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Only 75 Copies of this Large-Paper Edition
have been printed

This is No.

3S

asiefoitrja! of 0Xii Cimrsl

PRINTED !1Y

SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NF,\V STREET SQUARE

LONDON

RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

HISTORICAL, SOCIAL, POLITICAL, SPORTING
AND AGRICULTURAL

J. KERSLEY FOWLER ('RUSTICUS')

formerly of the Prel-)endal Farm, Aylesbury

AUTHOR OF
'ECHOES OF OLD COUNTY LIFE* AND ' RECOLLECTIONS OF OLD COUNTRY LIFE*

* How strange are the tricks of memory, which after a hazy dream about the
most important events of a man's life, religiously preserves the merest trifles !
And how very unpleasant to meet oneself thirty years younger! ' — Life of Bukton

* When you say to a well-known man, " You ought to write your memoirs,"
it is a polite way of giving him to understand that he is no longer fit for any-
thing else. Still people continue to publish their reminiscences, because a man
likes to call up his souvenirs, and because, as a result of evoking them for himself,
the moment comes when he is seized by a desire to communicate them to his
contemporaries' — Henri Rochefort

WITH NINE ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON

CHATTO & W INDUS

1898

TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

LORD ROTHSCHILD

"LORD-LIEUTENANT OK BUCKS

FROM WHOM AND HIS FAMILY BOTH ABROAD AND AT HOME

I HAVE RECEIVED MANY ACTS OF KINDNESS

AND COURTESY

I DEDICATE THIS BOOK

PREFACE

The great success of my two former books, ' Echoes
of Old County Life ' (E. Arnold), and ' Recollec-
tions of Old Country Life' (Longmans), with the
generous and unstinted praise accorded to them by
nearly all the London and Provincial press, has
emboldened me to bring out another volume, which
I have called ' Records of Old Times.' This will
complete a Trilogy that I am vain enough to
believe will prove agreeable to my former readers,
comprehending, as it does, a series of reminiscences
of interesting events in which I have been a moving
centre, as well as ' Old Records ' which I have
been enabled to glean in my researches relating to
Buckinghamshire and the neighbouring counties.
In my first volume I ventured to remark ' that these
reminiscences differ from others that have hitherto
been published ... as being a fair representation

viii RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

of middle class life of one who, in the course of
a busy career, had met many famous people, and
truthfully recorded what he remembers about them.'
In the present volume I have somewhat enlarged
on the subject, by adding interesting facts of past
history, more especially the history of my native
county and the old town of Aylesbury, where I was
born, and where I lived for more than sixty years.
This is a long period to recall, but being possessed
of a vivid memory, it has not been difficult for me
to relate circumstances but little known to the
present generation, many of which, I may venture
to say, are calculated to be of use and guidance in
the future. My records of Turnpike gates and
their keepers ; Posting and Post-horses, with a
description of the ' post-horse duty,' and how that
vexatious impost was raised and collected ; of
old inns and coaching, with the rise of the present
so-called hotels and the huge caravanserais which
are now prevalent in our great Metropolis, as well
as in our seaside resorts and great manufacturing
towns ; the development of modern systems of
agriculture, and of agricultural exhibitions, abroad
and at home ; of Steeple-chasing and other sports,
with early Parliamentary and social records, comprise

PREFACE ix

a series of subjects which, I conceive, cannot fail to
interest various classes of my readers. Possibly I
may sometimes have travelled over the ground
covered in former volumes. If I have, I apologise.
When, however, that occurs, it is traceable, on my
part, to a desire to clearly elucidate some striking
event, for the perfect comprehension of which a note
or two of repetition would be necessary.

I must tender my best thanks to Lord Rothschild
for his kindness in permitting me to dedicate this
book to him ; and I but express my own feeling and
that of the public in stating how much the great world
is indebted to the present and past three generations
of his family for their integrity in business, their
well-known charity and hospitality, with the attention
they have shown to the wants and requirements of
their tenantry, and of Agriculture in general, as well
as the performance, by the present head of the
house, of his important duties as Lord- Lieutenant of
Bucks.

Although Lord Rothschild has been in occupa-
tion of Tring Park only a few years, he has so
much altered and beautified its interior as to make
it a home fit for a nobleman of such taste as he
possesses. For many years the house was occupied

X RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

by the Rev. I. Williams, who held it under the
trustees of Mr. Kaye, and at his decease the
mansion and large estates were sold by auction.
The eldest son of Mr. Williams was very desirous
of purchasing it, but at the auction Lord Rothschild
became the purchaser at something approaching
250,000/., the timber, which was very extensive,
being taken at a valuation. The enclosed deer
park makes a great addition to the property, and
its easy access to London is of much consequence
to the occupier. From several sources, especially
from a description given in a number of ' Country
Life ' of June 5, 1897, I find that the manor of Tring
(of the famed 'Tring, Wing, and Ivinghoe') was
granted to Earl Eustace by William the Conqueror,
from whom it descended to Matilda, wife of King
Stephen. It then became the property of the
Abbot of Feversham, from whom it passed to
Edward III., who, in exchange, granted it to the
Archbishop of Canterbury, in whose possession it
remained till Henry VIII., when plundering the
revenues of the Church, vested the property in the
Crown. The manor remained a Royal possession
till the time of Charles I., who presented it to
his Queen, Henrietta Maria. Oliver Cromwell,

PREFACE xi

however, confiscated it to the Commonwealth, and
it is recorded that a private gentleman again pur-
chased the property and presented it to Charles 1 1.
after the Restoration. I believe the King occasion-
ally resided at Tring Mansion, which probably gave
rise to the report that Nell Gwynne was once the
possessor. The estate then became the property
of Mr. Henry Guy, who was Clerk to the Treasury
for four reigns. He built the chief part of the
present mansion. In the end it belonged to Sir
Drummond Smith, from whom it passed to Mr.
Kaye, who was in the silk trade, and, I believe,
connected with David Evans & Co. Mr. Kaye,
during the agricultural depression in the early
forties, established considerable silk factories at
Aylesbury and Tring, in order to find employment
for the agricultural poor. The Aylesbury factory has
been closed for some years, but the present Tring
factory is continued by Lord Rothschild's philan-
thropy, and still finds employment for many. The
house and park closely adjoin the little market town of
Tring, and the members of the local agricultural
association have the privilege granted them of hold-
ing their annual show in the park, the denizens of
which, acclimatised, and carefully attended to by the

xii RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Hon. Walter Rothschild, the eldest son, always excite
great interest ; there are to be seen zebras, kangaroos,
emus, tortoises, and other curious specimens of
foreign countries, which seem to progress very well
in their new surroundings.

My thanks are also due to my old friend Mr.
Samuel Glen Payne, and his talented wife, for their
permission to use the excellent photographs of
mansions, churches, and other places of note to
illustrate the book. In addition, I have to thank
those who have furnished me with memoranda in
explanation of the incidents mentioned.

The Old House, Hampton-on-Thames,
Jmmary 1898.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I

The county of Bucks — The Chiltern Hills — Vale of Aylesbury —
Valley of the Thames — North of the county : Valley of the
Ouse — ' The classic groves of Stowe ' — ' Cymbeline ' — An
American's opinion — ' Why you English people so deeply love
your country' — -White Leaf Cross — Hughenden — Benjamin
Disraeli — 'Tring, Wing, and Ivinghoe' — The making of
England^ — Anne Boleyn, ' The Fair Maid of Aylesbury '

CHAPTER II

Turnpikes and their keepers — Origin of turnpike trusts — General
rate of tolls — Mr. Weller's opinion of pike men — A turnpike
letting — 'Pikers 'and their methods — Sharp practice — Lessees
of tolls — Feasting after the fray — Management of roads . 13

CHAPTER III

Early recollections of posting — Post-horse duty — The old inns
and posting-houses — Collection of the duty — Manners and
customs of travellers who posted — Cost — Post-horse Farmers
— Shillibeer, the well-known Undertaker — Abolition of the
duty 23

CHAPTER IV

Eton Montem — Customs — Their origin — Collecting salt —
Waving the flag on the Mount ad Montem — Salt bearers —
The ' Windmill ' Inn— Mr. Botham— The traffic on the Great
Western road — Royalty — The Playing Fields— Dr. Goodall
— Dinton . , . . 30

xiv RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER V

PAGE

Early recollections of the Derby — Lord Berners and Phosphorus
in 1837 — Caravan and Lord Suffield — My first Derby —
Bloomsbury's year, 1839 — My costume — Heavy snowstorm
on Oak-apple Day, May 29 — Opening of the London and
South-Western Railway from Nine Elms — ' No more trains ! '
— Cab to Kingston — A borrowed ride on a post-chaise —
' Whip behind ! ' — A mad rush, but in time to see the finish
• — Amato's victory — From Aylesbury to Epsom on horseback
in 1 84 1 — Well-named Little Wonder : won with 40 to i
against him — The Queen and Prince Albert present —
Running Rein — Daniel O'Rourke — My folly .... 38

CHAPTER VI

Recollections of the Cup Day at Ascot — My ride from home —
The Queen, Prince Consort, and the Emperor of Russia :
interesting conversation — The Countess of Albemarle's
carriage — The Earl, Masterof the Horse, wins with his son of
Defence, beating Attila — Delight of the crowd — The Emperor's
promise to present the Ascot Cup in future — Establishment
of the Cassarewitch Stakes — The Defence colt called the
Emperor — Wins the Vase the following year — Graceful act of
the Earl ; presents the Vase to her Majesty the Queen, and
the horse to the Czar — My next ' Ascot '—Dead-heat between
Buckstone and Tim Whififler 51

CHAPTER Vn

Parliamentary elections — Origin of the representation of the
people — Alfred the Great and the Witanagemot — Ancient
franchises — The Potwaller — Borough of Aylesbury^Addition
of ' The Hundreds ' — John Webb, ninety-six years old, the
last of the Potwallers — Customs at the nomination — Dinners
— Conveyances — Duration of polling period — A candidate's
' little bill ' — The poll — The voters' dinners : daily bill of fare
^General Election of 1784 — Curious incident — The great
Aylesbury case, Ashby v. White — Its effect .... 56

,r^

CONTENTS XV

CHAPTER VIII

i'AGE!

An eccentric country gentleman — Egyptologist and astronomer
— Singular political career — Rural pursuits — His marriages —
Establishment of prize gooseberry shows — Practices of ex-
hibitors— Names of noted gooseberries — J as. Carter, landlord
of the 'Bugle' Inn — Teetotal festivities — Dr. Lee in exce/sis —
Elihu Burritt — Drunken orgies of the visitors to the Teetotal
banquets — The historic career of the Lee family — Their
remarkable influence — Admiral Smyth — Old Wiggs, the
parish clerk — '^-Edes Hartwellianae' — The museum — Hartwell
House, the seven years' residence of Louis XVIIL . . 73

CHAPTER IX

A, prize farm — A Yankee fellow traveller — American and Englisli
farmers compared — Turning the tables — An English farmer's
bill of fare — A farmer's ' pretty turn-out ' — Discomfiture of
the Professor — Wheat-growing in England and the United
States — The Professor's apology 89

CHAPTER X

Hereford cattle — Early history of the breed — Report of the United
States Government — Grazing capabilities — Quality of beef —
Curious anecdote — Mr. Westcar, of Creslow — Foundation of
the Smithfield Club — Introduction of the breed into the Mid-
lands— Duke of Bedford — Lord Berners — Remarkable cattle
— Great value of ' Hereford ' beef at Christmas — Beauty of
the animals — Colour, grandeur, and carriage — General apti-
tude to fatten 95

CHAPTER XI

Old inns — Politics— Inn signs and their origin — Posting and
coaching — The 'White Hart' at Aylesbury — The extensive
gardens, the offices, and appointments of the 'White Hart'
• — County importance of the grand old inn — Names of the
rooms — The 'Old Bell' in Holborn— Customs of the dinner-
table — To Drury Lane Theatre after dinner — Other old inns
— Rise of the modern hotel — Bacon's Hotel, Great Queen
Street — Railway hotels — Present managers and past pro-
prietors contrasted .105

a

^'

xvi RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XII

I'ACiE

News of the Battle of Waterloo — Difficulty and delay in getting
news at the beginning of the centur)' — The old Winslow
coach — ' The Dairy Maid ' — Report of the great battle
brought to my father — Doubts of its authenticity — Ringing the
church bells — Indignation of the vicar — Ultimate triumph of
my father — Then and now contrasted — ' Our own corre-
spondent ' . . . . . . . . . . 1 20

CHAPTER XIII

A famous hunting mare — The purchase : her infirmity, her great
beauty, and her matchless performances — Her docility and
extraordinary pace— Jem Mason — Harborough Brown — The
Creslow Brook — The beauty of the Vale of Aylesbury as a
hunting country — Famous run after a bag fox with Lord
Lonsdale's hounds — Captain Barlow — Lord Coventry — The
great water jump over the Broughton line of countr>' with the
'Varsity men — Accident to the mare — Partial recovery— Put
to the stud — Sudden death — Death of her foal by Hungerford
at four years old, and an end of the great huntress . . 1 24

CHAPTER XIV

Curious instance of life insurance — X, a specially fortunate specu-
lator in freehold property — His remarkable purchase of life in-
terest of a younger son of a peer — Death of the earl, of the heir,
with other deaths — The younger son heir to the earldom and
50,000/. a year — Enormous windfall to X — Hisnoblegenerosity
to the impecunious peer — His attempt to insure his life — Un-
warrantable refusal to appear before the company's doctor —
Sudden withdrawal of proposal by X — The end of X's career 137

CHAPTER XV

The Date Coffee Company — Discovery of the value of the date as
an infusion equal to the best coffee — Successful flotation —
Establishment of the patent — Manufacture of date coffee at
Kurrachee in India — The Imaum of Muscat — Rapid increase
in the consumption — Handsome profits — The French patent
and its sale — Flotation of German company — Sudden collapse

CONTENTS xvii

of the sale of the article through the action of Mr. Gladstone,
Chancellor of the Exchequer— The Date Coffee Company
in the Law Courts— Final break-up of a company whose 5/.
shares had for some time been quoted at Till- • • -145

CHAPTER XVI

Capital punishments — Crimes of every description that were
punishable by death — Numbers at every assize left for execu-
tion— Banks and the two Cribbs for horse-steaUng — Sheep-
stealers — The new drop — Baron Garrow — A hanging judge
— The riots in 1832 — John Thompson at Maidstone — Instance
of superstitious belief in the charm of the dead hand — Mislaid
death warrant found, and, years after sentence, woman taken
from wash-tub and hung 155

CHAPTER XVn

Witchcraft — Its extraordinary superstitions — Biblical authorities
— Joan of Arc — The Puritans — Henry VIII. — Sir Matthew
Hale — Ducking at Castle Hedingham — Ruth Osborne
drowned at Gubblecote — Verdict of murder — Conviction and
execution of Colley — Susanna Hannock at Wingrove weighed
against the church Bible — Visit of the Fiery Drake to Ayles-
bury Gaol — Prognostication before the assizes of death
sentences 163

CHAPTER XVIH

Early steeplechasing — Qualities of a good steeplechaser — St.
Albans in 1833-34 — Aylesbury — Moderate stakes — The rise
and temporary fall of the Aylesbury meeting — Young ' Oxford'
at Aylesbury vice Banbury abandoned — A tremendous line of
country — Twice across eighteen feet of naked water and over
a turnpike road — ' Grief — Well-known cross-country gentle-
men riders at Aylesbury — Their hardihood and pluck — A cruel
course and unjumpable fence — A carefully laid-out line at
Aylesbury — Abuses and their reform — A great meeting —
H R.H. the Prince of Wales prevented from being present
— A defaulting official — The late Earl of Darnley — Reminis-
cences of 'Varsity steeplechasing — Assumed names of the
riders — The disguise stripped off by 'Bell's Life' — Bishop
Wilberforce and the steeplechases 169

xvlii RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XIX

tAC.E.

History of a railway — Opening of the London and Birmingham,
now the London and North-Western — The Buckinghatnshire
— George Stephenson and his son Robert — The Aylesbury — •
Messrs. Brydone and Rummens — Marquis of Chandos — Mr.
Stewart, secretary to London and North-Western — Unfair
opposition of landowner — Contracts and theireffect — Directors'
advances — The Great Western — The Metropolitan — Pur-
chase of the A and B line — Shameful treatment of the original
directors — Their just claims ignored — The Manchester,
Sheffield, and Lincolnshire (Great Central) . . . .186

CHAPTER XX

Altona — Judge in agricultural department at the great Schleswig-
Holstein Exhibition — My fellow jurors — The officials' utter
ignorance of ' management ' — Chaos — Assisted by the English
exhibitors, orderly arrangement effected — Awards — Trials of
implements : difficulties that had to be removed — Thrashing-
machines : Walter Wood his own driver — He wins the first
prize — Horticultural Show at Hamburgh — The success of the
English — Liverpool grapes win against all comers — Shabby
treatment of the judge — Nonpayment of services and out-of-
pocket expenses — Journey home — Borrowing money to get
there — Opinion of foreign agriculture — The all-round
superiority of English methods ...... 196

CHAPTER XXI

Amsterdam — Appointed a judge at the great Exhibition — The
journey thither — The Poultry Show — My son Robert wins the
gold medals for poultry and waterfowl — Extraordinary weight
of prize birds — Paul Potter's bull — 'A wretch' of a beast —
Curious facts in heredity — The famous bull as a picture —
Description — The Alderney Bull, by James Ward, R.A.
■ — ' Duke of Connaught' — Trotting matches — Dutch cattle —
Milk production and bacon — Tranquil beauty of the Low
Countries — The Dutch ; their thrift, cleanliness, and industr>'
— The bulb-farms at Haarlem 204

CONTENTS xix

CHAPTER XXII

PAGE

The myths and monastic legends of Ruckinghamshire — St.
Osyth — Rip Van Winkle and the Seven Sleepers — The be-
heading and miraculous restoration of St. Osyth — The Nun's
Wood and Fountain — Existing local traditions — Sacred wells
— ' The Holy Touch' — Hartwell and Dr. Lee . . .213

CHAPTER XXIII

Poultry rearing for profit — Statistics of imports — Breeds that
should be adopted — Records of exhibition birds — Major-
General Hassard — Pheasant-rearing and the production of
pheasants' eggs as a profitable agricultural industry — Remark-
able statistics — Prices of eggs — Names of noted dealers —
Accounts of profit and loss — Numbers of eggs laid and young
pheasants reared — Expenditure on the establishment of a
pheasant farm . . . . 220

CHAPTER XXIV

The homing instinct — Andre's pigeons — Mr. Tegetmeier —
Curious instances of homing instinct in the dog — Quaint epi-
taph— The agricultural labourer — Dialects — The agricultural
labourer's rustic speech — His humour— The worth and native
shrewdness of his character — His industry — Wages and the
cheap loaf — Old times and new — Bounties on foreign grown
sugar — The growth of flax and hemp — A chance for English
agriculture — ' The backbone of Old England ' . . .

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Ellesborough Church and the Vale of Ayles-
bury, SHOWING THE ANCIENT ROM ANO-BRITISH

Road, the Icknield Way, a.d. 220 . . Frontispiece

Lord Rothschild's House, Tring Park . . to face p. x

Great Kimble Village and Church, with the

Icknield Way „ 4

Whiteleaf Cross — formed by the Saxons to
Commemorate their final Victory over
the Danes, a.d. 570 „ 6

Dinton Hall, the Seat of Colonel Goodall ;
formerly the Residence of Simon Mayne,
the Regicide „ 34

Hartwell House, the Residence of Colonel
E. Dyke-Lee; occupied, whilst in Exile,
BY Louis the Eighteenth from 1807 to 1814 „ 74

Steepi.e-chase, Old Style, Aylesbury, 18471
Steeple-chase, New Style, Lingfield, 1897)

170
'The Young Bull,' by Paul Potter . . „ 206

RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER I

The county of Bucks — The Chiltern Hills — Vale of Aylesbury — Valley
of the Thames — North of the county : Valley of the Ouse — ' The
classic groves of Stowe' — ' Cymbeline' — An American's opinion —
'Why you English people so deeply love your country' — White
Leaf Cross — Hughenden — Benjamin Disraeli — 'Tring, Wing, and
Ivinghoe' — The making of England — Anne Boleyn, 'The Fair
Maid of Aylesbury.'

' England, with all thy faults, I love thee still — my country.'

Once more am I tempted to record my recollec-
tions of old England, as also, here and there, of
certain other countries whereof I have some know-
ledge, and in the characters of whose great
men I have taken unusual interest. In my former
volumes I have given a somewhat disjointed record
of my personal experiences of some interesting
characters, chiefly from my native county — men of
all classes with whom I have been associated ; and
I may be thought too enthusiastic in my love of the
' great historic county of Bucks,' so aptly named by
one of her most distinguished sons, Benjamin
Disraeli, who, although not born in the county,
spent all his early boyhood and his most famous

B

2 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

manhood at his father's house at Bradenham, near
High Wycombe, and at Hughenden, which
adjoins the former place. These villages are
situated in the most picturesque parts of the ' beech-
clad Chilterns,' embedded in the umbrageous
shelter of the beech trees, truly ' recubans sub
tegunne fagi.' Much as I have travelled over
Europe, and nearly the whole of the United
Kingdom, I have repeatedly said that nowhere
can be found more perfect sylvan scenery than
that along the Chiltern Hills, or more real pastoral
beauty than the Vale of Aylesbury, or more
lovely views than those in the Valley of the
Thames, from Henley to Maidenhead. Nor should
the north of the county be despised. The Valley
of the Ouse, the classic groves of Stowe, the
woodlands around the Claydons, with the breezy
heights of Brill, are all admirable.

But it is with the country about the Chiltern
Hills I am tempted most to dwell, and the recent
revival by Sir Henry Irving at the Lyceum
Theatre of that most delightful play of Shakespeare,
' Cymbeline,' with the delineation of everything
that is lovable, womanly, and charming in Imogen,
has touched a chord which impels me to dwell on
that interesting district. This part of the county is
but little known ; yet it is here that the two rural
villages of Great and Little Kimble are situated, at
the foot of the highest part of the Chiltern range,
and here most undoubtedly dwelt the British King
Cymbeline, or Kimbeline, with the ' fair Imogen '

CYMBELINE AND IMOGEN 3

— all around the country is full of ancient
British earthworks. It is generally believed that a
deep and lovely indentation in the Chalk Hills is
the spot where Cymbeline and his Court lived.
This portion of the hill is covered with a deliciously
short velvety sward, and verifies properly the
modern appellation of ' Velvet Lawn.' On its east
side rises abruptly a wonderfully perfect British
camp, with a somewhat deep fosse or ditch
thoroughly enclosing it ; and rising- sheer from the
base is one of the most beautifully shaped conical
hills on the whole Chalk range, whilst on the top
are two additional smaller camps, and within a
quarter of a mile towers the highest of the Chilterns,
called ' Coombe Hill ' ; this is about 900 feet above
the sea, and commands a view of the country for a
distance of nearly thirty miles. From its summit
can be seen to the north and west portions of the
counties of Warwick, Gloucester, Northampton,
Oxford, Bedford, Hertford, Berkshire, and Wilt-
shire ; and to the south Middlesex and the Surrey
hills, with the Crystal Palace clearly visible. The
most fertile part of Bucks lies at its foot, with the
county town of Aylesbury.

The ' yEgilsbireg ' of the Saxons, surmounted
by its fine old twelfth-century church in the centre
of the vale to which it gives its name — I have not
the power to describe the beauties of this splendid
inland view. Some years ago from this spot I was
showing a young American gentleman, who was
visiting me, the beauties of this neighbourhood, with

B 2

4 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

the country divided by hedgerows and planted with
timber-trees, villages and parish churches rising here
and there, and dotted with farm-houses and cottages,
the river Thame meandering through the rich
pastures, till it reaches the market town of that
name, where it becomes a tolerably broad stream,
falling into the Isis at Dorchester in Oxfordshire, the
I sis having received the Cherwell, flowing from Ban-
bury to Oxford, and thus forming the Thame-Isis,
the Tamesis, or Thames, and becoming at London
Bridge the richest laden and most noted river in
the world. This unique view caused my friend to
exclaim, ' Now I see why you English people so
deeply love your country.' I replied : ' Yes, what
you perceive has taken us nearly 2,000 years to
create.' I then pointed out to him that at our feet
lay the two little villages of Great and Little
Kimble, and that there was the residence of the
famed British King ' Kunobelin,' the ' Cunobelinus'
of the Romans, and the ' Cymbeline ' of the
immortal Shakespeare, and that in the thickly
wooded slopes of these hills had lived that most
lovely woman of all the great poet's creation, ' the
gentle Imogen.' We descended from our coign of
vantage, and seated ourselves on the camp, still
called by the country people ' Linus' Camp.'
Looking to the side of the hill — covered thickly,
and almost impenetrably with ancient box trees,
stretching for miles — the trees are supposed to
be the successors of former denizens of the
slopes, and to have existed for many centuries.

THE ICKNIELD WAY 5

These evergreen woods are extremely beautiful, and
are interspersed occasionally with fine beech trees ;
the woods reach down to the two Kimbles, and
the village of Ellesborough, or Ethelburga. I
showed him that important British road — the
' Icknield Way,' the ' Via Iceni ' of the Romans —
the road to the Iceni of Boadicea, that great queen
of a noble race, who was struck down, and, it is
said, killed at the battle with the Roman legions
near St. Albans. This road commences at Devizes
in Wiltshire, continuing its route to the Thames,
which it crosses at Wallingford, or Watlingford,
to the litde town of Watlington, then to Princes
Risborough — once the residence of the Black Prince
— along the foot of the Chiltern range to Dun-
stable, where it crosses or joins the main Roman
road to the north — the ' Watling Street ' of these
pioneers of civilisation still bearing the same
name in the City of London — and on by Tow-
cester to Chester. The Icknield Way con-
tinues across the kingdom to St. Albans — the
' Verulamium ' of the Romans, whose glorious
Norman Abbey, now a cathedral, is largely
built of Roman bricks from that warlike station.
To our rear, amongst the dense mass of beech trees,
lies Hughenden, which is about seven miles distant,
the residence of the great political chief, the late
Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield, K.G., from
whose residence, he once told me, while I was
visiting him, that Simon de Montfort went to
compel King John to sign Magna Charta at

6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Runnymede near Ankerwyke on the Thames ; and
about two miles away is Hampden House, the birth-
place and grave of the patriot, John Hampden,
of whose ancestor it is recorded —

Tring, Wing, and Ivinghoe,
Three churches all in a row ;
These Manors Hampden did forego
For striking the Black Prince a blow,
And glad he did escape so.

Probably this was from some hasty words with the
renowned Black Prince, who was Hampden's neigh-
bour, whilst the Prince was at Princes Risborough.
As my visitor and myself were seated on this
ancient camp, within three miles on our left I
described Whiteleaf Cross, a noble relic of the
Saxons, cut out on the hill side of one of the
highest of the Chiltern rano;e, the turf being re-
moved, and thus showing the chalk beneath. The
cross, of great size, stands upon a huge triangular
base and is seen for many miles, being clearly visible
at O.xford, nearly twenty miles distant. This re-
markable work was formed by the Saxons about
the year a.d. 570, to commemorate their last great
victory over the Danes. On the low-lying lands
at its base is ' Bledlow,' or Bloody Plain, which
adjoins Horsenden, the residence of Horsa, the
son of Woden, and whose son ' Wiglif ' commanded
the Saxons ; no doubt ' Whiteleaf ' is a corruption
of this name. Looking ahead is Dinton, the
residence of Simon Mayne, the regicide in the
time of Charles I., and adjoining is the village of

HARTWELL 7

Hartwell, for seven years the home of Louis XVI 1 1,
and his Court after their escape from France under
the first Napoleon. If this central part of Bucks is
historical, so is the northern part, as it contains the
town of Buckinoham, which afives its name to the
county ; but it appears that it never attained to the
dignity of the county town, Aylesbury from time
immemorial had always that honour. Near to the
town is Stowe, the seat for generations of the
Grenvilles, Dukes of Buckingham (and now the
residence of the Due d'Orleans and other members
of the royal family of France), with Whaddon
Chase, a noted stronghold of the ancient Britons
when Julius Caesar invaded the country 55 b.c.
Yet in the south it is equally to be noticed, contain-
ing as it does the historic College of Eton, founded
by King Henry III.

The county here is bounded by the River
Thames — full as it is of history, with ' Danesfield,'
near Great Marlow, where are the remains of a
very perfect Danish camp. Nor must the village
of Penn be forgotten — the home of the Penns — who
founded Pennsylvania, in the United States of
America. In this county poetry is nobly represented
— by the residence of John Milton, who wrote
' Paradise Lost,' at Chalfont St. Giles ; Hall
Barn, the home of the courtly Waller in the reign
of Charles II., now the residence of Sir Edward
Lawson, Bart. ; Gray, with his elegy of the country
churchyard, at Stoke Poges ; Cowper, of Olney ;
and it is confidently believed that glorious Will

8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Shakespeare, whilst on his journey from Stratford-
on-Avon to London, when passing through Grendon
Underwood, a village on the road from Bicester to
Aylesbury, drew his picture of boorish life in the
' Midsummer Night's Dream ' of ' Bottom the
Weaver ' and his companions from sojourners in
a village ale-house. Adjoining this village is
Ludgershall, where Wyclifle, one of the earliest
champions of the Reformation, was vicar, and near
to which is the little town of Brill, where King
John had a palace, from whence he could hunt at
his Manor of Boarstall and the forest of Berne-
wood. Thus it may well be called the historic
county of Bucks.

I have had many opportunities, from a long
residence in this county, of searching various records
not only typical of the habits and customs of the
people of the district, but of others. I think it may
interest many people to be reminded of these events
and celebrities of a bygone age, and give them some
idea of rural life in our dear old country.

In Green's admirable book on 'The Making of
England,' he says, 'It was by Wallingford, or the
Ford of the " Whealtas," or Welshmen, as the con-
querors called it, that the West Saxons must have
passed the Thames in the year 571. Their leader
was " Cuthwulf." There was one battle only of
which we have record. Cuthbert's raid had carried
him from Wallingford to the " Icknield Way," along
the western slopes of the Chilterns, as far as
Bedford, before the forces of the " Four Towns "

LEAGUE OF THE FOUR TOWNS 9

could gather news of the foray, and an engagement
took place, when the victory fell, as of old, to the
Freebooters ; and the success of Cuthwulfs men
was followed by the ruin of the " League of the Four
owns.
' As one looks westward from the Chilterns, now-
a-days, over Aylesbury Vale, the district of the " Four
Towns " which formed the league consisted of Eyn-
sham, Bensington, Aylesbury, and Lenborough,
now a small hamlet near Buckingham. This lies
stretched before you as far as Brill. Then, as now,
the country was fertile and well peopled. A
stream, the Thame, runs through Aylesbury, a
town crowned with a church, or " Eglwys" — to which
it probably owes its English name. A line close by
the town of Thame, marks the present shire line of
Bucks and Oxon, and marked the boundary of
Aylesbury, and of that ruled by Bensington. The
district of Lenborough lay along the Ouse, probably
to Olney, and bounded by the territories of
Towcester and Aylesbury. It was from the south
that the West Saxons struck the country of the
" Four Towns." They fought their way along the
range of the Chilterns to Bedford and there halted.'
Brown Willis, the antiquary, says that Whiteleaf
Cross is a corruption of ' White Cliff' Cross, but
investigations have proved that it is from the
Saxon chief ' Wiglife,' the grandson of Woden,
and father of Hengist, who commanded the Saxons
in a great batde fought at the foot of the hill,
over the remaining portion of the Britons, who

lo RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

still held that part of the country. It is a great
height, and the cross rises from a large triangle,
and covers a great many acres of ground ; it can
be plainly seen at Oxford and other places, more
than thirty miles distant. The cross and hill, by
Act of Parliament, are declared public property,
and it is occasionally scoured at the expense of the
Lord of the Manor.

' Wayland Smith ' — the god of smiths — and
builder of Wayland Smith's cave, was brother of
' ^gil,' who was equal to Thor — the god of battles
— and from whom is ' .^Egilsbireg,' or Aylesbury.
yEgil was god of the sky, but in later days he was
sunk into a darker and terrible deity. The corrup-
tions of some words are curious and amusing.
Close to the Icknield Way — the Via Iceni — is the
' World's End.' This is the Wold's end, where the
wolds or hills merge into the valley. The town of
Wendover is the ' wend or wind ' over the hills ;
but still more interesting are the adjoining villages
of the ' Kimbles,' the residence of ' Cymbeline ' or
' Kymbeline ' (Shakespeare's ' Cymbeline '), King of
Britain, 500 years before the Saxons, who was king
when Julius Caesar invaded Britain 55 B.C.

Whilst alluding to Aylesbury, I don't think it is
generally known that the unfortunate Queen Anne
Boleyn was often called ' The Fair Maid of
Aylesbury.' Her father, Sir Thomas Boleyn,
became Earl of Wiltshire ; he inherited the Manor
of Aylesbury through his mother, who was a
daugfhter of Thomas Boteler. The Earl sold the

THE FAIR MAID OF AYLESBURY ii

manor to Lord Chief Justice Baldwin. The cause
of his selling the manor was, he says in a letter to
Thomas, Lord Bramwell : ' The truth is, that when
I married my wife I had but fifty pounds a year for
me and my wife as long as my father lived, and yet
she brought me a child every year.' A writer of
eminence says : ' This fair maid of Aylesbury,
is described as being of that singular beauty and
tendernesse that her parents took all care possible
of her education. Therefore, besides the ordinary
parts of virtuous instructions, wherewith she was
liberally brought up, they gave her teachers in
playing on musical instruments, singing, and
dancing, inasmuch that when she composed her
hands to play and her voice to sing, it was joined
with that sweetness of countenance that three
harmonies concurred. Likewise, when she danced,
her rare proportions varied themselves into all the
graces that belong either to rest or motion.' These
accomplishments, improved by the ease and self-
possession she had acquired at the Court of France,
captured, but could not secure, the affections of the
salacious Henry, who, having conceived a passion
for Jane Seymour, caused the Queen to be tried
for adultery. This abominable charge rested on
no other ground than some slight indiscretions,
which her ' simplicity had equally betrayed to
commit and to avow.' No proof of innocence could
avail, however, with the king ; she was condemned
to die, and she expired on the scaffold. In one of
her affecting protestations, which she sent to her

12 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

unfeeling persecutor, she thus expresses herself:
' From a private station you have raised me to that
of a countess, from a countess you have made me
queen, and now you can raise me one step higher —
to be a saint in heaven.' Anne Boleyn, when in
the plenitude of her power, was a distinguished
promoter of the Reformation, and all Englishmen
should never be allowed to forget, that she was the
mother of that truly great Sovereign, Queen
Elizabeth.

13

CHAPTER II

Turnpikes and their keepers — Origin of turnpike trusts — General rate
of tolls — Mr. Wellei-'s opinions of pike men — A turnpike letting —
' Pikers ' and their methods — Sharp practice — Lessees of tolls —
Feasting after the fray — Management of roads.

The great changes which have taken place in
almost every department in rural, and even in town,
life during the past fifty years is a sufficient excuse
for my touching upon certain customs that really
affected the whole body politic. Amongst many of
those changes none seemed to make so much
alteration as the abolition of turnpike gates. The
present generation know but little of what these
obstructions were, and but few even of those living
at the time of their existence knew their history and
management. I am not quite certain that my
description of their origin is strictly correct, but
having had in my early youth and manhood many
opportunities of studying this particular phase of
the genus homo — I mean turnpike gatekeepers, or
' pikers,' as also of the lessees of the tolls, who held
many of the ' trusts ' as they were called — I am
enabled to give a slight sketch of this department
of road management, together with the origin of
turnpike trusts, and the methods by which they

14 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

were conducted. I have been informed of what was
the origin of these trusts, viz. that when the land-
owners and other inhabitants of- certain districts
were desirous of improving the means of com-
munication between the towns, villages, and their
properties adjacent, they went for an Act of
Parliament, or employed the powers of the general
Turnpike Act.

They agreed to make certain roads, hitherto
entirely maintained by the parishes through which
they ran, into more extended fields of operation,
and the then existing parish roads were widened,
straightened, and otherwise vastly improved.

A ' trust ' was formed with a number of
gentlemen, chiefly of owners of land in the vicinity,
who were empowered to raise money, by loan,
to improve these highways, and to erect gates
or barriers across them at certain places, to
enable authorised persons to collect tolls from the
drivers of all carriages, horses, cattle, or other
animals passing through them, for the formation and
maintenance of the roads included in the said trust.
In general, these tolls were annually let by a species
of public auction to the highest bidders, who were
accepted if they were prepared to adhere to the
conditions submitted to them. The usual tolls
throuo'hout England and Wales were — for a horse
passing through the gates, ridden or led, i^d., but
if drawing any vehicle 4^^'., so that a gig or phaeton
with one horse paid 4^^., and a carriage with a pair
r)d., and so on. The imposition fell with particular

TURNPIKE GATES, AND TOLLS 15

hardship on farmers, and became a tax on their
trade, as when sending their corn or other produce, with
waggon and four horses, they paid is. 6d. or 2^. yi.
in some instances ; often going through two gates in
the space of eight or ten miles, they would thus have
to pay 3^. or 4^. 6d., and, in some instances, so
exacting were the lessees, that if the same waggon
which had conveyed corn or other produce to
market brought back coal, oil-cake, or other feeding
stuffs, they were expected to pay the same amount
over again. Cattle, when passing through, paid so
much per score — about \od. — sheep and pigs rather
less. There were also severely heavy penalties for
waggons and carts carrying over a ton of goods of
farm or other produce, if the wheels of the vehicle
were under a specified width. Thus it became the
custom to have broad-wheeled carts and waggons to
save the extra toll. When a toll was paid it freed
the payer up to twelve o'clock the same night ; he
could go through the gate as often as he pleased,
but woe betide the gaily disposed individual if he
had stayed at a friend's house, or had driven the
ladies to an evening's entertainment or to a ball,
if he waited till the early hours of the morning, or
one single minute after the clock struck twelve ; the
gatekeeper was down upon him, and he had
to fork out an extra toll, seeing that he had
entered into another day. But the most intoler-
able nuisance of the turnpike was, that soon after
twilight had set in, you had to wait in the rain,
wind, or snow till the 'piker' opened his gate.

i6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

and his operations were invariably conducted at a
snail's pace. He then sauntered indoors to get
change, whilst you underwent all the miseries of delay
iind consequent loss of temper. If at night, often as
early as nine o'clock, you had to bang the door of
the gatehouse till the man got up — generally in his
night shirt, and an old coat thrown over him, and
often with a tasselled night-cap for headgear. He
then had to unlock the gate, and throw, or rather
deliberately push it open to let you pass through.
These gatekeepers rarely remained at the same
gate more than a year or two at a time, as the tolls
were often taken by different persons at the annual
letting, and sometimes the lessees themselves came
to reside at the houses attached to the gates, or
put their sons or relatives in. In some instances
they were extremely agreeable, nice people, but
oftener they were sour, uncivil fellows, who seemed
to delight in making themselves obnoxious to
travellers. Dickens makes the elder Weller say
that ' They're all on 'em men as has met with some
disappintment in life, consequence of vich they
retires from the world, and shuts themselves up in
pikes, partly with the view of being solitary, and partly
to rewenge themselves on mankind by takin' tolls.
If they was gen'lm'n you'd call 'em misanthropes,
but as it is, they only takes to pike-keepin'.'

