  set  across 
the  direction  of  the  row. 

Tlie  central  alinement  bears  N.  31*'  13'  E.  The  elevation 
of  the  Southern  horizon  is  5°  50',  and  the  Northern  horizon 
is  neither  elevated  nor  depressed. 

If  this  be  the  remains  of  a  triple  row,  then  the  Western 
row  is  20  ft.  distant  from  the  central,  and  the  Eastern  row 
about  12  ft.  6  in.  distant. 

This  group  would  repay  more  detailed  investigation,  as 
probably  several  more  stones  would  be  found  were  time 
given  to  the  search. 

[See  Plate  VI.] 

Fwrzehill  Common.— T>Q\on,  VII,  N.W.  Long.  3^  48'  24*", 
lat.  5r  10'  59".     Marked  on  Ordnance  Survey. 

The  Ordnance  Survey  sliows  two  stones,  but  of  these  the 
more  Westerly  has  fallen,  and  in  addition  the  place  of  a 
third  intermediate  to  the  other  two  is  identifiable  by  the 
triggers.  The  spacings  are  23  ft.  6  in.  and  24  ft.  The  stone 
still  standing  measures  2  ft.  2  in.  in  height  by  9  in.  by  7  in., 


/on,  3*- 4.7' 22/4.' 
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D  .     VII.  S.W. 

PLATE  VI 

HOR.  +5*-50' 

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SCALE       60     rPlET      TO     )    INCH 


STONE  MONUMENTS  OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  BOEDEBS.      545 

and  points  towards  the  triggers  and  fallen  stone.  The  bear- 
ing of  the  row  is  N.  53'  13'  E.  The  elevation  of  the  horizon 
has  not  been  observed. 

[See  Plate  VII,  fig.  1.] 

Furzehill  Common.— Devon,  VII,  N.W.  Long.  3'  48'  46^ 
lat.  51"  11'  7i".  Two  of  these  stones  are  marked  on  Ord- 
nance Survey. 

Probably  this  is  the  remnant  of  some  larger  group.  In 
all  there  are  now  five  stones — three  fixed,  one  nearly  buried, 
and  one  fallen.  The  largest  stands  2  ft.  7  in.,  and  measures 
22  in.  by  8  in.  There  are  two  possible  bearings  assignable, 
but  each  is  very  uncertain.  The  first  is  K  79'  27'  W.,  and 
the  second  N.  25'  43'  E.  We  do  not  attribute  any  import- 
ance to  either. 

[See  Plate  VII,  fig.  2.] 

Uoce  Plain,  opposite  Old  Cot — Devon,  VII,  S.W.  Long. 
3'  47'  18J",  lat.  51'  10'  7^-  Not  marked  on  Ordnance 
Survey. 

Two  stones  only,  probably  the  remains  of  a  larger  group. 
The  directions  of  their  widths  are  at  right  angles.  There 
are  some  indications  that  a  quadrilateral  formerly  existed 
here.  Bearing  of  line  joining  centres,  N.  44'  17'  W. ;  eleva- 
tion of  S.E.  horizon,  2'  50' ;  depression  of  N.W.  horizon, 
1'  45'.  Larger  stone  stands  2  ft.  high,  and  measures  8  in. 
by  5  in.  across  diagonals.  The  distance  from  centre  to 
centre  of  stones  is  36  ft.  10  in.  Mentioned  here  for  con- 
venience, but  not  regarded  by  us  as  a  row. 

[See  Plate  VIII,  fig.  1.] 

Near  Brockeribxirrov)  Lane,  Challacombe  parish. 

About  40  yd.  North  of  Barrow  "  D  "  (refer  to  Plate  XI, 
Part  I)  some  six  stones,  nearly  buried  in  the  peat,  appear 
to  constitute  the  remains  of  a  row.  The  total  length  between 
the  end  stones  now  visible  is  66  ft.  2  in.  The  closest  spacing 
is  6  ft.  7  in.,  and  the  widest  17  ft.  9  in.  The  direction  is 
practically  parallel  to  a  line  drawn  through  Barrow  D  and 
the  stone  marked  as  "last  remains  of  row"  which  stands 
near  it. 

Since  last  year  we  learn  the  stone  C,  marked  on  the  same 
plan,  fell  only  five  years  ago. 

Barrow  A,  marked  on  the  plan,  was  opened  this  year, 
and  a  kistvaen  17  in.  long  by  13  in.  wide  was  discovered;  it 

VOL.  xxxviii.  2  M 


546      STONE  MONUMENTS  OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  BOBDSBS. 

enclosed  an  urn  containing  burnt  bones  and  a  flint  fabricator. 
The  length  of  the  kistvsen  points  N.  67'  13'  E. 

Barrow  B  has  also  been  opened,  and  yielded  charcoal  and 
one  flint  flake ;  it  appears  to  have  been  disturbed. 

Barrow  C,  also  opened  with  no  result  beyond  one  flint 
core.  This  barrow  has  certainly  been  opened  previously, 
and  is  quite  possibly  the  grave  of  which  Westcote  tells  a 
quaint  tale. 

UNCLASSED. 

Clannon  Ball,  not  far  from  Brendon  Two  Gates, — Devon, 
VII,  S.E. ;  long.  3'  46'  31",  lat.  bV  10'  41i^  Not  marked  on 
Ordnance  Survey,  but  a  circle  around  a  small  barrow  hard 
by  is  shown  as  "  Stones." 

This  collection  comprises  four  stones  still  standing  and 
one  fallen.  We  cannot  determine  the  original  form  from 
any  indications,  whether  of  pits  or  triggers,  which  might 
represent  members  now  gone  or  the  directions  in  which  the 
remaining  blocks  point. 

It  is  too  highly  speculative  to  assume  that  the  stone 
marked  A  on  plan  occupied  the  centre  of  a  pentagon,  of 
which  the  three  other  standing  stones  marked  three  angles, 
yet  the  angles  subtended  at  A  are  both  approximately  72*. 
We  mention  the  coincidence  merely  to  dismiss  it,  and  to 
record  that  all  search  for  stones  which  should  have  com- 
pleted the  figure  was  fruitless. 

The  largest  stone  stands  1  ft.  11  in.  in  height,  and  measures 
:^5  in.  by  4|  in. 

One  hundred  and  eighty-one  feet  from  stone  A,  and  bear- 
ing N.  109'  57'  W.,  is  the  centre  of  a  small  cairn  surrounded 
by  an  imperfect  stone  circle  of  9  ft.  8  in.  diameter ;  this,  as 
mentioned  above,  is  marked  on  the  Ordnance,  but  not 
correctly  described.  A  line  from  the  cairn  to  A  passes 
through  another  stone  of  the  group.  The  horizon  over  the 
cairn  has  an  elevation  of  1"  15'. 

[See  Plate  VIII,  fig.  2.] 

TtoiU  Hill.— Devon,  VII,  S.E.  Long.  S"  43'  23^",  lat. 
51"  10'  26f ".     Marked  on  Ordnance  Survey. 

This  group  consists  of  five  stones,  all  standing,  and  re- 
sembles a  deformed  quadrilateral.  One  line  appears 
sufficiently  well  marked,  since  three  stones  are  fixed  on 
it,  and  two  of  these  point  along  the  alinement,  which  bears 
N.  15**  W.  The  Northern  horizon  is  elevated  V  50',  and  the 
Southern  horizon  is  neither  elevated  nor  depressed. 


EXE.     PLAIN  . 

VII.S.W                                     PLATE  VIH 

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STONE  MONUMENTS   OF   EXMOOR  AND  ITS   BORDERS.      547 

The  largest  stone  stands  2  ft.  10  in.  in  height,  and  measures 
14  in.  by  5  in. 

[See  Plate  IX.] 

On  Badgexoorthy  Lees,  Devon,  VII,  N.E.,  South  of  Withy- 
combe  Ridge  Water, — Two  stones  are  shown  on  the  Ordnance 
Survey.  In  addition  to  these,  there  is  a  small  barrow  or 
cairn,  which  should  be  marked  in  long.  3°  44'  9",  and  lat. 
51**  11'  15^".  It  is  19  ft.  in  diameter,  and  lies  251  ft.  from 
the  Eastern  stone,  bearing  109^  1'  W. 

The  Eastern  stone  stands  2  ft.  high,  and  measures 
2  ft.  by  1  ft.  The  Western  stone  stands  2  ft.  4  in.  high,  and 
measures  17  in.  by  8  in.  North-west  from  this  latter  is  a 
hillside  on  which  are  several  stones,  some  evidently  set 
artificially ;  but  whatever  arrangement  or  order  they  may 
once  have  presented  is  now  entirely  lost,  and  natural  rocks 
mingling  with  those  which  have  fallen  further  obscure  the 
matter. 

On  Hoar  Toi\  Devon,  VII,  S.E. — Three  stones  are  marked 
on  the  Ordnance  Survey.  Of  these  two,  lying  near  each 
other,  and  about  long.  3'  46'  20'',  lat.  51'  10'  16",  are  not 
much  above  ground,  and  while  probably  set  stones,  call  for 
no  further  remark. 

The  third  lies,  long.  ^  46'  28",  lat.  51^  10'  lOJ",  approxi- 
mately  South-west  from  the  others.  It  stands  1  ft.  11  in. 
high,  and  measures  20  in.  by  5  in.  We  cannot  detect  any 
companions. 

On  the  hill  between  Warcombe  Water  and  West  Lyn  River, 
especially  on  its  Northern  slopes,  are  several  standing  stones 
of  no  great  dimensions.  These  are  rather  widely  scattered, 
but  it  is  possible  that  careful  search  might  be  repaid.  On 
the  same  hillside  we  found  several  flint  chips  and  cores  in 
the  mole-heaps,  and  this  neighbourhood  has  yielded  some 
good  stone  implements. 

Valley  of  Rocks,  Lynton, — The  Valley  of  Rocks,  formerly 
and  more  happily  the  Valley  of  Stones,  has  suffered  in  many 
ways  from  over-ardent  enthusiasts.  Almost  alone  of  North 
Devon  localities,  it  has  had  the  Druids  quartered  upon  it. 
PoLWHELE,  Lyttleton,  and  others  conspired  in  the  eighteenth 
century  to  create  a  druidic  atmosphere,  and  the  haze  is  even 
yet  hardly  dispelled.     Polwhele^  writes : — 

In  the  meantime,  shapeless  piles  of  stone,  on  Exmoor  or  the 
adjacent  country,  miglit  be  approached  as  rock-idols  of  the  Britons. 

^  ''Historical  Views  of  Devonshire,"  p.  64. 
2m2 


548      STONE  MONUMENTS  OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  BORDERS. 

The  Valley  of  Stones,  indeed,  in  the  vicinity  of  Exmoor,  is  so 
awfully  magnificent  that  we  need  not  hesitate  in  pronouncing  it 
to  liave  been  the  favourite  residence  of  Druidism.  .  .  .  The 
Valley  of  Stones  has  a  close  resemblance  to  several  of  those  spots 
in  Cornwall  which  tradition  has  sanctified  with  the  venerable 
names  of  rock-idols,  Logan-stones,  or  rock-basons;  and  the  North 
of  Devon,  though  it  may  furnish  us  with  no  tradition  of  the 
Druids,  must  yet  be  examined  with  an  eye  to  druidical  antiqui- 
ties. .  .  .  Not  that  the  Druids  formed  these  scenes.  No ;  they 
only  availed  themselves  of  such  recesses ;  to  which  they  annexed 
sanctity,  by  commemorating  there,  the  rites  of  religion.  The 
rock-idols  are  purely  natural — as  natural  as  the  groves  of  Mona. 
.  .  .  The  whole  army  of  Xerxes  could  not  have  raised,  by  force 
or  skill,  such  ledges  of  rock,  piled  up  in  the  Valley  of  Stones,  as 
if  by  human  industry.  The  most  remarkable  rock-idol  in  this 
valley  is  the  Cheesewring.  Lyttleton  observes  that  it  greatly 
resembles  the  Cheesewring  near  Altemon.  Between  Combmartin 
and  Linton  (says  the  Dean),  and  opposite  to  what  you  apprehend 
to  be  a  Druid  gorfeddan,  is  a  karn  of  rocks,  which  they  call  the 
Cheesewring.     It  is  much  like  that  at  Altemon. 

And  again : —  ^ 

In  the  central  part  of  the  Valley  of  Stones  there  are  several 
plain  circles,  in  diameter  about  forty  feet. 

Later,  in  his  book,  Polwhele  appears  to  have  a  suspicion 
that  others  sometimes  failed  in  that  discretion  which  should 
mark  archaeological  speculation.     He  writes : —  ^ 

Not  that  I  can  trace  at  this  moment,  with  an  ingenious  corre- 
spondent, "  the  ruins  of  a  very  great  temple  at  Sticklepath,  near 
Zeal-Monachorum,  not  far  from  Drewsteignton ;  the  fragments  of 
which  (he  says)  are  scattered  through  the  village  and  over  the 
sides  of  the  mountain  on  which  it  was  probably  erected."  The 
same  gentleman  declares  that  "  the  Valley  of  Stones  is  filled  w^ith 
the  stupendous  ruins  of  some  Cuthito  or  Druid  temple,  where 
there  was  a  hanging-stone  (so  characteristic  of  these  structures), 
till  the  wind  blowing  down  a  great  mass  of  the  ruins,  the  end  of 
one  piece  of  rock  fell  against  this  stone,  and  it  is  now  quite  im- 
moveable." 

We  are  inclined  to  add  with  Polwhele,  but  in  a  dif- 
ferent sense  from  his,  "  This  much  far  the  ages  of  primitive 
Druidism  !"  But,  in  fact,  there  was  to  be  more,  for  an 
open  letter,  printed  and  bearing  date  26  January,  1854, 
contains  the  words : — 

Improperly  continuing  the  dominion  and  control  of  the  Valley 
of  Rocks  in  the  hands  of  those  who  have  misused  it  for  the  last 

1  Op.  cit.,  p.  62.  '  Op,  cU.,  p.  94. 


STONB  MONUMENTS   OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS   BORDERS.      549 

fifty  years,  and  have  committed  and  encouraged  the  commission  of 
multitudes  of  acts,  such  as  the  building  of  ugly  stone  walls  and 
fences,  and,  worse  than  either,  the  removal  of  immense  Druidical 
stones  and  circles,  etc.,  etc.,  for  the  purpose  of  selling  them  for 
gate-posts. 

Cook's  "Topography"  (circ,  1822-3)  probably  borrows 
from  PoLWHELE  in  asserting : — 

The  central  part  of  the  valley  contains  several  circles  of  stone, 
above  forty  feet  in  diameter,  most  probably  Druidical  remains. 

We  have  carefully  and  minutely  examined  the  valley, 
and  we  find  at  the  point  marked  "  hut  circles  "  on  the  Ord- 
nance Survey  (Devon,  II,  S.E.)  certain  collections  of  stone 
which  may  possibly  be  the  remains  of  huts ;  while  South  of, 
and  under,  Castle  Bock  there  is  a  circle  or  pound  of  40  ft. 
internal  diameter.  The  Ordnance  Survey  rather  suggests 
that  this  consists  of  discrete  stones,  but  it  is  simply  the 
ruin  of  a  circular  wall  or  fence. 

In  the  absence  of  those  particular  descriptions  which  we 
should  have  expected  to  find  in  the  literature  had  any 
columnar  circles  ever  existed,  we  conclude  that  the  remains 
now  visible  are  fair  samples  of  a  collection  formerly  some- 
what larger.  And  we  do  not  fail  to  remember  that 
PoLWHELE  described  the  very  ordinary  huts  of  G-rimspound, 
on  Dartmoor,  as  among  the  most  remarkable  druidic  circles 
in  Devonshire.  So  great  has  been  the  change  induced  in 
archaeological  methods  by  the  investigations  of  recent  years 
that  the  Valley  of  St&iies  is  one  of  the  least  likely  places,  to 
modern  eyes,  in  which  to  search  for  stone  monuments  other 
than  the  remains  of  dwellings  and  their  appurtenances. 

GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 

The  stone  monuments  we  have  now  described  are 
strikingly  unlike  any  others  at  present  known  in  Devon 
and  Cornwall,  and,  indeed,  we  do  not  know  where  to  point 
for  their  fellows. 

At  the  same  time  there  is  every  indication  that  their 
period  is  identical  with  that  of  the  other  West-country 
remains.  The  barrows  associated  with  them,  so  far  as 
examined,  indicate  a  date  in  the  early  Bronze  or  late  Neo- 
lithic periods.  A  few  of  the  stone  rows,  especially  that  near 
Ujce  Head,  form  connecting  links  with  the  Dartmoor  series. 
One  barrow  at  least,  near  Brockenhirrow  Lane,  has  been 
found  to  contain  a  kistvaen,  and  within  it  an  urn-buriaU 


550      STONE   MONUMENTS  OF  EXAIOOR  AND  ITS   BORDERS. 

while  the  urn  contained,  in  addition  to  burnt  bone,  a  well- 
worn  flint  fabricator.  In  shape  the  um  closely  resembles 
that  found  at  Westerlafid  Beacon,  and  described  in  last  year's 
Barrow  Eeport.  All  this  connects  closely  with  Dartmoor 
and  South  Devon. 

We  are  strongly  of  opinion  that  it  is  most  desirable  that 
the  survey  which  we  have  commenced  should  be  completed 
by  the  thorouf^h  examination  of  that  portion  of  the  Ex:moor 
district  which  lies  within  the  borders  of  Somersetshire. 

The  limit  we  have  here  set  ourselves  is  that  all  the  remains 
above  described  should  fall  within  the  area  of  these  sheets 
of  the  Ordnance  Survey  which  bear  Devonshire  numbers. 

We  are  not  in  agreement  with  the  latest  astronomical 
hypothesis  as  to  the  origin  and  intent  of  stone  rows  and 
circles.  And  the  fact  that  we  have  in  most  cases  given  the 
elevation  of  the  surrounding  horizon  must  not  in  any  way 
be  taken  as  even  a  qualified  assent  to  such  views.  Since 
there  are  some  who  regard  these  measurements  as  essential 
to  a  complete  survey,  we  have  so  far  conceded  the  point  as 
to  give  the  information  which  their  theories  demand. 

Whether  orientation  be  a  matter  of  moment  or  not,  we 
have  tabulated  the  directions  of  the  principal  lines  in  the 
various  groups,  and  give  the  details  below.  The  nearest 
half-degree  is  given  in  every  case. 

In  quadrilaterals  the  diagonals  appear  to  be  the  most 
important  lines. 

AZIMUTHS   OF   DIAGONALS    OF   QUADRILATERALS. 

TABLE  I. 
Loiigstonc  Allotment, 

Chapman  Barrows 
Woodborougli  Arms 
Brendon  Two  Gates 
Trout  Hill,  near  fence 

We  add  a  tal)le  of  diameters,  as  there  is  no  sufficient 
evidence  on  which  to  decide  that  these  were  really  of  less 
importance  than  the  diagonals. 

AZIMUTHS   OF   DIAMETERS    OF   QUADRILATERALS. 

TABLE   II. 
Longstone  Allotment, 

Chairman  Barrows     N.  44** 
Woodborough  Arms  .     N.  74"* 

Brendon  Two  Gates  .     N.  80"* 

Trout  Hill,  near  fence,  not  ascertainable. 


N. 

89''  30'  E. 

N. 

oo    o'AV. 

N. 

34"    O'E. 

IS. 

22"    0'  W. 

X. 

AT    O'E. 

N. 

52"    O'W. 

N. 

10^    O'E. 

>:. 

87°    O'W. 

O'E. 

N.  46'    0'  W, 

O'E. 

N.  17°  30'  W. 

O'E. 

N.    8-    O'W 

STONE  MONUMENTS  OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  BORDERS.      551 

In  the  parallelograms  we  assume  that  the  direction  of 
the  longest  diameter  would  be  the  alinement. 

AZIMUTHS   OF  LONGEST   DIAMETERS   OF  PARALLELOGRAMS. 

TABLE  III. 

Fm-zehill  Common     .  .         .     N.  12^  30'  W. 

Little  Toms  Hill        .  .         .     N.    3'    0' W. 

East  Pinford  .  .         .     N.  89°  30'  W. 

The  alinements  of  the  undoubted  rows  are  as  follows. 
Where  a  row  is  double,  a  centre  line  between  its  members 
is  taken. 

AZIMUTHS   OF  STONE   ROWS. 

TABLE  IV. 

Westcote's  Row,  Maddock  Down  (1)  N.  SV  0'  W. 

Beiijamy,  Ruckham  Combe  .         .     N.  29'  30'  E. 
Winaway      .             .             .         .     N.  20'        W.  approx* 

Near  Setta  Barrow   .  .         .     N.  45'*  0'  E. 

Brendon  Common,  Cheriton  Ridge     N.  78**  0'  E. 
Brendon  Common, 

near  Farley  Water  N.  34"*  0'  E.  and  N.  62°  0'  W. 

Brav  Common,  Little  Melcombe    .     N.  54'  0'  E. 

Near  Exe  Head         .  .         .     N.  31"  0' E. 

Furzehill  Common    .  .         .     N.  55'  0'  E. 

Near  Brockenburrow  Lane  (?)        .     N.  76'  0'  W.  approx. 

We  have  omitted  any  doubtful  remains  which  may  have 
been  classed  with  the  rows  for  convenience  only. 

No  very  hopeful  generalization  is  derivable  from  these 
tables.  The  total  angle  covered  is  179  degrees,  and  the 
widest  unoccupied  gaps  are  21  degrees  between  N.  83'  W. 
and  N.  62'  W.,  24  degrees  between  N.  46"  W.  and  N.  22"*  W., 
and  19J  degrees  between  N.  10''  E.  and  N.  29'  30'  E. 

Some  significance  may  possibly  be  attributed  to  certain 
apparent  attempts  to  indicate  the  cardinal  points.  Thus  the 
diagonals  of  the  Chapman  Barrow  qnekdrilsLteTal  deviate  from 
North  and  South  by  2^  only,  and  from  East  and  West  by 
0^  30'  only. 

The  parallelogram  on  Little  Totm  Hill  points  within 
3"  of  North  and  South,  and  the  parallelogram  on  £ast 
Pinford  alines  within  0**  30'  of  East  and  West. 

Whether  this  last-named  feature  have  significance  or  not, 
it  is  somewhat  remarkable  that  the  stone  rows  have  much 
the  same  range  as  those  on  Dartmoor,  and  exhibit  a  similar 
preference  for  the  N.W.  and  S.E.  quadrants.     Winaway  is 


552      STONE  MONUMENTS  OF  EXMOOR  AND  ITS  B0BDSB8. 

the  one  exception  of  any  importance,  and  is  paralleled  on 
Dartmoor  by  the  equally  exceptional  row  at  Challacomie. 

With  the  experience  gained  on  Dartmoor,  we  do  not  pre- 
tend to  have  exhausted  the  area  covered  by  our  survey — 
doubtless  more  will  yet  be  found;  indeed,  near  Hoaroak 
there  remains  a  row  which  has  been  reported  to  us,  and 
which  we  have  not  yet  examined.  But  we  hope  to  have 
rescued  from  oblivion  the  principal  survivals  of  a  great 
group  of  antiquities,  the  destruction  of  which  is  still  pro- 
ceeding. Is  it  beyond  hope  that  the  publication  of  these 
papers  and  the  influence  of  our  Association  may  lead  to  a 
check  in  the  demolition  of  these  unique  stone  monuments  ? 
And  cannot  road-menders  and  hedgers  be  made  to  respect 
the  barrows  and  cairns  of  Exmoor  and  its  commons,  which 
form  at  present  one  of  their  chief  sources  of  supply  for 
stone?  If  not,  then  whatever  antiquarian  work  is  to  be 
done  in  North  Devon  must  be  quickly  done,  and  in  any 
fevent  the  district  affords  a  fruitful  and  little-worked  field 
for  operations.  Especially  is  it  interesting  as  showing  how 
much  must  have  been  lost  elsewhere  in  the  county  as  the 
tide  of  agriculture  flowed. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS. 


*  Indicates  Life  Meinbera.  f  Indicates  Honorary  Members. 

t  Indicates  Members  who  hare  Joined  for  the  current  year  only. 

Italics  indicate  Members  whose  addresses  are  incomplete  or  unknown. 

The  Names  of  Members  of  the  Council  are  printed  in  small  capitals. 

Notice  of  Changes  of  Residence  and  of  Decease  of  Members  should  be  sent  to 

Mr.  J.  Brooking- Ro we,  Castle  Barbican,  Plympton,  or  to 

Mr.  Maxwell  Adams,  Wolborough  House,  Newton  Abbot,  the  General  Secretaries 


Tear  of 
Election. 

1901  Acland,  Sir  C.  T.  D.,  Bart.,  Killerton  Park,  near  Exeter. 
1881  Adams,  CoL  H.  C,  Lion  House,  Exmouth. 

1896  Adams,  Maxwell,  Wolborough  House,  Newtoa  Abbot  (Hon. 

General  Secretary). 
1900*Adain8,  S.  P.,  Elbury  Lodge,  Newton  Abbot 
1906  Adkins,  Capt.  A.  S.,  The  Old  Hall,  Manton,  Rutland. 

1886  Aldridge,  C,  m.d.,  Bellevue  House,  Plympton. 
1889tAlford,  Rev.  D.  P.,  m.a..  Elm  Grove,  Taunton. 

1887  Alger,  W.  H.,  j.p.,  8,  Esplanade,  Plymouth. 
1896*Allhu8en,  C.  Wilton,  Pinhay,  Lyme  Regis. 
1874  Alsop,  R.,  Landscore  Lodge,  Teignmouth. 
1877  Amery,  Jasper,  18,  Fleet  Street,  London,  E.C. 
1869  Amert,  J.  S.,  Druid,  Ashburton. 

1869  Amert,  P.  F.  S.,  j.p.,  o.c,  Druid,  Ashburton  (Hon.  General 

Treasurer). 
1891  Amory,  Sir  J.  Heathcoat,  Bart.,  Knightshayes,  Tiverton. 

1897  Anderson,  Rev.  Irvine  K.,  Mary  Tavy  Rectory,  Tavistock. 
1901  Andrew,  Sidney,  18,  West  Southernhay,  Exeter. 

1894  Andrews,  John,  Traine,  Modbury,  Ivy  bridge. 

1863  Appleton,  Edward,  F.aLB.A.,  m.Ihst.c.b.,  1,  Vaughan  Parade, 

Torquay. 
1901  Arthur,  Mrs.,  Atherington   Rectory,  Umberleigh,  R.S.O., 

North  Devon. 
1906  Atkinson,  John  P.,  m.r.c.b.,  l.r.c.p.,  Shortlands,  Lynton. 
1906  Atkinson,  Mrs.  Engadine,  Lynton. 

1906  Baker,  Rev.  H.  G.,  Bovey  Tracey. 

1906  Barlow,  Mrs.  Andrew,  c/o  Mrs.  Da  we,  Petticombe,  Monk- 
leigh,  Torrington. 


554  LIST  OF  M£B(BBR8. 

1878*BARiNa-GouLD,  Rev.  S.,  m.a.,  Lew  Trenchard,  Lewdown. 

1897  Barran,  Charles,  Berry  House,  Totnes. 

1902*Barratt,  Francis  Lay  land,  m.a.,  m.p.,  68,  Cadogan  Square, 
London,  S.W. 

1902  Barrett,  B.  Skardon,  Courtenay  Street,  Plymouth. 

1898  Bayley,  Arthur  R.,  b.a.,  f.r.Hist.8.,  St.  Margaret's,   Great 

Malvern. 
1894*Bayly,  Miss  A.,  Seven  Trees,  Plymouth. 

1903  Bayly,  John,  Highlands,  Ivybridge. 

1902  Bedford,  George,  Berner's  Hill,  Torquay. 

1895  Bellew,  P.  F.  B.,  Colley  House,  Tedburn  St.  Mary. 
1906  Bent,  Major  Morris,  Deerswell,  Paignton. 

1905  Bennett,  Ellery  A.,  17,  Courtenay  Street,  Plymouth. 

1906  Bennett,  Miss  E.  D.,  15a,  The  Beacon,  Exmouth. 

1899  Beresford,  His  Honour  Judge,  The  Hall,  Wear  Giflford. 
1906  Be  van,  Cecil  N.,  Lyn  Valley  Hotel,  Lynmouth. 
1895*Bickford,  Col.,  Newquay,  Cornwall. 