The distances from one turnpike gate to another
varied very much, but generally the stopping-places
were about eight to ten miles apart. In some places,
as, for instance, my native town of Aylesbury the

INJURIOUS EFFECTS OF TURNPIKES 17

place was literally hemmed in like a fortified city,
not even an outlet to exercise a horse without
paying a toll. There were seven different turnpike
trusts to maintain in relation to the town. The
funds collected from the g^tes were paid into the
treasurer's hands of each trust, and the roads were
repaired from them. It will be observed that a
large amount was absorbed in paying lawyers, who
were generally appointed to the posts of treasurers
and clerks to the trustees, and also to surveyors.
There were seven sets of officials for all these
trusts, whereas one would have been sufficient. In
many instances the interests on the loans had been
unpaid for many years. I myself knew of several
trusts where the interest had been in arrear for more
than twenty-five years. After those leeches of
officials had sucked in their salaries, there was but
little over 50 per cent, of the takings left for the
actual repair and maintenance of the roads. The
lessees also expected to get a fair profit on their
outlay, and the collectors received from 20s. to 2 5^.
per week, which made a great inroad into the receipts
from the tolls. At last, owing to the introduction
of railways, the funds for which the gates were let
were so crippled, that by degrees one trust after
the other expired, in most instances considerable
loss being experienced by the original bondholders,
who had found the money for the construction of
the roads. In many cases already printed as above,
the holders were glad to get anything back ; and
I have heard that the average amount repaid to the

c

i8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

bondholders throughout the country when the trusts
were abolished was not more than 4^. or 5^. in the
pound.

In giving this imperfect sketch of the establish-
ment of turnpike trusts, I cannot forbear adding
some slight account of the method of letting the tolls.
The trustees, who were mostly country gentlemen
of the district, forgathered at the principal inn in
the county town in considerable numbers, and the
whole place being en Jete, there was an assembly
of as strange a collection of humanity as could well
be grot together. It was usual for the trustees to
give a guinea for each gate let to be expended in
refreshments, and as generally there were six or
eight gates, there would be that number of
guineas spent amongst about forty or fifty ' pikers,'
as they were called, who attended, but only about
six or seven of these would be bidders and lessees ;
these were men of capital, who rarely collected their
own tolls. Those who witnessed these meetings
called them the ' Whispering Society,' as the com-
pany scattered about the inn yard in groups of three,
five, or more, were in full conclave, all in whispers ;
one would run off and whisper to another group
and return again, when they would be approached
by another envoy, whilst circulating rapidly amongst
them was one of the bond fide bidders, evidently
making terms with several threatening opponents,
and promising from i/. to 5/. to the recipient who
refrained from bidding. At the appointed time a
rush was made to the auction room, where the

MODE OF LETTING THE TOLLS 19

trustees, with their clerks, treasurers, surveyors, and
other officers, were assembled. After the conditions
were read the letting commenced, but it sometimes
happened that the whispering had been so effective
that not a single offer was made, to the astonish-
ment of the trustees, who had not seen the
Machiavellian manoeuvres that had been going on
for more than an hour elsewhere. As no biddings
were made, it was then announced that the upset
price was, say, 200/. for each gate, and that unless
that sum was obtained, the gates would be with-
drawn and the trustees would put in their own
collectors and farm the gates themselves. When
the sum was announced a Qeneral Qroan of horror
went round, and the trustees were told that the offer
was so outrageous it could not be listened to ; that
the last two years the gates had not produced more
than 180/. to 190/., and the lessees had lost all their
wages and expenses, but if they would listen to
reason a tenant could be found at 150/. Suddenly
some stranger to the ' pikers,' who had been un-
observed by them, would bid 180/., at which there
would be a burst of indignation and an outbreak of
insulting by-play. ' Was that your bid, Jem .'' ' one
would exclaim. ' No,' another would remark ; ' I
ain't such a d — — d fool as that ' ; whereupon one of
the body would spring 5/., and after a pause the
stranger would top it with a bid of 190/., when a
gentleman of the Hebrew race, highly adorned with
gold watch-chain and rings, and dressed in extra
fashionable clothes, would rap the floor and hold

20 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

a ventriloquial conversation with an imaginary
partisan down in the cellar, calling his attention to
the lunatic who had just come out of the asylum,
and was bidding for this gate, suggesting that his
keeper should be sent for. All this amid shouts of
laughter, and the chairman of the trustees calling
' order.' After a long silence another 5/. would be
advanced, when the stranger would immediately cap
it by saying he would give the reserve. Great con-
sternation would follow, and then you would hear
the old lessee, who declared he had lost so much by
taking the gates for the last two years, say that it
had been a good hay and corn harvest, and that
the steeplechases would come off in the year, and
risk it by giving another 5/., and make it 205/.
This recollection of an oft-repeated scene may be
accepted as a fair specimen of a gate letting. All
the whispering which had taken place beforehand
represented an endeavour to buy off every dangerous
opponent. Many persons came down from London
and elsewhere, under pretence of taking the gates,
who earned a sovereign or even 3/. as payment for
the day's work from the lessee, who had probably
held the gates for the past two or three years and
was reluctant to lose them. The business of con-
tracting to take turnpikes was in many instances an
immensely expensive one. The gentleman who
took most of the gates in Bucks and some of the
adjoining counties was a Mr. Tongue, living at
Manchester, and it was estimated that he had

CAROUSALS OF THE 'PIKERS' 21

upwards of 50,000/^ annually embarked in gate
holding. He retained a regular staff of collectors,
who moved about from one part of the country to
another, as his confidential servants. It should be
observed that the stranger (in my typical scene at
a sale) who had been bidding was put up by the
trustees as an imaginary lessee to prevent such
machinations as those which the Whispering Society
had arrano^ed. Followino; the lettinof came the
dinner and the carouse, at which, it is needless to
remark, the money of the trustees was rapidly
expended. It was amusing to watch the advent of
the cigars after the dinner. Young aspirants to
smoking honours would station themselves behind
the door of the dining-room ; when the waiters
brought the cigars in by a dozen at a time in glass
tumblers, a dash would be made, and before the
choice Havannahs could be brought into the room
they were appropriated — viilgo stolen — ' convey the
wise it call ' — and pocketed by the snatchers. The
lessee generally put half a dozen port and sherry on
the table, but took care to retain a couple of bottles for
the consumption privately of himself and personal
friends. All this is now abolished ! The old turnpike
gates are gone with the ' pikers ' ! No more exciting
scenes on the road to Gretna by happy, but fearful
couples ; no more delays by stubborn pikers, already
suborned to delay the pursuers by failing to give
change, so immortalised by Caldecott and the old
yellow post-chaise. And now the maintenance and

22 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

repairs of the roads are thrown on the backs of the
already overtaxed farmers, to be again transferred
to the tender mercies of the modern county councils.
' The old things have passed away and all things
have become new.' Well may it be said, ' Tempora
mutantur, et nos mutamur in illis.'

23

CHAPTER III

Early recollections of posting — Post-horse duty — The old inns and
posting-houses — Collection of the duty — Manners and customs of
travellers who posted — Cost — Post-horse Farmers — Shillibeer, the
well-known Undertaker — Abolition of the duty.

Many recollections of my busy life crowd upon me
but there are some which should not be forgotten,
and are singular records of bygone times. Some
years ago the general public travelled but little ;
there were, in fact, few opportunities to go even
from one neighbouring town or village to another.
It is, indeed, marvellous to me how business and
pleasure were carried on in my boyhood. I knew
well how the nobility and gentry moved about the
country, namely, by post-horses. And this brings
to my memory what ' posting ' in those days really
was, and how few there are now living who under-
stand it.

The period of ' Pickwick ' was not only that of
'pikes' and 'pike-keepers,' but it was the palmy
days of posting. Posting-houses and post-horses,
with the system of travelling by the turnpike road
which flourished in my youth, tempt me to again
draw upon my recollections. A posting chapter
follows naturally upon one devoted to toll-gates and
toll-keepers.

24 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

The principal innkeepers in the town con-
sidered it a cHstinction to be enabled to place upon
their sign-boards the words ' Posting- House,' such as
the White Hart Inn and ' Posting-House.' The inti-
mation was to the effect that not only horses could
be provided to forward travellers onwards, but that
acconimodation could be offered for a party of
travellers, servants included, for the night. It was,
therefore, only the leading inns which could rank as
posting-houses. A heavy tax was paid to Govern-
ment, called the post-horse duty, and the manner in
which it was levied, paid, and collected, was so
extraordinary that it can scarcely be credited in the
present day. It was impossible that this tax could
be properly collected without the assistance of the
turnpike gates, and it was not for some years after
the duty was repealed that these road obstructions
were abolished. Had they been destroyed earlier
the post-horse duty must have gone with them.
The duty was charged at i^d. per horse per mile,
but as in the posting days few people travelled
with less than a pair of horses, the one-horse fly
not having then been invented, at least four-fifths
of the travelling was performed in the owner's
private carriage ; a pair or four horses being used,
according to the size of the carriage and the
number of the passengers, and generally by the
social rank of the traveller. When a carriage
pulled up at the door of the inn a shout was heard
of ' First turn out !' The ostler and all the house-
hold, generally with the proprietor at their head.

POSTING IN THE OLDEN TIME 25

were immediately alive to the occasion. As one
pair of horses was always kept ready harnessed and
saddled in the stable throughout the day, until
racking-up and feeding time at night, ready for
every emergency, no time was lost, the post-boy
being already booted and spurred, the driver almost
invariably riding, or, to use the prevalent term,
' bumped the saddle.' The traveller, who was
probably coming from or going to the metropolis,
gave out the place he was bound for, asked the
number of miles, say to Buckingham or Bicester
(seventeen miles), and as the charge, including duty,
for a pair of horses was is. 6d. a mile, the amount
would be i/. 5^. 6d., which was generally paid before
starting. Sixpence was given to the ostler, and 3^'.
per mile for the post-boy ; and as there were three
turnpike gates on the road, the cost at gd. each was
2s. 3^'., with I IS. for an occasional bait or stoppage,
it brought the amount as near as possible to 2^^.
per mile. The pace, including stoppage, changing
horses, &c., was about eight to nine miles per hour.
Thus, if the travellers left London, si.xty miles
distant, at ten o'clock in the morning, with an hour for
luncheon en route, by six o'clock they were ready for
dinner : they rarely travelled beyond that hour, and
then made themselves comfortable for the night. It
will therefore be observed what an expensive and
difficult thing it became to move an establishment,
with children and servants, about the country ; and
that when a family left their house in the early spring
for the London season, there was but little induce-

26 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

merit for them to return home till the middle or end
of July.

The ' riding ' post-horse was generally a good
specimen of a fairly useful weight-carrying hunter
of the present day, trotting well, with head and tail
up, at about ten miles an hour, and capable of draw-
ing half a ton behind him, with the boy, about eight
stone, on his back in addition. He usually cost about
30/. As a riding horse he generally lasted about
four or five years, when he became rather unsafe to
ride, and was called a ' hand horse,' from being
placed on the offside of the pole of the carriage,
and was but rarely ridden afterwards. Throughout
the kingdom there were almost invariably two rival
posting-houses in every important town, at one
establishment the post-boys riding in blue jackets,
the other in yellow, with black or white top hats,
drab cloth or leather breeches, and top boots. The
blue and yellow jackets had their own line, and ran
to the same houses of each colour throughout the
country. I have heard a gentleman say that he
had travelled from York to London, beginning with
a blue jacket, without deviation the whole distance,
never having got on the yellow line. The riders,
who were called post-boys, were often very old
fellows. 'Old Humphrey' lived with my father,
and ' drove post ' for over forty-five years, and it
was never known how old he was. (According to
Sam Weller, nobody ever saw a dead post-boy.)

The post-horse duty was collected in this wise.
When the horses at each stage were being changed.

COLLECTION OF POST-HORSE DUTY 27

the proprietor of the inn made out the ticket, as it
was called, a number of which were strung up in the
bar. They were supplied by the Government, and
bore the royal arms. They were in blank for the
date — the place from which the horses started — the
place of destination — the number of miles, and at the
foot the name of the driver was inserted. These
tickets were printed on stiff paper, about the size of
a modern postcard. The blanks were filled in and
the ticket given to the post-boy when he had mounted
the saddle, a heavy fine being inflicted on the post-
master if he neglected this part of his duty. At the
first turnpike gate through which the carriage
passed, the boy was bound to deliver the ticket, at
the risk of another heavy fine. It would sometimes
happen that the delivery was omitted, but the post-
boy could, of course, remedy the omission on his
return. If, however, the gatekeeper was can-
tankerous, he might refuse the ticket, and thereupon
a heavy fine was incurred. Each morning the post-
master was bound to fill up the official duty sheet,
with every hiring of the previous day, showing the
number of miles and the amount payable. This
was a great nuisance, and if any error, however
trifling, occurred, a fine of double duty would be
inflicted.

England and Scotland were divided into districts
comprising three or four counties, which were let, or
farmed, out to different contractors, who were called
' Post-horse Farmers.' Messrs. Levi and others of
the Hebrew race were generally the farmers who

28 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

employed agents to call at the turnpikes in their
districts and collect the tickets. These asfents
waited on the postmaster every month, who com-
pared and checked off the entries with the tickets
collected, and when the amount was ascertained the
money was paid. These men were harpies who
exacted the uttermost farthing, and if inadvertently
a date was wrong, or even a penny omitted,
cumulative fines were imposed. I remember a
monstrous instance of this form of exaction.
Through a misapprehension of the law, a post-
master had entered two pence short in one of his
sheets, and this had been carried on about eight
times, during a period of six months, the total
amount omitted being one shilling and fourpence.
Well, fines were inflicted amounting to nearly
1,500/. ! After considerable litigation the action
was compromised for 50/. The grossest tyranny
was practised, the Act of Parliament being strained
to the utmost. Eventually a meeting of the post-
masters of England and Scotland (Ireland being
exempt, which I could never understand) was held
in the Freemasons' Hall, London, presided over by
Mr. Shillibeer, the famous Undertaker, and the first
man to introduce the omnibus into England. He
had been a great sufferer under the iniquitous
system. A deputation waited on Mr. Disraeli, the
Chancellor of the Exchequer in Lord Derby's
first administration, who promised to assist in
destroying this last remains of ' farming ' the
revenue, but the Ministry suddenly came to an end.

ABOLITION OF THE DUTY 29

The following year, however, Mr. Gladstone
abolished the post-horse duty, substituting therefor
an annual tax on all horses let for hire, and on post-
carriiiges, in lieu of it. A few years afterwards Sir
Stafford Northcote repealed the duties on horses,
and thus that most obnoxious tax upon horses
and posting disappeared for ever. This duty, I
believe, had brought into the Exchequer about
500,000/. per annum, but the amount exacted from
the public was considerably more, as the cost of
collection was enormous, and the profits made by
the farmers correspondingly large. The post-
masters opened a subscription for Mr. Shillibeer, and
presented him with a handsome service of plate,
and a cheque for 800/., and so ended the post-
horse duties. I have written this statement that
men of the present day may know what certain
trades had to put up with, in the memory of many
still living. The introduction of railways gave the
coup de gr-dce to the old posting trade.

RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER IV

Eton Montem — Customs — Their origin — Collecting salt — Waving the
flag on the Mount ad Montem — Salt bearers — The Windmill Inn — •
Mr. Botham — The traffic on the Great Western road — Royalty —
The Playing Fields— Dr. Goodall — Dinton.

In my numerous researches into old country
customs, I have been tempted to record many
stories, which tend to illustrate the habits and
customs of the English people in olden times
Naturally I have been better able to collect
materials from my native county of Bitcks than
elsewhere, but they afford types of other parts of
rural England. Some are of Parliamentary history,
others parochial, whilst amongst them are notes
referring to the glorious public school — I mean
' Eton College.' I find that the first stone of the
chapel was laid on J uly 3, 1441, and writs were issued
for assembling together workmen for the speedy com-
pletion of the building. The school owed its founda-
tion to Henry VI., and it was evidently to instruct
in grammar those who were to take Holy Orders.
As old Fuller remarks, ' It was high time some school
should be founded, considering how low grammar
learning then ran in the land.' At times there was

HISTORY OF ETON MONTEM 31

considerable trouble as to the proper foundation of
the college. At the time of Henry VIII. the
college was threatened with dissolution, but the
death of the king prevented it, and its destruction
was specially excepted in the Act for the dissolution
of colleges and chantries in the rei^n of Edward YI.
Amongst the old customs of Eton College was that
of hunting the Ram. In some curious manuscripts
in the British Museum it is stated that the custom
obtained in the Manor of Wrotham, in Norfolk,
which belongs to the college, where the Lord of
the Manor, after harvest, gave half an acre of barley
and a ram to the tenants. If the tenants caught
the ram it became theirs ; if they failed to do so, it
belonged to the Lord again. As late as 1 747 the
collegers hunted the Ram. Perhaps the most interest-
ing custom was the celebration of ' Montem,' the last
of which it was my privilege to have attended more
than fifty years ago. The procedure of the Montem
was, according to ' Brand's Popular Antiquities,'
that on Whit Tuesday a procession was made every
third year to a tumulus or mound close to the turn-
pike road, and nearly opposite to the great ' Wind-
mill Inn,' which I remember well, as a large old-
fashioned hostelry, with immense stabling and yards
for more than a hundred horses. When I was
there it was kept by Mr. Botham, who horsed some of
the coaches on the great Bath road, and kept upwards
of twenty pairs of post-horses. This assemblage
was called the ' Montem,' from the school procession
going to the tumulus or 'ad Montem.' The village

32 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

was named ' Salt Hill,' from the collection of 'salt,'
as it was called, which was money collected from
all who were present, or who travelled along the
high road that day. Royalty often attended the
meeting. The late Mr. Montagu Williams, O.C.,
who was an Etonian, and proud of it, as they all
are, or ought to be, says, in his ' Leaves of a Life,'
that ' Royalty itself was not free from the tax. Two
" salt-bearers " were stationed on Windsor Bridgfe,
and when the Queen drove down the hill — and she
never missed a Montem — the elder of the two
stepped forward, stopped the carriage, and, taking
off his hat, with the words, " Salt, your Majesty,
salt," placed under contribution the highest and
noblest lady in the land.' The gentlemen students
of the school went in military procession from
Eton to Salt Hill — those on the higher forms in
scarlet military jackets, white trousers, and plumed
cocked hats, wearing swords ; those on the lower
forms in the present costume of short jackets, lay-
down collars, and top hats. On arriving at Salt
Hill, the ensign, who was the lieutenant, or second
boy in the school, ascended the Mount, waved and
flourished a flag, either the Union Jack or Royal
Standard, whilst the boys marched round in pro-
cession. A short Latin service was then read by the
chaplain and his clerks. The salt-bearers were
busy in collecting the salt. These officials were
leading students, and were dressed in splendid
mediceval costumes of great beauty, velvet or satin
cloaks, trunk hose, gorgeous hats with plumes of

ETON MONTEM, SALT-BEARERS

OJ

feathers ; they went in pairs, carrying very beauti-
ful and richly embroidered bags for collecting ' salt,'
holding them up to the travellers and wayfarers
passing along the roads. There were about twelve
salt-bearers, and, holding up their gorgeous bags,
cried ' Salt, salt ! ' The amount when collected was
brought to the headmaster's house, counted, and
was then invested to endow the first boy in this
school, and thus pay his expenses to King's College,
Cambridge.

The year when I attended, nearly i,ooo/. was
collected. This was a grand contribution, the boy
being a very popular scholar. The boys, number-
ing over 800, were regaled at the ' Windmill ' ; after
dinner those in military attire with scarlet coats,
white trousers, cocked hats and feathers, drew their
swords, entered the gardens of the inn, and ruth-
lessly slashed and cut down all the shrubs and
flowers. Mr. Botham was most indignant at this
wanton destruction of his gardens, but it was pleaded
by the depredators, that the motto ' Mos pro lege '
was sufficient to excuse them. In the end the
authorities had to pay nearly 100/. for this serious
damage, and the outrage was one of the reasons
given for abolishing the ' Montem.' It was finally
abandoned about 1844. In the evening of this
celebration the playing fields near the college were
filled with the beauty and fashion of the families
whose sons were at Eton and of the neighbourhood,
promenading to the strains of military bands, and a
grand display of fireworks brought the ' Montem ' to

D

34 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

an end. Thus concluded one of the most delightful
customs handed down to us from the middle ages.
When the list of English worthies in learning, politics,
and war is scanned, a large majority will be found
to have had their educational career commenced at
Eton. Well might it be recorded that the Duke of
Wellington, in allusion to the great athletic feats
performed by Eton boys, and by the inculcating to
them of those noble principles of honour, patriotism,
and self-reliance, taught there, say, ' The battle of
Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton.' —
' Floreat Etona.'

Whilst writing of the Eton Montem, the dear
old provost. Dr. Goodall, is brought to my recollec-
tion. In my boyhood 1 well remember his genial,
benevolent countenance, often lit up with a
humorous smile, when he changed horses at my
father's house at Aylesbury, on his way from Eton
to his brother, who resided at Dinton Hall, which
was about five miles from the town and three from
Hartwell. I was always glad to see the Provost,
as he had generally some kind remark to make,
adorned with some simple Latin quotation, as it
struck me, to discover if I kept up my school classics,
which fortunately I did. Doctor Goodall's brother
was vicar of Dinton. He was a very aged man,
who, many years before, had married a daughter of
Sir John \^an Hattem,' who was a member of the
' Hell-Fire Club,' with the Earl of Chesterfield, who
had a fine house at Eythrope, about three miles

' N.B. — He came over with, and was Xa\al A.D.C. to William
and Mary.

DINTON HALL AND SIMON MAYNE 35

from his hall. John Wilkes, the member of Parlia-
ment for Aylesbury, was a ' Hell-Fire ' man ; in fact,
all three were members of that terrible fraternity
of Medmenham Abbey notoriety. Sir John was
the owner, and resided at that fine old hall, be-
queathing it to his daughter, who married the Rev.
Joseph Goodall, and thus the mansion came into the
family, and is now inhabited by his grandson,
Colonel Goodall, who married one of the Miss Lees
of Hartwell ; and thus it was that these two families
became united. I well remember the Rev. Mr.
Goodall and his venerable lady, although it is more
than sixty years ago. Dinton Hall has historical
associations. At one time it belonged to William
of Wareham, Lord Chancellor and Archbishop of
Canterbury, and his arms are still preserved in
several of the painted windows. It was the residence
of Simon Mayne, the Regicide, who was one of the
signatories to the death warrant of the martyred
King Charles I. He was member of Parliament for
Aylesbury at that time, and was one of the excepted
Regicides, yet was arraigned for high treason on
October 16, 1660. Simon Mayne sat as member for
Aylesbury through the whole of the Protectorate. He
said, in his defence, that he was drawn into signing the
King's death warrant. He was, however, sentenced
to be imprisoned in the Tower, where he died the
next year, and was buried at Dinton. His colleague
in the representation of Aylesbury was another
Regicide, one Thomas Scott. He was originally a
brewer, and afterwards an attorney in the town. He

36 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

was excepted from the Act of Indemnity, and always
exulted in the part he took in the death of the King.
He was executed at Charing Cross. At the scaffold
he said, ' Gentlemen, I stand here a spectacle to
God, and to angels, and to men. To you I have
something to say : In the beginning of these troubles
I, with many others, was dissatisfied; I saw the
dangers and the approach of Popery in a great

measure coming on us ; I saw ' The Sheriff and

Under-sheriff interrupted him. ' 'Tis hard that an
Englishman hath not liberty to speak, and that you
will not hear the last words of a dying man.' He
then prayed to God, and thanked Him that he had
engaged in a cause not to be repented of. On his
prayer being ended, he was cast off the ladder.
Colonel Jones and Colonel John Wood were also
executed at the same time ; they were hanged, drawn
and quartered.

I find it recorded that after the battle of Naseby
Cromwell went to Dinton Hall on his return,
probably on the route to Chequers Court, near
Ellesborough, the residence of his daughter, Mrs.
Russell, and that he left behind him his sword as
a property, not to any particular family, but to the
mansion of Dinton for ever. Colonel Goodall writes
me 'that the sword is still in his possession. It is
a beautifully balanced weapon, with the name of the
celebrated maker, " Andrea Ferrara," on both
sides of the blade.' Cromwell most likely went also
to Dinton to visit his friend Simon Mayne, at that
time owner of the Hall in the same parish. Wal-
dridge was then inhabited by Sir Richard Ingoldsby,

JOHN BIGG, THE DINTON HERMIT ^y

who had married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir OHver
Cromwell of Hinchinbroke, in the County of Hunt-
ingdon, a cousin of the Protector. Sir Richard was
buried at Dinton.

Whilst writing of Dinton Hall I cannot refrain
from mentioning the so-called Dinton hermit. He
was one John Bigg. In the earlier part of his
life he was clerk to Simon Mayne, when the latter
was Justice of the Peace. This hermit abode in a
cave underground, in the parish, and for several
years wandered about the neighbourhood receiving
alms and food from the benevolent. He never
changed his clothes, and his method of mending
them was by sewing fresh pieces of cloth or leather
over the decayed part. I have seen one of his
shoes at Dinton Hall, and I believe it is still in
Colonel Goodall's possession. This shoe had been
so often mended by pieces of leather nailed together,
that it was tenfold its original thickness. The fellow
shoe is now in the Bodleian Library, at Oxford.
John Bigg died on April 2, 1696, and was buried at
Dinton on April 4. It has often been alleged that
he was the executioner who beheaded the King,
Charles I.

In mentioning the abolition of the Eton Montem
it is necessary to call attention to the fact of the
opening of the Great Western Railway at that time,
which had driven the coaches off the Great Bath
Road, as also the carriages of the nobility and
gentry, thus making the collection of ' salt ' a serious
diminution, and rendering it scarcely worth while to
go to so great an expense for the service.

38 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER V

Early recollections of the Derby — Lord Berners and Phosphorus in
1837 — Caravan and Lord Sufificld — My first Derby — Bloomsbury's
year, 1839 — My costume — Heavy snowstorm on Oakapple Day,
May 29 — Opening of the London and South-Western Railway
from Nine Elms — 'No more trains!' — Cab to Kingston — A
borrowed ride on a post-chaise — 'Whip behind 1 ' — A mad rush,
but in time to see the finish — Amato's victory — From Aylesbur)' to
Epsom on horseback in 1841 — Well-named Little ' Wonder' : won
with 40 to I against him — The Queen and Prince Albert present —
Running Rein — Daniel O'Rourke — My folly.

Many writers have described their visits to Epsom
Downs on the day of the Derby, the race par
excellence of the sporting world. Some of my own
Derby Day adventures and experiences I am
tempted to recapitulate. I had from my schoolboy
days delighted in horse racing, and I remember in
very early life hearing of the ' dead heat ' for the
Derby between Cadland and The Colonel, which
ended in the run off, after an exciting race, in the
triumph of the former. That event was in 1828.
The competing jockeys were J. Robinson and
W. Scott. The field numbered fifteen, and one of
the lot fell — I forget which — his rider being seriously
injured. The Colonel and Cadland started nearly
equal favourites, the latter, as winner of the Two
Thousand, having a strong public following. It
beinfr determined that ' the decider ' should be run

CADLAND AND THE COLONEL 39

off after the race for the Durdans Stakes, betting
began anew, and left off with 6 to 5 on The
Colonel. Cadland made the pace to the chains,
when The Colonel got up, but in spite of a tremen-
dous finish was beaten by half a length. No third
horse was placed by the judge. This was followed
some years after by a repetition in my eager hear-
ing of the story of Plenipotentiary's race, called
for brevity ' Plenipo,' also by Bay Middleton, one
of the best horses Lord Jersey ever bred. The
Chifneys declared him to be a 15 lb. better horse than
ever Priam had been. He won in a canter by a
couple of lengths. The recital of these famous
victories naturally inspired me with a great desire
to see this national event. In the year 1837 I had
heard of the exciting race, when the great favourite,
great in size as well as fame, Caravan — the son of
Camel — was beaten by Lord Berners' Phosphorus.
It is stated that the trainer of the latter told his lord-
ship, some days before the race, that the horse was
lame and unfit to run ; but Lord Berners, who was
one of the most honourable men on the turf, de-
clared that the public had backed the horse, and
that he should run, 'if only on three legs.' It was
related by those who saw the start, that Phosphorus
was quite lame, but before reaching Tattenham
Corner he was running perfectly sound, and despite
of all the efforts of the rider of Caravan, he was
cleverly beaten. His owner. Lord Suffield, lost a
large sum of money on the race, and his estates
became encumbered for many a long year after-

40 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

wards. The betting was 40 to i against Phos-
phorus, George Borrow, the author of ' Lavengro,'
said that of the three personages he always had
a desire to see, the second was LampHghter, the
sire of Phosphorus, Lord Berners' winner of the
Derby, The next year, 1839, was a very memorable
one to me, inasmuch as it was the first Derby I
ever witnessed. It was remarkable as a sporting
event, by being run on May 29, Oakapple Day, in
so heavy a fall of snow as to render the colours
of the riders almost invisible. Bloomsbury (a son
of Mulatto) was the winner, and the race was
remembered by me for many years, as I had taken
great pains with my costume, a description of which
may be given, as affording an idea of the dress
of the times. In the present day it would be the
height of caddishness to be seen in such loud
habiliments, but I was then considered to be a smart
lad, and I wore a pair of white duck trousers,
strapped clown over a pair of Wellington boots, an
olive-brown, cut-away Newmarket coat, with gilt
basket-buttons, and the breast looped together by a
pair of the tusks of a fox, a buff cashmere waistcoat,
and a resplendent blue satin full-sized stock,
fastened by two gold pearl pins coupled together by
a small chain. I had booked my place by a four-
horse coach, which started from the ' Swan with
Two Necks ' in Lad Lane, at a guinea fare there and
back. We arrived safely on the course soon after
one o'clock ; the morning had been very fine, and
the ride down most enjoyable. After lounging

THE DERBY IN A SNOWSTORM 41

about and seeing two races, I prepared for the event
of the day, when, just before the start, an ominous
blaclv cloud overshadowed the course, and down
came such a snowstorm as I had hardly ever
witnessed in the depth of winter. I had obtained
an excellent place at the ropes, not far from
Tattenham Corner, and saw as much of the race as
the snowstorm would permit, when I soon found
my light summer clothing was too pervious to
the melting snow, and before I could reach any
shelter I was completely soaked through. As it
happened, the coachman and my companions were
mostly in the same wet state, and were glad to
return. I arrived in a shivering state at my hostelry,
the ' Old Bell,' Holborn, then one of the leading
Inns in London, where I was only too glad to get
between the blankets prior to enjoying my dinner,
and, in dry clothes, a visit to Drury Lane Theatre.
After the notorious ' Running Rein ' case, statements
were rife as to several other Derby winners, and it
was generally believed that Bloomsbury was a
four-year-old. He did but little afterwards.

The year 1840 was noted as the first year that
the London and South- Western Railway proposed
to carry visitors to the great race. It was announced
that the railway would carry passengers to Kingston
from Vauxhall or Nine Elms, as the terminal
station was then called, where four-horse coaches
would be in readiness to convey passengers on to
the course. The charge for tickets, issued three
days previously, was one guinea, which also was to

42 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

include the return to London via Kingston. I went
in a cab to Nine Elms at twelve o'clock, again in
holiday costume, but not so outrageously lotid as in
the previous year, when, to my annoyance and
disgust, I found a crowd of over a thousand persons,
vastly indignant at beholding an announcement
posted up that ' No more trains would start that day.'
No provision had been made for a break down, and
thus the people were left behind. The crowd was
momentarily augmented, and, of course, I felt
powerless to help myself in so great an assemblage.
Suddenly I perceived a young gentleman arrive in
a two-wheeled cab (Hansoms were not then in-
vented) who was as disappointed and angry as my-
self I proposed that if a bargain could be made
with his cabman, 1 would join him as far as Kingston,
where we were assured coaches would be waiting
to convey us on to the course. We agreed to give
' Cabby ' a sovereign to drive us to the town. The
day was lovely and we were hopeful, but on arriving
at 1.30 we fotcnd no coaches or other conveyances to
carry us further. Here was a pretty fix for us
to be in ! However, I was young, hearty, and
fleet of foot in those days, and, although my friend
decided to go no further, I determined to run and
walk towards the Downs, trusting to my luck to
find some conveyance on the road. After running
about a mile, I heard wheels behind me, and saw
an old-fashioned yellow post-chaise, with post-boy
in blue jacket and white silk top hat, riding with
a pair of good trotting horses spanking along.

A DANGEROUS RIDE 43

Now, I thought to myself, is my chance. I got
near to the centre of the road, when, just as the
carriage passed me, I rushed forward and clutched
hold of the springs behind, which assisted me
greatly. A slight hill caused the horses to go some-
what slower, when I fancied I might make a
desperate, but most dangerous, attempt to spring
up, and place my feet on the hind axle-tree. This
was protected by a spiked iron bar, yet I dex-
terously made an effort to place my toes somewhere
between the spikes, and eventually succeeded.
The horses dashed on in a dense cloud of dust,
whilst I clung, like grim death, to the springs, and
held on in my hazardous position. When we
arrived at the town of Epsom, some wanton boys
shouted ' Whip behind ! ' calling attention to my
frantic efforts. As was common in such carriages
at that time, there was a small circular window at
the back of the chaise, which enabled the gentlemen
inside to see me. They called to the post-boy to
stop, and ordered me down. I had already per-
formed that feat, and took off my hat, thanking
them for my ride of over three miles. I then rushed
off to the Downs. The Derby was timed for three
o'clock, it was then about 2.40. I fortunately met
a cab returning from the course, and told the driver I
would give him five shillings if he drove me there
in time to see the race. To this he agreed, when
he dashed over the Downs, bumping along as hard
as his horse could go, pulling up at the back
of the stand whilst the crowd were shouting

44 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

'They're off!' I pushed my head between some
of the crowd, and distinctly saw the horses coming
round Tattenham Corner, and, amidst the shouts of
the mass of spectators, found that ' Amato ' had
won. I then discovered that I was in a most dis-
reputable state, being smothered with a coating of
dust, my coat was white, my face steaming with
perspiration, grimed with road dust. I was too glad
to steal away and get back to London as soon as
possible, but I had gained my end, / had seen the
Derby, and determined, if I lived another year, I
would leave nothing to chance, and would ride my
own horse to the race.

The next year's Derby was memorable as being
won by a rank outsider, yet I enjoyed my visit im-
mensely. I rode my nag from home the day before,
to Gerrard's Cross, sleeping at the house of an old
friend, a thorough sportsman and successful steeple-
chase rider. After an early breakfast we rode to
Kingston to luncheon, and from thence steadily on
to the course. At this time the horses started at
' The Warren,' which is some distance from the
present place, where the field paraded and cantered
before the ' start.' We were much pleased with all
the runners, especially with the favourite, Launcelot,
ridden by Bill Scott. My friend, who was an
excellent judge of a horse, whilst commenting on
the starters, pointed out a little compact, bright bay
horse, asking me ' what I thought of him ? ' I said,
' He's only a pony, and will never get up the hill.'
He replied : ' That horse will win to-day. I never

LITTLE WONDER'S DERBY 45

saw a horse sent to the post in such perfect con-
dition and bloom in my Hfe ; and, unless I am much
mistaken, he'll wear 'em all down if he gets a good
start.' On examining him more closely, I began to
think my friend was justified in his opinion. You
could see your face in the brightness of his skin,
and his muscles stood out like knots of iron, his
sinews and feet were perfect, he had a sweet temper,
walking and cantering like a gentleman. This was
Little Wonder, belonging to W. Forth, who had
another horse, a nameless one, in the race, known
as the ' Solace colt,' which he intended to ride
himself, placing Macdonald on Little Wonder,
which warranted the public in putting their money
on the Solace colt, who started at 20 to i, whilst
odds of 40 to I were laid against his companion.
Launcelot, the favourite, who was a beautiful colt,
and in the best possible condition, stood at 5 to 2
against. The race is easily described, for as soon
as they started Little Wonder galloped away,
and when rounding Tattenham Corner forged ahead,
and was never caught. Bill Scott striving his utmost
to reach him with Launcelot, who was second.
This was also a most noticeable Derby, as it was
the only one at which her present Majesty ever
attended. She was accompanied by Prince Albert,
who had promised to present a gold-mounted
whip to the rider of the winner. Macdonald was
called up to the Royal Stand, and received the much
coveted prize. He was considered to be a butcher
on any horse he rode when necessary, but in this

46 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

instance hard measures were unnecessary. It should
be stated that Little Wonder stood only 14.3 hands
high. Some years afterwards, when commenting
on this race, ill-natured people always asserted that
Little Wonder was not a four-year-old, but was Sijive-
year-old\ The horse had only appeared once before,
and, I believe, only ran once or twice afterwards.
For some years after I rode my horse to Kingston
the night before the race, stopping once or twice on
the road for refreshment ; the distance was nearly
fifty miles from Aylesbury. After the race I was
accustomed to ride into London, enjoying a few
days' stay there, and returning home by the end of
the week. It is not generally known that at that
time the Derby was run on the Thursday, and only
changed to Wednesday when it was found to be
very unfair to mares who ran for the ' Oaks '
on Friday, which practically prevented them from
running, without a day between the races ; so that
the authorities changed from Thursday to the
Wednesday, thus giving a chance for a mare to run
for the two events.

There are probably very many visitors to
Epsom who could give their experiences of chances
thrown away on races. Yet I cannot refrain from
mentioning a very strange fatality, and, I may
so term it, a silly refusal to avail myself of a really
good ' tip ' for this great race. Once, when at the
Haymarket Theatre on the eve of the Derby, I left
the auditorium and strolled into a bar on the
opposite side of the street for my glass of

BETTING HOUSES 47

bitter, when I was accosted by a friend whom I
happened to know very well. This was no other
than 'Charley Boyce,' the jockey. After some
Sfeneral conversation he asked me what horse I
thought would win to-morrow. I said, ' Of course,
the favourite, Hobbie Noble.' He replied : ' I
can give you the greatest certainty possible, your
horse can't win. If you will be guided by me, you
will put 5/. on Daniel O'Rourke ; you may
depend upon it, he will be first past the post.' To
this I demurred. He said, ' I might just as well go
home with a hundred pounds in my pocket as not.
You can get 20 or 25 to 1 about him, and if you
won't have a fiver, have just one sovereign, as there
are plenty of houses near here that will doit.' It
should be noticed that at that period more than
half the houses, whether public bars, hairdressers,
tobacconists, confectioners, &c., &c., were all
betting houses ; and it was the existence of these
places, which had sprung up all over London, that
compelled the Legislature to pass the Act for sup-
pression of list betting. I foolishly refused to take
Charley's ' tip,' and retired to my friend's house at
Roehampton, where I was staying. We had
chartered an omnibus to take us on to the course —
there were twelve of us — and we agreed to have a
draw, putting down los., viz. — 5/. for the first and
i/. for the second. It was surprising to me that I
drew Daniel ff Rourke ! Such was my prejudice
against the horse, that I sold him for lo^-., the
amount I had ventured. The race has been so

48 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

fully described that it is unnecessary to say more
than that Daniel won easily enough, ridden by W.
Scott ; an unknown horse, Barbarian, was second ;
Hobble Noble third ; and Chief Baron Nicholson
fourth. This was, indeed, a sensational Derby,
especially as to the second horse, who, if he had
won, would have landed an unparalleled coup.
I don't know if he ever was heard of in the ring,
excepting at some hazardous chance of 50 or 100
to I. I heard that he arrived on the morning of the
race by rail, was taken out of the truck, and led on
to the course in all his dust and dt'shabillL^ after his
long journey from Ireland. He was saddled, his
jockey mounted, and was not even recognised,
except by his owner and friends, and started as an
unknown competitor, I saw him after the race, and
thought him a splendid colt.

As I neglected winning my hundred pounds, I
must recount my extraordinary luck and judgment
afterwards in selecting a winner of this classic race.
At one of the meetings of the Aristocratic Steeple-
chases over my farm at Aylesbury, after the
Stewards' dinner, the conversation turned as to the
Derby. This was about the middle of March, and
I was asked who I thought would win that race. I
replied ' West Australian,' when one of the ' 'Varsity '
men present offered me 50/. to 4/. — i2|to i against
him, which I at once accepted, when Captain

K , who was present, said I was foolish, as he

would lay me 60/. to 4/., 15 to i, which I booked,
thus closing my little book for the race. The horse

RUNNING REIN'S DERBY 49

soon bewail to rise in the bettinof, and about a
fortnight before the races he had advanced to 5 to i.
As I stood to win no/, to 8/., I therefore deter-
mined to make myself safe, so with a sporting
parson, who was an old friend of mine, I laid 40/.
to 8/. against the horse. I thus stood to win 70/.
to nothing. Needless to say West Australian
won. I was so delighted that on the following
Saturday, on seeing the reverend gentleman, I
gladly gave him a cheque for 40/. Such was my
terrible luck that I have never, from that day to
this, received my 1 10/., or a single farthing of it,
so that instead of receiving my 1 10/., my banking
account was 40/. the less. I then determined never
again to stake more than 5/. on any race, and I
have kept my word. ' Sic transit gloria mundi.'

It may interest some of my readers to mention
one or two singular circumstances which are not
generally known on the ' Running Rein ' case, when
it was proved that the horse was a four-year-old,
and, although he had won, the race was given to
Colonel Peel's Orlando, who was second. The
conspirators, led by Goodman Levi, and others of
the Hebrew fraternity, had arranged to win with
another four or perhaps five-year-old horse,
named Leander, who they had backed heavily,
when, on rounding Tattenham Corner, he was
knocked over, and broke his thigh. The poor
brute was killed, and the same evening was buried
near the course. After the ' Running Rein ' trial,
and the jury had given the race against him, it was

E

5°

RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

deemed advisable to exhume Leander, and so
verify the reports about him, when, on his exhuma-
tion, it was discovered that his lower jaw had been
sawn off and carried away ! so that all proof of his
age had been destroyed. I have been told that the
conspirators had arranged that if the horse had won
he was to have been sent off immediately after the
race to Gravesend, where a steamer was in readi-
ness to take him out to sea, to be there killed
and thrown overboard, so as never to have been
seen again ; but the accident prevented the scheme
from being carried out.

51

CHAPTER VI

Recollections of the Cup Day at Ascot — My ride from home — The
Queen, Prince Consort, and the Emperor of Russia : interesting
conversation — The Countess of Albemarle's carriage — The Earl,
Master of the Horse, wins with his son of Defence, beating Attila —
Delight of the crowd — The Emperor's promise to present the Ascot
Cup in future — Establishment of the Cssarewitch Stakes — The
Defence colt called the ' Emperor ' — Wins the vase the following
year — Graceful act of the Earl : presents the vase to her Majesty
the Queen, and the horse to the Czar — My next 'Ascot' — Dead-
heat between Buckstone and Tim Whiffler.

There is to me something; fascinating in the
recollection of a sporting event, which, from its
especial singularity, has impressed itself on my
mind ; and although I have had some curious
experiences of early Derbys, I believe that those
I am about to relate of early Ascot Cup days are
none the less pregnant with interest. The year
1S43, which was the next to that when Attila won
the Derby, was made memorable by the visit of
the Emperor of Russia, and, I think, the King of
Saxony, with other illustrious personages, to the
Queen and Prince Albert, and who attended at Ascot
Heath to see the race for the Cup. An immense
concourse of people attended. I rode my horse all
the way from Aylesbury and back again the same
night — a distance of seventy-five miles. I left
home about 7 a.m., after a hearty breakfast, and

52 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

arrived on the Heath a little after one o'clock,
having baited at High Wycombe, and I rode into
my yard about twelve o'clock the same night, having
stopped again for an hour at High Wycombe.
After I had seen the finish of the two races
preceding the Cup, like everyone else I was
desirous of witnessing the struggle for the great
event. The course was cleared, when I found
myself separated from some friends, and attempted
to cross the course, but the police forced me to
return, and I was ignominiously relegated to the
rear of the crowd opposite the Grand and Royal
stands and the winning post. I, however, managed
to push partly through, and found myself close to
an old-fashioned green travelling chariot, which was
placed in the first row, and was occupied inside by
a benevolent-looking elderly lady. The carriage
commanded a view of the Royal box and its
occupants. I had the assurance to step on to the
hub of one of the forewheels, and to hang on to the
leather braces of the C springs. I, however, raised
my hat, and apologised to the lady, hoping I might
be permitted to stand there. She, in the kindest
possible manner, gave me permission to do so. A
gentleman was on the box seat, with whom she
conversed, and as the horses were taking their pre-
liminary canter, and were nearing the Royal Stand,
she said, ' Here comes our colt ; the rider in green.
My lord thought we ought to run one this year, but
he has no chance whatever of winning. The colt
is almost untried, and only three years old. but

LORD ALBEMARLE'S COLT WINS 53

we thought, out of compliment to her Majesty and
her visitors, we would start him.' On referring to
my card, I found it was ' Lord Albemarle's Colt by
Defence,' unnamed. I had therefore been talking
to the Countess, and could well understand her
remarks, as the Earl was Master of the Horse, and
it was only natural that he should be expected to
run a horse in the presence of such distinguished
spectators. Soon after the start it was observed
that the colt was running strong and well ; and I
found that the butler and footman were placed on
the roof of the carriage to view the race, and inform
her ladyship how the colt was going. I began to
feel as anxious as though I had a large stake on
him, as they called out their views of the running
on the far side of the course. The horses were
invisible to me, so I only knew from the remarks
of the servants what was happening. ' Attila is
last, my lady ; the colt is alongside the leaders ;
they can't shake him off; now they are Hearing the
bend, now they are in the straight. He is still with
'em, he's taking the lead, my lady — he's a length
ahead,' whilst the shouting was terrific, and the
excitement greater than I ever saw at any race,
when the ' Colt by Defence ' struggled gallantly
home, and won. I congratulated the Countess, and
thanked her for her courtesy, and then left, as I
wanted to see the ovation. The colt was led up to
the Royal Stand, when the Queen and Prince, with
their illustrious visitors, congratulated the Earl of
Albemarle on his success.

54 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

This Cup Day became a great historic event in
the racing world, as the Tzar promised, if he were
permitted, to provide the Gold Cup at his own cost
annually. Consent being given, the prize was called
the ' Emperor's Vase,' and for many years the Tzar
bore the expense of the trophy for that race until the
breaking out of the Crimean War, when his gift
was withdrawn, and the prize resumed the old name
of the 'Ascot Gold Cup.' Yet, although the
' Vase ' ceased to be the prize, his visit is com-
memorated by the great Handicap at Newmarket,
the ' Cresarewitch,' which still perpetuates the
memory of his Imperial visit to Ascot. The sequel
was remarkable. I am not quite sure if my dates
are correct, but, if my memory serves, the next
year, which, of course, was the first of the
' Emperor's Vase,' the Queen and Prince being
again present, the ' Colt by Defence,' then called
the ' Emperor,' was brought out, and, to the
surprise of every one, his owner more than any-
body else, won the race. The excitement caused
by the struggle reached a climax when the Earl
handed over the trophy as a present to her Majesty,
and performed an equally graceful act, as a
memento not only of the Emperor's visit, but as a
return for his handsome gift, when he sent over
his colt, the ' Emperor,' to St. Petersburg, as a
present to his Imperial Highness, and in acknow-
ledgment of his patronage of the British Turf.
The horse was added to the Imperial stud, where
he afterwards proved of distinguished service.

BUCKSTONE AND TIM WHIFFLER 55

Another of my visits to Royal Ascot was made
memorable to me by the dead heat for the Cup
by Buckstone and Tim Whiffler. The excitement
of the public at this event was, perhaps, greater
than when the ' Colt by Defence ' won the Emperor's
Vase. The race was very severe, and it was
generally thought that an arrangement would be
made to divide the stakes, as the course then was
nearly three miles and a half, but as the principal
portion was the historic Gold Cup, that alternative
was impossible. I thought it would be more interest-
ing to see the struggle from the bend, and thus
form a better opinion of the relative merits after
they had done their three miles. The deciding
heat was a race from end to end, and it bade fair
to repeat the former result — another dead heat.
When they passed me there was not a pin to choose
between them. Whilst I hurried up the course
behind them it was impossible, a hundred yards
off, to say which had won. Tim Whiffler, how-
ever, was beaten by a length. The latter had been
much fancied, as he had won the Chester Cup,
and Buckstone had acquitted himself handsomely
during the spring. This time I did not ride all the
way to Ascot and back, as it was too much both for
myself and 'conveyance,' who was left comfortably
in the stable.

56 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER VII

Parliamentary elections — Origin of the representation of the people —
Alfred the Great and the Witanagemot — Ancient franchises — The
Potwaller — Borough of Aylesbury — Addition of 'The Hundreds' — -
John Webb, ninety-six years old, the last of the Potwallers —
Customs at the nomination — Dinners — Conveyances — Duration of
polling period — A candidate's ' little bill ' — The poll — The voters'
dinners : daily bill of fare — General Election of 1784 — Curious
incident^ — The great Aylesbury case, Ashby v. White — Its effect.

Amongst the events which affect the Imperial
interest of the kingdom, none have a greater in-
fluence than the election of members of the House
of Commons. The history of the representation of
the people has been often recorded, and various
accounts have been given of the practice of Parlia-
mentary elections. Most writers have held, and I
think with great reason, that the first notice of a
real Parliament, that is to say, of the expression of
the wishes of the people, was in the Saxon ' Wita-
nagemot,' which undoubtedly existed, and was
consolidated by Alfred the Great ; but it was not
till some centuries afterwards that the election for
the assembly was put on a legal footing. Lord
Beaconsfield once said to me in a conversation I
had with him, that the earliest recorded parliaments
were almost entirely chosen by the universal
suffrage of the resident people. I concurred in his
lordship's opinion, because it was within my own
knowledge that, in many boroughs, the old franchise

THE FRANCHISE— POTWALLERS 57

of the ' Potwaller ' still existed, in my own town of
Aylesbury that franchise being very highly prized.
There is still one voter living (a.d. 1897) who retains
the privilege — I refer to Mr. John Webb — who is
ninety-six years of age. Such voters were, along
with many others, disfranchised by the Reform Bill
of 1832, but the then existing ' Potwallers ' were
allowed to retain the franchise. This ancient
privilege was granted exclusively to certain towns,
and it was claimed and used by ' every man who
boiled his own pot,' that is, who had a hearth of his
own. It often happened that two men occupied one
house, but if the tenement was divided so as to admit
of each tenant occupying separate rooms, and each
was independent of the other, they had the privilege
of voting separately at the election of a member for
Parliament. It has often puzzled many writers to
understand how boroughs of present insignificance
that were disfranchised by the Reform Bill of '32
ever became entitled to send members to Parlia-
ment. They must, even at their establishment,
have been comparatively small places, when towns
of much greater importance were unrepresented.
It must not, however, be inferred that because
such towns are now unimportant they were not
places of some consequence centuries ago. They
generally then represented a distinguished family
or personage in the State. But I am not writing in
defence of decayed boroughs, or a history of the
Parliaments of England. Accept my observations
rather as a slight introduction to some remarkable
chronicles which I have been personally enabled

58 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

to preserve. I have lived in an atmosphere of
continual Parliamentary strife in my native county
of Bucks, that 'great historic county,' so named by
its distinguished member, ' Benjamin Disraeli.'

Bucks has been the seat of many a severe party
struggle ; and though it contained, before the Reform
Bill of '32, two or three real pocket boroughs, yet
the other boroughs, and the county itself were often
the scenes of close contests, and of dramatically
varied successes. So different were the practices of
old Parliamentary elections to those of the present
time, that electors nowadays feel a difficulty in
realising what the system of choosing a represen-
tative was, before the introduction of the ballot.
That system carried with it the old ' nomination
day,' and the poll was taken by open voting ; while
the poll for boroughs could remain open for a week,
and that for counties to fourteen days. I well
remember the last election before the passing of the
1832 Reform Bill, when the poll for the borough
and hundreds of Aylesbury was kept open five
days, and that for the county for the same period.
They were closed because the unsuccessful candidate
resigned when he saw his efforts were hopeless.
The nomination day was a most important factor in
the contest, and was the scene of tremendous uproar
and confusion, as all the inhabitants had a right to
be present, and they expressed their opinions in
no uncertain manner. Personal encounters often
occurred, and the speeches of proposer, seconder,
and candidates were frequently made in dumb show.
But where a speaker was generally popular, there

CHAIRING THE MEMBERS 59

was, I need scarcely say, no trouble In obtaining
silence. Colours, or ' favours ' as they were called,
were freely given away and worn. The bands
brayed their loudest, and after the poll was de-
clared, and the member duly elected, the ' chairing '
of the member took place. The chair itself was
a very elaborate piece of furniture. It was like a
modern drawing-room easy chair, was covered with
silk in the colours of the candidate, and loaded with
bows of satin. The bearers were stout fellows,
who were well paid for their services, although they
were invariably enthusiastic supporters of the party.
There were generally eight of them. They raised
the honourable M.P. upon their shoulders, and
carried him round the town. The band led the
way, followed by a strong body of stavesmen, who,
with stout forks-tails for batons, surrounded ' the
chair,' to protect the distinguished occupant against
the attacks of the defeated party. It was during
this perambulation that the hostility was wont to
break out, and I have seen desperate fights, with
more than a hundred combatants engaged, and in
many instances, although the band loudly pro-
claimed ' See the conquering hero comes,' the M.P.
was ejected from the chair, and pitched headlong
into the crowd. Like most public events in England
the proceedings culminated in a dinner, which was a
scene of excessive conviviality. I am enabled, from
documents in my possession, to give an electioneer-
ing bill at the contest in 1818 for the borough and
hundreds of Aylesbury. This will tend to show
how expensive these elections were. The candi-

6o

RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

dates at the said election were Lord Nus^ent and the
Hon. Charles Compton Cavendish, some years after-
wards member for the county, and created first Lord
Chesham, the old members, and Mr. William
Rickford, the banker. Mr. Cavendish (who lost the
election) and his friends occupied the principal inn
in the town, the ' White Hart.' The committee
met in March, and in three months they ran up a
bill for 287/. 2^. 2d. There was in addition an
'executive committee,' whose little bill (all for eating
and drinking) amounted to loS/. 45. dd., whilst the
bill for the refreshments of the loyal and indepen-
dent voters was as follows : —

First Day's Poll, June 24, 1818

25 breakfasts, solicitors, clerks, iS:c.
40 freeholders, solicitors, clerks, &c.
384 freeholders, dinners, clerks, &c.
52 freeholders, solicitors, clerks, &c.

Beer

Wine, port and sherry

Rum, brandy, &c.
50 stavesmen, breakfasts, dinners and beer 1 6

£
I

3

5S
13

15

s.

17

o
12
o
o
o
o
5

d.

6
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

Second Day's Poll

^-43

14

6

As before, but only 230 voters dined

. 176

5

0

Third Day's Poll

Only 120 voters dined .

• 95

5

6

Fourth Day's Poll

Only 25 voters dined .

• 30

12

0

;^545 17 o

N.B. — I have previously published this account and the next,
and re-insert it, it being necessary to elucidate parliamentary
election customs.

ELECTION BILL OF FARE 6i

There were, therefore, 759 voters entertained
during the four days, although only 420 voted, so
the cost came to about i/. 6^. per head. On
the day of the declaration of the poll, and the
chairing of the successful candidates, it was 56/. it,s.,
and for posting and baiting of horses 105/. 8^. S^-/. ;
the total, therefore, was 1,101/. 9^. T,d. The bill was
paid at once, and thought to be very moderate.

1 extract also the bill of fare for one day's dinner :
20 dishes of fish, 10 dishes of boiled fowls, 10
dishes of roast fowls, i boiled leg of pork and peas-
pudding, 2 boiled hams, 2 haunches of mutton,
6 geese, 10 pigeon pies, 3 dishes of boiled beef,
3 dishes of roast beef, 2 fillets of veal, i loin of
veal, 2 roast legs of pork, 2 forequarters of lamb,

2 dishes of roast turkey, i dish of boiled turkey, 2
dishes of roast pigs, 16 plum puddings, 60 custard
puddings, 20 fruit pies, to dishes of custards, fruit,
blancmange, jellies, &c. These were in the good old
times ! It must be mentioned in explanation of many
of these heavy items that, at that period, and until
the year 1832, all the polls were taken at one place,
and for the county at the county town, which was,
in many cases, more than thirty miles from the
residence of voters. I have seen the streets of
Aylesbury perfectly impassable from the crowding
of omnibuses, stage coaches, post-chaises, private
carriages, gigs, farm waggons, tradesmen's carts,
and other vehicles, which had been requisitioned for
the occasion. Yet all the inns and public-houses
were crowded, the yards and stables crammed, and

62 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

the market square and principal streets filled with
horses and carriages that had set down the voters,
who were often compelled to sleep from home after
polling. It may be well imagined that it was
necessary to prolong the time for taking the poll,
when it may be mentioned, for example, that in the
county of Bucks voters had to be brought from the
little town of Olney in the north, and from Colne-
brook in the south, to Aylesbury in the centre, each
town being nearly thirty-five miles from the polling
place, with the roads frequently in a wretched
state.

In one of my books I have told a story which I
cannot forbear repeating. It was told me by a
very old voter, who vouched for its accuracy. At
the general election of 1784 there was a very severe
contest for the county of Bucks, the candidates
being the Hon. T. Grenville, Sir John Aubrey,
Bart., and Lord Verney of Claydon House. The
poll lasted fourteen days, and the acrimony with
which the contest was carried on may be imagined
when I state that, during the poll, a portion of the
furniture was brought from Claydon and publicly
sold by auction under the order of the Sheriff on
the market hill at Aylesbury. His lordship was
the popular candidate, and his seat was considered
safe on the fourteenth and last day of the poll, as in
the morning, about ten o'clock, Verney was about
thirty ahead of Aubrey. It is necessary to observe
that at that time, whether in borough or county,
if the constituency failed to poll one vote within

COUNTY ELECTION ANECDOTE 63

the hour, the poll closed. The roads were so
bad that a large body of voters belonging to
the Ashridge and Ivinghoe district had to
travel at such a snail's pace it was impossible
for them to arrive before eleven or twelve o'clock.
The Verney committee, therefore, flattered them-
selves that their man was quite safe, as there was
only another quarter of an hour to elapse before
the poll closed. Whilst they were congratulating
themselves on their certain success, a violent sup-
porter of their party, and their agent for the
Buckingham division of the county, galloped into
the town, rushed to the hustings, and recorded his
vote for Verney ! He hurried at once to the com-
mittee room, and exultingly informed his friends
that ' he had just given a plumper for my lord.'
The chairman shouted out, ' By God, sir, you've
lost our election ! ' And so he had, as his vote kept
the poll open for another hour, when the Ashridge
tenantry arrived, and Lord Verney was defeated by
twenty-four votes ! This election impoverished the
finances of the Verney family beyond recovery. The
following is the state of the poll, which I copy from
a printed document in my possession : —

The Hon. T. Grenville .... 2264

Sir John Aubrey 1740

Lord Verney 1716

The poll began on Wednesday, April 21, and
closed on May 6, lasting, with the nomination,
sixteen days. It was not only eating and drinking

64 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

which ruined many a county family by fighting
a ParHamentary contest. Bribery and corruption
were fertile snares of ruin to a candidate. In my
researches I have been surprised at the numbers of
petitions against the return of members, and the
enormous legal expenses incurred. I find that on
July 3, 1783, Lord Mansfield gave judgment in the
Court of Queen's Bench against Lord Rochester in
favour of Mr. Petre, respecting damages, in an
action for bribery in the election for Cricklade. Mr.
Petre recovered damages for 14,000/., besides the
costs of the suit, which were said to amount to more
than 10,000/. A curious case occurred in the
little borough of Wendover. The voters in this
small place fancied themselves aggrieved by some
action of Earl Verney's, and took the opportunity
to retaliate. His lordship had every reason to
apprehend that he should lose his seat for the
county of Bucks, and he therefore offered himself
and a Mr. Jolliffe, as candidates for the little
boroush. The voters were well aware of the sad
state of his private affairs, and consequently put up
their ' free and independent ' suffrages to the
highest bidder. A certain individual engaged to
find the candidates to contest the seat against his
lordship, and his interest, for the round sum of
6,000/ ! This was agreed to, and a gentleman was
employed to go down accordingly. He was met
outside the town, and the voters asked, ' What news
from the moon ? ' He answered that he had
brought from that satellite 6,000/, which was to be

ELECTION EXPENDITURE 65

distributed amongst them by the borough agent.
They were then satisfied with the golden news,
chose the opposition candidates, and received their
cash ! That same year at Aylesbury the two
gentlemen who had brought the money down to pay
those who voted for Messrs. Halifax and Wrightson,
the successful candidates, from some misunder-
standing refused to pay the cash, and were mobbed
by a crowd who would not allow them to proceed
to London. Two days afterwards those who
voted for these gentlemen received twelve guineas
each, but the young voters were refused money by
either party, which embittered them vastly. Many
of the bills for ribbons, or favours, as they were
called, and publicans' accounts were disputed ; some
were paid one half, some a quarter, and some
nothing, to punish them for making such exorbitant
charges.

I have elsewhere given some account of the Bucks
election in 1784. I there stated that the Hon.
T. Grenvilleand Sir John Aubrey were elected. Lord
Verney being in a minority of only twenty-four after a
fourteen days' poll. I find that the latter petitioned
against the return ; but Sir John Aubrey, and
friends who were in the Government, managed to
adjourn the petition for more than two years, when
Lord Verney was compelled from want of means to
abandon the action. The petition was alleged to
have cost Sir John Aubrey nearly 50,000/. A
great mob attacked the ' George' inn, Mr. Grenville's
head-quarters ; they also, on the first day of the poll.

66 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

pulled down the hustings, the poll booths, and de-
stroyed everything they could lay hands on. About
fifty of the rioters were captured and lodged in
Aylesbury gaol, where many of them caught the
spotted fever, and were set at liberty after the elec-
tion was over. They carried this frightful disease
all round the county, and many people died from it.
I have every reason to believe that the system of
bribery tainted the whole kingdom at Parliamentary
elections at that time, and up to the establishment
of the ballot the practice existed more or less in
many boroughs. The counties were too extended
for ' the man in the moon ' to utilise his blandish-
ments ; and the plan of closing the poll, in one day,
was a great blow to corrupt practices. From the
poll lasting for so many days, and voters being
brought, for many miles, from little country villages,
there was every opportunity to e.xercise the power
of gold. In the present day it is questionable
whether another form of bribery, now existing, is
not nearly, or quite, as pernicious as a money bribe
given to an individual. I allude to the gifts of large
sums for endowments of societies, the erection of
public libraries, baths and wash-houses, the presenta-
tion of public parks and recreation grounds, the
giving of prizes at agricultural, horticultural, and
other associations, and the like, and I question
whether they are not as potent as personal bribery
in the good old days. There is the still more whole-
sale and shameless promises to constituents of Acts
of Parliament, to carry out the vagaries of political

MODERN SYSTEMS OF BRIBERY 67

faddists, which has of late become so prevalent.
The present system of candidates nursing a con-
stituency has one great advantage over the old,
it benefits the entire community, and friends and
foes alike can participate ; whereas in the past only
the recipient of ' hard cash ' was satisfied. There
was a very remarkable case which arose in my
native town, whose brief history I may be permitted
to give — I refer to the ' Great Aylesbury case of
Ashby versus White,' as it is called ; and although it
occurred more than a century before my existence,
I knew so many of the descendants of those who
figured therein, that I can somewhat vouch for the
authenticity of the events recorded.

This celebrated case, dragged through two
Parliaments, causing the dissolution of one, is an
important constitutional record. It was simply this.
A person named ' Mathew Ashby' in January 1701,
at the election for the borough of Aylesbury,
tendered his vote for Sir Thomas Lee, Bart., and
Simon Mayne, son of the regicide, and the Return-
ing Officers for the borough, of vv'hich William White
was one, rejected it. A petition was lodged in the
House of Commons by Simon Mayne and some
other inhabitants, complaining of the Returning
Officers' arbitrarily rejecting his vote, and he,
Mathew Ashby, stated that the officials in question
had been guilty of an illegal act, and proceedings
were thereupon taken against them. This case
' dragged its slow length along ' interminably, and
on January 25, 1703, the Hou^e of Commons

!• 2

68 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

resolved itself into a Committee of the whole House,
to take into consideration the Aylesbury case of
Ashby V. White. After a lengthy debate it was
resolved by 215 v. 97, 'That, according to the
known laws and usages of Parliament, neither the
qualification of any elector, nor the right of any
person elected, is cognisable or determinable else-
where than before the Commons of England in
Parliament assembled, except in such cases as are
specially provided for by Act of Parliament ' ; and it
was further resolved ' That Mathew Ashby, having,
in contempt of the jurisdiction of the House, com-
menced and prosecuted an action at common law
asrainst William White and others for not receivingf
his vote at an election of burgess to serve in Parlia-
ment for the said borough of Aylesbury, is guilty of
a breach of the privileges of this House.' Notwith-
standing this, in April, Ashby continued his action,
and at the late Bucks assizes obtained a verdict of
5/. against the defendants for refusing his vote. On
being carried to the King's Bench, and after a long
argument, the judges, by 3 to i, decided that the
action could not lie, and that the plaintiff Ashby
had no cause of action.

In the following October the House of Commons
was informed that new actions for five other voters
were brought against the Returning Officers, and the
House resolved ' That it was a breach of privileges
of the House, and that the five men should be com-
mitted to the gaol at Newgate, and that Mr.
Speaker issue his warrants accordingly, and that

THE GREAT AYLESBURY CASE 69

Robert Mead, attorney-at-law, is guilty of high
contempt of the jurisdiction and privileges of the
House by prosecuting these actions against the
Returning Officers, and that Robert Mead should
be committed to the custody of the Sergeant-at-
Arms.' On November 8 the judges refused a writ
of Habeas Corpus, and the prisoners were conse-
quently remanded to Newgate. In February 1704
John Patey and John Oviatt, two of the Aylesbury
men committed to Newgate, petitioned for a Writ of
Error to bring their case before her Majesty.
The House of Commons petitioned the Queen
(Anne) not to grant their petition. On Febru-
ary 26, the House of Commons ordered that James
Montague, Esq., and five other attorneys be taken
into custody for aiding and abetting Patey and
others in their action against the Returning Officers
at Aylesbury ; and on the 27th the House of
Lords gave its protection to all the parties con-
cerned, as counsel, solicitors, &c., to the Aylesbury
men, and prohibited anyone from arresting, im-
prisoning, or in any way detaining James Montague
and others. On the 28th her Majesty expressed
her great regret to the House of Commons, and
was much troubled to find that they were against
her granting a Writ of Error, as against their
privileges, of which her Majesty would always be as
tender as her own prerogative, and that the House
might depend that she would do nothing to give
them just cause of complaint ; but that this matter
relating to the course of judicial procedure, being

70 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

of the highest hnportance, her Majesty thinks it
necessary to weigh and consider very carefully what
may be proper for her to do in a thing of so great
concern.

On March 2 the Sergeant-at-Arms reported to
the House of Commons that he had taken
Montague, but that he had produced a protection
from the House of Lords ; that he had nearly taken
Letchmore, but that he had tied his sheets together,
and had slipped out at a back window two pair
high ; and he had also taken Harris, but the other
three. Page, Denton,, and Lee, were not to be
found. A conference was then held by the two
Houses, and after long arguments the House of
Commons resolved ' That the proceedings of the
House, in relation to the Aylesbury men, are in
maintenance of the ancient and undoubted rights
and privileges of the Commons of England.' On
April I the Ashby case was brought by a Writ of
Error before the House of Lords, and Sir Thomas
Trevor, Lord Chief Justice of Common Pleas,
delivered judgment, by which he overruled the
decision of the Court of King's Bench, and gave
judgment for Ashby. In December following,
Oviatt, Patey, and others petitioned the House of
Lords to remove them from the gaol at Newgate.
In February 1705 the House of Lords had passed no
less than six resolutions ' condemning the conduct
of the House of Commons, as being an obstruction
to justice, and contrary to " Magna Charta " ' ;
and the House of Commons passed resolutions

PRIVILEGES OF THE COMMONS 7r

diametrically opposed to the House of Lords. On
March 14 the peers attended the Queen with a long
representation of the Aylesbury election case ; they
affirmed that the proceedings of the Commons were
wholly new and unprecedented, and it was the
birthright of Englishmen to seek for redress for any
injury in her Majesty's Courts of Justice. The
Queen, finding it an absolute necessity to put
an end to the session, and knowing there could be
no further proceedings in the matter, prorogued
Parliament the same day, and so rid herself and
others of the Aylesbury election business, which had
set Queen, Lords, and Commons at variance for
the past four years.

On April 5 Parliament was dissolved, and after
that nothing more was heard of the great Aylesbury
case of ' Ashby versus White.' I have thought
a condensed account of this often-quoted great
constitutional case would interest many persons
who felt some desire to follow the development of
our Parliamentary history, and have, in fulfilment
of my object, diligently searched many public
documents, but really am less indebted to them
than to my old friend, the late Mr. Robert Gibbs,
from whose pen I have gleaned a great part of
these details. I have been informed that, after all,
the real question was whether the Returning
Officers were justified in refusing Mathew Ashby 's
vote, under the plea that he had received parish
relief. However, this celebrated case is another
illustration of the great value of the House of Lords

72 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

in standing up for the liberties of the people against
the arbitrary and unjustifiable tyranny of the House
of Commons. It may not be out of place to
mention that in many boroughs there was no
regular locality in or at which nominations took
place. I well remember seeing the last election
for Amersham, in 1832, when the two candidates,
Squire and Colonel Drake, stood on two very large
unhewn stones, outside the Market House, in the
public street, and were there proposed. At Ayles-
bury, up to 1802, the candidates were proposed on a
large tombstone in the churchyard ; after that year,
when the hundreds were added to the borough, the
nomination took place in the County Hall. At Old
Sarum and Grampound, inasmuch as there was but
one house in each of these boroughs, the members
were nominated and elected on a mound of earth
somewhere within the reputed parish boundaries.

7^:>

CHAPTER VIII

An eccentric country gentleman — Egyptologist and astronomer —
Singular political career — Rural pursuits — His marriages — Estab-
lishment of prize gooseberry shows — Practices of exhibitors —
Names of noted gooseberries — Jas. Carter, landlord of the ' Bugle '
inn — Teetotal festivities — Dr. Lee in excehis — Elihu Burritt —
Drunken orgies of the visitors to the Teetotal banquets — The
historic career of the Lee family — Their remarkable influence —
Admiral Smythe — Old Wiggs, the parish clerk — '^Cdes Hart-
wellianas' — The museum — Hartwell House, the seven years' resi-
dence of Louis XVIII.

Amongst the many gentlemen I have known and
been pleased to call my friends was John Lee,
LL.D., of Hartwell House, near Aylesbury. He
was an extraordinary character, and was known far
and wide for his benevolence, his eccentricity, and
his versatility. His whole career was marked by
changes of position in society, whilst his vagaries as
a politician, as a Doctors' Commons lawyer, and as
a country gentleman, were varied by his studies in
Egyptian antiquity, and other similar fields of
research. But his greatest achievements were in
the study of the heavenly bodies ; and, as an
astronomer particularly and scientist generally, he
was deservedly held in high esteem. His eccen-
tricities culminated in a sudden manifestation of zeal
on behalf of teetotalism, and his personal exertions
for those enthusiastic faddists, the total abstainers,

74 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

led him into many extravagances, while his trustino-,
benevolent disposition made him the easy prey of
the designing members of the fraternity, who did
not hesitate to invade his household for weeks
together, whilst the branch societies and offshoots
obtained many a cheque under pretence of ' advanc-
ing the cause,' but to whom the funds went was only
known to the recipient. The learned doctor also
became a patron of ' vegetarianism ' and ' anti-
vaccination.' Notwithstanding his admiration of,
and intimacy with Mr. Robert Ceely, the eminent
authority, since Jenner, on vaccination, these ' fads '
found a powerful supporter in him. As an anti-
Church-rate man he figured prominently, and after
passing for some years as a Tory country gentleman,
he suddenly turned his coat, and became a venomous
Radical, if it were possible that his truly charitable
mind was capable of expressing the violent
animosities fostered by this political party. The
doctor's person was as eccentric in appearance as
his costume. He was slightly above the middle
height, with a thin, haggard face, and sparse strag-
gling locks worn rather long. This singular figure
was generally clothed in a long blue coat with plain
brass buttons, a full white cravat, and a frilled shirt,
dark trousers, low shoes, tied with black ribbon,
and his head was surmounted with a tall chimney-
pot hat, often scant of nap. With all his loudly
expressed democratic opinions, he was every inch
an aristocrat, and proud of his lineage from the
Lees of Quarrendon and of Ditchley. His mother

HARTWELL HOUSE 75

was the sister of the last baronet, Sir George Lee ;
she had married a Mr. Fiott, so that the learned
doctor was 'John Fiott,' LL.D., of Doctors'
Commons, London, and on the death of Sir George
he succeeded to the family estates in Bucks, Beds,
and Herts, and took the ancestral name of ' Lee,'
and came to reside at Hartwell House. This
stately mansion, a fine specimen of Elizabethan and
early Italian architecture, stands in a lovely park,
ornamented with grand trees, many noble specimens
of which were near the house, adding greatly to the
beauty of the park and grounds. In 1807 this place
was selected, by the Government of the day, as the
residence of Louis XVIII. (Louis le Desire) and
his family, with their Royal household, when driven
from France by the Emperor Napoleon, and there
the Court remained for seven years. The gardens
contained a bowlinor-o-reen S2ib te<jmiiie faai. The
beech trees overhanging it were fine specimens,
and the umbrageous walks surrounding the house
delightful. Well might the Royal family of France
part with their retreat with the deepest regret, as is
evinced by the carvings on some of the trees in the
park and grounds surrounding the house, such
as ' Toujours heureux,' 'Quel plaisir,' &c. The
French Queen died here, and on the return of the
King to France, her body was removed, and buried
at St. Denis, near Paris, in 18 14.

Late in life Dr. Lee married a most estimable
middle-aged lady, with whom he lived many years.
She died childless ; and a few years afterwards he

76 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

married Miss Heath, who was nearly forty years his
junior. She survived him, and on her death his
property descended to his nephew. Colonel Edward
Dyke Lee, the present owner of Hartwell, and the
other properties, who resides at the mansion, and is
a most excellent, liberal-minded country gentleman.
Whilst giving this sketch of Dr. Lee, it occurs to
me to describe some characteristics of rural life.

Forty years ago, at Hartwell and thereabouts,
were the meetings of the ' Gooseberry Society,'
a show that was held at the hostelry near the
park, called the ' Bugle,' and a dinner afterwards,
at which the doctor presided, accompanied by
many London and country friends, with the lead-
ing farmers of the parishes of Hartwell and Stone.
There were many members of the society resident
in Aylesbury who invariably made a practice of
attending, and exhibiting the produce of their
gardens, myself among the number. This gather-
ing was much augmented on the verge of a Parlia-
mentary election for the borough and hundreds of
Aylesbury, these parishes being within the borough.
The chief members of the society were cottagers of
the two parishes, and the rivalry of the various
exhibitors of the ' Big Gooseberry ' was intense,
whilst the disappointment of the growers, as the day
of exhibition approached, was very amusing. One
would deplore the fact 'that his "Gunner"was busted,'
another that 'there was a crack in his "Peacock,"' that
his ' Wonderful ' had dropped off, or his ' London ' was
rotted. These were the names of the various goose-

THE GOOSEBERRY SHOW •^'j

berries grown for their monstrosity, as weight, not
flavour, carried the day. The cultivation of these
fruits was even more amusing than their exhibition.
A tree was planted about two years previously, care-
fully manured and pruned, and when the eventful
year arrived, powerful manures were applied, and
the fruit thinned out till there were seldom more
than three or four berries left on the bush ; and it
may therefore be well understood that when a
'Gunner,' a ' Peacock,' or a ' London ' was busted,
how great would be the disappointment. The
weighing of the berries singly was watched with the
greatest anxiety and the keenest scrutiny, as the
prizes were awarded entirely by weight, and the
four colours, red, green, yellow, and white, each
received the coveted prizes, whilst there was a
premier prize of a copper tea-kettle for the grower
of the heaviest single berry in the show ; these
always weighed over 20 dwts., and I once remember
a red ' London ' reaching 27 dwts. ! The chairman,
Dr. Lee, with some of his ' teetotal ' and ' anti-
tobacco ' friends, drank the after-dinner toasts in
water, which was much lauded, as a very delicious
beverage, by the doctor, as the limpid, sparkling
drink came from a well-known spring, specially
protected with a stone covering, on which was
carved in Greek characters "Ap<a-Tov ju,£v u^fop, Water
is best. Yet it is sad to tell that, despite the presence
of the ' faddists,' the company in general smoked
pipes of tobacco till they were blackened, and instead
of washing down the taste of the weed with pure

78 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

water, they preferred and drank Joe Carter's (the
host of the ' Bugle ') strong ale, besides wines and
spirits, till late in the evening ; many of them for-
cettino; the route to their own dwellinos, and makin"-
anything but a teetotal gathering.