1890  Bingham,  Rev.  W.  P.  S.,  m.a.,  Vicarage,  Kenton,  Exeter. 
1880  Birch,  Rev.  W.  M.,  m.a.,  Bampton  Aston,  Oxford. 

1904  Bird,     W.     Montagu,     j.p.,     Dacre     House,     Ringmore, 

Teignmouth. 

1897  Birks,  Rev.  H.  A.,  m.a.,  Kingsbridge. 
1889  Birmingham  Free  Library,  Birmingham. 

1904  Bissoll,  J.  Broad,  j.p.,  Bishopsteignton,  Teignmouth. 
1886  Blackler,  T.  A.,   Royal  Marble  Works,   St.   Marychurch, 

Torquay. 

1903  Blissett,  T.,  Grey's  Lodge,  Torquay. 

1905  Bolt,  A.,  Princetown. 

1902  Bond,  F.  Bligh,  f.r.i.b.a.,  Star  Life  Building,  St.  Augustine's 

Parade,  Bristol. 
1901   Bond,  P.  G.,  105,  Union  Street,  Plymouth. 
1901  Bond,  Miss  S.  C,  South  Danville,  New  Hampshire,  U.S.A 

1906  Bond,  W.  F.,  b.a.,  Lancing  College,  Shoreham,  Sussex. 
1906  Bovey,    Thomas    William    Widger,    M.R.C.S.,    l.r.c.p.Lokd., 

Abbotsbury,  Dorset. 
1890*Bo wring,  Thos.  B.,  7,  Palace  Gate,  London,  W. 

1898  Boyer,  Commander  R,  U.N.,  Rosemary  Cottage,  Clayhidon, 

Wellington,  Somerset. 
1900*Bradridge,  C.  Kingsley,  13,  Talbot  Street,  Cardiff. 
1905  Brendon,  Charles  E.,  Tranby  Lodge,  Saltash. 
1892  Brendon,  W.  T.,  Whistley,  Yelverton,  RS.O. 
1905  Brenton,  W.  H.,  M.R.c.s.BNa.,  l.r.c.p.Lond.,  l.s.a.,  12,  Portland 

Villas,  Plymouth. 

1905  Briggs,  C.  a.,  F.E.8.,  Rock  House,  Lynmouth,  North  Devon 

(Hon.  Local  Secretary). 
1882  Brushfield,    T.     N.,     m.d.,    f.s.a..    The    Cliff,    Budleigh 
Salterton. 

1906  Budgett,  Mrs.  W.  Hill,  8,  Worcester  Terrace,  Clifton,  Bristol. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS.  655 

1904  Bullock,  Miss  Henrietta  Ann,  1,  Brimley  Villas,  Teignmouth. 
1887  Bulteel,  Tliomas,  j.p.,  Katiford,  Plymouth. 
1873*Burdett-Coutts,   Right  Hon.   Baroness,    1,   Stratton    Street, 

Piccadilly,  London. 
1887  BuRNARD,  Robert,  j.p.,  f.s.a.,  Huccaby  House,  Princetown 

(Vice-President). 
1887  Burnard,  Mrs.  F.  L.,  Huccaby  House,  Princetown. 
1906  By  water.  Prof.  Ingram,  m.a.,  d.Litt.,  Athenaeum  Club,  Pall 

Mall,  London,  S.W. 


1902  Calmady,  Charles  Calmady,  Stoney  Croft,  Horrabridge. 
1891  Carpenter,  H.  J.,  m.a.,  ll.m.,  Penmead,  Tiverton. 
1866*Carpenter-Gamier,  J.,  33,  Queen's  Gate  Gardens,  S.W. 

1905  Carr,  Mrs.  Emily  L.,  Broad  parks,  Pinhoe,  Exeter. 

1902  Carter,  Miss  E.  G.,  Hartland,  North  Devon. 

1899  Cartwright,  Miss  M.  Anson,  11,  Mont-le-Grand,  Heavitree, 

Exeter. 
1895*Ca8h,  A.  Midgley,  m.d.,  Limefield,  Torquay. 
1898  Cave,  Sir  C.  D.,  Bart.,  Sidbury  Manor,  Sidmouth. 

1900  Chalmers,  J.  H.,  Holcombe,  Moretonhampstead. 

1906  Chambers,  R.  E.  E.,  Pill   House,  Bishop's  Tawton,  Barn- 

staple. 
1899*Champernowne,  A.  M.,  Hood  Manor,  Totnes. 
1890  Chanter,  C.  E.  R.,  Broadmead,  Barnstaple. 

1901  Chanter,  Rev.  J.  F.,  m.a.,  Parracombe  Rectory,  Barnstaple. 
1884  Chapman,  H.  M.,  St.  Martin's  Priory,  Canterbury. 

1881  Chapman,    Rev.    Professor,    m.a.,    ll.d..    Western   College, 
Clifton,  Bristol. 

1903  Chapman,  J.  C,  m.Imt.c.b.,  Cad  well  House,  Torquay. 
1906  Chappie,  W.  E.  Pitfield,  The  Shrubbery,  Axminster. 
1906  Chappie,  Miss  Pitfield,  The  Shrubbery,  Axminster. 

1902  Charbonnier,  T.,  Art  Gallery,  Lynraouth. 
1902  Ching,  Thomas,  j.p..  Mount  Tamar,  Bere  Alston. 

1896  Chopb,  R  Pearse,  b.a..  The  Patent  Ofl&ce,  Chancery  Lane, 
E.C. 

1902  Christie,  A.  L.,  Tapeley  Park,  Instow,  North  Devon. 
1888  Clark,  IL,  Carlton  House,  Exmouth. 
1869*Clark,  R  A.,  The  Larches,  Torquay. 

1905  Clarke,  Miss  Kate,  2,  Mont-le-Grand,  Exeter. 

1901  Clayden,    A.  W.,  m.a.,   f.g.s.,    St.    John's,    Polsloe   Road, 
Heavitree,  Exeter. 

1903  Clay-Finch,  Mrs.,  Bark  Hill  House,  Whitchurch,  Salop. 
1871  Clements,  Rev.  H.  G.  J.,  m.a.,  Vicarage,  Sidmouth. 
1881*CuFPORD,  Right  Hon.  Lord,  m.a.,  j.p.,  Ugbrooke,  Chudleigh. 
1893  Cocks,  J.  W.,  Madeira  Place,  Torquay. 

1906  Cole,  Rev.  R.  T.,  m.a.,  7,  Great  George  Street,  Park  Street^ 

Bristol. 


556  LIST  OF  MSBIBBRS. 

1898*CoLSRiDQB,   Right  Hon.   Lord,   iljl,  K.a,   The   Chanter's 
House,  Ottery  St.  Mary. 

1894  Collier,  George  B.,  m.a.,  Whinfield,  South  Bient 
1889  Collier,  Mortimer  J.,  Foxhams,  Horrabridge. 

1896  CoUings,  The  Right  Hod.  Jesse,  m.p.,  Edgbaston,  Birmingham. 
1892  Colson,  F.  H.,  m.a.,  The  College,  Plymouth. 

1900  Commin,  James  G.,  High  Street,  Exeter. 

1903  Cooke,  T.  O.  Preston,  j.p.,  Elmhurst,  Teignmouth. 
1881*Cornish,  Rev.  J.  F.,  25,  Montpelier  Street,  Brompton  Boad, 

London,  S.W. 
1906  Cornish,    H.    P.,    p.r.g.s.,    Devonia,    Long    Framlington, 
l»Iorthumberland. 

1904  Coryndon,  R.  T.,  2,  London  Wall  Buildings,  London,  KC. 

1901  Cowie,  Herbert,  m.a.,  Courtlands,  Chelston,  Torquay. 

1895  Cowlard,  C.  L.,  Madford,  Launceston. 
1898  Cox,  C.  E.,  Honiton. 

1901  Cox,  Irwin  E.  B.,  m.p.,  Moat  Mount,  Mill  Hill,  Middlesex. 
1906  Cox,  Rev.  W.  E.,  m.a.,  The  Rectory,  Lynton. 

1904  Crespin,  C.  Legaesicke,  51,  West  Cromwell  Road,  London, 

S.W. 
1887  Crews,  F.  H  K,  7,  Queen's  Gate,  Plymouth. 
1898  Croft,  Sir  Alfred  W.,  K.ai.K.,  j.p.,  m.a.,  Rumleigh,  Bere 

Alston,  R.S.O.  (Viob-Prbsidbnt). 
1901  Cross,  William,  m.i.ck.,  Kittery  Court,  Kingswear. 
1886  Cumming,  Stephen  A.,  The  Corbyn,  Cockington,  Torquay. 
1906  Curtis,  Miss  E.  J.  The  Cedar  Trees,  Lexden  Road,  Colchester. 

1890tDallinger,  Rev.  W.  H.,  ll.d.,  f.r.s.,  f.l.8.,  etc.,  38,  Newstead 
Road,  Lee,  London,  S.E. 

1901  Dangar,  Rev.  Preb.  J.  G.,  d.d.,  St.  Luke*s,  Baring  Crescent, 

Exeter. 

1896  Davies,  W.,  Bellfield,  Kingsbridge. 

1905  Davies,  0.,  Princetown. 

1897  Davis,  J.  W.,  Doneraile,  Exmouth. 

1878  Davson,  F.  A.,  m.d.,  j.p.,  Mount  Gal  pine,  Dartmouth. 
1878  Davy,  A.  J.,  Abbeylield,  Falkland  Koad,  Torquay. 

1902  Dawe,  Mrs.,  Petticombe,  ^lonkleigh,  Torrington. 

1906  Dawkins,  Edwin  Henry,  Axminster. 

1888*Daw8on,  Hon.  Richard,  j.p.,  d.l.,  m.a.,  Holne  Park,  Ashburton. 

1904  Dawson,  Rev.  William,  Teignmouth. 

1905  Dewey,  Rev.  Stanley  D.,  m.a..  Rectory,  Moretonhampstead. 
1902  Dimond- Churchward,    Rev.     Preb.,    m.d..    The    Vicarage, 

Northam,  North  Devon, 
1882  Dob,  Gkorqb  M.,  Enfield,  Great  Torrington. 
1898*Donaldson,  Rev.  E.  A.,   Py  worthy   Rectory,  Hols  worthy. 

North  Devon. 
1904  Drake,  Major  William  Hedley,  Bryn willow,  Polsham  Park, 

Paignton. 


LIST  OF  members;  557 

1902  Drayton,  Harry  G.,  201,  High  Street,  Exeter. 
1906  Drewett,  Charles  E.  Bratton  Fleming,  Barnstaple. 
1905  Duke,  C.  L.,  19,  Portland  Villas,  Plymouth. 
1889  Duncan,  A.  G.,  j.p.,  South  Bank,  Bideford. 
1898*Dunning,  Sir  K  H.,  j.p.,  Stoodleigh  Court,  Tiverton. 
1891  DuNSFORD,  G.  L.,  Villa  Franca,  17,  Wonford  Road,  Mount 
Radford,  Exeter. 

1901  Durnford,  George,  j.p.,  o.a.,   f.o.a.Oam.,  Greenhythe,  West- 

mount,  Montreal,  Canada. 
1905  Dyer,  S.  R.,  m.d.,  Princetown. 
1879  Dymond,  Arthur  H,  14,  Bedford  Circus,  Exeter. 
1898  Dymond,  Robert,  j.p..  The  Mount,  Bideford. 

1902  Dymond,  Mrs,  Robert,  The  Mount,  Bideford. 


1901  Earle,  The  Right  Rev.  Alfred,  d.d..  Bishop  of  Marlborough, 
Dean  of  Exeter,  The  Deanery,  Exeter. 

1898  Eccles,  J.  A.  J.,  Stent  wood,  Dunkeswell  Abbey,  Honiton. 

1891  Edmonds,  Rev.  Chancellor,  b.d..  The  Close,  Exeter. 

1906  Edmonds,  Mrs.,  Clooneavin,  Lynton. 

1901  Edye,  Lieut.-Col.,  St.  James's  Club,  Montreal,  Canada, 

1896  Elliot,  Edmund  A.  S.,  m.r.c.s.,  m.b.o.u.,  Woodville,  Kings- 
bridge. 

1877  Elliot,  R  L.,  Tregie,  Paignton. 

1906  Elliott,  Christopher,  Greenover,  Brixham. 

1893  Elliott,  J.  C,  3,  Powderham  Terrace,  Teignmouth. 

1903  Ellis,  Martin,  The  Larches,  Black  Torrington,  Highampton, 

North  Devon. 

1878  Elworthy,  F.  T.,  f.s.a.  (President),  Foxdown,  Wellington, 

Somerset. 
1888  Ermen,  Miss,  St.  Catherine's,  Torre,  Torquay. 
1898*Evans,  Arnold,  4,  Lithfield  Place,  Clifton. 

1904  Evans,  Major  G.  A.  Penrhys,  Furzedene,  Budleigh  Salterton. 
1895  Evans,  H.  Montague,  10,  Upper  KnoUys  Terrace,  Alma 

Road,  Plymouth. 
1886  Evans,  J.  J.  Ogilvie,  1,  Orchard  Gardens,  Teignmouth. 
1877  Evans,  J.  L.,  4,  Lithfield  Place,  Clifton. 
1880*Evan8,  Parker  N.,  Park  View,  Brockley,  West  Town,  RS.O., 

Somerset. 
1869*Evan8,  Sir  J.,  d.cl.,  p.as.,  p.s.a.,  etc.,  Nash  Mills,  Hemel 

Hempstead,  Herts. 
1902*Eve,  H.  T.,  k.c.,  m.p.,  PuUabrook,  Bovey  Tracey,  and  4,  New 

Square,  Lincoln's  Inn,  London,  W.C. 
1901  Every,  Rev.  H.,  m.a..  The  Rowdens,  Torquay. 