As I before stated, when an election for the
borough was looming in the not distant future, this
Hartwell gooseberry show was a fertile source of
supposed bribery and treating, being within the
hundreds of Aylesbury, and most of the inhabitants
were amongst the worthy, the free, and the indepen-
dent electors. As it was very uncertain which way
Dr. Lee would vote, there were strenuous attempts
made by the rival parties to make the meeting a
success. In every autumn a monster assembly
favourable to ' teetotalism ' was held in the park,
and for nearly a week delegates from London and
other parts of England made a point of attending.
The mansion was converted into a sort of liberty
hall, open house being the rule, and plenty of
feasting took place, for it was remarked that
teetotallers were noted ' trenchermen,' and made up
by eating what they denied themselves of drinking.
Vegetarians throve here mightily, as they drank
alcoholic beverages, and the anti-tobacconists could
both eat meat and solace themselves with something
stronger than water. The meetings of these
societies began about noon, and lasted till nine or
ten o'clock at night. Bands playing, dancing, ' kiss
in the ring,' and rural sports going on well into the
dark : Joseph Carter's hostelry, the ' Bugle,' being

TEETOTAL ORGIES 79

crammed with visitors the whole week, and a
general orgie became prevalent. When it is stated
that, in addition to all these antl-everything societies,
was affiliated the great demonstration of the ' Uni-
versal Peace Society,' with the champion advocate,
Elihu Burritt, the inspired blacksmith, and other
noted Americans, with a strong contingent of
whisky-drinking Scotchmen, evidently notteetotallers,
it may well be conceived that ' high jinks ' were the
order of the day. In fact, it was well known that
such a week of drinking and immorality as was
evoked by these gatherings was unknown elsewhere.
Some amusing stories are told of Joe Carter,
who was a favourite tenant of the doctor. It was
said that when Joseph paid his rent, his landlord
kindly asked him if his business at the ' Bugle ' was
prospering. Joseph replied that he regretted to
say that ' it was very bad indeed ' ; that, what with
his friends and visitors attending these meetings,
and what with the impressive speeches they heard
there, such an effect was produced on his customers
generally that they ceased to patronise him as
they used to do. This so gratified the doctor that
he said, ' Joseph, I am very glad indeed to hear it,
and therefore hand you back these three five-pound
notes, as some compensation for your loss of trade.'
Joseph departed serenely, thanking his landlord for
his kindly consideration. But the real facts were
these : The jolly host of the ' Bugle ' was noted for
his famous home-brewed beer, and always filled his
cellars, and even his outbuildings, with his nut-brown

8o RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

beverage in anticipation of the Temperance festival,
and the stock of beer was invariably exhausted
after the second day, and the Aylesbury brewery
each succeeding day sent in a dray of twelve barrels
of beer to supply the deficiency ; whilst his wine
and spirit merchants provided extra stock, which
was always sent in the week before, and consisted
of at least twenty gallons of gin, besides rum,
brandy, and whisky, was exhausted by the end of
the second or third day. This surely was proof
enough of the great benefit conferred upon the
population by the attendance and speeches of the
Goughs, Reynoldses, and other enthusiastic speakers
at these meetings.

It happened that after one of the Parliamentary
elections, a petition was presented against the return
of the newly elected M.P. for bribery and treating.
Joseph attended before a committee of the House
of Commons to give evidence as to the feasting
of the electors at the ' Bugle.' He was a jolly,
rollicking fellow, with a rubicund face, well pim-
pled, and otherwise showing ' how oft the black
jack to his lips did go.' He was asked, ' If there
had been so little drinking at his house, how his
face had obtained that singular appearance ."" '
Nothing abashed, Joseph replied ' that he had been
sleeping in London the last two nights, and that
certain inhabitants of the bed which he slept in had
worried him so that he had but little sleep, and they
had caused these abrasions and appearances on his
face.' This was said in the most deliberate manner,

QUARRENDON CHAPEL 8i

and amidst roars of laughter, somewhat at the
expense of the O.C. who was examining him, from
both auditors and members of the committee. With
all his peculiarities Dr. Lee was a general favourite
with all classes, his benevolence and kindness of
heart endearing him to every one with whom he
was brought in contact. He, with the late Sir
Harry Verney, the worthy baronet who died in
1894 at the age of ninety-three, founded the Bucks
infirmary, and as a start, and by way of an example
to other landowners, he gave 1,000/. as a subscrip-
tion, and, as the work progressed, largely added to
his original donation. The ' Lees ' of Ouarrendon
were the ancestors of this Hartwell family. I have
elsewhere described the disgraceful state of the
parish church at Ouarrendon : the fine monu-
ments, which I well remember in the chancel, were
memorials of the ancient ' Lees.' Admiral Smyth,
in his ' ^des Hartwelliance,' published in 1864 — a
copy of which was kindly presented to me by the
author and Dr. Lee, 'with their compliments,' on
March 22 of that year — describes one of the monu-
ments as ' a costly sarcophagus of Sir Henry Lee,
with his effigy in gilt armour, decorated with the
insignia of the Garter, erected in 1597, and near
him was a fine altar tomb, with recumbent figures of
his father and mother upon it.' I have seen these
tombs in my youth sadly mutilated, and now (1894)
tittcrly gone. And I have been told that the quiet
slumber of death on their features, even then some-

G

82 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

what defaced, so strongly attracted the admiration
of Sir Francis Chantrey, as he told Lord Nugent,
when visiting him at Lilies, which was near the
chapel, that he had borrowed from them his first
idea for the exquisite sleeping sisters in Lichfield
Cathedral. The late Dean Bickersteth had been
my vicar at Aylesbury for over twenty years, and
he showed the group to me with much pleasure
when I once visited him at the Deanery. The
sisters were the daughters of the Reverend W.
Robinson, their mother being a beautiful woman,
and the daughter of Dean Woodhouse, of Lichfield.
Whilst writing of Sir Henry Lee, I find that Ann
Vavasour was Maid of Honour to Queen Elizabeth ;
she was one of the family of Vavasour, who were a
great family, and whose ancestor came over with
William the Conqueror. He took his name, as
being the King's Valvasotcr, from holding land in
fealty, a degree then but little inferior to a Baron.
Neither the rank nor the station of this same Ann
Vavasour could preserve her from frailty, and on
that account her tomb at Ouarrendon is said to have
been desecrated and defaced by order of the bishop
of the diocese — Lincoln. Her shame and degrada-
tion were thus moderately commemorated :

Under this stone entombed lies a fair and worthy dame.
Daughter to Henry Vavasour, Ann Vavasour her name ;
She Hving with Sir Henry Lee, for love long tyme did dwell,
Death could not part them, but here they rest within one cell.

Sir Henry died in 1610. The above was copied by
the Lancaster Herald in 161 1, and the following

TOMBS OF THE LEES 83

year he made a marginal note to the line, thus :
' This tomb is since erased and pulled down, 16 12.'
Admiral Smyth, to whom I am indebted in the
main for the above, says : ' Under so open an
avowal Sir Henry Lee, the most chivalrous knight
of his day, and Sir Walter Scott's type of perfection,
may be dubbed a knight suits peur, though, alas !
not sans rcprocke. He being buried at Ouarrendon,
and his wife and children at Aylesbury, is significant.'
In my ' Recollections of Old Country Life ' I have
described the wife's monument, dated 15S4, with
that of her children, and am tempted to make a
quotation here. Above the canopy there are these
lines :

If passing by this tomb thou dost desire

To know what in this marble shrine do lie.
The some of that which now thou dost require

This scleder verse to you will soon descrie.

Then follows this inscription, quite Spenserian in its
diction : the spelling, with its contraction of the
letter ' n,' is peculiar :

Entombed here doth lie a worthy dame.

Extract and born of noble house and blood.

Her sire. Lord Paget, hight of worthy fame.

Whose virtues cannot sink in Lethe's flood.

Two brethren had she, baros of this realm,

A knight her feere. Sir Henry Lee he hight.

To whom she bare three impes, which had to name

John, Henry, Mary, slain by fortune's spight ;

First two beig young, which caused their parets moe.

The third in flower, and prime of all her yeares.

All three doe rest within this marble stone.

By which the fickleess of worldly joyes appears.

84 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Good fried sticke not to strew with crimso flowers
This marble stone wherein her cTdres rest,
For sure her ghost lives with the heavely powers,
And guerdon hath of virtuous life possest.

The words ' he hight ' mean ' was his name,' and
' her feere ' her companion or husband. The chil-
dren are called ' impes.' It had often astonished
me why they should have been interred in
Aylesbury Church, which was some three miles
from the family vault of the Lees of Quarrendon,
but the above story explains it.

Dr. Lee's attempts for a seat in Parliament, and
his political career, were very amusing. I fancy I
can see him now, in or about the year 1845, riding
through the market square at Aylesbury, in his old
phaeton drawn by one horse, and driven by his
eccentric, boozy coachman, Ben Monk ; the phaeton
decorated with a bower of laurels, and the doctor,
hat in hand, bowing to the right and left to ladies
in the first-floor windows, and followed by a crowd
of boys. He was proposed and seconded on the
nomination days for the borough, and also for the
county of Bucks — the polls were being held simul-
taneously. For the former he polled about 400 to
his opponent's 800 or 900, and for the county about
1,000 as against a little over 2,000. It was said
that he changed his colours from the Tories to the
Whigs, because Sir R. Peel had refused to revive
the baronetcy of the family in himself. He was, as
I have said, a great astronomer. In order to pursue
his study of the heavenly bodies, he had erected an

THE QUEEN AN AGRICULTURIST 85

excrescence of an observatory, which rose from his
drawing-room window. His extensive stables were
turned into an Egyptian Museum, with huge figures
of Isis and Osiris, and immense stones with carved
hieroglyphics, sarcophagi, with mummy cases depict-
ing Egyptian manners and customs from the times of
the early Pharaohs, filling the stalls. I was honoured
by being introduced to Mr. J. Bonomi, the celebrated
Egyptian traveller, by the doctor, and with these two
and Admiral Smyth I spent many a pleasant hour.
The last named was a charming companion and a
very humorous acquaintance, fond of agriculture
and country folk lore. He delighted in walking
over my farm with me and talking with the labourers.
Amongst the rural celebrities of Hartwell was old
' ^^'ggs>' the parish clerk. The admiral was fond
of quoting ' his wise saws and modern instances.'
Wiggs said he was not surprised at the Queen being
fond of farming, as in all her copper money she
caused herself to be shown ' as sitting on a cart-
wheel, with a dung-fork in her liand.' This was
Wiggs's description of Britannia on the Union Jack,
with the trident in her hand ! On the admiral re-
marking that some horses were idly eating their
heads off, he replied, ' Well, sir, I always bless their
mouths, and ours too, for if it was not for eating
and drinking, what would farming come to .-* ' The
admiral, when I had the opportunity of walking
with him, was to me the best of company, especially
when he got to his favourite subject. Ancient
Egypt. Whilst speaking of the manners and

86 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

customs of this wonderful people, he mentioned that
the Egyptian ladies used scent and dye upon their
persons, and that at Hartwell there was a small
vessel, with some of the very scents and dye still in
it, more than 2,000 years old, but I cannot describe it
so well as he did. In '^des,' p. 185, he writes
as follows : ' The female choristers who attended
Pharaoh's daughter, on her espousals with Solomon,
and who gave title to the forty-fifth Psalm, are
shown on a sepulchral stela of Theban limestone,
curiously coloured, as smelling a lotus flower, and
that the Egyptian damsels were not unmindful of
the pomps and vanities of this world was evinced by
their fine linen, necklaces, precious stones, gold
chains, armlets, bracelets, anklets or bangles, false
jewels, enamels, studs, and earrings, of all of which
we have the fullest testimony.' Regarding the rich
network of bugles, or beads, which is so frequently
found enveloping mummies over their linen clothes,
the Admiral told me that there was a relic of the
same taste, prevailing at the Court of Yussuf, the
late Bashaw at Tripoli. The Bashaw, after an
evening with his songstresses and dancers, would
honour his guest (the admiral) as he left the castle,
by commanding a network of fragrant jasmines to be
thrown over his shoulders as a special mark of grace.
He says that a very material article of an Egyptian
lady's toilet was the scent-bottle, which contained the
preparation of antimony, oxide of manganese, or other
substances, to blacken the eyebrows and lids, and this
blacking still remains in use all over the Levant.

THE HARTWELL MUSEUM 87

These unguents and perfumes were costly, odori-
ferous, and lasting. I was shown at the Hartwell
Museum a perfect little vase, made of so-called
alabaster, about four inches high, containing a portion
of brown matter, g-ivinaf out an unctuous smell, a
residue of some costly scented ointment. Such was
the skill of the Egyptians in the art of perfumery,
and so strong was the odour of the perfume, that the
scent still remained some thousands of years after.
The museum at Hartwell, which had been stocked
by the learned doctor, was a strange medley, con-
taining many interesting and valuable remains of
remote antiquity, mixed up with wax models of mon-
strous potatoes, gigantic gooseberries, huge speci-
mens of apples, and other garden produce grown by
cottagers on the estate. Amongst the pictures in
the mansion were some fine examples of Rembrandt
and Vandyke. So little did Dr. Lee respect the
amenities of his stately mansion, that when he built
that vile excrescence of an observatory on to his
state drawing-room window, the entrance to which
was through the principal apartments, finding that
some noble trees in the park somewhat obstructed
his view of the stellar world, he did not hesitate to
ruthlessly cut the trunks down halfway, and thus
ruined the most beautiful portion of the estate. My
intimacy with this interesting country gentleman
enabled me to make the acquaintance of many learned
gentlemen, in addition to Admiral Smyth and Mr.
Glaisher, of Greenwich fame, such as J. Bonomi,
the celebrated Egyptian traveller ; Pettigrew, the

88 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

distinguished authority on mummies ; Dr. Buckland,
the geologist ; Gough, the teetotaller ; Elihu Burritt,
the champion of peace. When this worthy scientist
died, he bequeathed the livings of Stone and
Hartwell to the Royal Astronomical Society, so
that astronomical observations should be carried on
in these parishes. He was buried in the parish
church, and was regretted by all who knew him.

89

CHAPTER IX

A prize farm — A Yankee fellow traveller — American and English
farmers compared — Turning the tables— An English farmei^s bill
of fare — A farmer's ' pretty turn-out ' — Discomfiture of the Professor
— Wheat-growing in England and the United States — The Pro-
fessor's apology.

I HAVE done my share of travelling during a long
and active life, and although I cannot say I have
ever told them, I have sometimes listened to what
are proverbially known as 'travellers' tales.' To
see ourselves as others see us — well, if the sight
is not always instructive, it seldom fails to amuse.
And especially is it diverting when the observer
happens to belong to the sort of traveller Dickens
had in his mind's eye when he invented, or adapted,
Count Smorltork. I am reminded in this connection
of an experience of mine, on a railway journey from
Worcester, about twenty years since, in associa-
tion with Mr. Charles Whitehead, who resides at
Barming, near Maidstone, in Kent, and who is one
of our highest authorities in fruit-growing and on the
insects which affect our crops. I had been appointed
with him as a judge of the farming of Worcestershire,
to award the prizes for the best cultivated farms in
the county. I believe the proprietor of the leading
county newspaper offered lOo/. as a first prize, and the

90 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES-

Agricultural Society supplemented it with a second
prize of 25/., and as hop- and fruit-growing was
essentially a part of the cultivation of the county, Mr.
Whitehead was appointed with me. In the course
of our expedition we visited the farm of Mr. Charles
Randall, one of the most noted agriculturists of the
day, who resided near Evesham, and is, alas ! no
more. He was a charming, genial gentleman, and
was for many years one of the leading members of
the Council of the Royal Agricultural Society of
England. On visiting his farm we were most
hospitably entertained and detained to dinner, some
ladies and gentlemen of the neighbourhood being
invited to meet us. We were put up for the night.
We found the farm the perfection of good culture,
the live stock excellent, the most marked being the
sheep, for which Mr. Randall had a world-wide
reputation, as was evinced by the high prices
obtained for his rams at his annual sale. The house
stood on an eminence commanding a view of a fine
undulating country, and was surrounded with a
beautiful well-kept garden blazing with autumnal
flowers, everything around being replete with good
taste, and showing ample means of keeping the
house, grounds, and farm in a high state of cultiva-
tion. This farm adjoined the estate and mansion
of the Due de Nemours, Mr. Randall being manager.
To him we most unhesitatingly awarded the first
prize, the second going to a farm on the banks of
the river Severn, at or near Upton-on-Severn. I
have been rather particular in describing Mr.

A YANKEE PROFESSOR gr

Randall and his residence from the circumstance I
am about to relate.

Whilst returning home, in the compartment of
the railway carriage, I encountered a remarkable-
looking elderly man with considerable conversational
powers, who was accompanied by his wife. There
were three other ladies in the carriage, and myself.
The gentleman was expatiating on what he had
seen since he had been in England. He informed
me that he was a Professor of Literature at a
university in Baltimore, U.S.A., and was desirous
of recording his views and opinions of England on
his return to ' Amerca ' (sic). Although his stay in
this country had been short, he had already obtained
much valuable information. I listened with amused
interest to his remarks, especially as I found he
was explaining the difference between the English
farmers and those of the United States, and com-
paring their superior position with that of the belated
Britisher. ' I can assure you,' he said, addressing
the lady passengers, ' that our farmers eat meat
three times a day.' At this I pricked up my ears,
and when he went on to state he found ours as a
rule had animal food scarcely once a week, and con-
sidered they lived luxuriously if they got meat once
a day, I could not resist joining in the conversation.
I assured the professor that our farmers could eat
meat four times a day if they wished, to which
declaration he gave a firm, but courteous denial.
We arrived then within a mile of Evesham station,
and Mr. Randall's house and QTounds became visible

92 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

from the railway. When the learned professor caught
sight of it he called his wife's attention to it, as being
a most lovely residence, and as beautiful as any
he had seen in England. At this I was delighted,
and informed him that that was the residence of one
of his despised English tenant farmers ; that I had
had the pleasure during the past week of visiting him.
And although I could not quite give in full his bill
of fare for my dinner, which I had much enjoyed,
I thought it was as follows : ' Clear soup, salmon
and lobster sauce, two entrdes, a saddle of four-year-
old wedder mutton of his own breeding and feeding,
two brace of partridges, sweets made by the ladies of
the household, together with Amontillado sherry and
Moet's champagne ; whilst after dinner we had, as
was then the custom, a splendid dessert, with grapes
and peaches from his own garden, with the choicest
old port and Chateau Lafitte claret ; that we joined
the ladies afterwards with tea and coffee, and that I
played a rubber at whist, the ladies enlivening us
with music. The entertainment, I ventured to sub-
mit, was one that would compare favourably with a
Texas or Kentucky farmer of their highest grade.
The ladies in the carriage laughed heartily at the
professor's discomfiture, especially when I told him
that he had evidendy mistaken our agricultural
labourers for English farmers. The contrast was
more fully exemplified when we reached Evesham
station, as the lady American expressed her
highest admiration of a pretty ' turn-out,' a handsome
phaeton, with a pair of ponies driven by a young

WHEAT, IN AMERICA & ENGLAND 93

lady, with her mother seated beside her, and a small
groom in simple livery attending on them. I
recognised my hostess, Mrs. Randall, and her
daughter, and apprised our Yankee travellers of the
fact that that was the equipage of the before-named
tenant farmer. The astonishment of the professor
may be conceived. I further informed him that I
myself was only a humble tenant farmer. As to
our agriculture, perhaps he was not aware that the
average crop of wheat per acre in the United States
from the superior tenant farmer never exceeded
from twelve to sixteen bushels, whilst that of the
inferior English agriculturist averaged a crop of
from twenty-eight to thirty-two bushels per acre,
and that I had grown on five acres the unprecedented
amount of eighty-two bushels per acre. The learned
professor having exchanged cards with me, we
parted. He, however, wrote to me afterwards,
thanking me for correcting the hurried opinions
which he had formed of the farmer and correspond-
ing classes from his cursory glance at England. I
am aware that Mr. Randall was scarcely a typical
specimen of the ordinary tenant farmer, but he was
one. At the time when farming was prosperous,
many of my neighbouring farmers kept a good table,
had a stock of choice wine, and rode a good horse
to hounds, and held their own against any others of
the community.

A great deal was said some time since about
farmers who had been living beyond their income.
It was urged that they had no business to ride to

94 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

hounds, or keep a horse for the purpose. Those
who use these arguments are ignorant of the fact
that it is absolutely necessary that a horse be kept
for ordinary business purposes, and it may just as
well be a good one, that can be ridden with hounds
and driven to market, so as to take the chance of
selling him to advantage, as to be only of value to
go to plough, or grind corn, and turn the horse-churn.
It has been said also that the farmer's daughters
have no right to go to boarding school, and play
the piano, or to acquire other modern accomplish-
ments. Surely they have as much right to do this
as the daughters of the butcher or the baker, who
purchase the produce of the farm and supply the
household afterwards. When the whole nation is
being educated and taught all the ' ologies,' it would
be a sad reproach to the farmer who had from two
to three thousand pounds employed in his business,
if his sons and daughters could not hold their own
with others.

95

CHAPTER X

Hereford cattle — Early history of the breed — Report of the United
States Government — Grazing capabiHties — Quahty of beef— Curious
anecdote — Mr. Westcar, of Creslow — Foundation of the Smithfield
Chib — Introduction of the breed into the Midlands — Duke of
Bedford — Lord Berners — Remarkable cattle — Great value of
'Hereford' beef at Christmas — Beauty of the animals — Colour,
grandeur, and carriage — General aptitude to fatten.

Having been for many years an ardent admirer
and somewhat successful breeder of Shorthorns, I
have arrived at the conclusion that in some districts
there are various tribes of cattle which have become,
from continuous breeding, and very careful selection
of the fittest for the surrounding conditions, as
it were, indigenous to certain soils of this country ;
whilst the developing of special characteristics has
naturally fostered a prejudice in favour of the breed,
even to the detriment of others. This is well
known amongst breeders of Devons, and is still
more pronounced in relation to the Herefords. I
have never bred Herefords, but have been a
grazier and feeder of them for many years. I there-
fore can state most unhesitatingly that no breed
has a greater aptitude to fatten; and when placed in
rich pastures on a congenial soil, they lay on flesh, and
fatten, more readily than any breed in existence.
Some few years since the Government of the

96 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

United States of America was desirous of obtaining
all the information available from every country in
Europe, of the various breeds of cattle, giving their
characteristics for milk and flesh production. They
entrusted me with the task of writing a paper on the
Hereford tribe. This gave me an opportunity of
gaining some very valuable and interesting infor-
mation in addition to what I already possessed of
this race of animals. It is necessary to state that,
as a rule, the Hereford is only sure of making a
fine carcass of beef in certain localities other than
in his own shire. The soil there seems excellently
adapted for breeding and rearing these cattle, and
only a limited amount of land in that district
is considered of sufficient quality for making such
beef as the Hereford ox is capable of producing.
Some years ago I visited the city of Hereford
on the occasion of the Easter fair. This affords
a sight that differs from anything of its class in
England. Thousands of cattle of this breed are
brought here, all of one type and colour, the latter
being a deep brownish red, with clear white faces
and bellies, a strip of white down the spine, white
appearing sometimes on other parts, and the tip of
the tail. No appearance of a shorthorn or any
other breed was in the city, except, perhaps, a few
Devons. There are often eight thousand to nine
thousand head brought in for sale at the Easter and
Michaelmas fairs.

The history of the modern Hereford breed is
somewhat singular. Old Fuller, who wrote two

HEREFORD CATTLE 97

hundred years ago, says of Herefordshire, ' that it
doth share as deep as any other county in the
alphabet of our Enghsh commodities, though ex-
ceeding in W, for wood, wheat, woo], and water,'
and that its wheat was worthy to jostle in pureness
with that of Heston, in Middlesex, which furnished
manchets for the kings of England, and its Wye
salmon was in season all the year round, but he is
silent as to cattle. While Drayton sings of fair
Suffolk's ' maids and milk,' of the hogs of Hamp-
shire, the calves of Essex, and how

Rich Buckingham doth bear
The name of bread and beef,

but he says nothing about Hereford cattle. I have
myself but little doubt that the Herefords were
descended from Devonshire strains, which were all
of a deep brownish red colour, with snow-white
markings. The story of the cause of the white
faces is curious. It came from an accident, or a
sport of the breeding of a white-faced bull, in the
herd of a noted breeder of the last century, Mr.
Tully, of Huntington, near Hereford. The story
runs that Mr. Tully's herdsman came to his master
one Sunday, as he was returning from church, and
told him that his favourite cow, which was daily
expecting to calve, that morning had produced a
bull calf ivith a white face, such an event never
having happened in his herd before. His master
at once ordered him to slaughter the calf, as he
dared not let it be known that such a stain of

H

98 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

impure blood should be found in his well-reputed
pure herd. The man begged him to go and see it
before deciding, as it was the finest calf he had ever
seen. Mr. Tully, after seeing the animal, agreed
with his man, that it was a wonder, and out of
curiosity he would have it reared. This was done,
and he grew up to be a remarkably fine animal.
The bull was mated with his best cows, and the
progeny became celebrated for their white faces.
Many old chroniclers say that the county was dis-
tinguished for its breed of white cattle on the banks
of the Wye as far back as the tenth century, but the
cattle had red or roan ears ; and it is recorded that
Earl Scudamore, in or about the year 1660, had some
red cows with white faces from Flanders, and this
may be the reason why this noted 'Tully bull,' after
a lapse of more than a hundred years, cropped up
as a sport, from the deep red cattle of the country.
Sometimes the face is mottled with red, whilst many
of the best Hereford cattle I have grazed and
fatted have been of a light brindled colour, and I
have seen Herefords all pure white, but the latter
are extremely rare. There is no doubt in my
mind that the perpetuation of the white face is
through the influence of the white-faced bull, and
is a remarkable corroboration of my views ex-
pressed some years since in a paper I read at the
Central Farmers' Club on ' Breeding ; Facts and
Principles,' when I enounced the dictum ' that the
external characteristics are derived from the male

MR. WESTCAR, OF CRESLOW 99

parent, and the internal organisation follows the
female.'

The Hereford breed of cattle had made a sreat
reputation in the beginning of the present century,
when Mr. Westcar, of Creslow, near Aylesbury,
mainly established the Smithfield Club Cattle Show,
where for twenty years in succession he carried off
the first prize with his Herefords against all sorts
of cattle competing. Mr. Westcar died before my
day, but I knew his nephew, Mr. Richard Rowland,
who succeeded him in those splendid pastures, and
who related to me — whilst standing in the far-famed
great ground, on the spot marked by a clump of
trees, planted specially as a memorial, where the
lifeless body of Mr. Westcar was found, he having
fallen from his horse, and was supposed to have
died from a fit — how the Duke of Bedford in the
beginning of this century had so often expressed his
admiration of the splendid cattle exhibited by Mr.
Westcar, went down to the great Easter fair at Here-
ford, leaving all the arrangements for the journey to
the great grazier, travelling in his carriage with four
post-horses — which is a representative story of the
times as to a progress through the country — taking
two days for the journey, and stopping one night
on the road at the well-known country inn, the
' Staple Hall,' at Witney, accompanied by Lord
Berners in another carriage and four, Mr. Westcar
going on ahead in the old yellow post-chaise of the
period, ordering relays of horses, and preparing
accommodation for the party. The noble travellers

H 2

TOO RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

took their ladies and friends with them, so that with
the usual retinue of servants they formed a goodly
company. The Duke told Mr. Westcar, on their
arrival at Hereford on the fair day, to order dinner
for a hundred guests at the principal hotel — I think
it was the ' Green Dragon ' — and he was to invite
all the principal breeders and dealers to meet him.
He described the annoyance of some of the dealers
at these noblemen being brought down to see the
grand store bullocks, for it had the effect of raising
their price at least i/, per head. After dinner the
Duke and Lord Berners announced their desire to
purchase from ten to twenty cows and heifers of the
best that could be found ; also a couple of high class
bulls, to be sent into Bedfordshire, to Woburn, for
his Grace, and to establish the breed there ; whilst
Lord Berners imported his into the Midlands to
follow the same, instead of the Longhorns for which
he had been long famous. Thus the Herefords
became fixed as a great breed in the Midlands.
This visit of the Duke of Bedford and Lord
Berners, with the continued success of Mr. Westcar
at the Smithfield Club Christmas Show, brought the
breed prominently into notice, and firmly established
their merits.

As an instance of the size and weight attained
by these animals at one of the great exhibitions at
the beginning of the present century, I find that
Mr. Westcar's first prize at the Smithfield Show in
the year 1801 measured in length 8 ft. 1 1 in., in
height 6 ft. 7 in., in girth, behind the shoulder,

WEIGHT OF HEREFORD CATTLE loi

lo ft. 4 in., and he was sold for loo guineas, his
dead weight being 247 stones of 8 lbs. ! Enormous
as the dimensions of this o.x were, they were far
exceeded by his neighbour, Mr. Grace, of Putlowes,
about five miles from Creslow, and about three
miles from Aylesbury, which was 7 ft. high, 12 ft.
4 in. in girth, and weighed 280 st. when dead ! Mr.
Potter, a well-known salesman of the time, sold at
the Metropolitan Christmas market in 18 12 for Mr.
Westcar fifty Herefords at an average of 50 guineas
each, thus realising 2,500 guineas. Mr. Rowland
showed me, when on a visit to him, a book of Mr.
Westcar's, recounting that from 1799 to 181 1 he
sold at various times twenty oxen for 2,123/., or an
average of 106/. 6s. each! And a few years since,
about the year 1878, when I was visiting Mr.
Ledbroke, of Putlowes, successor to Mr. Grace, a
fortnight before Christmas, I saw fifty Herefords,
then tied up, for which he had obtained 2,500/.,
or 50/ each ! The class of animals I am now
describing is no more. They were five years
old, worked beast, and even older, they had
been harnessed to the yoke, and had therefore
attained a great size. Working in the plough is now
comparatively rare ; early maturity is the present
aim of all the best farmers in England, and Here-
ford oxen are now well fit for the butcher at from
two to three years old.

In relation to this subject a slight account of
Creslow may not be deemed uninteresting. This is
a parish in itself, but is designated 'extra parochial,'

I02 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

there being but one habitation in it, viz. the manor
house, which is all that remains of a very ancient
monastery, as also forming part of the farm buildings.
I have seen, in some portions, the old zigzag mould-
ings of early Norman architecture, but it has for
centuries, as a religious house, ceased to exist ; the
foundations are still visible, but only a small portion
of its former beauty is in sight. The predominant
feature of the estate is the famous ' Great Ground,'
containing over 350 acres. This is all in one en-
closure, and is considered the largest feeding ground
in the kingdom. As a proof of the remarkable
fertility of this pasture, I have myself seen upwards
of 250 head of full-sized cattle, with 500 ewes and
lambs, and 20 mares and foals, grazing together,
and all rapidly fattening for market. The estate
belongs to Lord de Clifford, the whole parish
consisting of about Soo acres, not more than 60 or
80 acres being arable. It is by some believed to
have been the birthplace of ' Fair Rosamond,' which
adds greatly to its interest. Nothing can exceed
the rich pastoral beauty of this district. From the
upper ground, at the foot of which is the justly
celebrated Fox covert in Mr. Selby Lowndes'
country, formerly hunted by the Duke of Grafton
and Lord Southampton, the eye wanders over
the far-famed Vale of Aylesbury, the old town, the
y^gilsbireg of the Saxons, standing on some rising
ground in the centre, whilst near at hand is Whit-
church, and the rich pastures of Hardwick, and
adjoining these places is Ouarrendon, the birthplace

CRESLOW AND OUARRENDON 103

of St. Osyth, with its small chapel of the fourteenth
century, now in ruins, rivalling Creslow in the
richness of its pasture. Next to this is Fleet
Marston, with its little parish church standing in
the middle of a rich feeding enclosure called ' Chapel
Ground,' in which parish is Putlowes, the rival of
Creslow in fertility ; then following onwards there
are about twelve miles of matchless grass land along
the Eythrope valley, watered by the River Thame,
falling into the Isis at Dorchester, in Oxfordshire,
and then forming the mighty Tamesis, Thame-Isis,
or Thames. After this digression, I must conclude
my notice of Hereford cattle, remarking that the
cows of this tribe are not such deep milkers as that of
the Ayrshires or the Shorthorns, nor is the milk as
creamy as the Jerseys or Guernseys, yet their milk is
rich and good, and the cows are excellent mothers.
I may sum up my notice of this grand tribe of cattle
by saying I believe the Hereford breed, as a flesh-
forming animal, has no superior. The meat itself
is as good as the best Scotch or Devon, and it is
well known that the breed, when exported, succeeds
in any climate ; therefore England may well be
proud of her white-faced Herefords. In no part of
the world is to be found a more picturesque sight than
a rich deep green pasture, well tenanted with this
beautiful race of horned animals. Their sweet
calm countenances of curled silky hair, their rich
brown-red coats, set off by the pure white of the
face, back, and bosom, with the meek glance of
their eyes, the pink skin of their lips and nostrils,

I04 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

their wide spreading horns, and the general con-
tentment of their habits, make them the ' admired
of all admirers.'

On searching some old documents I learn that
on December lo, 1799, Mr. Westcar sent an ox to
the Christmas Show in London by a boat on the
Wendover Canal. It was only two days on the
journey, and lost no flesh by the transit. This was
the first record of sending cattle by canal. This
Hereford ox won first prize, weighed 241 stone, and
was sold for 100/. !

I05

CHAPTER XI

Old inns — Politics — Inn signs and their origin — Posting and coaching
— The ' White Hart ' at Aylesbury — The extensive gardens, the
offices, and appointments of the ' White Hart ' — County importance
of the grand old inn — Names of the rooms — The ' Old Bell ' in
Holborn — Customs of the dinner-table — To Drury Lane Theatre
after dinner — Other old inns — Rise of the modern hotel — Bacon's
Hotel, Great Queen Street — Railway hotels — Present managers
and past proprietors contrasted.

It has often struck me that an interesting chapter
might be written upon ancient or well-known Inns.
I use this old English name in contradiction to that
modern Frenchified word Hotel, which was scarcely
known in England prior to the battle of Waterloo.
People living in the present day fail to thoroughly
comprehend the immense influence possessed in the
country by these well-known establishments at that
period. In politics, the inns, and their keepers,
were a powerful institution, and I can never under-
stand why these generally prosperous, well-to-do
traders should in the present day be looked down
on, or in any wise despised in their vocation, by
people who could but little know mine host or the
members of his family. In my youth, the power of
the coach proprietors and post-masters in country
districts were paramount in their localities. The
immense capital employed by them can scarcely be

io6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

credited in the present day. Many of the former
owned and employed from six hundred to one
thousand horses, to enable them to horse the coaches
on the various lines of road ; whilst the post-masters
often kept from twenty-five to thirty pairs of post-
horses. The innkeepers had by far the largest
amount of capital invested in the principal towns,
far greater, relatively speaking, than was employed
in other business. And in the county towns they
were generally men of superior education and
manners, from their constant association with the
leading nobility, clergy, and magistracy, both socially
and politically. The chief towns had mostly two
leading hostelries, engaged at election times by the
rival parties ; whilst the leaders, and their followers
of Whig and Tory, made the inns their special
rendezvous. If I give some account of the well-
known ancient inn of the Midlands, the ' White Hart,'
at Aylesbury, it may interest many readers to obtain
some idea as to what it was like in the first quarter
of the nineteenth century. It is generally believed
that this was an inn during the Wars of the Roses,
at least five hundred years ago, and belonged to the
White Rose party, whilst the Roebuck was attached
to the Red Rose. Where ancient inns existed in
towns of some pretensions, they were generally the
White and the Red Lion, respectively attached to the
two factions. The ' White Hart ' stood in the market
square of Aylesbury, and adjoined the County Hall,
with the Assize Courts. In 1S12, the front consisted
of three tall gables, the first floor overlapping the

DESCRIPTION OF AN OLD INN 107

ground floor, and the second overhanging the first.
Fine carved timbers skirted the gables. In the
centre was a large gateway, the floor above supported
by great fluted posts, with heavy hanging oak gates,
which could be closed when required. This con-
fronted a spacious yard, one half of which was
bounded by an open covered gallery, into which the
bedroom doors opened. This gallery was supported
on strong oak pillars ; a broad covered staircase
rose from near the entrance into the gallery, and
formed the main approach to the principal sitting and
bedrooms. There were large rooms on either side
of the entrance, and adjoining was the business
portion of the inn. A spacious kitchen filled one
end of the yard, extensive cellarage occupying the
underground of the front. At the back of the build-
ings were large gardens, with a beautiful ornamental
' bowling green ' of full size, but seldom seen nowa-
days ; on each side were gigantic elms, at least three
centuries old, with dense shrubberies, and flowering
shrubs, laburnums, lilacs, mountain ash, acacias,
and red chestnuts. Along the bottom of the green
was a row of ancient walnut trees, arbours with
shady nooks, and seats pervaded a shrubbery
charming to behold. Below this pleasaunce was an
orchard with fine apple and pear trees, amongst the
former being codlins, golden and ribston pippins,
Blenheim orange, russets, and early juneatings, the
latter had Gansell's bergamot, several of the beurres,
and a large tree of the real old bergamot pear.
But the chief pride of the place were three very

io8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

ancient mulberries, at least three centuries old. The
orchard contained the cow-house, piggeries, and
hospital for horses when lame or ill. This orchard
was bounded by a mill stream, and in the midst was
a large shallow pond, called a 'stew,' for fresh-water
fish, in which was kept an eel trunk, consisting of a
strong iron-bound box about four feet long and two
feet wide and deep, perforated with holes, and a lid
fastened with lock and key, the latter kept by the
man cook, who was the head of the servants. In
this trunk or box were kept live eels, the trunk
having a strong iron chain attached to it, which was
fastened to the base of a large tree adjoining ; this
enabled the trunk to be hauled up a sloping bank,
when the wriggling occupants could be taken out,
affording adelicious dish when company required fish.
Two or three big perch, with the same number of
tench, were also kept there. This was very neces-
sary, as there were rarely any fishmongers' shops
then in the town, and sea fish only came down from
London when plentiful, and was brought by the
stage coaches. The brook side was edged by large
silvery-leaved Abele trees of more than a century
old. A rookery was established in the elms, and
plenty of starlings had done the same in the hollow
holes in the trunks of the Abeles. The stables were
stalled. Boxes being almost unknown, timber and
brick built, some of them had what were called bails,
large pieces of timber fastened by a short chain to
the manger, hanging by chains to a beam in the
ceiling above. The lofts for hay, straw, and corn

A GOOD ESTABLISHMENT 109

being over the stables, generally a considerable
quantity of corn and fodder was kept for some
weeks' consumption. There was accommodation
for about fifty horses, with harness rooms, and 'ostry'
as it was called, being the office and store room for
the ostler, with stove and waiting room for the post-
boys, and capacious chaise and coach houses. The
whole of this establishment covered from five to
six acres. It may well be imagined, therefore, that
a considerable amount of capital was employed by
the proprietor of a large respectable old-fashioned
country inn. The servants comprised, besides the inn-
keeper and his industrious wife, a housekeeper and
barmaid, man cook, waiter and under waiter, kitchen
maid, scullery maid, chamber maid, laundress, house-
maid, nurse, boots, ostler, tap-boy, first turn post-
boy, and generally an extra woman, making fourteen
persons besides the family to feed and lodge daily.
The expenses must necessarily have been very
heavy. Many old inns had curious legends and
histories attached to them, and one of remarkable
historic interest belonged to the 'White Hart.' I
have the authority of Clarendon for its authenticity,
which I have already described. The large dining-
room and apartments, with sleeping rooms over,
formed a very picturesque garden front, and bore the
date on the gable, in iron figures, of 1663.

As an instance of the importance attached to
this old hostelry, it will be necessary to give the
names of some of the rooms on the ground floor.
On one side of the gateway was the ' Change,'

no RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

which I have heard old people say was the room
where the principal business transactions of the
town were discussed and carried out, and in my
day was ' the commercial room.' On the other
side was the ' Crown,' where the customs, excise, and
other duties were periodically collected. Another
room was the ' Mitre,' where the Bishop of the
Diocese had for three hundred years collected his
ecclesiastical fees and dues by his chancellor, as also
the archdeacon did the same by his apparitor.
There was also the ' Fountain,' a name often apper-
taininq- to old inns ; this sometimes gave the name
to the inn itself There has always been much
speculation and doubt as to the origin of this term,
but we know it often existed with inns of this
importance. It might have meant and represented
the modern bar, the place, or fount where the beer,
wine, and liquors were kept and served to customers.
It has often puzzled me to know what steps were
taken at that time to protect the open galleries,
forming the approach to the bedrooms, when heavy
rain and snow fell. There was a sort of dado fixed
about three feet high on the outside, and probably
heavy curtains could be let down, especially in cold
wintry weather. Often these inns had their own
brewery, as almost everyone at that time brewed
his own beer, even in private houses, where the
establishment was large enouQh. The cellaraoe
was ample and convenient, generally well stocked
with generous old port and rich brown sherry.
French wines were only kept in small quantities,

THE OLD WHITE HART iii

as they were very expensive, and but seldom
asked for.

About the year 1S14, business having much
increased, and the old inn being devoid of modern
sanitary requirements, and on an examination of its
structure, it was proved to be very insecure. The
whole of the front was pulled down and rebuilt
in the inartistic style then prevalent, but leaving all
the back part, with the Rochester room, kitchens, and
appurtenances, intact ; the old gallery was enclosed,
windows being inserted. The great staircase was
destroyed, and a new one of carved oak was built,
starting from the entrance hall, which occupied the
site of the old gateway, a new entrance into the yard
being provided on the eastern side of the house.
The fine old pile of 1663, including the Rochester
dining-room, fortunately was left intact. Such was
the state of this noted hostelry in 18 14.

This all happened some time before I was born,
but years afterwards I heard people talking of the
old house, and everyone regretted that no record,
in the shape of a drawing or sketch of the picturesque
old front, remained. Yet there is one story about it
which my father had been told, and I had heard
related by very old people, that whilst the Assizes
were being held — the Courts being next door — they
had seen serjeants-at-law and other great luminaries
of the bar come down between the trials, or at the
temporary adjournment of the Courts, going into
the ' Change ' and playing single-stick across the
table, and drinking their social cup. And that when

112 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

any public event or holiday took place, a stage was
erected in the yard, and the ladies with their friends
occupied the open gallery and witnessed the sparring
matches and cock fighting which took place there.
The new inn was built from the bath stone and
timbers from Lord Chesterfield's house at Eythrope,
which was then being pulled down, and the portico
was from the stables there.

I have feebly described a well-known inn of
some centuries' repute, and before the railways there
were plenty as good, but few possessing the great
advantage of extensive gardens and grounds, al-
though there was one I remember, and which still
exists — the ' Swan,' at Bedford, on the banks of
the Ouse, although the gardens and grounds have
been much curtailed during the past few years.

I have alluded to the 'Old Bell,' Holborn, now
closing and pulling down, and I was tempted to enter
through the gateway a few months since, and found
the coffee room of my boyhood occupying the same
spot, yet strangely altered internally. I am not
aware if there is any coffee room in London
left as it existed in my early days. This room
was fitted with mahogany divisions, partitioning off
the place into ' boxes,' as they were called, some
holding two persons, some four, and one held six or
eight, who could find room to dine ; they had stuffed
horsehair seats fitted to the walls and partitions, and
a fixed dining-table in the centre, whilst the waiter
was obliged to hand the viands and the wines over
the shoulders of the occupants ; these were always
ample and of the best quality. The proprietor,

A DINNER OF THE PERIOD 113

Mr. Bunyer, was proud to bring in the bottle of old
port himself, and was often asked to sit down and
partake of it. A typical dinner I can well remember,
when my father and three of his fellow townsmen,
who always made a point of coming to London
together when business called them. These little
parties were for social companionship, and arrange-
ments were made some time beforehand, that they
might book their places by the stage coach, and
have no disappointment. Leaving home by the
four-horse coach at 7 a.m., arriving in town about
1.30 P.M., in time for luncheon of a clever mutton
chop, then making a hurried visit to the wholesale
business houses, where they were in the habit of
doing business, during the afternoon ; making their
appointments for next day ; returning to the ' Old
Bell ' about five o'clock, having ordered dinner to be
ready at six o'clock sharp. Mock turtle, cod and
oysters, or salmon and lobster sauce, a good rump
steak and pancakes to follow, with Cheshire or
Stilton cheese to finish. Old brown sherry, with
soup and fish ; fine old port with the cheese, and an-
other bottle afterwards. Then to the ' Play ' at 7.30,
Drury Lane preferred. The real old hackney coach
with pair of horses. These coaches, with the driver
and coat of four or six capes, the horses and appur-
tenances, would scarcely be credited in the present
day. These had originally been the big family
carriages of old-fashioned noblemen or country
gentlemen. The ' hanger on ' of the coach stand
usually accompanied the vehicle to earn sixpence

I

114 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

by opening and shutting the door. By the way,
there is a very good old story of these worthies
that I fancy is worth repeating. He was called the
' waterman,' whose duty it was to give the horses
water. The story goes that the following colloquy
took place : ' I say, Bill, vy do they call us vater-
men ? ' ' Veil, I don't know, Jem, I suppose 'tis 'cos
ve opens the hackney-coach doors.' I think the
fare from the ' Old Bell ' to Drury Lane was two
shillings. I well remember on one occasion seeino-
Macready in ' Macbeth,' and either Miss Helen
Faucit or Miss Huddart in the character of Lady
Macbeth — and finely that character was played. I
was much impressed with the fight and Macduff's
triumph. I shall never forget Macready's wonderful
expression of countenance when Macduff told him
'he was not of woman born.' His hand, clutchinof
his sword, fell powerless by his side, his eyes glared,
his face seemed to turn pallid, his mouth half opened
his tongue lolled from his mouth, and he looked a
complete idiot. But when Macduff accused him of
cowardice, in an instant the whole man changed,
the idiotcy left him, and the torrent of his voice,
' Lay on, Macduff,' fairly electrified me, as also did
the fine performance of Lady Macbeth. I heard
a good story of old Mr. Robert Vernon, the generous
connoisseur who left his priceless collection of pic-
tures to the nation, the collection that is known as
the Vernon Gallery. He was a great patron of the
drama, and often received parties of distinguished
actors and actresses on a visit to his beautiful

ANECDOTE OF EDMUND KEAN 115

country seat at Ardington, near Wantage, in Berk-
shire. Once, when Edmund Kean was visiting
there, he told his host that in his early career he
was acting the part of Richard the Third in a small
country place, and was lodging at the principal inn,
and had criven the landlord a ticket to witness the
performance. When, on his return after the play, he
entered the room where many of the leading in-
habitants who had witnessed the performance had
assembled and were discussing the merits of the
actor. The landlord was smoking his pipe, and as
he was the oracle of the place, his opinions were
anxiously awaited. So when Edmund Kean asked
him what he thought of his performance, the land-
lord, after pausing some time to collect his thoughts,
knocked the ashes out of his pipe, refilled and lighted
it, and while the company hung upon his lips, he said :
' Damned good fight.' Alas! these chimney corners
in these cosy old country inns are no more, or at
least are few and far between. Perhaps in the
near or distant future they will revive in some form
with the present craze for cycling. Whilst dwelling
upon the London Inns of my youth, it will be of
litde use my mentioning them, as only a very few
are left. In my day there were the ' Green Dragon,'
Bishopsgate ; the ' Castle and Falcon,' Aldersgate
— still first-class and flourishing; 'Spread Eagle,'
Gracechurch Street ; ' King's Arms,' Snow Hill ;
' Swan with Two Necks,' Lad Lane ; ' Belle Sauvagre,'
Ludgate Hill ; ' Bull and Mouth,' afterwards the
'Queen's,' St. Martin's le Grand; 'White Horse,'

ii6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Fetter Lane ; the ' Old Bell ' and the ' Bull ' in
Holborn, still going ; Gloucester Coffee House, Ox-
ford Street ; ' Golden Cross,' Charing Cross, with
Hatchett's, Piccadilly, whilst the 'Angel' at Islington,
and ' Elephant and Castle,' in the Borough, still main-
tain their ancient importance by their omnibus connec-
tion, in lieu of the four-horse coaches of the thirties
and early forties. When the great iron roads and
' puffing Billies ' drove Tony Waller and his con-
freres off the road, the omnibus made a very poor
compensation for the loss of the mail coaches.

There is something particularly fascinating to
me in watching the development of many trades
and industries, and with them the decay of others.
Nothing has been more marked or wonderful than
the extraordinary progress made in places for the
reception of travellers in London. Probably one
cause for this characteristic was the immobility of
the system of management of the old inns, which
seemed to care little for the accommodation of
pleasure-seekers visiting the metropolis. It was
rarely that the female population from the country
visited the great town — a visit from them was
seldom more than once in three or four years, if
they resided more than twenty or thirty miles
from London — so it was almost exclusively men
who travelled thither, and then upon business
intent. Their journeys were made by four-horse
coach, and, as these conveyances ran direct to the
inns already mentioned, the latter were chiefly
supported by the inhabitants of those districts from

RISE OF NEW HOTELS 117

which the coaches started, and the country through
which they passed. The first house which, as far
as I remember, laid itself out for the reception and
special comfort of ladies and their families was
Bacon's Hotel in Great Queen Street. It was
next door to the Freemasons' Tavern, of which
Mr. Thomas Bacon was then the proprietor. He
was a very gentlemanlike man of excellent address
and manners, and his wife was a charming lady,
well fitted to attract ladies and their families to
their comfortable and homely establishment. This
hotel was then followed by the ' Golden Cross,'
Charing Cross, when suddenly, as if by magic, the
railway companies found the paramount necessity of
accommodating their numerous travellers, and the
London and North- Western built the Euston and
Victoria hotels. The Midland, Great Northern,
the Great Western, London Bridge, Victoria,
and others followed suit, thus demonstrating that
the same necessity existed for passengers by these
railways as it did for the coaches, and the routes
through which their lines passed. About the
same time Morley's, in Trafalgar Square, the
' Langham,' in Portland Place, and others rapidly
followed, so that London, which had long borne
the reproach of deficient hotel accommodation,
developed a series of inns superior to every city on
the Continent. The ' Inns of Court,' the ' Royal,'
the 'First Avenue,' the 'Grand,' the 'Victoria,'
the ' Metropole,' the ' Alexandra,' ' Bailey's,' whilst
lately the 'Savoy,' the 'Cecil,' the 'Hans Place,'

ii8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

with many others, can now be found vying with
each other in splendid furniture, excellent cuisine,
the best of attendance, and not by any means
extravagant in their charges, considering the
superior accommodation they afford. There is,
however, one serious drawback in these modern
caravanserais — the guests know nothing of the
managers, nor do the managers know anything of
their guests. The latter are numbered, and, except
in the book at the entrance, the name is unknown.
No welcome attends you on arrival, no expression
of regret at your departure awaits you. No
delightful wife of the innkeeper has been seen to
cheer and look after the comfort of the ladies ;
nothing, in fact, to associate the traveller with his
Inn, or any pleasing recollection of the agreeable
evening, with town or country gossip, over the
cigar, in the comfortable bar parlour with ' mine
host ' at his inn. Whilst speaking of Inns, or to
give them their more modern appellation, Hotels, I
must not omit a reference to the still more extra-
ordinary development of houses for dining, luncheon,
and every description of refreshment. I think in
this that London is facile princeps. Only a very
few years since the 'gin shop,' as it was called,
was almost the only place where even a glass of ale
could be obtained, and now every street of the
slightest importance has its restajirant. Here again
we have another innovation of a French name
instead of the ' Eating House,' as it used to be
called ; we have ' Verrey's,' the ' Holborn,' the

RESTAURANTS AND WINE VAULTS 119

'Criterion,' the ' Aerated Bread Co.,' with various
first-class confectioners, and latterly Messrs. Lyons.
All these have become established, and have
supplied an increasing want, especially by ladies
and children. But amongst all the wonderful places
for refreshing the inner man, amongst the humbler
classes, are those places called ' Lockhart's Cocoa
Rooms'; it is really remarkable how excellent at the
price are the refreshments supplied by them. Some
short time since I went to one of these houses, had
two excellent hot sausages, a large roll, with big
cup of good tea, and my bill was ^d. ! Another
remarkable feature has also been evolved as to
refreshment — viz. the consumption of milk. In
nearly every street are attractive, comfortable rooms
to be found, where a glass of milk can be had with
a biscuit or bun for 2d. or T,d., tea and coffee also if
desired. Yet, with all this, the great Bodegas,
drinking bars, wine vaults, and other kindred resorts
flourish even more prosperously than before. We
may well be proud now of our great city in the
shape of new eating and drinking establishments,
which, I believe, have been great factors in raising
our people from the gross practices of our fore-
fathers, and, let us hope, without the effect of
destroying that bonhomie and good fellowship which
has always characterised Englishmen.

I20 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XII

News of the Battle of Waterloo — Difficulty and delay in getting news
at the beginning of the century — The old Winslow coach — 'The
Dairy Maid' — Report of the great battle brought to my father —
Doubts of its authenticity — Ringing the church bells — Indignation
of the vicar — Ultimate triumph of my father — Then and now
contrasted — ' Our own correspondent.'

There are many events worthy of remembrance
in my long life which, now in the year 1897, seem
almost incredible. I have heard my father describe
the announcement of the Battle of Waterloo with
its effects on him, and the recollection of it is so
vivid, I seem somehow to have been with him myself.
He said that on June 20, in that memorable year,
1815, he was haymaking in the meadow at the back
of his premises about mid-day, when he heard his
name shouted out, and, leaning on his hayfork, he
observed the driver of the pair-horse coach called
the ' Dairy Maid,' which ran from London, through
Aylesbury, to Winslow and Buckingham, which
came down one day and returned the next. The
coachman was an old friend of my family, of the
name of Hodgkins, and he it was who addressed
my father, who was then twenty-three years of age,
as ' Master John, I bring you great news, and no
one in Aylesbury shall know it before you. Bony-

NEWS OF WATERLOO 121

parte and all his French army are destroyed ! The
Duke of Wellington, God bless him ! has fought
and beat him at a place called Waterloo.' My
father told me he was so overcome with joy, for he
had lived all his life in war, that he involuntarily
fell down on his knees in the hayfield and thanked
God for what he at once saw was the blessing of
peace. The coachman had hurried back, when he
found the horses had been changed, and fixing blue
ribbons on their heads and a big bow on his whip,
drove triumphantly through the town, telling every-
one the startling news, which had been spread that
morning in London, that the battle had been fought
on the 1 8th, and that the news had reached London
thirty hours afterwards, and that the whole city was
rejoicing. Like many other towns of the period,
there was a strong contingent of Bonapartists,
young men of 'advanced views,' like the Little
Englanders of the present day, who were fond of
asserting that although Wellington had beaten all
Napoleon's generals in the Peninsula, when he came
across the great Bonaparte he would not only find
his match, but would certainly be defeated. My
father, with his staunch Toryism, had always main-
tained the contrary, hurried up street to the parish
clerk, one John Dunce, who, I well remember, was
the head of the ringers, told him to call the ringers
together and give out as hearty a peal at the church
as they possibly could, to celebrate the glorious vic-
tory. The peal of eight bells was a very fine one,
and soon poured forth a volume of sound powerful

122 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

enough to shake the steeple. The townsmen hur-
ried out, asking what it all meant, and the streets
were soon filled with rejoicing people. The vicarage
was close to the church, and the vicar, the Rev. John
Morley, was a pronounced Whig and a firm believer
in Napoleon, came out and demanded to know what
the ringing was about ; and on being told, at once
ordered them to desist, as he utterly disbelieved the
story. But the ringers, who had already been well
plied with strong ale, refused to comply, as Mr.
Fowler had ordered them ; and as he was very
popular in the town, they said they were determined
to continue, as they felt sure the news was true.
The vicar came down to my father's house and
heard the story from him, and very reluctantly
became a convert to the news, and rejoiced heartily
over a glass of hot rum and water and long church-
warden pipe, for which he had a particular fondness,
and with which he had often solaced himself with
the celebrated Dr. Parr, who was an old college
friend of his, and with whom my father had often
passed a dehghtful hour. The vicar could not help
rejoicing, being an Englishman first and a Whig
afterwards. Later in the evening the stage coaches,
especially the mail, corroborated the welcome news,
and general rejoicings took place. I have entered
into these details as a record of the times in which
the great event took place, and as a contrast to the
present day, when stirring events occurring in India,
China, Australia, South Africa, North and South
America, with all parts of the civilised world. Had

ROTHSCHILDS AND WATERLOO 123

the great battle been fought now I could imagine
the headings from ' Our Own Correspondent ' in the
daily papers. 8 a.m. — 'The French are advancing
to the attack.' Twelve d clock. — ' Gallant defence
of La Hayue Sainte.' ' Failure of ammunition ; the
Hanoverians retire.' ' Repulse of repeated attacks
of the French at Hougoumont.' 2.30 p.m. — ' Death
of General Picton.' ' Polish Lancers attack the Scots
Greys.' 3 p.m. — ' Repulse and overthrow of the
Cuirassiers of the Guard.' Four o'clock. — 'The
Duke preparing for a general advance ' ; ' arrival of
the Prussians.' Five dclock. — 'Overthrow of the
French Army.' ' Flight of Napoleon,' &c. &c.
Whereas I have heard from high authority that
the head of the great house of Rothschild was
awaiting at Brussels, eight miles from Waterloo,
with all his plans prepared for his journey to London ;
that about five o'clock of the i8th, news was brought
of the advance of the British in the final charge ;
that he then started with four post-horses, with
relays ready at every stage, to Calais, where a packet
was in readiness to convey him to Dover ; on the
road to London relays of four post-horses hurried
him on, arriving about mid-day of the 19th, which
enabled him to manage secretly to buy up im-
mensely of consols and other Government securities,
which were at a great discount, before any informa-
tion reached the Government, by which an enormous
fortune was realised in less than forty-eight hours
after the battle.

124 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XIII

A famous hunting mare — The purchase : her infirmity, her great beauty,
and her matchless performances — Her docihty and extraordinary
pace — Jem Mason — Harborough Brown — The Creslow brook — The
beauty of the Vale of Aylesbury as a hunting country — Famous
run after a bag fox with Lord Lonsdale's hounds — Captain Barlow
■ — Lord Coventry — The great water jump over the Broughton line
of country with the 'Varsity men — Accident to the mare — Partial
recovery — Put to the stud — Sudden death — Death of her foal by
Hungerford at four years old, and an end of the great huntress.

It has often been remarked by sporting men that
it is seldom ' a man has more than one perfect
hunter in his lifetime,' and others have said 'that
all men, however badly they have been mounted in
the general way, have had one good animal during
their riding careen' I may safely say that no man
had a better mare than the one whose singular career
I am about to describe. Some two or three years
after leaving school, my dear and considerate father
said to me, 'John, all young men must have some
recreation, and I shall be pleased to help you in any
reasonable manner which my means and my very
large family (there were ten of us) will permit me.
Now, I will find a horse for you, or you shall have
a dog and gun, but I won't allow you to have both.
Which, therefore, do you prefer ? ' Without hesita-
tion I chose the horse, whereupon a useful young

A FAMOUS HUNTER 125

animal was purchased for twenty-five sovereigns.
I used him in business, and was supposed to get one
day a fortnight with the hounds. I had plenty of
falls, but nothing serious, and by degrees, as one
horse was lamed or worn out, he was ' promoted ' to
the plough or harrow on the farm.

Years rolled on, and it so happened that my
native town became a centre of sport, and the
fame of the fertile Vale of Aylesbury spread far and
wide as a steeple-chase and hunting district. I
formed at that time, with the assistance of two well-
known sportsmen, over my Prebendal farm, what
was considered and is still thought to be, the best
natural course in England. I had then married, and
these two gentlemen, noticing that I had many a
fall with the hounds, protested that my life was then
too valuable to be trusted to the class of horse to
which I had been accustomed ; would I allow them
to send me a nag worthy of the country, and of such
superior manners that I should feel comfortable in
negotiating the Aylesbury ox-fences and doubles ?
I agreed, albeit as they rode horses for which they
were in the habit of giving from 250 to 300 guineas
each, I was rather afraid of the deal. However,
they knew my means were somewhat limited, and
that I could not afford a big price. One morning,
as these two gentlemen were going to meet Lord
Lonsdale's harriers, in a lovely hunting country, the
clattering of a horse's feet attracted my attention.
I looked round, and saw a railway porter leading
into the yard a horse carefully clothed up, with a

126 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

hood and breast cloth on. He said it was addressed
to me, and had just arrived by the London and
North-Western train. When placed in the stable
and unclothed, we all three uttered an exclamation
of astonishment at the sight of so faultlessly beauti-
ful an animal. It is useless for me to attempt
a description which would satisfy me, but the mare
stood just over si.xteen hands high, colour a rich
dark-brown chestnut, almost a black, black legs,
brown muzzle, rather a big head, carried beautifully,
slightly lopping large ears, fine prominent eyes,
broad forehead with white star in centre, a rather
long neck, with a black silky mane, magnificent
shoulders well laid back, strong loins, a bang tail
set rather high up on the rumps, tolerably wide
hips, bang and strong drooping quarters, splendid
hocks, good forehand, deep chest and ribs, famous feet,
critically she had rather weak pasterns, yet springy
and elastic. She was in the pink of condition. Here,
then, was apparently everything one could desire.
As there was ample time to join the meet, which was
distant about four miles, I hastened to get into
my boots, leathers, and hunting costume, and started.
On examining the direction label, I found attached
a short note from ' Harborough Brown,' a well-
known heavy-weight cross-country rider and manager
of Mr. John Anderson, of Piccadilly (not my old
friend ' Joseph ' of ' that ilk '), saying ' he hoped I
would like the mare, and that the price would not
frighten me, as it was fifty guineas ! ' (Fifty guineas !
she looked more like three hundred) ; that she was

A BAG FOX 127

the perfection of a hunter, six years old, and could
carry thirteen or fourteen stone over anything that
any horse in England could do, ' b^it that she made
a little noise ' ; no roarer, ' but ivhistled a bit ; and if
I took care not to press her too hard in deep ground
I should never discover it.'

My two hunting patrons, with myself, jogged on
to the meet. It is superfluous to say I tried my new
mount in all her paces, and found her simply perfect ;
she walked like ' Jine grande dame^ and as most good
judges will say, ' if they walk well, they can do every-
thing else well.' Although I was not a bruising
rider, I could go fairly well to hounds, and was
anxious to see how the new purchase performed,
which I could do much better if some one else in
whom I had confidence rode her first. On arriving
at the meet, a hare was soon found, and after going
over a few fields, with some moderate fencing,
which the mare jumped faultlessly, we killed our
hare, and as the mare pulled a little, everyone came
round and were astonished at her beauty and the
style of her performance. I asked an old friend of
mine, T. W. Morris, of Bedgrove, a light weight,
and one of the best men I ever saw across a country,
to exchange mounts with me, as I wished to see her
perform with a really good man on her back. He
consented, and we trotted on with the hounds, to
commence that most unsportsman-like act, viz. to
hunt a ' bagman ' or bag fox. This was the
practice at that time with Lord Lonsdale, and the
sport with this pack produced some of the most

128 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

remarkable runs on record in Aylesbury Vale. We
trotted on to Drayton Mead, about four miles
distant, and found the fox had been despatched
about a quarter of an hour, and the hounds were at
once laid on. I should mention that although the
hounds of this pack were called harriers, they were
draft hounds from many of the best packs of stag
and fox hounds in Enofland, beino- for their oriofinal
business being somewhat undersized. The foxes
were brought from his lordship's estate, Lowther
Castle, in Cumberland, and after proper care and
training in some barns at Tring, were taken in a box
to the open country and turned down to provide
sport in the vale, nearly three hundred miles from
their birthplace. Generally these ' red rovers '
went away wildly at a tremendous pace. On this
occasion reynard took a fine line of country over the
best part of the vale, and the pace was terrific.
My friend soon took the lead, knowing the country
well, and, as he told me afterwards, found himself
quite at home on the mare ; and that although he
had had some clever horses, he never rode so
brilliant a performer as this. I saw him come to
the Broughton brook or mill head, so famed after-
wards in the great steeple-chase won by Vain
Hope, ridden by W. Archer, the father of the cele-
brated Fred, Jem Mason, of ' Lottery ' fame, coming
in second on the ' British Yeoman.' The mare
cleared it magnificently, and after passing to the
south of the town of Aylesbury, the fox took a
line over a very severe country, and when the dusk

OLD JEM MORGAN 129

of evening set in, my friend found himself alone at
Tythrope covert, about two miles from Thame,
having about seven couple of hounds with him, and
the fox lost I — not a soul but himself being in sight.
The pace had been so severe, and a stinging brook at
Ford, four miles back, with about sixteen feet of
naked water, which the mare skimmed over like a
swallow, had stopped old Jem Morgan the huntsman,
whippers-in, his lordship, and many others, who
mostly got a ducking, or had shied it, and then
found a bridge. After the fox was lost Mr. Morris
returned, getting together such hounds as he could,
and when returning for home, about a mile, met
poor old Jem, who had the remainder of the pack
with him, and was wondering what had become of
the fox and the leading hounds. The finish was
about nine miles from my home at Aylesbury, and
about eighteen from the kennels at Tring, the
country run over nearly fourteen miles. The new
hunter and her rider returned in triumph to her
stable, and was none the worse for the run. A very
disagreeable event happened to myself which pre-
vented my seeing this extraordinary finish. Whilst
lost in admiration at the splendid performance of
the new purchase, I was riding in as good a place
as I could, and, jumping a fairly big fence, I did not
perceive on the landing side that there was a great
well-rotted muck-heap of at least fifty tons. My horse
landed into it, almost up to her shoulder-blades,
which sent me flying over her head, and I fell
plump on my back into the soft manure, completely

K

I30 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

saturating myself with the unpleasant liquid. I was
obliged to relinquish the chase, and was thereby
deprived of any further opportunity of seeing Mr.
Morris's ride. This eventful run, and the brilliant
performance of the new investment, was naturally
talked about. For myself, having seen how grandly
the mare went, and how perfect was her style, I was
more than content with the deal.

In sending a cheque to ' Harborough Brown,' I
asked him for some particulars of her history, and
found she had been bred in the Melton Mowbray
district, and was got by Belzoni out of a perfect hunt-
ing mare. This horse was noted as the best sire of
natural jumpers throughout the Midlands. After
having been carefully taught her business, John
Anderson bought her, when rising six years old, at
a high figure, and sent her down to an order from
Mr. Wilson, the then master of the ' Atherstone,'
for 250 guineas. He being rather a little man, and
this Belzoni mare being sixteen hands high, and
somewhat fidgety on being mounted, he disliked
her, and, on finding she made a slight noise, he
returned her, and I thus became her owner. I
remember one day, after meeting the Bicester
hounds at Chilton village, a fox was found at
' Chinkwell Wood,' near Brill Hill. The pack raced
him away to the New Wood at Wotton. The
squire (T. T. Drake), hunting his own hounds,
rattled away as usual, cheering on his pack, and,
going down the hill at a great pace, charged a big
ox-fence, and got safely over. I was near to him,

A BIG WATER JUMP 131

and did not like the look of this ' bullfincher,' but in
the fence was a strong five-barred gate. The mare
was pulling hard, I was in a good place, thought it
could not be worse if I charged the gate. I got my
heart up to the sticking-place, and launched her at
it. It seemed to me as though she never went out
of her stride, for she cleared it like a bird, without
touching it. The hounds had a check at the wood,
and many hard men came round me, and said
they never saw so desperate a jump, as it was on a
steep descent, and they were prepared to see a very
bad accident ; but the way she negotiated so
dangerous an obstacle was beautiful to behold. If
there was one thing this charming animal felt more at
home with than at any other whilst hunting, it was a
brook of naked water. The well-known Jem Mason
wished to try her, and took her one day in cold blood
at the River Thame, and she cleared it without the
slightest difficulty — twenty-three feet of water. On
one occasion, when I wasshowingthegentlemenof the
' Varsity ' over the Broughton course on my father's
farm, we came to the water jump, which had a plain
sheep hurdle before it. The intending riders, who
were walking, pronounced the brook impracticable,
and refused to have it in 'the line of country.'
Amongst the company was Lord Coventry, Mr.
Allgood (Captain Barlow), the champion rider of the
' Varsity,' and others, who remonstrated with me,
and suggested that this part of the course should be
altered. I was riding my mare, and said, ' Well, I
don't think you ought to funk this water jump, if

K 2

132 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

the mare I am now riding, who is only a common
hunter, can jump it without whip or spur in her
snaffle bridle.' To this they assented, as they felt
sure she could not accomplish the feat. I dis-
mounted, as I did not mean to settle the point
myself, and requested my neighbour, Morris, before
mentioned, to show the way. He thereupon
mounted her, took the mare round about 300 yards,
shook her up, set her going, and over she flew, land-
ing on her hind legs clear of the water, and without
a flaw in her stride. After this they did not venture
to object, with their trained steeple-chasers. I may,
however, mention that in the result every one of
the fourteen starters got into the brook, and
floundered about, to the amusement of the lookers-
on. A Mr. Goldingham got through first, on a
horse called ' Tough Tom,' and in the end won the
race. On measuring the space cleared by the mare,
we found it to be twenty-nine and a half feet !

I could easily fill a small volume with an
account of the splendid hunting career of this beau-
tiful mare, but, omitting further reference to her
prowess, complete my story with a description of
the singular illness she suffered from, and her tragical
end. From one cause or another, something
unaccountable happened to her, which was perhaps
unprecedented in the ills to which (horse) flesh is
heir. A fistulous gathering settled on the top of
her withers, just where the neck springs from the
shoulders. This became serious, and I called in an ex-
perienced veterinary surgeon, the eldest Mr. Lepper,

A CLEVER OPERATION 133

and, as the suppurating matter could not escape,
and the discharge continuing, an opening was made
beneath the skin low down in the shoulder, about
sixteen inches below the wound, a seton was passed
through, and a vent found for the discharge. After
a time it was discovered that the bone was diseased
from being so long in contact with feculent matter,
when with great dexterity and courage Mr. Lepper
actually sazued away tiuo pieces of the spinal pi'ocess,
each as large as my thumb. Eventually, after more
than six weeks of unremitting care, the bone
became sound, the wound healed, and the patient
found no detriment whatever from the operation.
It destroyed, however, much of the mare's beauty,
as it formed a hollow depression nearly an inch in
depth, and three inches in length, close to the point
of her fine shoulders. The celebrated V.S.,
Mr. Major, saw her afterwards, and said it was an
unique operation, and one of the most successful
he had ever witnessed. I rode her for nine
seasons, never having had a fall, when one day, in
a run with the Baron's hounds near Aston Clinton,
the pack was going at a good pace towards Buck-
land, when I jumped a small fence out of a paddock,
and landed in a rather boggy place. The mare
struggled out, and, after going over another fence
into a big grass field, began to kick most vio-
lently, which she had never done before. On
dismounting, she seemed perfectly mad : her eyes
flashed, she was striking out viciously with her
near hind leg, whilst I had the greatest difficulty in

134 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

holding her. Mr. Lepper was on ahead, and I
managed to let him know ; so, with the help of two
farm labourers, who were working in the field,
succeeded in getting her led home, nearly four
miles. She was at once slung upon a beam in the
stable, and, after a careful examination, it was
discovered that she had split the os calcis — the
bone forming the cap of the hock, which keeps the
large muscles and sinews coming down the thigh to
the fetlock in their place. The splintered bone
scraping against the tendons and sinews every time
she stepped caused such pain, that she kicked out
violently to get rid of it, which made it worse.
After being slung, her hind feet just touching the
ground, the poor sufferer became quiet, and in some
weeks' time we managed carefully to let down the
slings, and she could then stand ; she very soon
began to walk, but it was manifest that she would
never jump again. She became useful as a delight-
ful hack about the farm, and to take journeys of
three or four miles at a steady pace. The accident
happened at the beginning of the year, when in the
month of April I sent her to Mentmore for service
to ' Hungerford,' a rather small, very stout horse, and
one of the soundest on the turf in England. The
following year she produced a lovely filly foal, a rich
dark-brown chestnut. When about three weeks after
the birth of the foal, which was trotting round its
dam in the rickyard, the mare became somewhat
excited, suddenly was seen to stagger, fell down.

A SAD ACCIDENT 135

and neve)' inoved afterwards. On a post-mortem
examination it was found that she had actually
broken her heart, as the aorta had been burst, and
death was instantaneous ! I had some of her silky-
mane preserved, and one hoof mounted in silver as
an inkstand. Thus tragically ended the career of
one of the best hunters a man ever possessed.

Misfortunes did not end here. With great care
and attention we brought up the foal by hand,
which throve and grew into a great beauty, but
smaller than her distinguished dam. I very care-
fully reared her, and, when rising four years old,
thought the time had arrived to make her useful as a
good hunter. She was broken and well handled, and
showed herself to be a fine mover, with all the grace
and good temper of her mother. One day, when
down at the homestead, I found this filly had broken
out of the field, got over the brook, and jumped a
fence into a neighbour's enclosure. I sent round
one of my men to bring her home, when he dis-
covered that some mischievous boys had driven her
into a rickyard, and had hunted her round under
pretence of driving her home, when she sprang at a
gate, struck the top rail with her knees ; the rail
broke, one of the splintered ends entered her chest,
pierced her heart, and she fell dead in the yard !
I never believed in breeding what are called ' nag
horses' ; there is so much risk that it is scarcely
worth the anxiety ; but a good cart horse, even if
he accidentally became blemished, can earn his living

136 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

on a farm — at plough or harrow — after he is two years
old. Since the Shire horse and Hackney have now
their special societies and exhibitions, the science of
breeding and rearing is greatly advanced, and horse
breeding has become a profitable business.

CHAPTER XIV

Curious instance of life insurance — X., a specially fortunate speculator
in freehold property — His remarkable purchase of life interest of a
younger son of a peer — Death of the earl, of the heir, with other
deaths — The younger son heir to the earldom and 50,000/. a year-
Enormous windfall to X. — His noble generosity to the impecunious
peer — His attempt to insure his life — Unwarrantable refusal to
appear before the company's doctor — Sudden withdrawal of proposal
by X. — The end of X.'s career.

There are probably many very curious experiences
of the practice, advantages and otherwise, of Hfe
insurance. Having been for more than fifty years
the local agent of one of the leading offices in
London for both iire and life assurance, there have
been several remarkable instances which have come
to my knowledge of the practice of this valuable
system of thrift and perhaps /orccd economy. The
following statement is so unique and so incredible
that I might have some reluctance in committing it
to writing, if the principals who appear in it had not
gone to their long home. I, however, refrain from
giving names, in consideration of those persons to
whom the story relates. Well, then, the father of
X. was a solicitor with a good country practice, who
was highly respected throughout the county wherein
he resided. He had several sons, and the subject
of this singular story was the second, who was
brought up to his father's profession. He was

138 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

shrewd, intelligent, sharp, and eccentric. Entering
the legal profession on his own account, he obtained
two or three remunerative appointments, and other-
wise his practice throve, and he began to accumulate
property. He was remarkable for 'nosing out' and
dealing with properties which had depreciated in
value. He had an especial /^«c//rt:«/' for substantial
country mansions, to which some land was attached,
and he invariably succeeded in disposing of such a
property shortly after his purchase at a considerable
profit. In addition to keeping a look-out for such
investments, he had a keen eye for the judicious
purchase of life annuities, as also life interests. I
doubt whether in the annals of life assurance one
could meet with a chapter more extraordinary than
that respecting a life interest which I am about to
relate. X. heard that a son of one of the most
distinguished members of the House of Peers was
in great pecuniary trouble, and was desirous of
selling his life interest in the family estates, the
property being strictly entailed. The applicant's
father, an aged man, was living, as also was the heir
to the peerage and to the property, but unmarried.
The latter, however, was of middle age, and well
and hearty. The second son was also a strong
robust man and married, but without children. As
to the central figure of this romance (for it is one),
he was in robust health and likely to reach a good
old age. It was this third son whose life interest
X. bought, giving 13,000/. in cash for it, with no
proviso whatever, e.xcept that the whole property

A GREAT WINDFALL 139

should become his, with such encumbrances as
existed at the time of purchase, on the vendor's
entering into possession of the estate. In less than
a year afterwards the aged peer died, and the eldest
son succeeded to the property. The second son
died from the result of an accident, leaving no chil-
dren ; shordy after the eldest son passed away,
leaving the third, whose interests X. had purchased,
the unexpected heir to a title with scarcely a shilling
to support it. He was married, with a son to
succeed him. This was a terrible position for him
to be placed in. X. found himself in possession of
an income oi fifty-six thousand pounds per annum.
He was of a most generous and impulsive nature,
and when the trustees of the estate sought an
interview — which was readily granted — and laid
the sad case before him, stating that here was a
peer of ancient lineage, representing an earldom,
totally without any income to sustain his position,
he replied that he saw the sad and deplorable
position in which the earl was placed, and offered
that if they would repay him the original advance,
with the legal expenses, and interest at 5 per cent,
from the time of purchase, a sum amounting to
nearly 18,000/., he would give up to them half the
income. He therefore sacrificed 28,000/. per annum,
so as to enable the peer to live and maintain his
position. The only condition he made was that the
earl should promote in every possible way the
insurance of his life, so as to enable X. to retain his
income in the event of insurer's death.