1904  Every,  Richard,  St.  Mary's,  Salisbury. 

1900  Exell,  Rev.  J.  S.,  m.a..  Stoke  Fleming  Rectory,  Dartmouth. 

1905  Exeter,  The  Rt.   Rev.  The  Lord  Bishop  of.  The  Palace, 

Exeter  (President  Elect). 


558  LIST  OF  MKMBEBS. 

1905  Falcon,  T.  A.,  m.a.,  Sea  View,  Braunton,  Devon. 

1906  Fargus,    Capt.    Harold,    D.8.O.,    The    Pinea,    Woody   Bay, 

Parracombe. 
1906JFargu8,  Mrs.  Amy,  Woody  Bay,  Parracombe,  R.S.O. 
1906  Fayrer,  Major  J.  0.  S.,  Thaudicani,  Paignton. 
1896  Firth,  H.  Mallaby,  Kiiowle,  Ashburton. 
1896*Firth,  R.  W.,  Place,  Ashburton. 
1903  Fisher,  Arthur,  St.  Aubyns,  Tiverton. 
1902  Fitzroy,  Miss  Adela,  Weston  House,  Chudleigh. 
1906  Fitzsimons,  John  Bingham.,  m.d.,  The  Cottage,  Lympstone. 
1876  Fleming,  J.,  83,  Portland  Place,  London,  W. 
1906  Ford,  A.  L.,  j.p.,  Gwynallt,  Lynmouth. 
1900  Ford,  Miss  Kate  St.  Clair,  Ford  Park,  Chagford,  Newton 

Abbot. 
1898  Fortescue,  Miss,  The  Kectory,  Honiton. 
1906  Fortescue,  Rev.  Hugh  John,  m.a..  The  Rectory,  Honiton. 
1906  Fortescue,  Rt.  Hon.  the  Earl,  Castle  Hill,  South  Molton. 
1867*Foster,  Rev.  J.  P.,  m.a.,  Cotswold  Park,  Cirencester. 
1876*Fowler,  Rev.  Canon  W.  W.,  Earley  Vicarage,  Reading. 
1876*Fox,  Charles,  Tlie  Pynes,  Warliugham-on-the-Hill,  Surrey. 
1906  Fox,  Miss,  9,  AthensBum  Terrace,  Plymouth. 
1892  Francis,  H.,  c.b.,  12,  Lockyer  Street,  Plymouth. 

1900  Francken,  W.  A.,  Okehampton,  and  Junior  Conservative 

Club,  Albemarle  Street,  S.W. 

1901  Freeman,  F.  F.,  Abbotsfield,  Tavistock. 
1894*Frost,  F.  C,  F.8.I.,  Regent  Street,  Teignmouth. 

1876  Fulford,  F.  D.,  j.p.,  d.l..  Great  Fulford,  Dunsford,  Exeter. 
1880  Furneaux,  J.,  Shute  House,  11,  Windsor  Terrace,  Clifton. 


1901  Gauntlett,  George,  27,  Dix*s  Field,  Exeter. 

1900*Gervi.s,  Henry,  m.d.,  f.r.o.p.,  j.p.,  The  Towers,  Hillingdon, 

Middlesex. 
1889  Gibbon,  Rev.  H.,  Fremington,  N.  Devon. 
1891*GiFFAUD,  Hardinge  F.,  Stone  Lodge,  Cheam,  Surrey. 

1901  Giles,  Rev.  A.  L.,  m.a.,  The  Vicarage,  Okehampton. 
1892*GiIl,  Miss,  St.  Peter  Street,  Tiverton. 

1877*Glyde,  K  R,  F.aMKr.soc,  Stateford,  Whitchurch,  Tavistock. 

1902  Goanian,  Thomas,  j.p.,  14,  Butt  Gardens,  Bideford. 
1902  Gorton,  Major  T.,  Instow,  North  Devon. 
1893*Granville,   Rev.    Preb.    R,    m.a.,  Pilton   House,    Pinhoe, 

Exeter. 

1901  Gratwicke,  G.  F.,  York  Road,  Exeter. 
1871  Gregory,  A.  T.,  Gazette  Office,  Tiverton. 

1896  Grose,  S.,  m.d.,  f.r.c.s.,  Bishopsteignton,  Teignmouth. 

1902  Groves-Cooper,  J.,  Wear  Giliord,  Bideford. 
1873*Guyer,  J.  B.,  f.c.s.,  Wrentham,  Torquay. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS.  559 

1880  Hacker,  S.,  Newton  Abbot 

1892  Halsburt,    The   Right   Hon.    the   Earl  of,    4,   Ennismore 

Gardens,  S.W. 
1862  Hamilton,  A.  H.  A.,  m.a.,  j.p.,  Fairfield  Lodge,  Exeter. 
1889  Hamung,  J.  G.,  p.o.s.,  The  Close,  Barnstaple. 
1880  Hamlyn,  James,  j.p.,  Bossell  Park,  Buckfastleigh. 
1880*Hamlyn,  Joseph,  Fullaford,  Buckfastleigh. 
1878  Hamlyn,  W.   B.,   Widecombe  Cot,   Barrington  Koad,  Tor- 

quay. 

1895  Harding,  T.  L.,  Highstead,  Torquay. 

1892  Harpley,  Rev.  F.  R.  A.,  b.a.,  Oversea,  Ashby-de-la-Zouch. 
1862tHARPLEY,    Rev.    W.,    m.a.,    f.o.p.s.,    Clayhanger    Rectory, 

Tiverton. 

1904  Harris,  Major  F.  W.  H.  Davie,  c/o  Messrs.  Holt  and  Co., 

3,  Wliitehall  Place,  London,  S.W. 

1893  Harris,  Miss,  Sunningdale,  Portland  Avenue,  Exmouth. 
1877  Harris,  Rev.  S.  G.,  m.a.,  Highweek,  Newton  Abbot. 
1906  Harrison,  Mrs.,  Engadine,  Lynton. 

1905  Harte,  Walter  J.,  Royal  Albert  Memorial  College,  Exeter. 
1904  Harvey,  Colonel  Charles  Lacon,  Hazeldene,  Exmouth. 
1898*Harvey,  Henry  Fairfax,  Croyle,  near  CuUompton. 

1900  Harvey,    Sir    Robert,    d.l.,   j.p.,    Dundridge,   Totnes,    and 

1,  Palace  Gate,  W. 
1892*Harvby,  T.  H.,  j.p..  Tor  Gate,  Princetown. 
1875*Hatt-Cook,  Herbert,  Hartford  Hall,  Cheshire. 

1906  Havilland,  Rev.  J.  R.  de,  m.a.,  Gidleigh  Rectory,  Chagford, 

R.S.O. 
1890*Heberden,  W.  B.,  c.b.,  Elmfield,  Exeter. 
1906  Hems,  H.,  Fair  Park,  Exeter. 

1906  Henning,  Rev.  J.,  m.a.,  Cockington  Vicarage,  Torquay. 
1888*Hepburii,  T.  H.,  Hele,  Cullorapton. 

1896  Hewetson,  Miss,  Ware,  Buckfastlei*;h. 
1882*HiBRN,  W.  P.,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Castle  House,  Barnstaple. 

1899  Hill,  W.  A.,  4,  Avondale  Villas,  Avenue  Road,  Torquay. 
1862  HiNK,  J.,  P.R.I.RA.,  Lockyer  Street,  Plymouth. 
1892*Hingston,  C.  A.,  m.d.,  Sussex  Terrace,  Plymouth. 

1900  Hoare,  Robert  R,  Coast  Guard  and  Na\tal  Reserve,  Admiralty, 

66,  Victoria  Street,  Westminster. 
1906  Hodges,  Edward,  Queen  Street,  Lynton. 
1898  Hodgson,  T.  V.,  9,  Addison  Road,  Plymouth. 
1903  Holden,  Laurence,  Queen's  Square,  Lancaster. 

1901  Holman,  H.  Wilson,  4,  Lloyd's  Avenue,  Fenchurch  Street, 

London,  EC. 
1901  Holman,  Herbert,  m.a.,  llb.,  Haldon  Lodge,  Teignmouth. 
1893  Holman,    Joseph,    Downside   House,    Downlewne,    Sneyd, 

Bristol. 
1906  Holman,  Francis   Arthur,  Jerviston,   Streatham  Common, 

London,  S.W. 


560  LIST  OF  MBMBKR8. 

1906  Holinan,  Ernest  Symons,  The  Rookery,  Streatham  Common, 

London,  S.W. 
1906  Holmes,  Harold,  Cherryford,  Martinhoe,  Parracombe. 
1872  Hooper,  B.,  Boumbrook,  Torquay. 

1903  Hooper,  H.  Dundee,  m.a.,  Ardvar,  Torquay. 

1892  Hombrook,  W.,  Garfield  Villa,  Stuart  Road,  Devonport. 
1896*Hosegood,  S.,  Ghatford  House,  Glifton,  Bristol 
1889*HuDLE8TON,  W.  H.,  M.A.,  p.as.,  p.o.s..  West  Holme,  Ware- 
ham. 

1895*HuQHBS,  T.  Cann,  m.a.,  f.b.a..  Town  Glerk,  Lancaster. 
1896  Hulbert,    M.,    Ingleside,    Edge    Hill   Road,    Castle    Bar, 
Ealing,  W. 

1901  Humphreys,  H.  Howard,  a.m.i.c.e.,  Glenray,  Wembly-by- 

Harrow. 

1902  Hunt,  Alfred,  Percy  Lodge,  Torquay. 
1868*HuNT,  A.  R.,  M.A.,  P.O.8.,  P.L.8.,  Southwood,  Torquay. 
1906  Hunt,  Rev.  J.  Lyde,  M.A.,  Efiford,  Paignton. 

1876  Hurrell,  J.  S.,  The  Manor  House,  Kingsbridge. 
1886  Huxtable,  James,  2,  Brockman  Road,  Folkestone. 

1893  Iredale,  A.,  Strand,  Torquay. 

1890* Jackson,  Mark,  Homelea,  Purley,  Surrey. 

1904  Jackson,  Rev.  Preb.  P.,  Kingsteignton  Vicarage,  Newton 

Abbot. 

1902  James,  R.  B.,  Hallsannery,  Bideford. 
1906  James,  W.,  Westwood,  Lynton. 

1900  Jeffery,  Captain  Arthur  W.,  Board  of  Trade  Office,  Glasgow. 

1901  Jerman,  J.,  The  Bungalow,  Topsham  Road,  Exeter. 

1906  Jeune,  E.  B.,  J. p.,  The  Manor  House,  Lynmouth  (VicB- 

Prksident). 
1906  Johnston,  Philip  M.,  21,  De  Crespigny  Park,  Denmark  Hill, 

London,  S.E. 
1906  Jones,  J.,  j.p.,  Churchill  House,  Lynton. 
1906  Jordan,  Rev.  W.,  Longraead,  Lynton. 
1883  Jordan,  W.  F.  C.,  Sunnybank,  Teignmouth. 
1871  Jordan,  W.  R.  H.,  Winscott,  Teignmouth. 

1903  Julian,  Henry  Forbes,  Redholme,  Torquay. 
1899*Julian,  Mrs.  Hester,  Redholme,  Torquay. 

1879*Kelland,  W.  H.,  Victoria  Road,  Barnstaple. 

1877*Kellock,  T.  C.,  Highfield,  Totnes. 

1872*Kennaway,  The  Rt.  Hon.  Sir  J.  H.,  Bart,  m.a.,  m.p.,  Escot, 

Ottery  St.  Mary. 
1903  Kestell-Cornish,  The  Rt.  Rev.  Robert,  3,  Victoria  Terrace, 

Exeter. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS.  561 

1880  Kino,  C.  R  B.,  a.r.i.b.a.,  35,  Oakley  Square,  London,  N.W. 
1902  Kirk  wood,  J.  Morriaon,  j.p.,  Yeo  Vale  House,  Bideford. 
1893  Kitson,  J.,  Hengrave,  Torquay. 
1901  Knight,  Mrs.  J.  H.,  The  Firs,  Friar's  Walk,  Exeter. 
1905  Knowles,  Rev.  H.,  b.d.,  Princetown. 


1903  Laing,  Philip  M.  T.,  m.a.,  2,  Station  Road,  Budleigh  Saltert'jn. 
1871  Lake,  William  Charlbs,  m.d.,  Benton,  Teignmouth. 

1904  Lang,  Charles  Augustus,  Vigo  House,  Weybridge. 

1905  Langdon,  F.  B.,  19,  Trafalgar  Place,  Stoke,  Devonport. 
1898  Langdon,  Rev.  F.  E.  W.,  Membury,  near  Chard. 
1903  Langley,  Miss,  Postbridge,  Princetown. 

1903  Langley,  Miss  Helen,  Postbridge,  Princetown. 

1906  Larter,  Miss  Clara  E.,  Bay  View,  Combemartin. 

1901  Lavis,  Johnston,  m.d.,  M.B.a8.,  l.s.a.lokd.,  (in  summer) 
Villa  Marina,  Vittel,  Vosges;  (in  winter)  Villa  Lavis, 
Beaulieu,  Alpes-Mari times,  France. 

1905  Laycock,  C.  H.,  St.  Michaels,  Newton  Abbot. 

1871  Lee,  Godfrey  Robert,  Ravenfield,  Teignmouth. 

1904  Lee,  Miss  Constance,  Budleigh  Salterton,  R.S.O. 

1896  Lee,  Rev.  H.  J.  Barton,  Cross  Park  Terrace,  Heavitree,  Exeter. 
1889*Lee,  Col.  J.  W.,  Budleigh  Salterton,  South  Devon. 
1892*Lemann,  F.  C,  Blackfriars  House,  Plymouth. 

1905  Leonhardt,  F.  A,,  The  Camp,  Exmouth. 

1901  Lethbridge,  Sir  A.  S.,  K.0.8.L,  Windhover,  Bursledon,  Hants. 
1903*Lethbridge,  William,  j.p..  Wood,  Okehampton. 

1897  Lethbridqe,  Sir  Roper,  K.ai.E.,  d.u,  j.p.,  m.a..  The  Manor 

House,  Exboume,  R.S.O.,  Devon  (Vice-President). 

1902  Lethbridge,  Captain  W.  A.  L.,  The  Manor  House,  Exboume, 

RS.O.,  Devon. 