I40 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

It was at this time that I appeared on the scene.
The old friend of my boyhood sent for me to meet
him at the Law Institute in Chancery Lane, and
after we had luncheon together he told me the whole
story, and consulted with me as to the best means
of carrying out the life-insurance project. I sug-
gested that I should communicate with the actuary
of the office, of which I had been for many years
one of the country agents, and report to him the
result. After I had obtained the necessary informa-
tion, I proposed that we should meet at the office
and endeavour to arrange the business, which was
probably a matter of unprecedented magnitude — at
any rate for a single office to undertake. After the
appointed conference it was arranged with the
actuary that the usual medical examination of the
earl should be made, and in the event of a favour-
able report, a sum of 170,000/. should be insured
on his life. The office, as is the practice with all
the leading establishments of the kind, divided this
large sum by agreement amongst several others of
like repute and standing, as but few offices ever
risk more than 20,000/. on any one life.

Then trouble arose. An application to the earl to
wait upon the physician for examination was refused.
This refusal to keep a mutually agreed upon appoint-
ment was so utterly unexpected and so unfair, after
the sacrifices that had been made in the noble
earl's interests by X., the latter was naturally most
indignant. He felt he had been left in the lurch.
The earl then suddenly left England to travel on the

HEAVY INSURANCE PREMIUM 141

Continent, to, as it appeared, evade the responsibility
he had undertaken. His conduct was inexplicable,
and I believe that up to the last no explanation of
it was given. Nothing daunted, however, the
insurance company despatched an eminent physician
with instructions to follow his lordship, and to
endeavour by constant association with him to make
such a report upon his habits and general good
health as should warrant them in making the pro-
posed insurance. As it was a matter of pecuniary
importance to me, as the agent to the office, who
would receive my commission on the payment of
the annual premiums, I assisted by every means in
my power in carrying out these inquiries. Our
doctor followed him up incognito, and succeeded,
after some weeks' research, in finding him (also
incognito) in Switzerland, where he had settled.
There the M.D. associated with him at his hotel
and various places, and in due time made a report,
which was entirely favourable, as to the fugitive's
health and general habits. Thereupon the neces-
sary papers were prepared. X., of course, was much
gratified at the result. Now, the annual premiums
would have amounted to over 5,000/., yet there would
be clear income left, after this paid, from a property
realising nearly 20,000/. per annum.

Now for another surprise. When the time
came for the completion of the contract, X. himself
was missing. Week after week passed, and at last
the actuary of the office discovered that he had
resold the life interest to the family for a very

142 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

considerable sum, but less than half the amount it would
have realised had the insurance project been carried
out. The chagrin, disappointment, and just indig-
nation which the authorities of the various offices
felt, that they had thus been made to appear so
foolish, may be conceived. Although X. and myself
often met afterwards, he studiously avoided the
subject. I, however, discovered that, not satisfied
with the splendid coup he had made, that he had
made another gigantic purchase, and projected a
scheme which would absorb all the money he could
raise. This was to buy a fine estate, with splendid
mansion, with a noble deer park, farmery, extensive
stabling, lovely gardens, and every appanage to a
great county residence. This property was near
to Slough station, in Bucks, on the Great Western
Railway. X. had formed a club for high-class
people, ladies being included, with a racecourse,
polo, skating on the lake, and every possible allure-
ment for fashionable life. He appointed a well-
known sporting lord to preside over the proposed
Isthmian games, with a charming old Elizabethan
residence in the park, near the celebrated church-
yard of Stoke Poges, made famous by Gray's im-
mortal ode. A race meeting was arranged, the
day fixed, and all fashionable London was agog to
visit it. One important duty had, however, been
overlooked, that of ' police,' with the exception of
two or three ordinary county police, who were at-
tending at the mansion. Not a soul was in the
park for the protection of visitors. A party of

A CLEVER CLEARANCE 143

' roughs ' had been organised for plunder, who,
with impudent ferocity, stopped all visitors, and
deliberately held up their arms, robbed them of
their watches, jewelry, and every farthing they pos-
sessed, and then decamped. The mob also broke
into the refreshment tents, devoured and drank
everything they contained, and, in short, plundered
the place, leaving it quite desolate. Owing to this
disastrous beginning the club obtained a bad name,
no one frequented the park, and the scheme broke
down.

An amusing incident subsequently occurred.
A firm of well-known upholsterers had furnished
the club, sending down splendid suites of furniture
for both reception and bed rooms, with kitchen
requisites, and everything necessary for a grand
establishment. I have heard on excellent authority
that the amount agreed to be paid was 17,000/.
After the fiasco of the race meeting, and the evi-
dent failure of the whole scheme, the upholsterers
in secrecy organised a midnight campaign, and
as soon as daylight vanished upwards of twenty
of the largest furniture vans departed by various
routes from London to Slough, and before mid-
night they were concentrated at the entrance of
the Park, proceeding from thence to the mansion.
Before daylight every van was loaded, and the
procession on its way to its destination, bringing
every vestige of furniture and equipments which
the house contained. With such secrecy had the
expedition been managed, that the noble lord in

144 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

charge of the establishment, when he arrived at his
office in the mansion in the early morning, found the
place a barren desert, no desk on which to write,
nor a chair to sit upon! It" has never been satis-
factorily cleared up to this day what were the causes
that led to this sudden denudation of the mansion,
but it was said that it was done with the connivance,
if not at the suggestion, of X. Thus ended the
great Sporting Club and Racecourse. Mr. X. died
about three years since, leaving behind him a
fairly handsome fortune. De niortuis nil nisi
bonum. He was a generous, charitable man, as the
Orphan Asylum at Slough can well testify, as upon
several occasions he contributed some thousands of
pounds to its funds.

145

CHAPTER XV

The Date Coffee Company — Discovery of the vakieof the date as an in-
fusion equal to the best coffee — Successful flotation — Establishment
of the patent — Manufacture of date coffee at Kurrachee in India —
The Imaum of Muscat — Rapid increase in the consumption — Hand-
some profits — The French patent and its sale — Flotation of German
company — Sudden collapse of the sale of the article through the
action of Mr. Gladstone, Chancellor of the Exchequer — The Date
Coffee Company in the Law Courts — Final break-up of a company
whose 5/. shares had for some time been quoted at 37/.

About twenty years ago I was asked by an old
friend of mine, Mr. John Tucker, a solicitor in
St. Swithin's Lane, to join the board of a company
for the manufacture of Date coffee. After having
had the matter explained, and on being introduced
to the discoverer and patentee of the process, a Mr.
Henley, an engineer, and long a resident in India,
who gave me a history of his discovery, I was
induced to take my twenty 5/. shares as a qualifi-
cation, and was duly elected a member of the
board. I cannot remember all the names, but Mr.
Henry Haymanwas the chairman, and Earl Paulett
was a director. I may say that the directors were
not to be paid by ordinary fees, but by a percentage
on the profits and success of the company. In
other words, after the shareholders had been paid
50 per cent, on their shares, they were to receive

L

146 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

half the profits beyond that amount. There was a
touch of the romance of discovery in the first
chapter of the history of this remarkable company.
During Mr. Henley's residence in the Mauritius,
where he held a public appointment, he gave a
dinner party, and after they had joined the ladies
he accidentally returned to the dining-room, and
was arrested by a strong and pleasant odour of coffee.
In reply to his inquiries, his servants told him that
no coffee had been made or served. Mr. Henley
said he could not be mistaken, and there was the
odour. The servants again declared that none had
been used. It was then discovered on investigation
that some dates, which had been provided for dessert,
had been thrown behind the fire, and their burning
had caused the aroma of the fragrant berry. He
thereupon took some dates, put them into a shovel,
and roasted them over the fire, the result affording
a still stronger proof of the similarity of the odour to
that of the best coffee. Proceeding with his experi-
ment, he crushed the fruit down when dried,
together with some of the hard stones, and when
the compound was roasted, poured boiling water on
it, and made an excellent and delicious decoction,
which, it seemed to him, might easily pass for
excellent coffee. For nearly two years he employed
himself in devising ovens and other apparatus for
converting dates into coffee, which, with a mixture
in certain proportions of the finest Neilgherry
berries, produced a beverage superior to anything
of the kind he had ever drunk. He came to

DATE COFFEE 147

England, patented his machinery and the process,
and erected a small factory in a place at the back of
Regent Street, and made the article in bulk. After
being submitted to the analysis of the highest
authorities, who passed it as superior coffee, it was
placed in one-pound tins, and sold in a small way,
more as a sample than otherwise, to the public at
i^. 2d. per lb. The Custom House, however, soon
put a stop to this practice, on the ground that it
was illegal to manufacture any dutiable article in
England. The company had then been formed
with a capital of 50,000/., which was speedily
subscribed ; and it was discussed by the board
whether we should make the article in the Channel
Islands, or go to India, or some place where dates
were grown, and could be bought cheaply. It was
then decided to despatch the requisite machinery,
and erect works either at Bagdad or Bussorah, in
the Persian Gulf The machinery was thereupon
sent out in charge of a Mr. Mare, a competent
engineer, who had been working it in England, and
had been very successful in carrying out the process.
When he arrived in the Persian Gulf he found
there had been serious riots there with the Arabs,
and that several English and other Europeans had
been killed by fanatical Mussulmans, with the
accompanying destruction of their warehouses and
residences. Mr. Mare, therefore, prudently decided
not to land the machinery, but to bring it back to
Kurrachee, on the Indus, where we had also sug-
gested that our works should be erected. He

148 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

arrived at Kurrachee, purchased some suitable
buildings and land, and set to work. The estate
comprised about five English acres of ground near
the quay, and contiguous to the railway station.
He advised the board of what he had done, and the
working capital which he applied for was forthwith
provided. Mare found that the best raw material
could be procured from the dominions of the Imaum
of Muscat, who undertook to supply all we required
at a reasonable price, delivered at the works at
Kurrachee. The manufacture commenced, and in
a few months the ground dates were packed in tin
cases, and forwarded to London, where a depot had
been obtained near the arches of London Bricige.
There machinery had been erected for roasting and
grinding the Neilgherry berries, also for mixing the
date powder, and packing the product into canisters.
In this form date coffee was sold by the pound to
the public at is. 2d. and 15-, 6</. per lb. ; the former
containing f lb. dates, \ lb. Neilgherry, and the
best quality half of each. The next stage followed
in due course. Advertisements appeared, impos-
ing placards being placed on prominent hoardings,
grocer agents were appointed, and a most prodigious
trade set on foot. The initial demand far exceeded
our most sanguine expectations, and the consump-
tion rapidly rose to three tons per week, whilst in the
space of a few months it reached seven tons weekly !
Everyone who drank the beverage was delighted
with its fragrance and delicious flavour, and there
were eminent medical authorities who pronounced

FOREIGN DATE COFFEE COMPANIES 149

it more wholesome than even the pure coffee berry
itself. Many persons are compelled to give up
drinking ordinary coffee ; it does not agree with
them ; but everyone could with impunity drink
date coffee. The profits were large, and it was
then decided to take out patents for all European
countries, and for America and the Colonies.
When these patents were secured, we brought out
the first subsidiary company for France, with a
capital of 75,000/., and sold this company our
patent for 50,000/. The shares were eagerly
taken, and the first great profit to the parent
company commenced. The shareholders received
50 per cent, or half their capital back, and as the
directors were to receive their percentage, 2,500/.
was divided amongst them. I myself received
nearly 400/, besides the dividend on my shares.
Works were erected in Paris, and business com-
menced there. Our enterprising chairman, whose
zeal was apt to outrun his discretion, began to nego-
tiate for the sale of patents in other countries. We
had offers of 25,000/ from Russia, and negotiations
were opened involving 30,000/ for Austria, 50,000/.
for Germany and her dependencies, 25,000/ for
Italy, 20,000/. for Spain, and, wonderful to relate,
20,000/ for Turkey and Egypt. But the crown-
ing absurdity, if I may so call it, was entering into
an arrangement for a consignment of the patent
to the United States and Canada for 120,000/ !

A meeting of shareholders was called, and held
in the large room of the Cannon Street Hotel. The

I50 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

hall was crowded, many ladies being present. I may
remark that we were all astounded at the statement
of our chairman, and — our shares rose 500 per cent.!
Our original 5/. shares were sold readily at 25/. each,
and were still rising in the market. It was then
agreed to bring out the German company like the
French, at 75,000/. in 5/. shares — 50,000/. for us, and
25,000/. for establishment and working capital.
In forty-eight hours after our prospectus was
issued 67,000/. was subscribed. Now began our
troubles, and I venture to think we were most
cruelly and unjustly treated. It appeared that in
our prospectus for this German company there was
a statement to the effect that the German patent had
been granted, which, in fact, it had ; but our solicitor
was not aware at the time that the instrument, after
being granted, had to lie at the office in Berlin
for six weeks before it could be ratified, so as to
give anyone an opportunity of lodging an objection
to the specifications. As we felt perfectly confident
there could not be any valid objection to it, we pro-
ceeded to allotment, as the whole capital had been
applied for, and a premium of 2/. a share was at
once offered. A friend of my brother's, a man well
known on the Stock Exchange, one Ffarrington
Bellairs, asked me to obtain him an allotment of a
hundred shares, and when they were allotted he paid
the deposit and received the shares. It now appears
that certain wreckers on the Stock Exchange, who
are always found when necessary, had discovered
the fact as to objections to the German patents. A

MR. GLADSTONE AND COFFEE 151

few days before the expiry of the stated six weeks,
some futile objections were raised, which, of course,
stopped our proceedings. At that time our original
5/. shares were quoted at 2)11. The German company
was paralysed, the subscribers claiming a return of
their deposits, and declaring that they were not liable
for calls. Mr. Hayman strained every nerve to stem
the torrent without avail. Although works had been
erected at Hamburg, and twenty tons of dates were
in the docks with which to commence operations, we
offered to pay back the deposits to all who demanded
it. About 35,000/. was withdrawn, but we had such
confidence in the manufacture, and in the demand
which would ensue, that we determined to persevere.
There was, however, a greater crush to follow.
To our astonishment and indignation, Mr. Gladstone,
who was Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his budget
speech that year announced his intention to stop the
sale of all substances of any description coming in
under the name of coffee, other than that produced
from the real berry. He proved to his own satisfac-
tion by trade statistics that whereas the consump-
tion of tea had advanced enormously, that of coffee
had stood still, therefore the revenue was suffering
greatly by the consumption of extraneous substances,
which were being mixed with the real berry and
paying no duty. He therefore proposed to absolutely
prohibit the sale of such compounds under a penalty
of 100/., and that no retailer should sell, either as a
mixture or otherwise, any substance under the
name of coffee, other than the [)roducc of the coffee

152 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

berry. This seemed very fair and reasonable,
especially as a protection to the revenue. But here
was this just and honest reply, viz. : ' T/ia^ every
ounce of date coffee brought into England. paid through
the Custom House the ful/cst amount of duty,
precisely the same as Ceylon, Brazilian, or produce
from any other country I ' The fact was, the Mincing
Lane people had got hold of the right hon. gentle-
man, and, inasmuch as we were somewhat interfering
with their trade, had placed this disgraceful and
most unjust proposal before him. A meeting of our
directors was called, and as I happened to be a
personal friend of the late Sir Charles Du Cane,
then chairman of the Customs, the Board deputed
me to wait on him, and learn the real position of
matters. I went, therefore, to the Custom House,
and was met by the worthy baronet with his habitual
courtesy. In the course of our interview I was in-
formed that what we had stated was true, namely, that
three or four tons of ground dates were passed
weekly by us through the Customs, paying the full
amount of duty, the same as the produce of the coffee
berry. Mr. George E. Russell, who was one of the
subordinates of the Ministry, and represented my
native town of Aylesbury in Parliament, although
I had been his bitter but unsuccessful opponent at
his election, received me very cordially, entered upon
the subject at once, and promised to make every
inquiry. I then waited on several other members
of Parliament, who all expressed their utter astonish-
ment at my information, and promised to oppose

COFFEE DUTY AND BELLAIRS 153

Mr. Gladstone's proposal. A few days afterwards
a meeting was called in the tea room of the House
of Commons {a most appropriate place), where I was
introduced to Sir Wilfrid Lawson, who informed me
of his determination to oppose the proposal, as he
thought it was a heavy discouragement to the con-
sumption of a valuable and pleasant beverage, and
a substitute for alcoholic liquor. Mr. Gladstone
postponed the consideration of that part of the
budget which received violent opposition, and it
was not until July that the confirmation of his
proposals was passed with some modifications. Still
in the result very heavy penalties were enacted,
quite sufficient to deter the greater portion of the
XxzA^ front selling duty-paid date coffee. In the
meantime the consumption fell from tons to cwts.
week by week, so what with this, the German fiasco,
and the collapse of the trade, together with the
lawsuit brought by Mr. Ffarrington Bellairs for a
return of his money and exemption from calls on his
shares, the destruction of this marvellously success-
ful company was effected. The Bellairs trial came
on in due course before Mr. Justice Lopes, and,
I need scarcely observe, was eagerly watched by the
people of the Stock Exchange, who were very
jealous of a company that had achieved success with-
out their assistance. Chiefly, I believe, through the
eloquence of Sir Charles Russell — now Lord Russell
of Killowen — with his masterly management of the
case, plaintiff obtained a verdict, although we, the
directors, considered it was dead arainst the welofht

154 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

of evidence. The verdict, with costs, came to over
600/., which proved a heavy blow to us, as, in addi-
tion, our own costs exceeded 400/. We then moved
for a new trial before the Lords of Appeal, who,
after a very short hearing, not only quashed the
proceedings, but ordered the verdict to be entered
for the defendants ! Thus the payment of the costs
had to be reversed, and the company were released
by the payment of a nominal sum. But the mischief
had been done since the purchase of the other
patents fell through. The chairman, Mr. Hayman,
the patentee, Mr. Henley, and one other director had
died, so that our once famous ' El Dorado ' was put
to an end, and the public were deprived of a whole-
some digestive beverage, and all in consequence of
the unfair and unjust proposals of Mr. Gladstone.
The land, buildings, and works at Kurrachee were
sold, so that with the produce of a sale of the very
substantial and handsome furniture, with large
turkey carpets in the rooms used as board rooms
on the first floor of the Palmerston Buildings, in Old
Broad Street, enabled the directors to pay all the
liabilities of the company. Thus perished this once
prosperous undertaking.

i55

CHAPTER XVI

Capital punishments — Crimes of every description that were punishable
by death — Numbers at every assize left for execution — Hanks and
the two Cribbs for horse stealing — Sheep stealers — The new drop —
Baron Garrow — A hanging judge — John Thompson at Maidstone
— Instance of superstitious belief in the charm of the dead hand
• — Mislaid death-warrant found, and years after sentence woman
taken from wash-tub and hung.

It is almost impossible to understand at the present
time the blood-thirstiness of the law in respect to
capital punishment, or the sentence to death. A
large number of crimes, now considered com-
paratively frivolous, for which short terms of im-
prisonment are deemed sufficiently deterrent, were
then punished with death. I perfectly remember
when a boy hearing that dreadful sentence being
pronounced against a young man named Saunders
for a burglary with violence, but nothing out of the
common run of such offences, and he underwent the
extreme penalty of the law. My father's residence
was next to the old Bucks County Prison, in the town
of Aylesbury, and in front of this gaol were the
Courts of Justice, and I had frequent opportunities of
hearing trials at the assizes, and oftentimes, as was
then the custom, of visiting prisoners under sentence
of death. I recollect on one occasion seeing five
men who had been sentenced to death at that

156 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

assizes, or general gaol delivery, two being for
murder, and three for horse stealing. They were
all hung. The two former richly deserved it ; their
conviction was for taking the lives of an old man and
his wife, who kept a turnpike gate, the house of which
had been broken into and the takings of the gate
stolen. The three horse stealers were found guilty
of taking a horse scarcely worth seven pounds.
Those poor fellows at the present day would pro-
bably have been punished with six or nine months'
imprisonment with hard labour. I have also known
men hung for coining and forgery. The drop, or
gallows, was erected on an iron gallery, about thirty
feet above the ground, in front of the county gaol, in
the open market square, where at least three or
four thousand people could witness the sentence
carried into effect ; and when any notorious criminal
was hung, all the windows in the square were occu-
pied, and a charge in many cases made for seeing
'the sight.' When I was a little boy, I remember
Baron Garrow, the judge at one assizes, condemn-
ing twelve men to death — two for murder, three for
horse stealing, those already mentioned, and seven
for sheep stealing. These last were reprieved, and
their sentences commuted to transportation for life.
They were sent abroad, and I don't think any of
them ever came back again. They were all agri-
cultural labourers ; and never did an assize pass
without the capital sentence being recorded against
eight or ten poor fellows for agrarian robberies and
other crimes. Arson was punishable with death,

PUNISHMENT OF DEATH 157

and many suffered the extreme penalty of the law.
The sentence of ' death recorded ' was generally
commuted to transportation for life, or for seven,
fourteen, or twenty-one years. Highway robberies
were fertile causes of the death punishment. Towards
the close of the sixteenth century, I find that in
1596, forty persons were executed for robberies in
Somersetshire alone. Thirty-five were burnt in the
hand and thirty-seven whipped, and many other
counties had the same record. This year no less
than thirty human heads might be seen on London
Bridge exposed to public view ; they belonged to
various malefactors who had been decapitated for
certain crimes, mostly for those called high treason.
I read also that in 1652, on May 10, a woman was
publicly burnt alive in Smithfield for the murder of
her husband ; and on September 12, 1686, William
Hawlings, and his brother Benjamin, a few days
afterwards, were executed at Lyme, as being con-
cerned in the ' Monmouth ' conspiracy. They were
greatly pitied, and were the grandchildren of William
Kyffin, a leading preacher among the Baptists. On
June 4, 1 73 1, a man was executed for forgery, being
the first occasion of a death punishment for that
crime.

On March 3, 1752, Elizabeth Jefferies and a
man named Swan were executed. The latter was
dragged twenty-seven miles on a hurdle drawn by
six horses, whilst Jefferies rode in a cart. They
started from Chelmsford gaol at 5 o'clock a.m., and
arrived at Epping Forest, the seat of their crime.

158 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

and were hung at two o'clock. On May 8, 1784,
James Till, a lad of about seventeen years of age,
was hung at Oxford for robbing his master of
seventy guineas. He had been twice reprieved, but
could not obtain a pardon. And on the 27th of
the same month John Thompson was executed at
Maidstone. He was a young man, and had committed
a highway robbery on a Mr. Phillips, near Seven
Oaks ; he had had two reprieves and had great
hopes of mercy until the Sunday before, when his
death-warrant came down. He bore his disappoint-
ment with great patience and resignation, and had
his coffin placed in the cart, and was attended by
the chaplain. He owned he deserved death, and
desired all young men to take warning by his
untimely fate. He was destitute of work as a
water-gilder, and fell into the hands of a fellow who
persuaded him to go on the road, where they com-
mitted several robberies. After a dispute, they
parted, and-lie, Thompson, was taken. He was of
poor parents, but of genteel appearance, and used
to say that his pride and vanity in dressing beyond
his means added greatly to his ruin.

On April 17, 1758, John and Walter White, who
were respectively twenty-three and twenty-five years
of age, were hung on Kensington Common for
breaking into the house of a farmer, Vincent, of
Crawley. They laid their ruin to an accomplice
who decoyed them from labouring work, telling
them how easily money was got by thieving. The
following incident, showing the superstitions of the

POPULAR SUPERSTITION 159

times, occurred at their execution. While the un-
happy fellows were hanging, a child about nine
months old was put into the hands of the execu-
tioner, who, nine times, with one of the hands of
each of the dead bodies, stroked the child over the
face. The child had a wen on one of its cheeks,
and the notion still prevailed, that on being touched
by the hands of a dead criminal, who had been
hung, the disease would be cured. In the same
month a remarkable circumstance occurred. A
young Grenadier, aged twenty-seven, was shot at
Plymouth for desertion ; he had been sentenced by
a regimental court-martial to receive five hundred
lashes, and on appealing against the sentence to a
general court-martial, instead of confirming it, they
condemned him to death. On April 4, 1764, at the
assizes at Monmouth, a young girl, about eighteen
years of age, was burnt alive for murdering her
mistress. It seems incredible, but I find that at
the March assizes at the Old Bailey no fewer than
five were sentenced to death ; one for forgery, and
four for burglaries and robberies — one of them, a
boy of fourteen years of age, for stealing a silver
watch and nine guineas. The first four were hung.
And at the same assizes fifty-six were sentenced to
transportation, one to be privately whipped, and six
to be branded.

On March 30, some desperate fellows broke i7iio
Aylesbury gaol to release two prisoners named
Berry and Turner. They broke through the roof
and succeeded in freeing the two men, who had

i6o RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

been capitally convicted, and the whole party got
away. There were some extraordinary cases which
I cannot forbear mentioning, as at Durham there
were two cases oi pressing to death in 1576 and in
1597 ; and so late as the year 1770, at the Old
Bailey, a prisoner charged with murder refused to
plead, when he was shown the apparatus for pressing
to death, whereupon he pleaded ' not guilty,' was
tried, convicted, and hanged. The object of his
refusal was to prevent the forfeiture of his estate
for the benefit of his heir.

There was a remarkable occurrence in
December 1772. A man named Richard Holt
was murdered at Bierton, near Aylesbury, at night,
in his bedchamber, by Corbet, a rat-catcher from
Tring. He was tried at the Bucks assizes, and
condemned to be hung and gibbeted at Bierton.
Great crowds went to the execution. It came out
in the evidence that the murderer entered the house
by the chimney, and left in the same manner.
Unknown to him, his dog had followed him to the
house, and in the morning he was sitting outside,
and could not be driven away ; the dog was known
to belong to Corbet, and this led to his conviction.
In 1786 a man was hung at Newgate for robbing
another man of his hat, which had a handkerchief
in it. This year several were hung at Newgate —
G. Woodward, for stealing Lord George Cavendish's
horses ; W. Smith, for coining a halfpenny — benefit
of clergy not being allowed ; and Phoebe Harrison,
for coining shillings. She was hung, and after

CRUEL PUNISHMENT i6i

hangin;^ half an hour, they placed faggots round her
body, and consumed her to ashes. On April 20,
1787, fifteen convicts were hung on the new drop at
Newgate. Amongst them was Wm. Trapshaw,
for breaking open in the daytime the apartment of
Jas. Sinney, and stealing a linen gown and an apron.
Probably at the present day he would have had a
month's imprisonment. Of six criminals left for
execution in November 1 799, two were only twenty
years of age, two were eighteen, one fourteen, and the
youngest only twelve. I have not been able to dis-
cover if these children were executed, nor have I
ascertained for what crimes they were convicted. I
mention them to show how bloodthirsty our criminal
law was at this period. As another instance, I find
that on December 17, 1799, at the Old Bailey,
twenty-six convicts were sentenced to death !
thirty-three to be transported for seven years, seven
to be imprisoned in Clerkenwell, five to be publicly
whipped, and two to be whipped and discharged.
This was indeed a general gaol delivery.

At the next summer assizes at Aylesbury, Henry
Richardson, for robbery at Langley Marsh, and
Wm. Brown, for breaking into a house at High
Wycombe, were sentenced, and both hung at
Gallows Road, Aylesbury; and 'Galloping Dick,'
a famous highwayman, was also hung at the same
time. Several of these crimes were, doubtless, of
great atrocity, but most of them would be considered
minor offences at the present day. I have often
heard a story, which has never been contradicted,

M

i62 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

that in the beginning of the present century a woman
had been found guilty for some trifling offence,
the penalty for which was death, and she was
sentenced to be hung at Aylesbury. By some
accident the warrant for her execution had not been
sent to the High Sheriff, and she continued in
prison for some two or three years, and performed
the ordinary work of washing in the gaol. It was
the custom at that time for prisoners to be allowed,
as a favour, to go out to the private houses in
the town, and do ordinary household work. Some
years after her condemnation, some officious clerk,
in looking through the records of the Home Office,
discovered that the warrant for her execution had
never been despatched. 1 1 was therefore forwarded at
once to the sheriff for due process. It was, after some
time, discovered that the miserable woman was still
living. The governor of the prison found she was
out in the town washing, when one of the turnkeys
waited on her at the wash-tub, and said, ' Well,
missus, you be to be hanged. The warrant has
arrived at last, and we must carry the sentence out
not later than to-morrow morning.' ' Werry well,
then,' the poor woman replied, ' I suppose I must
go ' ; so she washed the soapsuds off her arms and
hands, and departed with the official, and was hung
the next morning ! This statement has been
vouched to be true, and was told me by a man who
knew the circumstances.

163

CHAPTER XVII

Witchcraft — Its extraordinary superstitions — Biblical authorities — Joan
of Arc — The Puritans — Henry VIII. — Sir Matthew Hale — Ducking
at Castle Hedingham — Ruth Osborne drowned at Gubblecote^
Verdict of murder — Conviction and execution of Colley — Susanna
Hannocks at Wingrove weighed against the church Bible — Visit of
the Fiery Drake to Aylesbury Gaol — Prognostication before the
assizes of death sentences.

The extraordinary superstitious belief in witchcraft
and sorcery is not to be wondered at in Protestant
England, when we remember what we read and
are taught in our Bibles. For example, in Exodus
xxii. 1 8 it is decreed, ' Thou shalt not suffer
a witch to live,' and Saul consulted with the witch
of Endor 1056 b.c. ; and in 1484 a.d. Pope Innocent
VIII. issued a bull against witchcraft, under which
it is recorded that of innocent persons a thousand
were burnt, and many killed by the tests which
were applied. The burning at the stake of Joan
of Arc is a horrible instance of this superstitious
belief. In 1520, a great number were burnt in
France, when one sorcerer admitted having 1,200
associates. Between the years 1580 and 1595
900 were burnt in Lorraine ; a hundred and fifty-
seven were burnt in Wurtzburg, both old and
young, learned and ignorant, between 1620 and
1627 ; and we are told that one G randier, a priest

M 2

i64 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

of London, was burnt on a charge of having
bewitched a whole convent of nuns in 1634. Even
in America the beHef existed, and at Salem, in New
England, nineteen persons were hung by the
Puritans, eight more condemned, and fifty confessed
themselves to be witches, and were pardoned. As
late as the year 1775, at Kalisk, in Poland, nine
old women were burnt for having bewitched, and
thus rendered the land unfruitful in that Palatinate.
It is, therefore, not surprising that this superstition
should have existed in England. As a matter of
fact, we find that Henry VIII. enacted that witch-
craft and sorcery should be felony without benefit of
clergy. Barrington estimated the judicial murder
for witchcraft in 200 years as having reached
30,000 ! Sir Matthew Hale burnt two persons for
this crime in 1664. Seventeen persons were burnt
at St. Osyth, in Essex, about 1676, two witches were
burnt at Northampton in 1705, and five others two
years afterwards; whilst at Huntingdon, in 17 16,
Mrs. Hicks and her daughter, only nine years old,
were hanged. In Scotland it is asserted that
thousands were burnt in 100 years. The laws had
lain dormant for many years when, it is said, that
some ignorant person attempted to revive them by
finding a bill against a poor old woman in Surrey,
and they were repealed in 1736 ; and even so late as
September 4, 1763, a poor paralysed old French-
man died, in consequence of having been ducked as
a wizard at Castle Hedingham, in Essex ; and similar
cases have again occurred.

DUCKING A WITCH IN HERTS 165

It seems scarcely credible that almost within
living memory such beliefs could have existed, and
such terrible cruelties practised, as were perpetrated
upon poor defenceless old women, and that even
courts of justice should have employed themselves
to sustain this miserable superstition. Such, how-
ever, was the case. I find that in 1751, on April 18,
the town crier of Hemel Hempstead announced
that, ' On Monday next, a man and a woman are
to be ducked at Gubblecote, near Long Marston '
(which place I know well), the same notice being
cried at Leighton and at Winslow. On April 20,
in accordance with the notice given by the criers in
various other towns, Ruth Osborne was ducked as a
witch at Gubblecote. Both Osborne and his wife
had fallen under the suspicion of the mob on account
of some supposed witchcraft. As in the case of Sir
John Long's witch, the crime of this poor old couple,
in the eyes of the rabble and the local Bumbles, was
possibly the fact that in their old age they might
become chargeable to the parish. The Tring
overseers, learning that the brutal and ignorant mob
intended to impose the swimming test on the old
man and his wife, made some attempt to protect
them in the workhouse, but on the mob threatening
them, surreptitiously they placed them in the vestry
of the church, believing that the sanctuary would
be respected. But even this precaution was un-
availing. The mob, raging for blood, burst open
the door, seized the poor victims, and assaulted them
in a most merciless manner. The accused were

i66 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

repeatedly dragged through a pond, till the old
woman died in the hands of her inhuman tor-
mentors. A hulking rascal, who had acted as
ringleader during the fatal outrage, actually went
round amongst the spectators and collected money
for the ' sport ' he had shown them ! The life of the
old man was with much difficulty saved. Such a
terrible outrage could not be overlooked, and this
occurred so late as the middle of the last century,
when our lawgivers were beginning to lift up their
voices against this grossly superstitious and ob-
noxious statute. Three men were apprehended and
tried for this frightful outrage. Two were acquitted,
and the other, named Colley, was condemned. On
July 30, this William Colley was convicted at
Hertford assizes of wilful murder, and was sentenced
to be hung at the place where the murder took
place, and on August 22 he was executed. He was
brought from Hertford the first day to St. Albans,
and then to Tring, and on to the place of execution.
He was guarded by 108 men of the Horse Guards
Blue. Crowds travelled for miles round, and there
was a large concourse of spectators. I have heard
a description of this miserable spectacle from old
people who were present.

Some stories, well authenticated, have their
ludicrous side. On February 28, 1759, Susanna
Hannocks, an elderly woman of Wingrove, which
was only about three miles from Gubblecote, was
accused by a neighbour of bewitching her spinning-
wheel, so that it would not go round, and offered to

WEIGHED AGAINST THE BIBLE 167

make oath of it before a magistrate, on which her
husband, in order to justify his wife, insisted on her
being tried on the church Bible, and that the accuser
should be present. Accordingly the woman was
taken to the parish church, where she was stripped
of all clothing except her shift and undercoat, and
weighed against the Bible, when, to the mortification
of her accuser, she outweighed the Holy Scriptures,
and was honourably acquitted of the charge !

On October 28, 1762, a number of people sur-
rounded the house of John Pitchers, at Langdon, in
Kent, dragged out his wife, believing her to have
bewitched a boy named Ladd, thirteen years old.
They compelled her to go to the boy's father's
house, forcing her into a room which the boy already
occupied, scratched her arms and face in a cruel
manner, in order 'to draw the blood of the witch,'
and then threatened to swim her. They were,
however, prevented by some of the less barbarous
spectators from proceeding to this extremity, and
the poor woman's life was preserved. As to the
persons concerned in carrying on the imposture,
particularly a man named Beard, with Ladd's wife,
they were taken before a magistrate, who compelled
them to make compensation to the alleged ' witch.'
The mob then dispersed, and the country became
quieted. The boy, who, of course, was ' in it,'
pretended to void pins and needles from his body,
and his father and mother collected money from
people whose compassion was excited by the
melancholy story. At the winter assizes of 1769 it

i68 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

appeared that witchcraft was still believed in, as at
Cambridge a farmer was punished for throwing a
witch into the water, and otherwise maltreating her.
In Ireland the law was put in force against Anne
Lawler for bewitching John Keating, but before any
proofs could be commenced the witch escaped.
These circumstances seemed to be remnants of the
previous century, as on March ii, 1618, two women,
of the name of Flower, were burnt at Lincoln for the
alleged crime of witchcraft, on their own confession ;
they were condemned by the Chief Justice of the
Common Pleas, Sir John Hobart. Witchcraft,
combined with astrology, often gave rise to tales of
remarkable occurrences, which were traced to the
former heinous crime, as I find on May 16, 1669,
'a fiery drake' had been seen near Thame. It
appeared to be as long as All Saints' steeple at
Oxford. It made the place light enough to read by,
gave a report, and vanished into sparkles. It used
occasionally to visit Aylesbury Gaol the night before
the assizes, and was called 'the Wat.' It would
then make its appearance like a small flame, and the
unfortunate person who saw it, looked forward to
certain death. Why Aylesbury Gaol should be so
distinguished does not appear.

169

CHAPTER XVIII

Early steeple-chasing — Qualities of a good steeple-chaser — St. Albans
in 1833-34 — Aylesbury — IModerate stakes — The rise and temporary
fall of the Aylesbury meeting — Young ' Oxford ' at Aylesbury vice
Banbury, abandoned — A tremendous line of country — Twice across
eighteen feet of naked water and over a turnpike road — 'Grief —
Well-known cross-country gentlemen riders at Aylesbury — Their
hardihood and pluck — A cruel course and unjumpable fence — A
carefully laid-out line at Aylesbury — Abuses and their reform — A
great meeting — H.R.H. the Prince of Wales prevented from being
present — A defaulting official — The late Earl of Darnley —
Reminiscences of 'Varsity steeple-chasing — Assumed names of the
riders — The disguise stripped off by ' Bell's Life ' — Bishop Wilber-
force and the steeple-chases.

A GREAT deal has been written, and many more or
less conflicting statements have been made concern-
ing the actual origin of the steeple-chase. It is not
my intention to enter as a controversialist into this
very debatable question, but as one of the oldest
sportsmen connected with the truly athletic exercise,
I may be allowed to give my own practical experi-
ence, and to recount the part I have played and the
scenes I have witnessed in the pursuit of this great
popular cross-country sport. I believe there is no
better test of a man's true courage in the saddle than
can be supplied by a successful struggle in a good
steeple-chase. The chief elements of success are,
1st, great courage ; 2nd, a cool nerve ; 3rd, good

I70 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

hands ; 4th, a firm seat ; 5th, to be a good judge of
pace ; and 6th, and above all, a fixed determination
to persevere to the end, despite of accident or other
casualties. Many a race have I seen won when
apparently all chance appeared gone ; the ultimate
victor had had a bad fall, but he had resolutely re-
mounted, persevered, had seen one opponent after
another come to grief like himself, but, left literally,
possessor of the field, he cantered in almost alone.
These remarks are chiefly applicable to the old
style of steeple-chase over a natural course, and have
no reference to the ' make-believe ' cross-country
races now seen at the recognised gate-money meet-
ings, over artificially made fences which characterise
them. Not but what excellent sport, with clever
horsemanship, is to be seen at such gatherings.
But they lack the continual variation and unexpected
changes of success that attended the old style, such as
is yet preserved at the Liverpool and the Aylesbury
meetings, which are almost the only two natural
public courses left.