1905  Letts,   Charles,    8,   Bartlett's   Buildings,   Holborn    Circus, 

London,  E.C. 
1905:(Levi8on,  Leon,  43,  Viewforth,  Edinburgh. 

1906  Lewis,  Rev.  W.  A.,  m.a..  The  Vicarage,  Lynmouth. 

1898  Little,  J.  Hunter,  Lisnanagh,  Exmouth. 

1905  Littleton,  W.,  j.p..  Garden  4,  Morice  Town,  Devonport. 

1906  Uewellin,  W.  M.,  c.e.,  8,  Lawn  Road,  Gotham,  Clifton. 
1902  Lockley,  J.  H.,  Heale,  Bideford. 

1906  Long,  W.,  The  School  House,  Lynton. 
1890*Long8taff;  G.  B.,  m.d.,  Twitcham,  Morthoe,  RS.O. 

1899  Lor^  W.  H.,  CO.,  Bythom,  Torquay. 

1900  Lovejoy,  R  F.,  North  Gate,  Totnes. 

1898  Lowe,  Harford  J.,  Avenue  Lodge,  Torquay. 
1904  Lynch,  S.  J.  T.,  Nqrthlew  Manor,  Northlew,  Devon. 
1863*Lyte,  F.  Maxwell,  M.A.,  f.c.s.,  f.lc,  Hon.  f.r.p.8.,  Assoc. 
Inst.  O.E.,  60,  Finborough  Road,  Radcliffe  Square,  S.W. 

VOL.  xxxvm.  2  N 


562  LIST  OF  MEMBERS. 

1886*MacAndrew,  James  J.,  j.p.,  f.l.s.,  Lukesland,  Ivybridge. 
1906  MacDermot,  E.  T.,  Yemworthy,  Lynton,  S.O.,  North  Deyon. 
1901  Mackey,  A.  J.,  b.a.,  2,  The  Close,  Exeter. 
1894  Mallet,  W.  R,  Exwick  Mills,  Exeter. 

1904  Manchester  Free  Reference  Library,  King  Street,  Manchester. 

1905  Manisty,  George  Eldon,  Nattore  Lodge,  Budleigh  Salterton. 

1903  Manlove,  Miss  R,  Moor  Lawn,  Ashburton. 
1901  Mann,  F.,  Leat  Park,  Ashburton. 

1901  Mann,  Warwick  H.,  Glenthorne,  Rodwell^  Weymouth. 
1897*Mardon,  Heber,  2,  Litfield  Place,  Clifton. 

1901  Marines,  The  Officers  Plymouth  Division  RM.L.I.,  Royal 

Marine  Barracks,  Plymouth. 

1905  Marks,  F.  C,  Steward's  House,  Princetown. 

1904  Marshall,  James  C,  Far  Cross,  Woore,  Newcastle,  Stafib. 
1871*Martin,  John  May,  as.,  f.m.b.,  Musgrave  House,  Richmond, 

Surrey. 

1906  Mathieson.  Mrs.,  Otterboume,  Budleigh  Salterton. 

1887  Matthews,  Coryndon,  f.b.8.,  Stentaway,  Plymstock,  South 

Devon 

1896  Matthews,  J.  W.,  Erme  Wood,  Ivybridge. 

1894  Maxwell,  Mrs.,  Lamoma,  Torquay. 

1906  Med  way,  Herbert,  The  Square,  Lynton. 

1898  Melhuish,  Rev.  George  Douglas,  m.a..  Rectory,  Ash  water. 

1902  Messenger,  Arthur  W.  B.,  Assist  Paymaster  RN.,  H.M.S. 

"Ganges,"  Harwich. 
1880  Michelmore,  H.,  Claremont,  Exeter. 

1900  Mildmay,  F.  B.,  m.p.,  Flete,  Ivybridge. 
1892*Monkswell,    Right    Hon.    Lord,    b.a.,    Monkswell     House, 

Chelsea  Embankment,  London,  S.W. 

1899  Moon,  James  E.,  Cloudesley,  Brixton,  near  Plymouth. 

1905  Moon,  J.  W.,  Albert  Road,  Devonport. 

1906  Morley,  The  Rt.  Hon.  The  Earl  of,  Saltram,  Plympton. 
1904  Morrison,  Colonel  R.,  The  Rowdens,  Teignmouth. 

1898  MoRSHEAD,   J.  Y.   Anderson,   Lusways,   Salcombe   Regis 

Sid  mouth. 
1886*Mortimor,  A.,  1,  Paper  Buildings,  Temple,  London. 
187 4* Mount  Edgcumbe,  Right  Hon.  the  Earl  of,  Mount  Edgcunibi-, 

Plymouth. 

1901  Mugford,  W.  K,  70,  Oxford  Road,  Exeter. 
1904  Murray,  0.  A.  R.,  The  Admiralty,  London,  S.W. 
1893  Musgrave,  G.  A.,  p.b.g.8.,  f.z.s.,  Furzebank,  Torquay. 

1885  Neck,  J.  S.,  j.p.,  Great  House,  Moretonhampstead. 
1898  Nevill,  Ralph,  F.8.A.,  Clifton  House,  Castle  Hill,  Guildfoni. 
1906  Newnes,  Sir  George,  Bart.,  m.p.,  Hollerday,  Lynton,  and 
Wildcroft,  Putney  Heath,  London  (Vice-President). 

1902  Newton   Club  (per  T.  W.  Donaldson,   Esq.,   Hon.   Sec), 

Newton  Abbot. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS.  563 

1897  Nicholls,  Richard  Perrott,  Otay,  Kingabridge. 

1900  Nix,  J.  A.,  20,  Hans  Place,  London,  S.W. 
1896  Northmore,  John,  4,  Abbey  Mead,  Tavistock. 

1903  Norton,  W.  Joseph,  The  Shrubbery,  Teignmouth. 

1904  Nourse,  Rev.  Stanhope  M.,  Shute  Vicarage,  Axminster. 
1903  No  well,   Capt.    S.,    17,   Rock   Park,   Rock   Park    Ferry, 

Liverpool. 

1901  Oldham,  Rev.  D*Oyly  W.,  The  Rectory,  Exbourne,  R.S.O., 

Devon. 
1906tOldhain,  Rev.  R.  W.,  m.a..  The  Rectory,  Martinhoe,  Parra- 

combe. 
1906JOpenshaw,  Rev.  J.  0.,  Kentisbury  Rectory,  Barnstaple. 
1906  Ough,  H.,  Nelson  Cottage,  Lynmouth. 


1902  Paige,  Mias  Laura,  St.  Leonard's,  Totnes. 

1902  Paige,  Rev.  W.  E.,  The  Laurels,  Woodland  Park,  Paignton. 

1901  Pain,  R.  Tucker,  Ryll  Court,  Exmouth. 

1905  Palmer,  J.  H.,  Princetown. 

1904  Palmer,  W.  P.,  Waterloo  Cottage,  Exmouth. 

1906  Palmer,  J.  C,  32,  High  Street,  Budleigh  Salterton. 
1906  Parry,  H.  Lloyd,  Guildhall,  Exeter. 

1905  Parson,  Edgcombe,  Fursdon,  Newton  Abbot. 

1903  Piismore,  Eiobert  S.,  St.  German's,  Pennsylvania,  Exeter. 

1903  Patch,  Col.  R.,  c.b.,  Fersfield,  Newton  Abbot. 

1904  Pateman,  Miss,  15,  Raleigh  Terrace,  Exmouth. 

1902  Patey,    Rev.    Charles   Robert,    HoUam    House,    Tichfield, 

Hants. 

1905  Paul,  R.,  Cyprus  Road,  Exmouth. 

1903  Peacock,  H.  G.,  L.R.C.P.,  m.r.c.8.,  Mem.  Brit.  Mycol.  Soc, 

The  Moors,  Bishopsteignton,  Teignmouth. 

1901  Pearse,  James,  44,  Marlborough  Road,  Exeter. 

1896  Pkarson,  Rev.  J.  B.,  d.d.,  Whitstone  Rectory,  Exeter. 

1905  Peet,  A.  W.,  Penrallt,  Kingskerswell,  near  Newton  Abbot. 

1882  Penzance  Library,  Penzance. 

1897  Periam,  J.,  16,  Upper  Woburn  Terrace,  London,  W.C. 

1902  Perry,  Oliver  H.,  55,  West  Thirty-third  Street,  New  York 

City,  U.S.A. 
1897  Peter,  Thurstan  C,  Redruth. 

1883  Petherick,  J.,  8,  Clifton  Grove,  Torquay. 

1899  Pinkham,  Charles,  j.p.,  c.c,  Linden  Lodge,  7,  Winchester 
Avenue,  Brondesbury,  N.W. 

1906  PiTT-NiND,  Vernon,  Lloyds  Bank,  Lynton  (Hon.  Local 

Treasurer). 

1897*Pitt8,  Mrs.  Stanley,  2,  Gleneagle  Road,  Mannamead,  Ply- 
mouth. 

1896  Plumer,  J.  B.,  Allerton,  near  Totnes. 

2n2 


664  LIST  OF  M?MB^gM, 

1879  Plymouth  Free  Public  Library,  Whimple  Street^  Plymoatit 
1884  Plymouth  Proprietary  Library,  Cornwall  Street,  Plymouth. 

1880  Pode,  J.  D.,  Slade,  Comwood,  Ivybridge. 
1898«Pole,  Sir  Edmund  de  la,  Bart,  Shute  House.  Colyton. 

1892  Pollock,  Sir  F.,  Bart,  ll.d.,  F.8.A.,  etc.,  21,  Hyde  Ptak 

Place,  London,  W. 
1894  Poltimore,  Right  Hon.  Lord,  p.a,  D.L.,  Ck>urt  Hall,  North 

Molton. 
1900*Pon8onby,   Rev.    Stewart    Gordon,    ila..    Rectory,    Stoke 

Damerel,  Devonport. 
1900*Pope,  John,  Spence  Coombe,  Copplestone. 
1878*Powell,  W.,  m.b.,  F.R.a8.,  Hill  Garden,  Torquay. 
1888  Prickman,  J.  D.,  Okehampton. 
1901  Prideaux,  W.  de  C,  L.D.8.,  r.o.b.eho.,  12,  Frederick  I^ace, 

Weymouth. 
1906  Priestley,  C.  W.,  b.Sc.,  Richmond  Lodge,  Torquay. 
1901  Pring,  Walter,  j.p.,  Northlands,  Exeter. 
1887  Prowbe,   Arthur  B.,   m.d.,  f.r.c.8.,   5,    Lansdown   Place, 

Clifton. 
1891  Prowse,  W.  B.,  L.R.O.P.,  m.r.o.8.,   11,  Gloucester  Plaoe, 

Brighton. 
1899  Prowse,  W.  H.,  The  Retreat,  Kingsbridge. 
1894*Pryke,  Rev.  W.  E.,  m.a.,  Ottery  St  Mary  Rectory,  Sid- 

mouth. 
1903  Prynne,  G.  H.  Fellowes,  F.R.LB.A.,  6,  Queen  Anne's  Gate, 

Westminster,  London,  S.W. 

1893  Punchard,  Rev.  Canon  E.  G.,  d.d.,  St  Mary's  Vicarage, 

Ely. 


1901  Radford,  A.  J.  V.,  Dunchideock  House,  Exeter. 
1898*Radford,  Arthur  L.,  The  Cedar  House,    Hillingdon,  near 

Uxbridge. 
1889  Radford,  C.  H.,  j.p.,  4,  The  Crescent,  Plymcmth. 

1901  Radford,  H.  G.,  Park  Cottage,  East  Sheen,  S.W. 

1903  Radford,    Mrs.  J.    H.,    Uppaton,   Buckland   Monachorum, 

Yelverton,  R.S.O. 

1888  Radford,  Mrs.,  Chiswick  House,  Ditton  Hill,  Surbiton, 
Surrey. 

1906  Rebsch,  Samuel,  Holme  Down,  Monkokehampton,  Ex- 
bourne. 

1896  Reed,  Harbottlb,  57,  St  David's  Hill,  Exeter. 

1885*Reichel,  L.  H.,  Beara  Court,  Highampton,  North  Devon. 

1872  Reichel,  Rev.  Oswald  J.,  ao.L.,  f.s.a.,  A  la  Ronde,  Lymp- 
stone,  Devon. 

1904  Reynell,  B.,  Heathfield,  South  Norwood,  London,  S.E. 
1898»Reynell-Upham,  W.  Upham,  4,  Rill  Terrace,  Exmouth. 

1902  Rice,  George,  m.d.,  46,  Friar  Gate,  Derby. 


LIST  OF  MBMBKR8.  565 

1905  Richardson,  Miss  J.  A.  C,  1,  East  View,  Fernleigh  Road, 

Mannamead,  Plymouth. 
1892  Rickford,  Wyndham,  Pinehurst,  Winn  Road,  Southampton. 

1906  Riddell,  W.,  j.p..  The  Tors,  Lynmouth. 

1892  Risk,  Rev.  J.  Erskine,  M.A.,  Rectory,  Stockleigh  English, 
Crediton. 

1903  RoBBRTS,  Charlbs  E.,  B.A.,  2,  Coburg  Terrace,  Sidmouth. 
1906  Roberts,  Rev.  R  O.,  East  Down  Rectory,  Barnstaple. 

1892  Robinson,  C.  E.,  Holne  Cross,  Ashburton. 

1905  Roff,  C.  B.,  Princetown. 

1902*Roger8,  W.  H.,  j.p.,  Orleigh  Ck)urt,  Bideford. 

1902  Ross,  Rev.  J.  Trelawny,  d.d.,  The  Vicarage,  Paignton. 

1906  Ross,  H.  M.,  Seafood  House,  Lynton. 

1906  Round,   J.   Horaoe,   m.a.,  ll.d.,   15,  Brunswick  Terrace, 

Brighton. 
1906  Row,  Rev.  Richard  W.,  Mount  Vernon,  Exeter. 
1900  Row,  R  W.  H.,  Mount  Vernon,  Exeter. 

1904  Rowe,  Aaron,  The  Duchy  House,  Princetown,  Dartmoor. 
1862  RowE,  J.  Brookinq,  f.s.a.,  f.l.8..  Castle  Barbican,  Plympton 

(Hon.  General  Sbcrbtart). 
1899  Rudd,E. K,  11 8, Ford wych Road, Brondesbury, London, N.W. 
1905*Rundell,  Towson   William,  f.b.Mkt.Soo.,  25,  Castle  Street, 

Liverpool. 

1904  Sanders,  James,  j.p.,  c.o.,  23,  South  Street,  South  Molton. 

1881*Saunders,  Ernest  G.  Symes,  m.d.,  20,  Ker  Street,  Devonport. 

1877*Saunders,  George  J.  Symes,  m.d.,  1,  Lascelles  Terrace,  East- 
bourne. 

1895  Saunders,  Miss  H.,  92,  East  Street,  South  Molton. 

1887*Saunders,  Trelawney,  Elmfield  on  the  Knowles,  Newton 
Abbot 

1880*Saunders,  W.  S.,  Cranbrook,  Castle  Road,  Torquay. 

1903JSawkins,  Frederick,  Warreleigh,  Budleigh  Salterton. 

1906   Scott,    S.     Noy,    D.P.H.    Lohd.,    L.R.C.P.     Lond.,     M.R.O.8.     Emo., 

Elmleigh,  Plymstock. 
1900*Scrimgeour,  T.  S.,  Natsworthy  Manor,  Ashburton. 
1894  Shapland,  A.  E.,  j.p..  Church  House,  South  Molton. 
1894  Shapland,  A.  F.  Terrell,  Spurbame,  Exeter. 
1902  Shapland,  J.  Dee,  M.R.O.B.,  Burnside,  Exmouth. 
1906  Sharland,  A.,  25,  Charleville  Circus,  West  Hill,  Sydenham, 

London,  S.E. 
1882  Shelley,  Sir  John,  Bart.,  Shobrooke  Park,  Crediton. 
1879  Shelly,  John,  Princess  House,  Plymouth. 
1885  Sibbald,  J.  G.  E.,  Mount  Pleasant,  Norton  S.  Philip,  Bath. 
1898  Sidmouth,   The    Right    Hon.   Viscount,    Upottery   Manor, 

Honiton. 

1893  Skardon,  Brigade-Suigeon   Lieut.-Col.  T.  G.,  Simla,  Good- 

rington,  near  Paignton. 


566  LIST  OF  1CEMBKB8. 

1902  Skinner,  A.  J.  P.,  Colyton. 

1906  Skinner,  Miss  Emilt,  21,  St  Peter  Street,  Tiverton. 
1896  Slade,  J.  J.  Eales,  j.p.,  San  Remo,  Cockington,  Torquay. 
1878  Slade,  S.  H.,  65,  Westbury  Road,  Westbury-on-Trym,  Gloe. 
1902  Slocock,  Walter  C,  Goldsworth,  Woking,  Surrey. 
1895*Smith,   The   Hon.  W.   F.    D.,   m.p.,    3,   Grosvenor   Place^ 
London,  S.W. 

1901  Smyth-Osbourne,  J.  S.,  j.p.,  d.l.,  Ash,  Iddesleigh. 

1905  Snell,  M.  B.,  j.p.,  5,  Copthall  Buildings,  London,  E.C. 

1902  Snell,  Simeon,  f.r.o.b.Emo.,  j.p.,  Moor  Lodge,  Sheffield. 
1902  Soares,  E.  J.,  m.p.,  Upcott,  Barnstaple. 

1896  SoMBRVAiL,  A.,  Natund  History  Museum,  Torquay. 

1891  Southconib,  Rev.  H.  G.,  m.a.,  Roseasll  Rectory,  South  Molten. 

1906  Sparks,   Miss   F.    Adeline,   Suffolk   House,   Putney   Hill, 

London,  S.W. 
1906  Sparks,  Miss  Hilda  Ernestine,  Suffolk  House,  Putney  Hill, 

London,  S.W. 
1882  Sprague,  F.  S.,  Barnstaple. 
1896  Square,  J.  Harris,  Clarendon  House,  Kingsbridge. 
1899  Square,  J.  Elliot,  f.r.c.8.,  Portland  Square,  Plymouth. 

1899  Stawell,  George,  Penhallam,  Torrington. 
1868*Stebbing,  Rev.  T.  R  R,  M.A.,  f.r.8.,  Ephraim  Lodge,  The 

Common,  Tunbridge  Wells,  Kent 
1901  Stevens,  John,  St.  David's  Hill,  Exeter. 

1898  Stevens-Guille,  Rev.  H.  G.  de  C,  Beaconside,  Moukleigh, 

Torrington. 

1900  Stiff,  J.  Carleton,  Alfoxden,  Torquay. 
1898*St.  Maur,  Harold,  Stover,  Newton  Abbot. 
1886*Strode,  George  S.  S.,  Newnham  Park,  Plympton. 

1905  Strong,  Leonard  E.,  Yelverton,  South  Devon. 
1896  Stuart,  W.  J.,  6,  Louisa  Terrace,  Exmouth. 
1875*Sulivan,  Miss,  Broom  House,  Fulham. 

1906  Sumner,  H.  G,  c/o  R.  P.  Sumner,  Esq.,  17,  King  Street, 

Gloucester. 
1906  Surridge,  Rev.  F.  H.,  Heatherville,  Lynmouth. 

1899  Symonds,  F.  G,  Bank  House,  Blandford. 

1896  Swansea  Devonian  Society  (per  S.  T.  Drew),  Swansea. 


1899*Tanner,  C.  Peile,  B.A.,  Chawleigh  Rectory,  Chulmleigh. 

1904tTate,  A.  L.,  Holcombe,  Dawlish. 

1890  Tavistock  Public  Library,  Bedford  Square,  Tavistock. 

1900  Taylor,  Alfred,  Rasulia,  Hoshangabad,  C.P.,  India. 

1886  Taylor,  Arthur  Fumeaux,  Ingleside,  Han  well,  London,  W. 

1903  Thompson,    Rev.    William    Henry,    Parracombe    Rectory, 

Barnstaple. 
1903  Thomson,    Basil    H.,    H.M.    Convict    Prison,  Princetown 

(Vioe-Prksidbnt). 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS.  567 

1868  Thornton,  Rev.  W.  H.,  b.a.,  Rectory,  North  Bovey,  Moreton- 
hampstead. 

1903  Tindall,  J.,  Eaglehurst,  Sidmouth. 

1905  Toms,  Rev.  F.  W.,  Rectory,  Combemartin,  R.S.O.,  North 

Devon. 

1906  Tonge,  F.  W.,  Glen  Lyn,  Lynmouth. 

1902  Tothill,  Waring  W.,  Eversley,  123,  Pembroke  Road,  Clifton, 

Bristol. 
1869*Tothill,  W.,  Stoke  Bishop,  Bristol. 

1904  Towell,  Herbert  T.,  Regent  House,  Teignmouth. 
1887  Treby,  General  Phillipps,  J.P.,  Goodamoor,  Plympton. 

1903  Trepplin,  Mrs.  E.,  Elm  Cottage,  Sidmouth. 

1902*Tri8t,    Pendarves,    11,    Cottesmore    Gardens,    Kensington, 

London,  S.W. 
1887  Troup,  Mrs.  Frances  B.,  Beaumont  House,  Ottery  St.  Mary. 

1904  Tucker,  Mrs.  AUin,  Blakesville,  North  Molton. 

1876  TucKBR,   R.   C,  J.P.,   O.A.,   The    Hall,   Ashburton    (Hon. 
Auditor). 

1 904  Tucker,  Thomas,  Claremont,  Cyprus  Road,  Exmouth. 
1902  Tudor,  Rev.  Harry,  Sub-Dean  and  Prebendary  of  Exeter, 

Exeter. 

1905  Turner,  Alfred,  m.d.,  Plympton  House,  Plympton. 

1906  Turner,   C.    S.,    Kelbuie,   Westbourne   Terrace,    BudJeigh 

Salterton. 
1901  Turner,  Rev.  R.,  Vicarage,  Colyton. 
1880  Turner,  T.,  j.p.,  f.r.Mkt.soc.,  Cullompton. 


1881  Varwell,  H.  B.,  2,  Pennsylvania  Park,  Exeter. 
1887  Venning,  J.  J.  E.,  Penlee  Gardens,  Stoke,  Devonport. 
1884  Vicary,  W.,  The  Knoll,  Newton  Abbot. 
1902*Vidal,  Edwin  Sealy,  Fremington. 

1901  Vincent,  Sir  Edgar,  k.c.m.g.,  Esher  Place,  Esher,  Surrey, 
per  Cecil  R.  M.  Clapp,  Esq.,  22,  Catherine  Street,  Exeter. 
1906  Vinen,  G.  Starling,  11,  Lombard  Street,  London,  E.C. 

1893  Wainwright,  T.,  North  Devon  Athenaeum,  Barnstaple. 
1904  Walker,    Col.    D.    Corrie,     re.,    The    Lodge,    Westend, 

Southampton. 
1893  Walker,  Robert,  m.d..  East  Terrace,  Budleigh  Salterton. 
1895  Walpole,  Spencer  C,  94,  Piccadilly,  London,  W. 
1901  Ward,  Rev.  Joseph  Heald,  Silverton  Rectory,  Exeter. 
1906  Warren,  J.  Grant,  m.d.,  Park  House,  Lynton. 
1904  Watts,  Francis,  Laureston  Lodge,  Newton  Abbot. 
1900  Watts,  Mrs.  R.  J.,  Upcott  Cottage,  Highampton,  North 

Devon. 
1900*Wbbkk8,    Miss    Lega-,    Sunny    Nook,    Rugby    Mansions, 

West  Kensington,  Tendon,  W. 


568  LIST  OF  MBHBKB8. 

1901  Welch,  Charles  A.,    11,  Pemherton  Square,   Room  301, 

Boston,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 
1870*Were,  T.  Kennet-,  m.a.,  j.p.,  d.a.,  Cotlands,  Sidmouth. 
1897  Western  Yacht  Club,  The  Royal^  The  Hoe,  Plymouth. 
1900*Wethey,  Charles  Henry,  c/o  The  Imperial  Bank  of  Canada, 

Toronto,  Canada. 
1893  Whale,  Rev.  T.  W.,  m.a..  Mount  Nessing,  Weston  Parii, 

Bath. 
1873*Whidborne,  Rev.  G.  F.,  m.a.,  f.q.s.,  Hammerwood  Lodge, 

£a8t  Grinstead. 
1872  Whitaker,  W.,  ra.,  p.r.8.,  f.o.s.,  Assoc.  Inst  C.K,  F.  San. 

Inst.,  3,  Campden  Road,  Croydon  (Carres.  Member). 
1875  White-Thomson,  Col.  Sir  R  T.,  c.b.,  j.p.,  Broomford  Manor, 

Exboume,  North  Devon. 
1893  White,  T.  Jeston,  8,  Maldon  Road,  Acton,  London,  W. 
1897  Whitley,  H.  Miohbll,  28,  Victoria  Street,  Westminster. 
1906  Widgery,  F.  J.,  The  Studio,  Queen  Street,  Exeter. 
1890*Wilcock8,  Horace  Stone,  Mannamead,  Plymouth. 
1883*Willcocks,  A.  D.,  m.b.c.8.,  Park  Street,  Taunton. 
1881*Wilicock8,  R,  m.d.,  f.r.o.p.,   U,  Mandeville  Place,   Man- 
chester Square,  London,  W. 
1877*Willcocks,  G.  W.,  M.nwr.aB.,  4,  College  Hill,  Cannon  Street, 

London,  KC. 
1877*Willcocks,  R.   H.,  LL.a,  4,  College   Hill,  Cannon  Street, 

London,  E.C. 
1877*Willcocks,  Rev.  R  J.,  M.A.,  The  School  House,  Warrington, 

Lancashire. 
1876*Willcocks,  W.  K.,  M.A.,  6,  Stone  Buildings,  Lincoln's  Inn, 

London,  W.C. 

1904  Williams,  R,  The  Firs,  Budleigh  Salterton. 

1893  Willis,  H,  Lennox  Lodge,  Shanklin,  Isle  of  Wight. 
1899  Willis,  Mrs.,  Lennox  Lodge,  Shanklm,  Isle  of  Wight 
1893  Willmot,  Miss,  May  field,  Budleigh  Salterton. 

1897  Wills,  J.,  Dodbrooke,  Littleover  Hill,  Derby. 

1901  Winchester,  The  Rt.  Rev.  the  Lord  Bishop  of  (Herbert 
Edward  Ryle,  d.d.),  Farnham  Castle,  Surrey. 

1875*WiNDEATT,  Edward,  Heck  wood,  Totnes. 

1896  Windeatt,  George  K,  Heckwood,  Totnes. 

1896  Winget,  W.,  Glen  Almond,  Cockington,  Torquay. 

1872*Winwood,  Rev.  H.  H.,  m.a.,  f.g.s.,  11,  Cavendish  Crescent, 
Bath. 

1906tWodehouse,  Rev.  Preb.  P.  J.,  m.a.,  The  Rectory,  Bratton 
Fleming,  Barnstaple. 

1884*Wolfe,  J.  R,  24,  Belsize  Crescent,  Hampstead,  KW. 

1905  Wollocombe,  Rev.  J.  H.  B.,  Lamerton  Vicarage,  Tavistock. 

1898  Wood,  R.  H.,  f.s.a.,  f.r.g.s.,  Belmont,  Sidmouth. 
1884*Woodhouse,  H.  B.  S.,  4,  St.  Lawrence  Road,  Plymouth. 
1904  Woollcombe,  Gerald  D.,  Craumere,  Newton  Abbot 


LIST  OF  MEMBEBS. 


569 


1901*Woollcoml)e,  Ivobert  Uoyd,  m.a.,  ll.d.,  14,  Waterloo  Road, 

Dublin. 
1886  Woollcombe,  W.  J.,  St.  Maurice,  Plympton. 
1891  Worth,  R.  Hansford,  o.b.,  4,  Seaton  Avenue,  Plymouth. 
1876  Wright,  W.  H.  K.,  4,  Apsley  Road,  Mutley,  Plymoutli. 
1895*Wtkb8-Finoh,  Rev.  W.,  m.a.,  j.p..  The  Monks,  Chaddesley 

Corbett,  Kidderminster;  and  North  Wyke,  near  Oke- 

hampton. 