Amongst the earliest of these contests I find
there had been a well-managed race about the year
1833-34 at St. Albans, when a strong field of noted
horses met, and the race fell to ' Moonraker ' ; and
in 1836 the Aylesbury steeple-chases commenced.

A great contrast to modern times for these early
sporting events was the amount of the stakes for
which they ran ; these seldom exceeded 50/., with
perhaps a sweepstakes of 20 sovs. P.P. — no forfeits,
the second horse savino- his stake. After these

o

STEEPLECHASE, OLD STYLE, AYLESBURY, 1847

STEEPLECHASE, NEW STYLE, LINGFIELIi, 1897

FIRST AYLESBURY STEEPLE-CHASE 171

highly successful contests a few sporting inhabitants
of the town and neighbourhood of Aylesbury formed
themselves into a committee to organise an annual
meetinof ; and as the district had then become well
known for its splendid lines of country, and as many
non-residents kept their horses for hunting at
Leighton Buzzard, Winslow, Tring, Bletchley, and
also in the old town of Aylesbury, a fund was raised
to pay expenses, and to compensate the farmers over
whose land the horses ran. Somehow or other it
leaked out that for two or three years the compensa-
tion money had not been paid, and that debts had
accrued for printing, with other expenses, and that no
audit had ever been made, nor had any accounts of
moneys subscribed been rendered. Thus the meet-
ing flagged, and the interest subsided, so that for a
period of two or three years no races took place.
When the racing here had absolutely died out, a
circumstance occurred further a-field that led in-
directly to its revival. There had been a dispute
over some races at Banbury, which were held by the
members of the colleges at Oxford, and consequently
the undergraduates decided never to go there again.
I was present during the discussion, and was asked
if I would undertake to find them a line over a fair
hunting country in the vale of Aylesbury. I promptly
agreed to comply with their request, and in the
following year, 1 846, arranged for a course over a
fine grass country close to the town, with a rattling
good jump of eighteen feet of naked water, which had
to be crossed twice. The line had one drawback,

172 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

it involved crossing the turnpike road to Bicester. I
may add, however, that in those days such an ob-
stacle was Httle cared for. Indeed, as the steeple-chases
then were practically from point to point, it would
have been difficult to find four miles of country any-
where without public roads of some sort occurring in
the selected line. I chose a line at my father's farm at
Broughton, which was about two miles from Ayles-
bury on the Tring road. The course was most
severe, the fences being uncut, the water jump was
the mill stream forming the mill-head, where it had
been carried about three feet above the adjoining
land, so that the horses had to jump it iiphill. The
water could not be seen till they galloped close up
to it ; the landing also was two feet below the stream ;
the banks were very unsound, and although the
water was not more than twelve feet wide, it was a
very formidable and dangerous obstruction. Many
horses came to grief at this unsportsmanlike obstacle,
but this was thought to be a afreat merit in a line of
steeple-chase in those days, it being considered to
be good sport to get a horse down. Two immense
doubles of whitethorn, nearly eight feet high, with
two wide ditches, had also to be negotiated, whilst
bullfinchers of great height and strength were the
order of the day. Rarely or ever did a horse get
over the course without a fall or accident of some
kind. It is needless to say that the four miles was
well done, if it took no more than from sixteen to
twenty minutes to cover the distance.

I can remember many of the names of men who

FAMOUS AMATEUR RIDERS 173

distinguished themselves over this and similar
courses at that time. One gentleman, with whom I
have only lately had many a pleasing conversation
on those hard-riding times, is Mr. W. Beach, M.P.
for one of the divisions of Hampshire, a gallant
good sportsman, and very useful member ot Parlia-
ment. He had a severe accident over this course
whilst riding a horse called the ' Dean,' being
knocked over whilst turning a flag in a large grass
field. He was carried into my father's house in an
unconscious state, in which he remained for some
days, but then recovered, and was removed home.
I remember a very severe race between the rival
jockeys, Messrs. j. Allgood (Captain Barlow) and
Burton, now of Daventry, who rode two well-known
chasers, Zanga and Spangle. Approaching the last
fence into the winning field together, at a terrific
pace, both rose simultaneously at the fence, which
was a moderately cut single. They cannoned in the
air, and the pace they went threw both horses down,
the riders being flung with great force in opposite
directions. They were carried away insensible, and
the ' Captain,' after a few minutes, recovered his
horse, remounted, and struggled on, just managing
to stagger between the flags, and was declared the
winner. Whilst mentioning that a dangerous fence
was thought to be absolutely necessary in those days
to make a good steeple-chase course, I recall a
typical instance which belongs to the period before
I took an active part in steeple-chasing. At that
time there was generally but one race, or at the most

174 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

two in the day, and those who selected the line
arranged that the farmers' race should start from a
hill at Pitchcott, about six miles from the town, and
should finish in a small enclosure about two miles
from Aylesbury. In fact, it was near to the very
spot where Old Vivian, ridden by the veteran
'Martin Beecher,' finished and won, with Grimaldi,
of St. Albans fame, ridden by Dan Seffert, second.
The last fence into the winning field was actually
unjumpable at any time ; but after a horse had
bustled along for four miles, probably with more
than one fall, it need not be wondered that this
fence should be designated ' a corker,' under the
mistaken idea that it tested the staying powers of a
'chaser.' The race was for loo/., given by Baron
Rothschild for farmers over whose lands the hounds
ran — 70/. for the first horse, 20/. for the second, and
10/. for the third. The course was only marked out
by one flag occasionally placed in a hedge, which
was to be passed on the right hand ; the riders were
to find their way over the line as they best could.
There was no showing them the course beforehand.
It is almost impossible to give credence to the
description of a natural course in those days,
especially from those who are accustomed to the
well formed and neatly trimmed fences of Kempton,
Lingfield, Sandown, ct id genus omne, but this last
fence should be seen to enable men at the present
day to comprehend what a cross-country horse and
his rider had to negotiate — which is a very expressive
and proper term. After the brook, then galloping

A DIFFICULT LINE OF COUNTRY 175

over a rough pasture, they had to cross a macadam-
ised country road (which had just enough ditch on
each side, without the exercise of great care on the
part of the rider, to throw a horse down), going
over about two hundred yards of rough old grass,
and arriving at the big double into the finishing
field. First, a wide ditch met your view, which
must be jumped with a stiff fence into a \yide landing
place, with rotten stumps and big elm trees growing
at intervals, making it more like a spinney than a
hedge ; then another fence, with a big yawning
ditch beyond, which must be jumped to find a
landing-place into the winning field. The finishing
flags were placed in this enclosure, which was a level
grazing meadow, and were about four hundred yards
from the fence. I saw the close of this so-called
race, which was won by a horse called ' Vanish,' a
useful, racing-looking, well-bred nag, belonging to
a farmer named Harris, living at Hampden, on the
Chiltern Hills. The winner was so distressed, that,
although he managed to jump the first hedge and
land on the bank, he could scarcely stand, and some
bystanders assisted in getting him into the second
ditch, where the rider dismounted, and with further
help dragged him out, when he remounted, making
a slow canter between the flags and won the race.
The second horse then appeared on the scene, was
pushed into the first ditch, and fell utterly beaten
on the landing ; after a few minutes he arose, and,
riderless, got into the second ditch, where with
difficulty he was pulled out, his jockey mounting.

176 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

whilst three men on each side propped him up, and
the poor brute walked with difficulty between the
flags and obtained second money. No other horse
was in sight, although twelve had started. After
waiting some time, no one else appearing, the
judge with his friends left the field, proceeding
homewards in a fly. The crowd, both horse and
foot, were returning along the turnpike road, which
adjoined the last three fields, amongst whom was the
veteran John Brown, of Tring, who died about three
years since at the age of ninety-three, when some
one said, ' Muster Brown, there ain't been anybody
claiming the lo/. for the third horse.' ' If that's it,'
said the old stager, 'I'll have a try.' He rode back
with some friends about half a mile, where he had
left off beaten, and as his horse had somewhat
recovered his wind, he set him going, came up to
the terrible double, got safely over, calling upon
several people to witness that he had properly gone
fairly over the course, and had passed through the
winning flags, and claimed the lo/. for third money !
In the end this was awarded to him. The foolish-
ness of this arrangement, and its cruelty, so impressed
me, that I determined, if I had ever an opportunity,
the whole of this system should be abolished.

The next year, having been applied to by the
' 'Varsity ' gentlemen to find them a course, I pro-
ceeded to do so. I considered there was something
else to be done besides showing the stamina and capa-
bility of a hunter, viz. that the public should be
amused, and that the absurdity of a 'point to point '
race, with its iiiipracticaiilc fences, should beabolishcd ;

A FAIR HUNTING COURSE 177

and for the public to be amused, that they should be
able to see the race. That the course, if possible,
should be near the town, and quite accessible to
foot people ; that the fences and water jump should
be such as men are accustomed to ride over when
fairly riding to hounds ; if practicable, that the start
and finish should be at or near the same place ;
where a fence was dangerous to horse or rider, it
should be made practicable ; that the course should
be shown to the riders before the race, removing
all unfair advantage to native owners or riders,
to the prejudice of strangers to the locality ; that
the finish should be enclosed with ropes or rails,
and that horsemen should be excluded from ridingf
on or over the course, as I had repeatedly seen cads
absolutely riding amongst the jockeys, so as to be
able to say, they had jumped every fence on the
line. At Aylesbury there was no charge for admis-
sion on to the course except for carriages. It will
therefore be perceived, that unless considerable sub
scriptions could be found, the stakes and expenses
could not be met. In those early days a few farm
waggons and carts formed the stands, where a
charge of 2^. bd. each was made, which brought
in a few pounds to pay labour and petty charges,
but the chief cost was met by subscription. There
was one peculiarity which redounded greatly to the
credit of the farmers over whose land the race
took place — they made no charge whatever for the
privilege ; and if after the meeting a hamper of wine
was sent to them, they were satisfied. I have

N

I7S RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

entered rather fully into this matter, as it will
scarcely be believed how the gradual development
of the modern steeple-chase took place. It may be
mentioned that, except special prizes offered by
Masters of hounds in the neighbourhood, and men
who hunted with them, the cups and otherwise were
given by the members of Parliament for the boroughs
and counties adjacent. The stakes were moderate,
say from 20/. to 25/., and the entrance money i/.
to 2/. From one to two races per day, they gradually
increased to three, or at the most four, never
exceeding the latter number. As, at the time, every
course in England was a natural one, it was im-
possible to fence it in ; therefore there could be but
little chance of gate money, and all the expenses
came from private subscriptions and the charge for
carriaofes into the winnincj field. It was a most
pernicious custom, prevalent at many races, for men,
and even ladies, to ride over the course along with
the jockeys and the horses running ; nothing could
be more prejudicial to real sport than this practice.
Often these amateurs would get in the way of the
riders, and, as was generally the case, would blunder
or fall at a fence, throwing a steeple-chaser down, and
thus destroy any chance of his winning. I studiously
and effectually put a stop to this practice, by strictly
forbidding horsemen on the course, but I permitted
their presence in the winning field, if accompanied by
a lady. This put a stop to the obnoxious system.
When it was proposed that the Grand National
Hunt Steeple-chase should come to Aylesbury, it was

GRAND NATIONAL HUNT RACE 179

imperative, if they used my course, that the ' Long
Meadow,' as it was called, of twenty-five acres,
which was the winning field, should be wired and
fenced in, with plenty of policemen to prevent people
from trespassing without payment of a shilling.
There was some difficulty in making the arrange-
ment, as a public footpath crossed one end of the
winning field. This trouble was, however, sur-
mounted by appointing four men to hold a rope
across the track of the horses, and providing
policemen to keep the people movmg on. The
meeting was a great success, the course was in
perfect order, the crowd was immense, and upwards
of 1,200/. was taken in the two days. The Prince
of Wales intended to be present, but was detained
at Berlin, on his return from Moscow. Every
preparation was made for his reception. The Great
Western Railway platform had been lengthened at
the station, so as to reach the bridge over the stream
into my garden, through which he was to pass to
my house, into the main street of the town, where a
coach and four was to be in readiness after luncheon
to convey him and his friends on to the course. It
was a great disappointment, as I had prepared
luncheon for forty or fifty in my dining-room for
his party, and had to put up with the latter, and no
Prince. There were three drags waiting at the
front door to convey the distinguished visitors to
the scene of action. The sport was excellent. Lord
Strathmore rode and won two races gallantly, and
Lowlander, the best horse of his year, made his

N 2

i8o RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

appearance over hurdles, being placed third to
Lucellum, the winner, and afterwards winning the
Royal Hunt Cup at Ascot, and carrying everything
before him during that year. I always look on this
honest grand horse Lowlander as one of the great
racers of the century. I must leave those who interest
themselves in racing matters to find the winners in
these two days.

I cannot refrain from mentioning one matter of
much personal consequence to myself. I will not
o-ive the name of the self-constituted manager and
treasurer, as he is gone to his last home, but it so
happened that he had opened an account with the
London and County Bank at Aylesbury. My busi-
ness manager collected the gate- and other moneys
with the stands, &c., and went, with two police-
men in attendance, in a dog-cart, carrying about
600/., after the races, and paid it into the aforesaid
account. The next morning, the manager of the
bank called on me, saying he had been privately
warned that this gentleman was a somewhat
doubtful character, and would strongly advise me
to have the second day's money paid into my
private account, as I banked with them. I had
already made myself responsible for nearly the
whole expenses of the meeting, viz., for the police,
advertising, printing, labour, compensation for the
land, with many other expenses that only racing
men know, and I had better make myself safe. I
took his advice, and the cash was deposited as
suggested. This was most fortunate, as my

THE 'VARSITY MEETINGS i8i

quondam friend seized on the first day's takings, and
became very angry at my appropriating receipts of
the second day. These enabled me to pay everything,
for which I liad made myself liable, amounting to
over 500/. After I had settled all these claims, I
paid the balance into his account, amounting to
about 20/. I discovered afterwards that many of
the stakes, and his own responsibilities, were unpaid
for more than two years afterwards, and I have been
informed that some remain unpaid to this day.
Moral : ' You cannot be too careful in money matters,
when dealing with strangers.'

The recent death of the Earl of Darnley
(December 1896) recalls to my mind a very in-
teresting event which occurred in the early history
of the Aylesbury Aristocratic Steeple-chases. At
the commencement of these races a determined
effort was made by the ' 'Varsity ' authorities to put
a stop to cross-country meetings by the under-
graduates, who had ran at the Moreton-in-the
Marsh, Banbury, and other places, and young men
had been sent down for disobeying the orders of the
Dons. It was therefore found necessary to keep
secret the names of owners of the horses running,
but more especially the names of the riders. Various
expedients were resorted to blind the eyes of the
authorities, but none were found more effective than
the employment of fictitious names. These, of course,
were known to those interested, whilst their masters
were kept in ignorance. Often the nom de guerre took
the form of a parody on the real name — for instance,

M

[l\'.^^fc^

182 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Mr. Lance was called Mr. Dart, Mr. Hill was Mr.
Mountain ; whilst others, like Mr. Jas. Allgood, who
was by far the champion rider in Oxford, was Captain
Barlow. It is so long since, that I forget many
amusing sobriquets. These fictitious names were
printed on the card of the races, as also in the public
accounts in ' Bell's Life,' which at that day, 1847,
was almost the only sporting paper published, and
that issued weekly, yet the immense authority wielded
by this paper can scarcely be credited in the present
p 'RfMrrT ►^ day. No sporting event of any notoriety whatever,

whether pugilistic, racing, steeple-chasing, betting,
card-playing, aquatic, athletic, &c., was in dispute,
\fn^^ but it was always referred to ' Bell's Life,' whose

decision was considered final, and was acquiesced
in by everyone. Amongst the endless variety of
sporting papers — daily, weekly, or otherwise — con-
ducted as many of them are on the most careful and
really safe lines, and on eminently high-class literary
principles, none of them have ever claimed the
authoritative position of ' Bell's Life.' The tacit
consent of all parties to the decisions of this paper
had many advantages, specially by saving litigation
and unpleasant controversy. It may be well
imagined how the accounts of the Aylesbury
Aristocratic Races were scanned after the spring
meeting, when the paper appeared on the breakfast
table of many a squire's mansion, or at a clerical
dignitary's rectory, to revive the recollections of old
college friends at this popular reunion of past and
present members of both 'Varsities. Knowing

A REPORTER'S ERROR 183

therefore, as I did, how absolutely necessary for the
future welfare of many undergraduates, that the
strictest secrecy should be observed, as to their
presence at these meetings, and even more, of their
participation in the actual entry of horses and the
riding by themselves, I had always given the strictest
injunction to the reporter from ' Bell's Life ' that no
names should be published other than those on the
cards. There were, of course, many men to whom
the publication of their real names was of no conse-
quence. But to others it probably meant loss of
position in their colleges and in many a country
home, both lay and clerical. Judge, therefore, of
my horror when, on the Sunday following one of
our most successful gatherings over my father's farm
in the Broughton country, there appeared in this
great sporting paper an account of the racing, with
much descriptive power, and the names in full of
everyone who had taken part in the two days'
meeting ! The Earl of Darnley, who that year was
the head of the sport, was greatly astounded at the
publication, and wrote me a most indignant letter,
blaming me for permitting so flagrant a breach of
his strictest injunctions, and saying it would be the
last time they would come to Aylesbury ; and that
he was authorised to say how seriously the publica-
tion of these names would be, and had already been,
to those young gentlemen in their future career. It
would, he added, matter nothing to him and others,
situated as he was, who were more or less their own
masters, but that many who were intended for the

i84 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Church were hopelessly prevented from attaining
their desired position. I wrote at once to the editor
of ' Bell's Life ' for an explanation, as I had been
very particular in enjoining the most perfect
secrecy to Mr. Harrison, who was invariably present
at these meetings, who stood high on the editorial
staff, and who had hitherto adhered strictly to my
directions. I therefore insisted on an apology and a
complete exoneration of myself, with a full explana-
tion of the circumstances. Mr. Harrison replied,
saying he most deeply regretted it ; that he had
always been most particular in suppressing the
names, but on the morning in question he had been
walking over the course, two miles distant, so as to
describe it, and had given directions to a deputy to
compare the weights on the card with the entries,
and when the grooms and helpers had brought the
saddles, bridles, &c., to the intending riders whilst
weighing, he had asked the names of the jockeys,
and had very officiously put those names into the
report in full, and he deeply apologised for what he
called his representative's unguarded conduct. I
sent this letter off to Lord Darnley, and received a
very kind reply and a complete exoneration from
him, and the unpleasant affair was ended. After
this I took care to impress on all reporters the
necessity of strict secrecy in the names of everyone
concerned in the ' Aylesbury Aristocratic Meeting,'
and the same injunctions to trainers, grooms, and
helpers in the stables.

It has often struck me that a list of some of those

STEEPLE-CHASE AMATEURS 1S5

who rode or took a prominent part in these truly-
sportsmanlike meetings would be of more than usual
interest, as very many of them have arrived at the
highest positions in the State, the Army, or the Bar.
Even the Church has to be thankful for many a good
hard-working incumbent who has taken his part
'between the flags.' I have reason to believe the
great Bishop Wilberforce took considerable interest
in these ' 'Varsity ' meetings.

i86 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XIX

History of a railway — Opening of the London and Birmingham, now
the London and North-Western — The Buckinghamshire — George
Stephenson and his son Robert — The Aylesbury — Messrs. Brydone
and Rummens — Marquis of Chandos — Mr. Stewart, secretary to
London and North- Western — Unfair opposition of landowner —
Contracts and their effect — Directors' advances — The Great Western
— The Metropolitan — Purchase of the A and B line — Shameful
treatment of the original directors — Their just claims ignored — The
Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnsliire (Great Central).

It may be of some interest to railway people and
others to learn the singular history of a much
despised and greatly ridiculed little railroad. I may
be pardoned for recounting this, as I was the pro-
jector of the scheme for reviving a portion of the
original design of old George Stephenson, which
was further developed by his son Robert. This
line, the ' Buckinghamshire,' was one of the great
proposals of the latter in the year 1846, and was
projected to connect the Great Western at Oxford
with the London and North-Western at Bletchley,
as also to join the former line at Banbury with the
latter at Aylesbury, the two lines crossing at a spot
now called Verney Junction, in the parish of Claydon,
on land belonging to the late Sir Harry Verney.
7 he lines were commenced, and shortly afterwards
the railway crisis ensued, and in the end the portion

ORIGIN OF A RAILWAY 187

from Verney Junction to Aylesbury was abandoned,
and was thought nothing of for a space of nearly
fifteen years. Sometime about the year i860 some
gentlemen called on me to confer as to the desirability
of making a line to Thame, and then continuing it to
Oxford from the terminus of the London and North-
Western at Aylesbury. The line was surveyed,
and was apparently sure of success, but ' the old,
old story,' want of capital, caused the project to be
abandoned. A year or two later, a Mr. Brydone,
one of the engineers of the Great Northern Rail-
way, with Mr. F. Rummens, a small and quite
unknown contractor, who had been one of those
concerned in the abortive railway to Thame, begged
of me to join them in reviving the undertaking. I
told them it was useless to attempt it, as a Bill had
been obtained the previous session by the Great
Western Company to make a line to that town and
thence to Oxford, but I said, I remember, that in
the year 1847, the portion of the Buckinghamshire
(formerly described) had been abandoned, and
ought to be revived. The original intention had
been to connect Aylesbury with Banbury, Bucking-
ham, and Oxford ; but the main line was now like
the play of ' Hamlet ' with the principal character
omitted. The line was, in fact, deprived of all its
value. If they thought it worth while, I would show
them the country, and prove it would be of in-
calculable advantage to the whole district if the
project could be carried out. I then ordered out a
carriage and pair of horses, and we started over the

i88 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

line, and I pointed out to them old George Stephen-
son's original scheme to the north, through Bir-
mingham. We drove to Claydon, saw Sir Harry
Verney, who was Chairman of the ' Buckingham-
shire,' and when 1 explained to him my plans, he
was greatly pleased, and agreed to assist by every
means in his power the object in view. On our
return I took them to Wotton, calling on the
Marquis of Chandos, afterwards third Duke of
Buckingham, fortunately finding him at home, and
explained our purpose in coming. He welcomed
us most cordially, and expressed himself heartily in
support of the scheme, and said he would subscribe
5,000/., and become chairman of the company ! As
he was then Chairman of the London and North-
Western Railway Company, this was far in excess
of our expectations, and I need not say that I looked
on our Bill as safe, and the line as good as made.
We arranored for a future conference and returned
to Aylesbury.

At a future meeting the preliminary company
was formed, the Marquis becoming chairman of the
directors, Sir Harry Verney vice-chairman, with a
strong addition of some leading county gentlemen,
bankers, and others, with myself, the company being
duly registered as the ' Aylesbury and Buckingham
Railway Company,' afterwards generally known as
the ' A and B ' Company. The surveys were made,
the Bill deposited, and in 1861 our Act of Parlia-
ment was obtained. Shortly afterwards the pro-
spectus was issued, the subscription list opened, and

MR. MOON AND THE RAILWAY 189

the estimates having been accepted for the con-
struction— being 100,000/. for the twelve and a half
miles — about 25,000/. cash was subscribed, besides a
good portion of the land required. The Marquis
considered that this was quite sufficient to start with,
and the contract was entered into with Mr. Rummens,
this to be divided into three portions, the first to
begin at Claydon, with a junction to the Bucks line.
Sir Harry Verney being the principal landowner for
nearly two miles, stipulated that the connection
should be called ' Verney Junction,' by which it is
still known. This was in 1861-62. Without any
fuss or show, except the consumption of a few
gallons of beer to the men, I cut the first sod of the
line on my own farm at Aylesbury, so as to make a
beginning, but the real work of the road was at
Claydon. The want of sufficient capital soon be-
came apparent, and it was found that the bulk of the
line must inevitably be made on 'paper' which
more or less threw the directors into the hands of
the contractor. The reign also at about this time
of the Marquis of Chandos as Chairman of the
London and North-Western Company came to an
end, and Mr. R. Moon reigned in his place. The
Sun of the Marquis had set, and the Moon had risen
in his stead.

Before actual work had commenced, Mr. J. G.
Rowe, our secretary, had received an answer from
Mr. Stewart, the then secretary to the London and
North-Western Company, to his application respect-
ing the support to be given to the ' A and B ' by

I90 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

the directors of the London and North-Western.
The secretary repHed ' that he was directed to
inform him that as soon as the Hne was completed
they would be happy to work it on fair and equit-
able terms' The Marquis was then chairman of
both lines, and he, with our other directors, were of
course perfectly satisfied with our prospects. We
issued 35,000/. worth of 5 per cent, debentures,
which were readily taken up by the public, and we
thought we were in clover. Soon after the retire-
ment of the Marquis the crisis of 1866 came upon
us, and the want of money utterly paralysed our
exertions. In addition to this, a London solicitor,
the agent to an impecunious landowner, through
whose property our line passed for nearly three
miles, threw every obstacle in our way, levying
blackmail on us by every means in his power, per-
suading the tenants to put forth monstrous claims
for severance and residential injury, and causing us
quite a year's delay. This was most unwarrantable,
as this same lawyer had welcomed us effusively, pro-
mised to give us every encouragement, as the estate
would be improved 30 per cent, by having a station
upon it, and promised to let us have the land at
agricultural value. When we began to treat for
the land, as soon as the works had reached this pro-
perty, this man pretended that the proposed route
had been altered, which was utterly untrue, and
demanded three times the value of the land, and
stipulated that an iron railed fence should be carried
along the line instead of a fence of wood and a

TROUBLE BY DELAY 191

quickset hedge. In spite of his obstruction, the
landowner himself living a long distance away, in
Bedfordshire, we gave the usual legal notices, and
an eminent land valuer arbitrated on the case. He
decided in the company's favour as far as the value
of the land was concerned, but the delay which this
litigation caused stopped the construction of the line
for several months, and threw the many arrange-
ments out of gear, until the terrible crisis of 1866
stopped the supplies for more than a year ; the works
were almost entirely suspended, some funds were
advanced by the bank, and the second portion of the
contract was completed. The most important part
remained, namely, the last five miles into Aylesbury.
The estimate for this work was 30,000/., and under
the suggestion and by the direction of Mr. Rummens,
the contractor, I persuaded the board to issue to
him 60,000/. worth of fully paid-up shares instead
of 30,000/ cash. I am particular in mentioning
this in view of the result. The line was then sup-
posed to be completed and ready for opening.
Colonel Yolland, the inspector, made a rigid examin-
ation, and reported that several things were of neces-
sity to be done before he could certify. The prin-
cipal items were additional signals and junctions with
locking apparatus ; these made an extra of 5 ,000/ The
board were greatly troubled at this, as there was no
money. The Duke of Buckingham was in India as
President of Madras. The Bucks and Oxon Bank
agreed to advance the amount on the joint note of the
directors then present. I happened to be one, and in

192 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

my anxiety to open the line, I at once consented to
sign the bill. The money was found, and the secre-
tary drew out the amount as required for its comple-
tion. The line was opened, which then raised the
question as to its working ; and as the secretary, Mr.
Stewart, of the London and North-Western Rail-
way Company, had written, as before mentioned,
officially to say that the company would work the
line for us on its completion, on fair and reasonable
terms, our secretary was directed to apply to them
at once to carry out their proposal. It will scarcely
be credited that a company of such high repute and
position as the London and North-Western Railway
should have acted so dishonourably, but they repu-
diated the whole transaction. Mr. Stewart was
dead, the Duke of Buckingham had ceased to hold
the chairmanship, and this refusal was then ratified
by the then London and North-Western Board.
In all my experience I do not know of a more un-
warrantable act. I am at a loss to conceive why
this conduct was pursued ; probably it was to force
the ' A and B ' Company to sell their line to the
repudiating company. The Great Western Com-
pany were then applied to, and an arrangement was
made with them to find locomotive power, a first,
second, and third class carriage, with guard's van,
driver, stoker, and guard ; our company to supply
oil for lighting, with station masters and porters. I
forget the exact amount, but I think it was i^. i^t/.
per mile, about 13^. 6d. per trip, for three trips, a
day. I am mentioning these details as a record of

AYLESBURY RAILWAY 193

a poor struggling line. We were all greatly pleased
that our efforts had been crowned with success, but
the traffic had to be obtained and developed. In
this we were thwarted by obstacles created by the
London and North-Western at every one of their
stations. As an instance, passengers from Oxford,
Banbury, Buckingham, or Bicester, who wished to
go to Aylesbury, were carried past our junction
at Verney to Bletchley, nine miles, then to
Leighton Buzzard, seven, to Cheddington five, and
finishing another seven miles at Aylesbury, making
altogether twenty-eight miles with two changes,
when they could have travelled via Verney on the
'A and B ' rail without change for twelve miles; and
this was done, notwithstanding every attempt being
made by us at all seven stations, to show the advantages
of the new route. I found on inspection that these
placards were hidden behind doors and other notices
put over them. Coal traffic was diverted for thirty
miles after passing Verney junction, and sent to
Oxford on to the Great Western broad gauge line.
The rates per ton per mile of coal were charged
4</. per ton if brought by ' A and B,' and only \d. per
mile by Great Western Railway ; thus, for seven
miles to Princes Risbro' 2s. ^d. per ton was charged
which could be sent by other lines for yd.

Shordy after our Bill had been first obtained in
1862, Mr. Brydone, Mr. Rummens, and myself busied
ourselves with an improved approach to London,
going carefully over the country, through Wendover,
Missenden, Amersham to Rickmersworth, Watford

194 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

and district, also to Harrow and Uxbridge. We pro-
jected a line direct to the Metropolis, this having
been, as I knew, a part of old George Stephenson's
original line from London into the North, but as the
authorities at Euston objected, we abandoned it to a
future opportunity. It would be useless to attempt a
record of the varied fortune which attended the appli-
cations to Parliament for a line up this Missenden
valley, until at last the Duke of Buckingham and
myself persuaded Sir Edward Watkin, with his
right hand. Sir Myles Fenton, to join the Board of
the ' A and B ' line, which in the end they agreed to
do, on vacancies being arranged for them. There-
after the new line was vigorously taken up ; and
finally, after nearly thirty years of frustrated
endeavour, the Act was obtained, and the line com-
pleted and opened from Baker Street to Aylesbury.
And a further development was projected, viz. the
bold scheme of purchasing the despised Aylesbury
and Buckingham, thus continuing the railway into
the North, and joining the Manchester, Sheffield,
and Lincolnshire line. This was looked on as too
Utopian for serious consideration, but through the
determined action of Sir Edward Watkin, who, as
Chairman of the Metropolitan, had succeeded in
purchasing the 'A and B ' Co. for 100,000/., the line
having cost us 167,000/., and had never earned a
shillincj for the shareholders, nor had the directors
ever received a farthing for their services, or their
expenses. This purchase gave the Metropolitan
Company an advance of fifty-six miles to the

DIRECTORS' ADVANCES IGNORED 195

North, from London. Despite the violent opposition
of all the northern lines, assisted also by the
Great Western Company, the Act of Parliament
was obtained, and the line is now in course of
construction, and when completed the new Metro-
politan station will be erected in the Marylebone
Road, affording an entirely new route into the
north by means of the much despised, and well
sneered at, condemned little line, immortalised, as
it was, as the 'A and B.' Mr. Rummens, the chair-
man and original contractor, is now gone to his
grave, after successfully opposing the honest claims
of the original directors, for the advances they had
made to construct and complete the line. He, as the
largest shareholder, objected to all claims which
militated against the value of his shares, and through
the quibbles raised in the Court of Chancery
lost us many thousands of pounds, depriving me
alone of over 4,000/. I had the honour of
representing this company in the Railway Clearing
House for nearly twenty years, and had an
opportunity of meeting many delightful, business-like
men, as representatives of all the great railways in
the kingdom, whose agreeable companionship will
never be forgotten by me.

02

196 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XX

Altona — Judge in agricultural department at the great Schleswig-
Holstein Exhibition — My fellow jurors — The officials' utter
ignorance of 'management' — Chaos — Assisted by the English
exhibitors, orderly arrangement effected — Awards — Trials of imple-
ments : difficulties that had to be removed — Thrashing machines :
Walter Wood his own driver — He wins the first prize — Horticultural
Show at Hamburgh — The success of the English — Liverpool grapes
win against all comers — Shabby treatment of the judge — Non-
payment of services and out-of-pocket expenses — Journey home —
Borrowing money to get there — Opinion of foreign agriculture —
The all-round superiority of English methods.

At the great exhibition proposed to be held at
Altona, in Schleswig-Holstein, I was selected as
one of the judges to serve on the jury for live-stock
and implements, as representing England. I started
on a Wednesday afternoon from home, and as I was
to be at Hamburg on Friday evening, I was obliged
to travel by the quickest route, and therefore went via
Calais, Brussels, and Dusseldorf As I could not
speak a word of German I had my misgivings as
to how I should fare on the journey. However, on
entering my railway carriage at Brussels, I found a
Herr Lowenthal, hailing from Liverpool, where he
had been settled for some years as the representative
of a leading German house, who spoke English as
correctly as he did his own language. He proved
a most agreeable companion, and of great service.

HARBURGH AND HAMBURGH 197

The country struck me as extremely picturesque,
and was otherwise interesting. On arriving at
Hanover my companion had to leave me, as he
was going forward to Berlin. He urged me to
alight for a few hours, when he would introduce me
to his friends. I accepted his kind invitation, and
was thereby enabled to obtain a glimpse of this very
charming city. I had the pleasure of meeting his
sister, who had married a cloth manufacturer in
Hanover, who had an excellent house, and gave
us a capital luncheon. I was conducted through
some of the principal streets, and was much struck
with the quaint early mediaeval architecture,
especially with the splendid red brickwork of the
houses and chief buildings. The cathedral is very
fine, built entirely of red brick, as is also the palace
of King George of Hanover, first cousin to our
beloved Queen. I was shown a ' biere hall ' of rare
beauty, where I drank some very good beer. After
bidding adieu to my friend, I started again on my
journey, reaching a place called Harburgh, on the
southern bank of the Elbe, where we were to be
carried over the river on a ferry to an island, half-
way across the broad stream. On arriving at Har-
burgh I was addressed by a polite young man,
speaking English well, who recommended me to take
a carriage and horses as the best mode of crossing
the river towards my destination. He led me to
believe that this was the only means of crossing,
and ordered my carriage accordingly. I paid him
nearly one pound for the journey. On arriving at

198 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

the ferry, I was surprised to find myself packed
tightly between two or three omnibuses, carts with
merchandise, gigs, and other vehicles, and on arriving
at Hamburgh, my carriage and horses trotted me
away to the ' Hotel de I'Europe,' and then I dis-
covered that for about one franc I could have come
by either omnibus. But my polite acquaintance
had led me to believe that the best, if not the
sole, conveyance was in the recommended carriage,
for good, if dishonest reasons. He was the owner
of the vehicle I had hired, and In that character had
plundered me.

Hamburgh is a beautiful city. The chief feature
of the place is the lake called the ' Grosser Alster,'
near the centre of the city, on three sides of which
runs a broad road, planted with avenues of fine
trees. Around this piece of water are erected the
public buildings, the principal hotels, banks, and
theatres. The avenues are thronged with people ;
the lake (with its flocks of swans) has a fleet of
small steamers crossing and recrossing, well laden
with passengers. The more populous parts of
Hamburgh are on the banks of the Elbe, which is a
wide deep river, enabling ships of large size to
discharge cargo on the extensive quays. The
houses in this quarter are extremely picturesque,
and chiefly date from the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries. Some years ago a disastrous fire broke
out, and consumed more than half the city. Until
then it was the largest ever known since the
Great Fire of London in 1666. Amongst the most

MY BROTHER JURORS 199

terrible of the incidental catastrophes was the
destruction of the ancient cathedral, which, however,
has been replaced by a splendid successor, designed
and carried to completion by our talented English-
man, Sir Gilbert Scott.

The morning after my arrival, the English
agent, Mr. Shillitoe, conducted me in a fiaci'c to
the town of Altona, which is about three miles from
Hamburgh, and connected with it by the town of
St. Pauli, which is a charming suburb. On arriving
at the exhibition, I found a very imposing building
of great extent. I was presented to Herr Von Postau,
the Burgomaster, a most agreeable and intelligent
gentleman, who spoke English fluently. I was there-
upon introduced to my fellow members, of the
jury, amongst whom were Danes, Swedes, Russians,
Germans, Hanoverians, and Belgians, about four-
teen in all. I myself alone represented England,
the French forming a jury of themselves, who kept
aloof and stayed altogether at an hotel. This was very
strange, although we were in Danish territory, or
more properly in Schleswig-Holstein. My brother
judges were gentlemanlike men, nearly all of
whom spoke English. On entering the show-yard
such a scene presented itself as I had never wit-
nessed before. Everything was in confusion. Sheep
were placed in pens mixed up with pigs, cattle with
horses, poultry with dogs, no evidence of order or
arrangement visible from one end of the building
to the other. Pens were numbered, but not con-
secutively, the numbers having been attached without

200 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

any attempt at classification. And there was
elaborate blundering as well as confusion. Sheep
were in pens under the head of ' pigs,' and, in short,
everything appeared in an inextricable muddle. The
fact was, that no great exhibition had ever before been
held in the country, and there was no one to put things
right, or any authority peremptorily directing the
whole. Mr. Shillitoe, it appeared, was only manager
of the dogs and poultry, and was utterly ignorant of
everything else. Fortunately, the late Mr. Clarke, at
that time the very able agent to Lord Chesham, with
Messrs. Duckering, of Yorkshire pig fame, and a
few others who were old hands at our English
agricultural shows, were present; so with their assist-
ance we set to work, literally taking off our coats,
and put the live stock somehow into order. My
fellow judges also assisted to the best of their ability,
and by the evening we had reorganised the classes
so as to enable us to commence judging on the
morrow. That happened to be Sunday, so little
was done, and with my English acquaintances we
paid a visit to a very charming place on the banks
of the Elbe, called Blankenese, a sort of Richmond,
about five miles distant. We had an excellent
dinner, and after enjoying the lovely scenery, came
back to Hamburgh in good time to visit some of the
sights of the city.