1900  Yeo,  Miss  Mary  E.  J.  Holsworthy,  Rossi  Street,  Yass,  New 

South  Wales. 
1900  Yeo,  W.  Curzon,  8,  Beaumont  Avenue,  Richmond,  Surrey. 
1895  Youn^  E.  H.,  m.d.,  Darley  House,  Okehampton. 
1906  YouNa,  Thomas,  m.elc.8.,  Woolacombe,  N.  Devon. 


The  following  Table  eontaini  a  Summary  of  the  foregoing  Liit. 

Honorary  Members   .  .        .  S 

Corresponding  Member  .            .        .  1 

Life  Members  .            .        .  103 

Annnal  Members      .  ...  470 


Total,  Ist  October,  1906 


677 


INDEX. 


Abbot  of  Tor,  William  Norton,  94. 
Acland,  Pedigree  of,  168. 
Address  of  President,  40. 
Advowsons  of  Churches,  333. 
Algae,  286. 
Altar  at  St.  Peter's  Church,  Tawstock, 

Ancient  Oak,  377. 
Amery,  P.  F.  S.,  Supposed  Currency 

Bars  found  at  Hoine  Chase  Camp, 

370. 
Twenty- third  Report 

Folk-lore  Committee,  87. 
Ancient    Altar,    Tawstock    Church, 

377. 
Anderson,  Rev.  Irvine  K. ,  Dartmoor 

Exploration  Committee,  101. 
Annual  Meeting,  Proceedings  at,  23. 
Arms  of  Berry,  188. 

Pomeroy,  203. 

Popham,  186. 

Wichehalse,  169. 

Badgeworthy  Lees,  The,  547. 
Baggy  Point,  Flint  Implements  found 

at,  266. 
Balance  Sheet,  1905-6,  30-1. 
Baldwin    de    Brionis,    Pedigree    of, 

353-4. 
Barbor,  Pedigree  of,  168. 
Barnstaple,    North    Walk    Pottery, 

256. 

Wichehalscs,  173. 

Barrow  Committee,  Twenty-fifth  Re- 
port of,  57. 

in  Hut  Circle  at  Peter  Tavy, 

113. 
Barrows,  Chapman,  59. 

at  Brockenburrow,  59. 

Brockenburrow  Lane,  58. 

Bars  found  near  Holne  Chase  Camp, 

Supposed  Currency,  370. 
Bastard,    Baldwin    John    Pollexfen, 

Obituary  Notice  of,  37. 
Beaumont,  Thomas,  Inq,  p.m,y  264. 

Pedigiee  of,  159. 

Bells,  Countisbury,  219. 

Lynton  Church,  202. 


Berry  Family,  188. 

Pedigree,  7. 

Bicheordin,  160. 
Bideford,  Botany  of,  491. 

Crockery  Pottery,  255. 

Blackheads,  Cure  for,  89. 
Bleeding,  Charm  to  Stanch,  88. 
Bohun,  flarl  of  Essex,  Humphrey, 

319. 
Boils,  Charm  for,  89. 
Botanical  Districts  of  Braunton  and 
Sherwill,    Some    Cryptogams    of, 
270. 

Notes,  No.  Ill,  491. 

Walk,  28. 

Bounds  near  Prince  town.  The  Forest, 

411. 
Bowden,  Frederick  James  Cornish-, 

Obituary  Notice  of,  38. 
Braneys,  Honour  of,  139. 
Braunton  and  Sherwill,  Some  Crypto- 
gams of  the   Botanical    Districts 
of,  270. 
Brendon  Two  Gates,  541,  546. 
Briggs,  Charles  Adol}>hu8,  The  Recen  t 

Neuroptera  of  Devonshire,  357. 
Broaken  Barrow,  61,  62. 
Brokenburrow,  Barrows  near,  58. 

!       Lane,  545. 

I   Brooke,  John,  192. 
j   Browning,  John,  194. 

Monument     at      Lynton 

Church,  204. 
I   Bruniquel,  Pigmy  Flint  Flakes  found 
I       at,  262. 
'   Brushfield,  T.  N.,  m.d.,  Raleghana, 

Part  VII,  416. 
I   Butter-steans,  258. 
Bye-laws  and  Standing  Orders,  15. 

I  Caddis-flies,  357. 

!  Cairns,  57-8. 

I  Calisham  Tor,  Sacrifice  of  a  Sheep 

on,  87. 

I  Camp,  Oldburrow,  119. 

j  Camps  at  Countisbury,  118. 

I  Carewe,  Mathia,  Inq,  p.m.,  258, 


INDEX. 


571 


Cattle  Fail-,  Lynbridge,  136. 

Challacombe  Common,  59. 

Chanter,  Rev.  J.  F.,  Documents  re- 
lating to  Lynton  and  Countiabury, 
225. 

Ecclesiastical  His- 
tory of  Countiabury  and  Lynton, 
169. 

-  Parishes  of  Countis- 


bury  and  Lynton,  114. 
and    R. 


Hansford 
Worth,  Rude  Stone  Monuments  of 
Exmoor  and  its  Borders,  538. 
Chapel  of  St.  Mary,  Lynton,  209. 

St    John    Baptist,    Lyn- 

mouth,  211. 

South  Furzehill,  209. 

•  of   St.     Dionisius,    Lynton, 


209. 


—  St.  Ruman,  Lynton,  209. 

Chapels  of  Devon,  The  Private,  391. 

Ancient  and  Modern,  Lynton, 

208. 

Chapman  Barrows,  59-64,  541. 

Charbonnier,Thomas,  Notes  on  North 
Devon  Pottery,  255. 

Charities  of  Coimtisbury,  223. 

Lynton,  190. 

Charms,  88-9. 

Chichester,  John,  Itiq,  p.m.,  253. 
Robert,  Jnq.  p.m.,  254. 

Christening  Custom,  92. 

Church  Plate  Committee,  220. 

Churches,  Advowsons  of,  333. 

in  Neiglibourhood  of  Lyn- 
ton, Dedications  of,  122. 

of  South  Tawton,  504. 


Churchwardens  of  Countisbury,  221. 

—  Lynton,  205. 

Accounts  of  Countis- 


bury, 219. 


—     South 


Tawton,  The,  497. 
Clannon  Ball,  546. 
"Clavel,  Told  to,"  90. 
Clement,  Thomas,  197. 
Clerks,  Parish,  501. 

Wages,  221. 

Climate    of   Devon,    Twenty-fourth 
.    Report  (3rd  Series)  of  Committee 

on,  66. 
Colley,  Thomas,  195. 
Corabrew  Pottery,  255. 
Committees,  32. 
Reports  of — 

Barrow,  67. 

Climate,  67. 

Dartmoor  Exploration,  101. 

Folk-lore,  87. 
Commons,  Enclosure  of,  135. 


Contents,  5. 

Cooper,   "Guide  to  Lynton,"  etc., 

T.  H.,  116. 
Cornish- Bowden,    Frederick   James, 

Obituary  Notice  of,  37. 
Cornwall,  Earldom  of,  337. 
Coscombe,  119. 
Council,  Report  of,  21. 
Countisbury,  217. 

Camp,  118. 

Chanties,  223. 

Church,  219. 

Bells,  219. 

Memorials,  220. 

Ornaments,  221. 

Plate,  220. 

Records,  219. 

Wardens,  221. 

Accounts, 


219. 


of,  169. 


Curates  of,  217. 
Descent  of  Manor,  165. 
Ecclesiastical     History 


Legends,  169. 

Manor  of,  137,  164. 

Population  of,  135. 

Schools,  223. 

Terrier  of,  213. 

and  Lynton,  Historical 

Sketch  of,  120. 

Parishes  of  Lynton  and, 

114. 

Courtenay,  Fees  of  Hugh,  Earl  dc, 
318. 

I7iq.  p.m.  of  Hugo,  Earl 

of  Devon,  335. 

Cox,  W^alter  Eustace,  200. 
Crocker's  Old  Pottery,  Bideford,  255. 
Croft,  Peter  Tavy,  The,  113. 
Crosscombe,  137-62. 

Manor  of,  162. 

Croyde,  Flints  at,  261. 

Cryptogams  of  the  Botanical  Dis- 
tricts of  Braunton  and  Sherwill, 
270. 

The  Hore  Collection  of, 

272. 

Curates  of  Lynton,  192. 
Cure  for  Erysii)elas,  93. 

Fits,  95. 

King's  Evil,  97. 

Measles,  98. 

Currency  Bars,  370. 

Dartmoor,  Flint  Flakes  on,  261. 

Stone  Rows  of,  534. 

Davy,  William  Tanner,  200. 
Dawlish,  Botany  of,  493. 
Dead  Hand,  99. 


572 


INDEX. 


Declaration,  The  King*8,  416. 
Deer  Park,  59. 

Dissenting  Cha]>el8,  Lynton,  210. 
Documents  relating  to  Lynton  and 

Countisbury,  226. 
Dog  Whippcr,  602. 
Dovell,  John,  197. 
Dragon  Flies,  361 
Dry  Lake,  636 

Elarly  Descent  of  Estates  of  Mortain 

and  Okehampton,  337. 
Earliest  portion  of  '*  Testa  de  Nevill " 

relating  to  Devon,  The,  318. 
East  Pinford,  543. 
the- Water    Bideford    Pottery, 

256. 
Ecclesiastical  History  of  Lynton  and 

Countisbury,  169-190. 
Elworthy,   Presidential  Address  of, 

F.  T.,  40. 
Ephemeridae,  357-61. 
Equation  of  Time,  The,  93. 
Ernie  Valley,  535. 
Erysipelas,  Cure  for,  93. 
Estates    belonging    to    Honours    of 

Mortain  and  Okehampton,  337. 
Evil  Eye,  42. 
Eze  Plain,  645. 

-  West,  387. 
Exmoor,  59 

and  its  Borders,  The  Rude 

Stone  Monuments  of,  538. 

Forest,  121. 


Faith  Cure,  97. 

Family  of  Berry,  183 

History  of  Lynton  and  Coun- 
tisbury, 169. 

Fees  of  Earl  Hugh  de  Courtenay,  318. 

Ffower  men,  499. 

Fifty  Dole,  522. 

Fire  Dogs,  Clay,  259. 

Fishing  Rights,  127. 

Fishley,  George,  Pot  Works,  255. 

Fits,  Cure  for,  95,  96,  97. 

Five  Barrow  Group,  62. 

Flints,  120. 

Flint  Implements  in  North  Devon, 
Pigmy,  261. 

Folk-lore,  Twenty-third  Report  of 
Committee  ou,  87. 

Ford  Abbey,  139. 

and  Lynton,  124. 

Records    of    Court    of 

Augmentations,  229. 

Forest  Bounds,  Princetown,  411. 

Fortescue,  Earl,  Obituary  Notice  of, 
39. 


Free    Tenants  of   Manor  of  Wool- 
hanger,  162. 
Fremington  Pottery,  256. 
Foisehill,  137,  163. 

Common,  644,  646. 

Water,  118. 

Garanci^res,    Pigmy    Flint    Flakes 

found  at,  262. 
Garlic,  protection  against  EtU  Bye, 

46. 
Ghost  of  Widrington,  93. 

Spanish  Nun,  94. 

Tor  Abbey,  93. 

Glebe,  Lynton,  210. 

Glenthorne,  119-68. 

Green  Hill,  637. 

Groee  Tablet,  Lynton  Church,  204. 

Guiana,  Gold  in,  475. 

Hall,  Townsend,  Flint  Flakes,  261. 
Hand,  The  Dead,  99. 
Hanging  in  Chains,  88. 
Hangman  Hill,  Combe  Martin,  539. 
Harding,  will  of  Rev.  Riohaid,  248. 
Haretor,  57. 
Hartnoll,  John,  195. 
Harvest  Jugs,  268-60. 

Inscriptions  on,  2«0. 

Hatherleigh,  History  of,  294. 

Historical  Memoirs  of, 

Short,  300. 

Law  Courts,  305. 

Pages  fi-ora  a  MS.  His- 
tory of,  294. 

Haunted  Roads,  93. 

Hawkeridge,  Coplestone,  192. 

Hawkins,  E.  P.,  Obituary  Notice  of, 
39. 

Heanton,  Manor  of,  137,  138,  160. 

Descent  of  Manor  of,  160. 

*'  Heard  at  Church  Stile,"  90. 
HepaticjE,  282. 

Herring  Fishery,  126. 
Hoar  Oak  Water,  118. 

Tor,  547. 

Hockley,  Albert  Richard,  218. 
Hole,  Joshua,  196. 

Richard,  197. 

Holne  Chase  Camn,  Supposed  Cur- 
rency Bars  foinia  near,  370. 

Holwells,  The,  384. 

Homer  Red  Lake,  58. 

Honour  of  Plympton,  321. 

Honours  of  Mortain  and  Okehamp- 
ton, 337. 

Hore  Collection  of  Cryptogams,  272. 

Humour,  Examples  of  west-country 
Wit  and,  529. 

Hunting  Song,  92. 


INDKX. 


573 


Hat  Circles,  119. 

Circle  or  Barrow  at  Peter  Tavy, 

113. 
Settlement    at    Watem 

Oke,  101. 

I'Ans,  Francis,  198. 

Implements  in  North  Devon,  Pigmy 

Flint,  261. 
Incrinton,  Manor  of,  137. 
Instaora,  499. 
Instow  Pot  Works,  265. 
Inventory  of  Goods  of  John  Knight, 

1624, 126. 

James  I,  His  Debts  and  Character, 

486. 
Jordan,  Mrs.  Mary  Isabella,  Obituary 

Notice  of,  37. 

Eebbye,  Robert,  192. 
Eekewich,  Chtirles,  199. 

Memorial  in  Lyn- 

ton  Church,  204. 

Eeymis,  Raleigh's  Instructions  to, 
479. 

King,  C.  R.  Baker,  Ancient  Oak 
Altar  in  St.  Peter's  Church,  Taw- 
stock,  877. 

King's  Declaration,  The,  416. 

Evil,  100. 

Cure  for,  97. 

Knight  Family,  188. 

Inventory    of   John,    1624, 

126. 

Pedigree, 

Richard,  198. 

Lakenheath,  Pigmy  Flint  Flakes 
found  at,  263. 

Lamp,  Earthen,  258. 

Larter,  Miss  C.  E.,  Some  Crypto- 
gams of  the  Botanical  Districts  of 
Braunton  and  Sherwill,  270. 

Lawson,  William  Lipsett,  200. 

Lawrence's  Weather,  St.,  98. 

Legends,  Lynton  and  Countisbnry, 
169. 

Lewis,  Hugh,  192. 

Walter  Allen,  218. 

Ley,  Thomas,  198. 

Limmouth  Oysters,  127. 

Limp  Corpse,  A,  91. 

Lincolnshire,   Pigmy    Flint   Flakes 

found  in,  268. 
List  of  Members,  663. 
Little  Rowley,  641. 

Toms  Hill,  642. 

Longstone  Down,  West  Lyn,  639. 

Re-erection  of  the,  540. 


Long  Stone  Row,  Erme  Valley,  686. 
Levering  Family,  183. 
Lydiate  Lane,  135. 
Lynmouth,     Chapel    of    St    John 
Baptist  at,  210. 

East,  166.  ^ 

Lyncombe  Wood,  118. 

Lyn,  Manor  of,  137-54. 

River,  West,  547. 

Lynton,   Antiquities  of  Prehistoric 
Period,  116. 

Charities,  223. 

Church  Bells,  202. 

Plate,  203. 

Records,  201. 

Wardens'  Accounts, 

205. 


Curates  of,  192. 

Descent  of  Manor  of,  140. 

Dissenting  Chapels,  210. 

Glebe,  210. 

in  1627,  177. 

Leases  of  Rectory,  214. 

Local  Legends,  169. 

Manor  of,  137. 

Parsonage,  210. 

Reception  by  Urban  District 

Council  of,  23. 

Registers,  206. 

Rights  and  Courts  of  Manor, 


144. 


148. 


190. 
226. 


Schools,  223. 

Survey  of  Manor  in  1717, 

Terriers,  210. 

and  Countisbury  Charities, 


History  of,  169-90. 


of,  114-20. 


Documents, 
Ecclesiastical 
The  Parishes 


Maddocks  Down,  538. 
Manleytona  or  Mauley  Town,  384. 
Mannourry,   WiDiam,   French   spy, 

483. 
Manor  of  Countisbury,  137,  164. 

Crosscombe,  162, 

Fursehill,  163. 

Heanton,  137.  160. 

Incrinton,  187. 

Lyn,  137.  154. 

Lynton,  137,  138. 

Woolhanger,  137-151. 

Martin,  J.  M.,  Pages  from  a  MS. 

History  of  Hathcrleigh,  294. 
Marwood,  Walter,  209. 
Chapel  at  West,  209. 


574 


INDEX. 


Marwood  Family,  169. 

Mayors    and    Mayoralties,    Totnee, 
404. 

Measles,  Cure  for,  98. 

Meavy  Valley,  586. 
^Medusa,  43. 

Members,  List  of,  553. 

"Middle  Mire,"  636. 

Mildmay,  Henry  Bingham,  Obituary 
Notice  of.  88. 

Ministers'  Accounts,  36  k  36  Henry 
VIII,  230. 

Minutes  of  Council  appointing  Com- 
mittees, 32. 

Mitten,  W.,  Death  of,  270. 

Molton,  Botany  of  South,  494. 

Monuments  of  Exmoor  and  its  Bor- 
ders, Rude  Stone,  II,  538. 

Monument,     Wichehalse,      Lynton 
Church,  203. 

Morrice,  Nicholas,  192. 

Mortain  Fief,  Derivative  Honours  of, 
341. 

Early  Descent  of  Estates  of, 

337. 

Mould  for  Tiles,  Wooden,  259. 

Muddlebridge  Pot  Works,  256. 

Mundy,  Matthew,  199. 

Mural     Painting     in     Hatherleigh 
Church,  309. 

Musci,  273. 


Neuroptera-Planipenniay  857,  363. 
of  Devonshire,  The  Recent, 

357. 
NichoUs,  Edward,  196-7. 
Night  Quarters,  91. 
North  Devon  Pottery  of  Seventeenth 

Century,  Notes  on,  266. 

Walk  Pottery,  Barnstaple,  255. 

Norton,  Abbot  of  Tor,  William,  94. 
Notices,  Obituary,  34. 


Oak  Altar   in   St.    Peter's  Church, 

Tawstock,  Ancient,  377. 
Obituary  Notices,  34. 
Odonatd,  357-61. 
Officer's,  1906-7. 
Okehanipton,  Descent  of  Estates  of 

Honour  of,  337. 

Honour  of,  351. 

Oldburrow  Camp,  119. 

—  Cot,  545. 

Oldham,  Rev.  D'Oyly  W.,  The 
Private  Chapels  of  Devon,  391. 

Old  Tiverton  or  Twyford,  380. 

Orleigh  Court,  Flint  Flakes  found 
at,  267. 


Ornaments  of   Church   at  Countis- 

bury,  221. 
Oysters,  Limmouth,  127. 


Pages  from  a  MS.  History  of  Hather- 
leigh, 294. 
Parallelograms,  542. 
Parish  Clerks,  501. 
Parkman,  John,  217. 
Parsonage,  Lynton,  210. 
Pedigree  of  Baldwin  de  Brionis,  358. 

Berry,  189. 

Knight,  190. 

Popham,  187. 

Wichehalse,  186. 

Venner  and 

others,  182. 
Perlidm,  357,  360. 
Perseus,  Legend  of,  48. 
Peter's  Pence,  500-20. 
Petertavy,  Hut  Circle  or  Barrow  at. 

118. 
Pi^y  Flint  Implements  in  North 

Devon,  261. 
Pilchard  Pots,  Names  of,  260. 
Pinford,  East,  643. 
Pitchers,  Names  of,  260. 
Places  of  Meeting,  1862-1906,  10. 
Plates,  List  of,  7. 
Plympton,  Honour  of,  821. 
Pomeroy  Arms,  203. 
Pomeraia,  Ralph  de,  138. 
Popham,  Arms  of,  186. 

Family,  186. 

Pedigree,  187. 

Stone  in   Lynton  Church, 

204. 

Population  of  Lynton,  133-5. 

Pottery  in  Barrows,  62. 

Notes  on  North  Devon,  255. 

Pot  Works  at  Instow,  255. 

Pound,  Alfred  John,  Obituary  Notice 
of,  34. 

Presidents,  1862-1906,  10. 

President's  Address,  1906,  40. 

Prick  man,  J.  D.,  Examples  of  West- 
country  Wit  and  Humour,  529. 

Prince  town.  The  Forest  Bounds  near, 
411. 

Private  Chapels  of  Devon,  Ancient 
and  Modern,  The,  391. 

Proceedings  at  Annual  Meeting,  23. 

Prowse,  Arthur  B.,  m.d.,  f.u.c.s.. 
The  Forest  Bounds  near  Prince- 
town,  411. 

Pseudo-Neuroptera,  367. 

Psocidcc,  357. 

Quadrilaterals,  541. 


INDEX. 


575 


Bake,  John,  195. 

Balegh,  Sir  Walter,  416. 

Baleghana,  Part  YII,  416. 

Battlebrook,  101. 

Recent  Neoroptera  of  Devonshire, 
857. 

Beception  by  Urban  District  Council 
of  Lynton,  23. 

Becor(»,  Lynton  Parish  Church,  201. 

Bed-Herring  Houses,  127. 

Beichel,  Bev.  Oswald  J. ,  M.  a.  ,  D.  c.  l.  , 
The  Early  Descent  of  the  Devon- 
shire Estates  belonging  to  the 
Honours  of  Mortaiu  and  Oke- 
hampton,  837. 

Beport  of  Council,  21. 

Beceipts    and    Payments, 

80-1. 

Boads,  Haunted,  98. 

Bobbins,  William,  197,  198. 

Boborough  Castle,  118. 

Boe,  Thomas,  198. 

Bolle  Family,  182. 

Boman  Coins,  120. 

Bound,  J.  Horace,  The  Earliest  Por- 
tion of  the  "Testa  de  Nevill"  re- 
lating  to  Devon,  313. 

Bows  of  Dar^oor,  The  Stone,  535. 

Bude  Stone  Monuments  of  Exmoor 
and  its  Borders,  Part  II,  539. 

Bules,  11. 

Bundle,  Rev.  Samuel,  Obituary 
Notice  of,  84. 

Sacrifice  of  Sheep,  87. 
Salisbury,  Mary,  173. 
Saunders,    Miss    Helen,     Botanical 

Notes,  III,  491. 
Saunton    Down,     Flint    Fabricator 

found  at,  265. 
Schools  at  Countisbury  and  Lynton, 

223. 
Setta  Barrow,  63,  64. 
Sexton,  502. 
Sheep,  Sacrifice  of,  87. 
Shergold,  John,  194. 
Short,  J.  S.,  Historical  Memoirs  of 

Hatherleigh  compiled  by,  300. 
Shorto,    George    Bobert,    Obituary 

Notice  of,  34. 
Sicilian  Superstitions,  45. 
Sidmouth,  Botany  of,  493. 
Simonsbath,  62. 
**Skimmington,  To  ride,"  136. 
Skinner,  Miss  Emily,  Old  Tiverton 

or  Twyford,  380. 
Skipper,  Davis,  91. 
Song,  Hunting,  92. 
South  Molton,  Boteny  of,  495. 
FursehiU,  Chapel  at,  209. 


South  Tawton,  Wardens'  Accounts, 

497. 
Span  Head,  North  Molton,  62. 
Sparhangcr,  163. 
Spindle-whorls,  120. 
Spreacombe,   Flint    Implements  at. 

266-7. 
Squire,  John  Franklin,  199. 
St      Peter's      Church,      Tawstock, 

Ancient  Altar,  377. 
Stall  Moor.  537. 

Standing  Orders,  Bye-laws,  etc.,  15. 
State  Documents  relating  to  Balegh, 

416. 
I   Steans,  Butter-,  258. 
.   Steed,  Thomas,  195. 
Stock  Castle,  118. 
Stone-flies,  etc.,  357. 
Stone   Monuments  of   Exmoor  and 

its  Borders,  The  Rude,  II,  358. 

Bows,  544. 

of  Dartmoor,  VII,  535. 

Stukely,  Sir  Lewis,  483. 
Subsidiary   Stores,    South    Tawton, 

Accounts  of,  522. 
Superstitions,  45. 


TavyBiver,  101. 

Valley,  Cairns  in,  57. 

Tawstock,  Ancient  Oak  Altar  in  St. 

Peter's  Church,  377. 
Tawton,  Wardens'  Accounts  of  South, 

497. 
Teignmouth,  Botany  of,  493. 
Terrier  of  Countisbury,  213. 

—  Lynton,  210. 

*'TestadeNeviIl,"313. 

Thirteen  Club,  41. 

Thorncombe,  139. 

Thorns,  Extracting,  89. 

Three  State  Documents  relating   to 

Ralegh,  417. 
Tiles,  259. 

Tiverton  or  Twyford,  Old,  380. 
Tochesone,  Ailward,  138. 
Toits,  205. 

Tomkins  Familv,  185. 
Toms  Hill,  Little,  542. 
Tor  Abbey  Ghosts,  93. 
Tor,  William  Norton,  Abbot  of,  94 
Totnes  :  Its  Mayors  and  Mayoraltit*"*, 

VI,  404. 
Tracey,  Henry  de,  139. 

William  de,  139. 

Triangles,  541. 
TriehopUra,  357-65. 
Triggs,  Robert,  193,  217. 
Trout  Hill,  542-6. 
Twyford,  Old  Tiverton  or,  380 


576 


INDEX. 


Urn,  Brookenborrow,  (K). 

Valley  of  Rocka,  186.  647. 
"  Valor  Ecclesiasticus,''  216. 
Venner  Family,  178, 182. 
Yisitationa,    Episcopal   and   Arohi- 
diaconal,  500. 

Wardens'  Accoants,  South  Tawton, 

622. 

of  South  Tawton,  498. 

Waroombe  Water,  647. 

Warts,  Cure  for,  88. 

Watern  Oke,  Hut  Settlement  at,  101. 

Weather,  St.  Lawrence's,  98. 

West-country  Wit  and  Humour,  629. 

Westerland  Beacon,  61. 

West  £ze,  887. 

Thomas,  197. 

Whale.  Rev.  T.  W.,  Fees  of  Earl 

Hugh  de  Courtenay,  818. 
Whimb,  Furzehill,  641. 
Wichehalse,  Arms  of,  169. 

Family,  169. 

Hugh,  177. 

John,  128. 

Monument,  208. 

Nicholas,  181,  141. 

Inq.p,m,,23>7. 

Inventory, 


1607,  174. 


Elxchequer,  254. 


Mary,  Bill  in  Court  of 


Wichehalse,  Pedigree  of,  186. 

Willhanger,  Manor  of,  160. 

Will  of  John  Wichehalse,  245. 

Mary       240. 

Nicholas 239. 

Rev.  Richard  Hardy,  248. 

Williams,  Anthony,  198-217. 

William  Capra,  188. 

Wilson.  Sir  Thomas,  488. 

Windeatt,  Edward,  Totnes :  its 
Mayors  and  Mayoralties,  404. 

Wise,  John  Henry,  218. 

Wistland  Pound  Farm,  69. 

Wit  and  Humour,  Examples  of  West- 
country,  629. 

Woodbarrow,  66. 

Arms,  541. 

Woolhanger,  Courts  of  Manor  of,  152. 

Manor  of,  150. 

Worth,  R.  Hansford,  Report  Barrow 
Committee,  67. 

Climate 

of  Devon,  66. 

and  Rev.  J.  F. 

Chanter,  Rude  Stone  Monuments 
of  Exmoor,  688. 

Stone  Rows  of 


Dartmoor,  686. 

Yorkshire,  Pigmy  Flint  Flakes  in, 
268. 

Young,  Thomas,  Pigmy  Flint  Imple- 
ments in  North  Devon,  261. 


PLYMOUTH  : 

wiLUAM  Biinrix>ir  amd  how,  ltd., 


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^■'^^■^:^^^^%....'