On Monday we began in earnest. The live stock
was fairly good, but the British exhibitors carried
everything before them, and Lord Chesham 's Shrop-
shire sheep excited much admiration. I was able to

DIFFICULTIES OF THE JURORS 201

do some work that day in the implement department.
That evening we attended a sumptuous entertainment
given to the juries and chief officials by the Burgo-
master. Nothing could have been in better taste, and
every attention, with due honour, was paid to us by
Herr Von Postau and his colleagues. To show
the utter ignorance of our Holstein friends of our
English system of awarding prizes, they knew
nothing whatever of a trial ; and when I told
them that I should not think of giving a prize hap-
hazard, without a practical proof of the utility of the
implement, they were astonished. I was desirous
of showing the visitors to the show the value
of a thrashing-machine, which only a very
few people had ever seen. I prevailed on them
to give me a load of sheaves of corn, and the
next day put in operation one of Marshall's (of
Gainsborough) thrashers, to whom we gave the silver
medal. I shall never forget the astonishment of the
bystanders when they saw the sheaves enter the
machine at the top, and on my catching in my hands
the corn as it emerged from the spouts already fit
for market, at one operation : their astonishment was
unbounded. The same occurred when I persuaded
the authorities to supply us with a few acres of
standing grass, or clover, to try the mowing-
machines. These acres were placed at my disposal,
and I was accompanied by most of the judges,
including some Frenchmen, none of whom had ever
seen one of these invaluable machines at work.
When Mr. Walter Wood, the well known American

202 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

inventor, drove a pair of horses himself, and the
grass fell down in even swathes before it, I never
beheld such bewildered surprise at the efficacy of
the machine. We gave it first prize. So it was
with other machines, and I am glad to state that our
English implement makers reaped a rich harvest
from the exhibition at Altona.

There was a most wonderful horticultural show
held at the same time on the banks of the Elbe at
Hamburgh, which was somewhat of a rival to the Agri-
cultural Exhibition at Altona. Indeed, there existed
some rivalry and jealousy between the two places.
This show was one of the most splendid sights I ever
witnessed. One of the chief attractions was the com-
petition of Hamburgh grapes, for the prize of a piece
of plate presented by our Most Gracious Queen, as
a compliment to the city, open to all comers. This
much coveted trophy was competed for by the
principal growers from Italy, Germany, France,
Belgium, and even distant Spain and Portugal. But,
to their dismay and astonishment, our Mr. Meredith
from Liverpool beat them all easily! His grapes,
both in size and in colour, were so immeasurably
before them, that they could not credit that these
could have been grown in a country where the sun
scarcely ever shone, and the climate of which was
made up of fogs and rain !

During the week my eldest son, John, came over
to see me, accompanied by the late Lord Chesham ;
and as it was doubtful whether I should ever have
a better opportunity of either seeing by myself, ur

BERLIN AND POTSDAM 203

showing him, the most attractive features of the Con-
tinent, I determined to extend my visit to Berlin. I
may add that, notwithstanding the promises of the
promoters and leading officials connected with the ex-
hibition, / never received one farthing for viy services,
not even my travelling expenses, nor the amount of my
hotel bill \ Needless to say that I left the city with
rather unpleasant feelings. We passed vid Brunswick
to Berlin, visiting Potsdam, and to Dresden and
Saxon, Switzerland, returning vid Leipsic and
Cologne, touching at several of the more famous
cities in Belgium, and paying a visit to the field of
Waterloo, then vid Calais home, with an empty
purse. Indeed, had it not been for the kind assist-
ance of a stranger, whom I chanced to meet in
Calais, a fellow passenger, I should not have been
able to pay my way through to London. Thus ended
my Schleswig-Holstein experiences at Altona. I
have since heard that it was no uncommon occurrence
for English judges to be disappointed at receiving
their accustomed charges on the Continent. My
advice, therefore, to all my friends is, to have ' the
money down ' before they leave home to perform any
official function at a foreign agricultural exhibition.
My impression is again confirmed, that in agriculture
our own country is far in advance, in its practical
results, to every other.

204 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XXI

Amsterdam — Appointed a judge at the great Exhibition — The journey
thither — The PouUry Show — My son Robert wins the gold medals
for poultry and water-fowl — Extraordinary weight of prize birds —
Paul Potter's bull — ' A wretch ' of a beast — Curious facts in heredity
— The famous bull as a picture — Description — The Alderney Bull,
by James Ward, R.A. — ' Duke of Connaught ' — Trotting matches
— Dutch cattle — Milk production and bacon — Tranquil beauty of
the Low Countries — The Dutch : their thrift, cleanliness, and
industry — The bulb-farms at Haarlem.

Another expedition which I made to the Continent
was to an important agricultural show at Amsterdam,
where I had been asked to officiate as one of the
jurors or judges. I was selected as a member of the
jury for ' implements,' more especially in relation to
the buildings, appliances, and so forth, employed
in poultry-rearing for the farmyard, and in the
breedings and cultivation of water-fowl. Thisexhibi-
tion formed part of a more extended one to celebrate
the opening of the new public building for a
Museum of Art and Manufactures in Holland.
My son Robert, who had managed the well-known
poultry establishment on my holding, the Prebendal
Farm at Aylesbury, was a large exhibitor in live
stock, and glad of the opportunity of accompanying
me on the journey. We started from Queenborough
to Flushing, and hurried on to the ' Venice of the

DUCKS & GEESE AT AMSTERDAM 205

North ' as quickly as we could. The poultry had
been started, via Harwich, a few days in advance.
We found, on our arrival, that they had been delivered
the day before, and were in excellent condition.
We stayed at an admirable hotel, the ' Old Doelen,'
which had been rebuilt since I had visited Amsterdam
some years previously. I found that the city of
Rembrandt was no longer entitled to be called the
'Venice of the North,' with her streets of water, as
many of the old canals had been filled up, after
large drains had been laid, causing a vast improve-
ment in the sanitary state of the city, and no longer
rivalling in its odours the stenches of Cologne, which
Coleridge counted. The Dutch Government had
been for some years building a receptacle for their
art treasures, and as it was now complete, it was
decided to open the edifice with a great exhibition
for Agriculture, Science, and the Fine Arts. My son,
I may observe, was extremely successful, carrying
off many prizes, with the special Gold medal for the
best collection of poultry, and the same for the
highest classes of water-fowl. Such specimens,
indeed, had never been before seen in Holland. The
Aylesbury ducks, with the Rouens, Pekins, and
Cayugas, were matchless, a pair of the Aylesburys
weighing 2 1 lb. The geese were enormous, a
Toulouse gander scaling 37 lb., and a goose 32 lb.,
together weighing 69 lb. ! I was naturally proud of
the achievements of my farm.

The arrangements of the show were admirable
in every department, and therefore in marked con-

2o6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

trast to Altona some years before. One of the
great features of the exhibition, of course, was the
gallery set apart for paintings and statuary, and was
naturally intended for their future reception, and to
be worthy of the priceless treasures painted by the
most distinguished painters of the fourteenth,
fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries. Many of the
finest pictures from the Hague, from Haarlem, and
other places had been removed and brought into one
centre, making a magnificent collection of the finest
examples of the painters of the Low Countries. The
famous ' Young Bull ' of Paul Potter is the
portrait of an animal I should scorn to see in
any decent herd in England, but I am bound to
agree with those connoisseurs who declare the
picture to be the perfection of a truly poetic compo-
sition. However, the bull, the animal himself, is
such a wretch that I would not have allowed him
to look over a hedge into the field where my short-
horns were grazing. It is possible that Paul Potter
considered him a fairly good specimen of the cattle
at the time, as they existed in Holland. It is
perhaps probable that the English cattle at that
period might have been of the same class. On that
reasonable assumption, we may conclude that our
cattle have made immense progress since then in
shape, colour, and quality. The great attention
paid by us for nearly a century in registering our
stock in the Shorthorn Herd-book, as also in
the Herd-books of other distinct breeds, has
tended to create a wonderful improvement in our
breeds. Yet, with all our care, remarkable Instances

B I

a ^

HEREDITY IN CATTLE BREEDING 207

of atavism of types in colour continually recur.
For instance, the white face of the Hereford was
unmistakably a recurrence to the Chillingham
white cattle, which have black noses. The latter
peculiarity is sometimes found in animals with the
choicest and longest pedigrees of our best lines of
blood. It is well-known that the late Lady Pigott,
an eminent shorthorn breeder, had found her cattle
were yearly getting lighter in colour, with many
absolutely white. Complaining of this to a visitor, a
first-class breeder, he said that her desire to keep her
places perfectly clean by annual whitewashing of the
whole of the buildings, inside and out, was probably
the cause ; and suggested that she should put some
red ochre or umber in the wash. This she accord-
ingly ordered should be done, and in three or four
years her colours regained their original shade. In
fact, ' heredity ' crops out in breeding of horses,
cattle, sheep, and dogs in a remarkable degree, and
peculiarities, after lying dormant for many genera-
tions, appear when least expected. I took occasion
to deal somewhat exhaustively with this interesting
question in breeding, in a paper which I read some
years ago at the Central Farmers' Club. Therein
I showed the influence of the male animal on the
external appearances of the offspring, and proved
this by Lord Moreton's cross of a ' Ouagga ' or
' Zebra ' on a thorough-bred mare. The colt was
striped like the sire, which markings continued for
three generations, the stripes showing fainter each
successive year, although the mare had never again
been served by a Quagga.

2o8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Our American cousins, utilising my contention
some few years ago, determined to cross their own
home-bred cattle with Hereford bulls, to provide addi-
tional facilities for supplying beef to the English
market. When I was judging at the Herefordshire
show, I found out that all the young bull calves, of the
best breeders, were bespoken for more than a year
in advance, at exceptionally good prices, but in four
or five years it was discovered that the size of their
widely-spreading horns prevented their being packed
easily in the railway trucks for Chicago. Conse-
quently the American breeders rapidly dispensed
with the Herefords, and they now cross their cattle
with the Polled Angus breed, which have equally
good fattening powers, but, as their name implies,
have no horns whatever.

But to return to our muttons, or rather to our
beef Paul Potter's bull is a red, poorly-shaped
animal, somewhat low in condition, but he has
exceptionally good hair on him, and the manner in
which that is painted shows extraordinary skill. On
the point of his shoulders, where the hair is longest,
summer flies are creeping about, and there are flies
also buzzing over the back of the famous beast. The
bull has his head up, and is bleating to call the
attention of some cows in a far off pasture. The
saliva is falling from his tongue and his open mouth.
He has evidently been licking the flies off his sides,
and the marks of his tongue are ivet with saliva, and

' ' The Hague, with its splendid Rembrandts and over-rated Paul

Potter.' Henry Stacy Marks, R..^., in Pen and Pentil Sketches.

PAUL POTTER'S BULL 209

appear as fresh as if the bull had just licked him-
self. Two cows are lazily lying down chewing their
cud ; close by are two or three sheep, and in the
near foreground there is a yellow-skinned frog, ti^et
with his recent visit to the dyke. Leaning over a
rail, under a tree, is a man watching the live stock.
The atmosphere is moistly hot, and is atmosphere !
Yet fine and dexterous as the picture is, one regrets
that a nobler bull has not had his portrait handed
down to posterity. I do not mean to affirm that a
sleek, highly-bred symmetrical shorthorn would have
made so perfect an agricultural idyll. But the mongrel
depicted by the great Dutch master, Paul Potter,
is possibly a painter's, but certainly not a breeder's
bull. James Ward, R.A., painted his great picture,
the ' Alderney Bull,' which is now in our National
Gallery, to rival the bull of Paul Potter. But the
style of each work is so utterly distinct that no one
could possibly put them together. How totally
different is Paul Potter's bull from the beautiful young
shorthorn ' Duke of Connaught,' bred by and sold
at the Earl of Dunmore's sale, and bought by Lord
Fitzhardinge for 4,500 guineas! Immense benefit
has been conferred on the Continent by the exhibi-
tions held there of late years. Many of our leading
breeders have sent over their cattle, sheep, and pigs,
and have invariably come off with flying colours,
and have generally sold their exhibits at fairly good
prices. When at Vienna I sold my first prize young
roan shorthorn bull, ' Royal Geneva,' of the best
Bates and Knightley strain of blood, for 1,400 florins

p

2IO RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

to Count Polanowski, of Christianople, in Galicia.
The public were astounded, as such a price had
never before been heard of in Austro- Hungary, but
to Englishmen it was a bad price. However, in
little more than a year afterwards, the Count wrote
to me, saying he believed that the introduction of
that sire into his country would completely revolu-
tionise the breed of cattle, as the first cross on their
native herds was most remarkable, and people were
sending for his bull calves both far and near.

I was not aware until my visit to Amsterdam
that the Dutchmen, like our Transatlantic cousins,
were admirers of trotting matches. Yet so it proved.
A track of nearly a mile in length had been pre-
pared, with commodious stands for the spectators,
one being set apart for Government officials and
their friends. To this, as one of the judges, I was
admitted. It was most amusing to see the ' get up '
of some of the drivers, or jockeys. Several were fat,
burly fellows, as though the weight made but little
difference, some weighing fourteen stone, others
about eight stone. The jockeys drove with loud
shouts, and, amidst the laughter of the spectators,
oftentimes came to grief by catching the wheels of
their opponents. There was a large crowd of
spectatrrs, which included many ladies in native
costume. Altogether, I was pleased with my visit.
The people were hospitable, kind, and considerate.
The accommodation at the hotels was cleanliness
itself, and the ' aiisine ' all that could be desired.
As to the agriculture of the Low Countries, there is

DUTCH CATTLE 211

but little, as the country is chiefly pasture, but such
ploughed land as I saw was admirably cultivated
and very clean. The cattle are large, massive
animals, with but little quality for meat production,
yet deep milkers, often giving twenty to twenty-four
quarts of milk per day. But it is of very inferior
quality for butter making, being greatly deficient in
cream. I believe a well-bred Guernsey or Jersey
cow would produce as much butter as two Dutch
cows, even if she were but half the size. This
accounts for the small number of Dutch cows im-
ported into England. They are almost entirely of
one type, black and white in colour, large frames,
with hard touch, and not very enticing looking. The
sheep are mostly long wools, rather light scrags, and
longer on the leg than ours. The Dutch and the
Danes are turning their attention to pigs and bacon-
curing, in which they succeed, and are exporting
largely in butter, bacon, and milk, to England. I
really love this country, and prefer the flat ' Cuyp '
looking meadows, with the lazy cattle stretched
out on the rich pastures, the homely and industrious
people, and their stolid and imperturbable, yet
pleasing and agreeable manners, to the majestic
scenery and rugged mountains of the Tyrol and
Switzerland. The history and antiquities, the art
treasures — including the masterpieces of Franz Hals
— cathedral and bulb-farms of Haarlem, which I
visited, tempt me to prolong the account of my
Dutch impressions. But I must perforce dismiss
the subject with a word or two about the bulbs.

p 2

212 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

Acres upon acres of tulips, hyacinths, crocuses, hHes,
&c., are a wonder to be seen and never to be for-
gotten by such an old amateur as myself The soil
is admirably adapted for rearing the young bulbs,
being a soft, mellow sand, and climate moist and
mild.

213

CHAPTER XXII

The myths and monastic legends of Buckinghamshire — St. Osyth —
Rip Van Winkle and the Seven Sleepers — The beheading and
miraculous restoration of St. Osyth — The Nun's Wood and fountain
— Existing local traditions — Sacred wells — 'The Holy Touch' —
Hartwell and Dr. Lee.

Many parts of our dear old country have their
myths and legends, and in the course of my investi-
gations I have discovered not a few stories worthy
of preservation. Of all the saints whose lives, both
real and apocryphal, have been recorded, none
is more curious than that of the devout lady,
St. Osyth. Many miraculous stories are told of her,
but I am persuaded that there is much truth inter-
woven with the legends. The faith of the people
was so great in her sanctity, that she became one
of the best known and best beloved of the holy
women of the early middle ages. From the best
authorities I glean what a holy life this blessed
woman led. The mysterious legend of the saint
(Osyth) which I had often heard of in my native
district, is clothed with so much dramatic and tragic
interest, I have retold it and made it one of the
chapters of my book. Before writing of St. Osyth
I may, however, remark, that frequently stories and
legends crop up which, on investigation, show that

214 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

they originated centuries before they became part of
the belief of more modern times. Take, for example,
that really touching and beautiful legend of ' Rip
Van Winkle.' This is merely a revival of the story
of the ' Seven Sleepers,' which belongs to the time
of Theodosius, and the conquest of Africa by the
Vandals. It is stated that after the seven noble
Christian youths of Ephesus had been concealed in
a cave, to save themselves from persecution, they fell
into a deep slumber, and without injuring the powers
of life, they awoke after they had been in concealment
for 187 years. On awaking, they thought they had
only slept a few hours ! and feeling very hungry,
they sent one of their number secretly, with orders
to return to the city, after purchasing food for his
companions. On the youth going to his native
city, he could no longer recognise it, and he was
surprised at seeing over the principal gate of
Ephesus a large cross, and on going to a baker's for
bread, his singular dress and his language con-
founded the baker, and when he offered for payment
an ancient coin of Decius, as a current coin of the
Empire, the poor youth was dragged before the judge,
on suspicion of having found a secret treasure. After
mutual inquiries they made the amazing discovery
that nearly two centuries had elapsed since they had
escaped from their Pagan tyrant. The Bishop of
Ephesus, accompanied by the magistrates, and even
by the Emperor Theodosius himself hastened to visit
the cave of the Seven Sleepers, when they related
their story, and on receiving the benediction of the

ST. OSYTH— HER PARENTAGE 215

Bishop, on the same instant they immediately expired.
Here we have a real counterpart, slightly varied, of
' Rip Van Winkle,' which I have always regarded
as a most pathetic story ; and I shall never forget
the beautiful embodiment of the character by Mr.
Jefferson, the famous American actor. Wynkyn de
Worde, in a book printed by him in 15 16, mentions
St. Osyth, and other authorities say that she was born
at Quarrendon, in Bucks, about two miles from the
county town of Aylesbury. She was the daughter
of Frithwald, the first Christian king of the East
Angles, and of Wilburga, his wife, who was the
daughter of Penda, King of Mercia, who lived at
Quarrendon. When very young she was entrusted to
the care of St. Modwen, at Polesworth, in Warwick-
shire. Whilst there, she was sent with a book, from
her aunt, St. Eaditha, to St. Modwen, and fell off a
bridge into the river, where she was drowned. She
remained in the water three days, and was restored
to life by the prayers of St. Modwen. She was
then betrothed to Sighere, King of Essex, and on
the same day obtained his consent to live always as
a virgin. Her husband consented to her taking
the veil, and gave her the village of Chich, near
Colchester, where a nunnery was built, and she
became abbess.

The Danes, under Inguar and Hubba, ravaged
the country, and because St. Osyth refused to
worship their gods, they cut off her head, when, as
is reported, she took up her head in her hands, and
proceeded to the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul,

2i6 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

about half a mile away, when she stopped at the
church door, which was closed. She struck it with
her blood stained hands, when it immediately fell
prostrate. On the spot where she was beheaded a
fountain of water gushed forth, which was said to
cure all diseases. Much of this story is, of course,
incredible; but, according to Essex tradition, where
St. Osyth's martyrdom took place, was in ' Nun's
Wood,' and the fountain still takes its name from the
murdered abbess. The body of St. Osyth was
first buried in the church at Chich, and was soon
removed by her father and mother to Aylesbury,
where many miracles were performed at her shrine
there. About forty-six years afterwards the body
was, by miraculous interposition, translated back
again to Chich. In an old Saxon manuscript it is
stated ' next resteth St. Osith at Cice, near the see
in St. Peter's minster,' where many miracles took
place. This saint was held in great veneration.
Matthew Paris tells a story of a husbandman named
' Thurcillus,' living at Tistude, in Essex, in the reign
of King John, a.d. i 206, who was taken into hell and
paradise, where he saw Saints Catherine, Margaret,
and Osyth. Amongst the many curious legends of
this saint I find that Aubrey states that ' in those
days, when people went to bed, they did rake up their
fire, make a cross in the ashes, and pray to God and
St. Sythe (Osyth) to deliver them from fire andtrom
water, also from all misadventure.' According to
local tradition, on one night in every year St. Osyth
revisits the scene of her martyrdom, walking with

ANCIENT HOLY WELLS 217

her head in her hands. A prayer to St. Osyth is
preserved amongst the Cole manuscripts in the
British Museum ; it is said to have been copied
from a manuscript of Edward IV. : ' Sancte Osithe
virginis et Martyris tue, Dfie, piis suppHcationibus
tribue nos foveri, ut cujus venerabilem solemnitatem
celebramus, ejus intercessionibus commendemur et
mentis.' Alban Butler, in his ' Lives of the Saints,'
corroborates most of the above records. There was a
special office for her at Lincoln, and she was invoked
with the saints. Her festival was held annually on
October 7, when special indulgences were granted.
As before stated, St. Osyth, like many other saints,
had a holy well dedicated to her, which Leland
describes ' as being at Querendune, betwixt Ayles-
bury and Querendune, a good mile from Ayles-
bury.'

There is a well, which I remember, at Dunsome,
near that town, which answers to this description.
It rises at the back of the farmhouse, and runs
through the dairy. The water is of delicious quality,
and it never fails through winter and summer.
There is scant necessity to remark that ' Sise Lane,'
in the City of London, takes its name from St. Sise,
or St. Osyth. It may not be out of place to call
attention to the great number of wells scattered
throughout the kingdom which have miraculous
powers attributed to them, wells that are generally
dedicated to some saint oftentimes of local celebrity ;
many which I have known along the base of the
Chiltern Hills, of great purity, springing from the

2i8 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

water-bearing stratum of the chalk formation. One
of St. Edburg, at Ellesborough, from which prob-
ably the village took its name. There still exists
a well dedicated to Sir John Schorne, at North
Marston, which had great credit for curing the
ague. This local saint was a remarkable instance
of a corruption of words. The legend was,

Sir John Schorne, gentleman borne,
Conjured the devil into a boot.

There are old stone carvings and other representa-
tions of this feat, in which there is a large boot,
and the devil's head appearing at the top, and his
forked tail coming out at the bottom. There is,
however, little doubt that the legend means — that
the wonderful knight ' conjured,' or ' persuaded,' him
into a ' boot,' or an ' exchange,' for some supposed
service rendered. Throughout England holy wells
exist, many of great antiquity, most of them famed
for curing certain diseases. Notwithstanding their
sanctity, they were not so efficacious in curing
maladies as the 'royal touch,' as was shown by
one Wulwin, a Saxon, son of Wulmar, of the village
of Nutegershall (Ludgershall, in Bucks), who, after
hard labour in cutting down fuel in the wood at
Brill, in the neighbourhood, fell into a deep sleep,
and lost his sight for seventeen years ; and then,
upon the strength of it, dreamt that he went round to
eighty-seven churches, to beg relief from their re-
spective saints, and at last came blind to the King's
Court at Windsor, when he was immediately cured
by a touch of the King's hand. Various rites were

APISTON MEN TAflP 219

performed at these wells, particularly on Holy
Thursday, when they were adorned with boughs of
trees, garlands of tulips, and other flowers, and it was
customary after service at the church to play and sing
at the wells. This is merely an ancient Roman custom,
and in ancient Rome ' Fontalia ' was a religious feast,
celebrated on October 5, in honour of nymphs of
wells and fountains. In Britain there are many
accounts of holy wells, to which the most extra-
ordinary properties and virtues are ascribed. At
some the sick persons were forewarned, if, in dipping
a garment in the water, it swam, they would recover,
if it sank, they would die. Oblations were always
given at holy wells, and visitors conceived that
the holy saints could not fail to accept them.

At Hartwell there is a never failing spring of
pure water, but, as far as I know, there is no legend
attached to it. Yet in after years it may be dedi-
cated to Doctor Lee, who has had it made accessible
for his numerous visitors to his teetotal festivals, and
has placed over it a stone slab, with the inscription
in Greek characters APISTON MEN TAflP, which
is believed by the common people to be an adjura-
tion to some saint.

220 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XXIII

Poultry rearing for profit — Statistics of imports — Breeds that should
be adopted — Records of exhibition birds — Major-General Hassard
— Pheasant- rearing and the production of pheasants' eggs as a
profitable agricultural industry — Remarkable statistics — Prices of
eggs — Names of noted dealers — Accounts of profit and loss —
Numbers of eggs laid and young pheasants reared — Expenditure
on the establishment of a pheasant farm.

Amongst the minor industries recommended to be
practised by farmers to alleviate in some measure
the prevalent depression in agriculture, are poultry-
rearing and egg-production. I can thoroughly
endorse most of what has been said on this matter,
but as I have written so largely on this subject, and
have appeared as an exhibitor successfully in the
show-yard for so many years, I do not feel it either
desirable or useful to repeat a more than ' thrice
told tale.' Sufficient to say that I believe by a good
selection of birds a fairly profitable return can be
made, especially if the ladies of the household will
give their attention to the undertaking, and they
would find it a most interesting and instructive
occupation. But their attempts must be supported
by their lords and masters, by giving them some-
thing better from their granaries than the miserable
siftings and defective grains of their cereal crops.

POULTRY & PHEASANT REARING 221

They should grant their ladies some portion of
reasonably good corn, even if the latter be somewhat
damaged, and should furnish them with good hous-
ing for the birds, both old and young. For egg
production I found Leghorns, of all colours, and
Minorcas to be the best layers. The Bramahs and
Cochins come on most profitably for winter laying.
Plymouth Rocks are hardy strong birds, and Indian
game are excellent for crossing with either of these
breeds for the table. It must not be forgotten that
the Dorking is undoubtedly the best flesh-forming
breed, but they do not thrive in all parts of England.
They are, however, most profitable on their own
native chalk downs, and generally upon dry soils.
The Spanish at one time were famous layers, and
very white-fleshed table birds, but the breeding for
the long pendant white wattles and large combs to
win in the show-yard, has lost that mostly desired
quality, namely, the capacity to produce a large
number of very fine pearly white eggs. That the
Aylesbury duck is by far the earliest variety goes
without saying. They make, for young ducklings
about seven weeks old, in March and April, from
14^. to 20^. a couple readily. They, however, seem
to degenerate after leaving their native district, and
a cross is necessary from the original stock every
three or four years. The Pekins, a very hardy
breed, crosses excellently with the Aylesbury, and
gives additional vitality to the young birds. The
Rouens are beautiful ducks, not very early, but
excellent layers and very hardy. The Cayugas are

222 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

black, and when first brought to England were
large, heavy birds. I was the original importer,
and exhibited them for the first time at the Crystal
Palace, as also Pekin ducks. With regard to geese
I prefer the grey Toulouse, and have exhibited
them with great success at many shows. I have
won the first prize at Birmingham with a gander
weighing 2)1 '^s., and a goose weighing 32 lbs.
The white Embden are beautiful gees^j, but they
scarcely equal the Toulouse in weight. These
cross with the latter admirably. They have one
great peculiarity, viz., that the ganders of this cross
are almost invariably pure white, whilst the geese are
pied or mottled. As to turkeys, the old black Nor-
folk has almost entirely given way to the bronze
Cambridgeshire. I once had a present made me by
my old and valued friend. General Hassard, of
pigeon fame, both as a breeder and a judge, who,
whilst he was quartered with his regiment in Canada,
bought a wonderfully fine bronze wild cock turkey
or ' gobbler ' in Toronto, which had been brought
into the city under the arms of a Red Indian, caught
alive wild in the woods. He was, without excep-
tion, the handsomest and finest turkey ever seen in
England ; I won several prizes with him, and he
scaled 40 lbs. He is, I believe, the progenitor of
nearly all the best herds of bronze turkeys at our
show-yards. The General is a great authority on
prize poultry, and in the early days of the poultry
mania bred some of our best buff Cochins.
Amongst his brother officers in his artillery regiment

EGG STATISTICS AND PHEASANTS 223

he was facetiously called ' Chicken Hazard.' When
it is considered that upwards of 1,300,000,000 eggs
are imported into this country annually, and the im-
ports of poultry and game, alive and dead, amount
to nearly 600,000/. per annum, it may well be
imagined what a branch of agricultural industry this
is ! Alas, like many other things, the times are
altered, yet there ought to be sufficient demand to
secure more attention to this industry, and, it is
hoped, to afford profit and pleasure to many a
country household.

The rearing of pheasants in confinement is also
a delightful and very profitable occupation. When
I lived at Lee, in Bucks, on the borders of Herts, I
had nearly three hundred hen pheasants. The birds
were kept in pens about sixteen feet square, made
with hurdles specially adapted for the purpose. Each
pen was composed of eight hurdles about seven feet
high and eight feet long, the lower half closely
railed, to prevent the birds from fighting and peck-
ing each other, also to protect them from the depre-
dations of cats, foxes, and other vermin. These
hurdles cost, when new, from Si', to lo.y. each. One
cock is put to six hens ; all have their wings cut
to prevent their flying over. A movable house on
wheels, costing about 10/., for sheltering the man in
charge, with three kennels for the dogs — which
were always kept on guard — a water trough in each
pen, and a few branches of holly, laurel, or other
evergreen, are placed in each enclosure. The hen
birds cost from 8^. to 12^. each, the cocks ^s. to 6s.
Thus it would take a capital of about 300/. to com-

224 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

mence business, to which should be added loo/. for
wages, food, egg baskets, &c., till the following May
before any returns were made. With good manage-
ment the returns for eggs and young pheasants
would produce near upon 350/. The cost of food,
wages, repairs, dog feeding, carriage, and other
expenses, would be upwards of 180/., with rent and
four acres of land, leaving a substantial profit for a
most agreeable and interesting occupation. Within
a radius of eight miles from Lee, upwards of 10,000
hen pheasants were kept, and as each hen laid during
the season thirty eggs, upwards of 300,000 were laid,
and mostly sold. The price at the commencement
of the season early in April would be loci. each, or
10s. per doz., falling to ninepence after the first
fortnight, and dropping a penny a week till the
beginning of June, then it would descend to 5^'. or
6rt'. each egg ; when the price was below that sum,
the pheasant farmers began to set the eggs them-
selves ; by the middle of June there was a great
demand for barn-door sitting hens, which made 45^.
to 55. each. Seventeen to nineteen eggs are placed
under each hen, and about twelve young ones were
a fair number to hatch from each sitting. There
would be an average of seven young pheasants
reared to maturity.

Messrs. Dwight, who reside near Great Berk-
hamstead station, and Mr. Leno, of Co.\-Pond
Farm, near Hemel Hempstead, are the principal
dealers in that district, who take eggs from the
farmers, and then supply the gamekeepers of the
great preserves of England, and send eggs to every

POULTRY AND PHEASANTS 225

part of the Continent, also to the United States and
the Colonies. The former firm keep 2,500 hens In
confinement, and in the height of the season send
off, from Berkhamstead station alone, over 70,000
eggs a week, and in September supply more than
50,000 live birds for the various battues in the
ensuing month. Mr. Leno also provides a large
quantity, but his business is chiefly abroad. Messrs.
Robb, of Liphook, in Hampshire, are as large
dealers as these mentioned. The breed now chiefly
used is the ring-necked variety ; the old brown or
ringless birds being nearly given up, but the cocks are
extensively used for crossing with the ring-necked.
They are considered a hardier variety, but not so
prolific. The Chinese is a remarkably beautiful
variety, and is often used to cross our own breeds.
The roaming propensity of these birds renders them
less useful than the others. It may thus be seen what
a great business this egg laying and pheasant rearing
has become. All the establishments I have men-
tioned are well worth a visit. Pheasant rearing can
only be profitably conducted on suitable soils, which
should be dry, and on tolerably high ground. The
chalk range of the Chilterns seems peculiarly adapted
for success. It may not be generally known that
the pheasant is a native of Persia. The ornamental
varieties are amongst the most beautiful of all the
feathered creation, more especially the Golden, the
Reeves, and the Impeyan birds ; these make a very
attractive addition to any ornamental grounds and
parks.

Q

226 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

CHAPTER XXIV

The homing instinct — Andre's pigeons — Mr. Tegetmeier — Curious
instances of homing instinct in the dog — Quaint epitaph — The
agricultural labourer — Dialects — The agricultural labourer's rustic
speech — His humour — The worth and native shrewdness of his
character — His industry — Wages and the cheap loaf— Old times
and new — Bounties on foreign grown sugar — The growth of flax
and hemp — A chance for English agriculture — ' The backbone of
Old England.'

As much interest is excited at the present time by
Andre's attempt to reach the North Pole, and a
discussion has arisen as to the reported arrival
of one or more of the homing pigeons which he
took with him, my old friend Mr. Tegetmeier
has raised the question as to the ' homing ' instinct
of various birds and animals. It may be interesting
to record an occurrence of which I was personally-
cognisant some years ago, illustrating the remark-
able instinct of dogs in finding their way home.
When the Queen's buckhounds, in the early
' forties,' hunted the Vale of Aylesbury, the
hounds were brought down in a covered van from
Ascot Heath, by Gerrard's Cross, through Amersham,
a distance of forty miles. The pack was housed
in a large barn on their arrival at Aylesbury, and
the next day the hounds were taken to Cublington,
where the deer was to be uncarted, about eight

CANINE INSTINCT 227

miles from the town. The deer took a line across
the country towards Winslow and Buckingham,
and on to Bletchley, where he was captured after a
very severe run of two hours. The horse I was riding
that day, was a well known old hunter, who tired
near to Winslow, and I was obliged to give it up. On
my return through the village of Hogston, I observed
in a field a stray hound wandering about, which I tried
to persuade into following me, but did not succeed.
That evening, when talking with Mr. Davis, the
celebrated Royal huntsman, his first whip, Harry
Freeman, came to him and said that one of the
hounds was missing. On my asking him if it was a
light coloured hound I was answered ' Yes, it was
Dairymaid.' I then informed him of what I had
seen at Hogston, and Freeman was directed to look
out for her. The next day Mr. Davis received
a letter from his wife, stating that they were
awakened that morning, about five o'clock, by the
crying of a hound, and one of the men discovered
Dairymaid at the door of the kennels. Here
was a marvellous proof of a ' homing instinct '
which was most surprising. The dog had been
brought in a covered van for forty miles, along a
turnpike road ; taken for eight miles in an oppo-
site direction to the meet, then, crossing a wild
country, to Whaddon Chase ; and from two
o'clock in the afternoon, when I saw her, she must
have travelled at least fifty miles over a perfectly
strange country, and by three o'clock the next
morning, in a dark November night, she arrived

Q 2

228 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

safely at her kennels in about thirteen hours. But
here is another story still more wonderful. In the
beginning of this century, when I was a young man,
my father told me that whilst living at Amersham,
the Right Hon. Mr. Ward, who, I believe, was then
a Lord of the Admiralty, and lived at Hyde Heath,
between Chesham and Amersham, had a very fine
highly bred Newfoundland puppy, which he prevailed
on my father to take charge of, and rear for him.
This he did ; and when the dog was nearly a year
old, Mr. Ward wished him to be sent to his
Yorkshire residence not far from Hull. There was
much difficulty in then forwarding anything a dis-
tance of two hundred miles, and no railways, or any
direct communication with the North, at that time
existed. The dog was therefore sent to London,
being tied under one of the broad-wheeled waggons
of the day, which was drawn by eight strong, heavy
horses, and carried produce to and from London.
The animal was then taken to the docks, and put on
board a Hull sailing packet, through the North Sea,
and up the H umber to Hull, where it was met and
taken to its destination some eight miles from the
port. A letter was received by my father, thanking
him for his attention, and informing him that the
dog was greatly admired, and had arrived quite
safely. About a fortnight afterwards everyone was
astonished at seeing the Newfoundland enter the
yard, wagging his tail, but very thin, tired, and dusty.
Here was instinct combined with reason. He must
have come along the Great North Road, as long

MR. ELLIS AND PHILOLOGY 229

as he thought necessary, and then struck across
country for at least twenty miles, thus finding his
way to the home in which he was reared. Who
will therefore attempt to define where instinct ends
and reason begins ? Whilst writing of dogs and
sport, I am reminded of an epitaph which is worth
recording. It is against the north side of Harefield
Church. On the outside is a monument with a repre-
sentation in bas-relief of a gamekeeper and his dog,
put there by a Mr. Ashby in memory of a faithful
servant, Robert Morshead, who died in 1744 :

In frost and snow, through hail and rain,
He scoured the woods and trudged the plain.
The steady pointer leads the way.
Stands to the scent and springs the prey.
The timorous birds from stubble rise.
With pinions stretch'd divide the skies ;
The scattered lead pursues the sight,
And death and thunder stop the flight.
His spaniel, of true English kind,
With gratitude inflames his mind.
This servant in an honest way,
In all his actions copied ' Tray.'

Some few years since, whilst on my farm at
Aylesbury, I received a visit from Mr. Ellis, the
eminent philologist, who was desirous of testing,
by oral demonstration, the special dialects of
different parts of England. He brought some
letters of introduction with him, and after a very
interesting discussion on the peculiar pronunciation of
certain districts, we commenced an ordinary conver-
sation with the labourers while they were working on
the farm. This talk was with both old and young

230 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

educated and uneducated. We spoke of the
ordinary occupations of each ; of horses with the
head ploughman, of sheep with shepherd, of high
pedigree shorthorns with the herdsman, and of various
operations with general workers. Mr. Ellis soon dis-
covered what he required, and brought to my notice
peculiarities which I had never noticed before, but
which I soon recognised, especially those expressions
and idioms which were peculiar to my district.
The endings of words, with their pronunciation and
flexions of language, were soon developed, and I
learnt for the first time how Buckinghamshire and
Oxfordshire differed from Yorkshire and Middlesex,
and how Somersetshire became, as it were, almost
a foreign language to the Northern Midland
Counties. Yet more to be noticed than the words
was the sing-song and chant of the Eastern
Counties, more noticeable in Norfolk and Suffolk
than in Essex. After this visit I received several
letters, with inquiries, from Mr. Ellis, and with the
assistance of my son Robert, who daily superintended
the work of the labourers on the farm, and others
in the town and neighbourhood, we prepared a
careful statement, which proved of considerable
utility in elucidating the subject. Much amusement
ensued from the extraordinary admixture of cause
and effect, which somehow my men had got into
their heads. Henry Baldwin, my well-known
attendant at all the poultry shows — abroad and at
home — and who was manager of the prize poultry
live stock, once said, in reference to the injury the

KEEN OBSERVATIONS 231

rain was doing to the harvest : 'It's o' no use for
you to expect fine weather whilst these 'ere coiuicks
(comets) be about, and flying along the sky ' ; and
again he oracularly delivered himself : ' You may
always know when there would be rain whenever
you see them there rainbows a travelling along the
top of them hills.' This was in allusion to the range
of the Chilterns, which were about six miles distant,
and bounded the south of the vale of Aylesbury.
Another of the men had been ill, and had had the
doctor to attend on him, who told my son that he,
the doctor, had made a close examination of him,
and told him he was suffering from ' tar in his
stomick,' and that it had much alarmed him, as he
could not understand how the tar had got there,
and the doctor had told him he could not get well
till it was removed. My son, on inquiring of the
yEsculapius, found that he had said ' stomachic
catarrh.' Yet the observations of these men on
natural appearances are very keen, and from their
own long experience, and that of many, many years
observation of their ancestors, their curious infor-
mation could be almost implicitly depended on.
They tell you it is strange but true, that when the
cattle are lying about the pastures, quietly chewing
their cud, during heavy rain, it is certain to clear
up, with the probability of fine weather afterwards.
On a neighbouring farm, where one of the chief
grazing grounds was on the side of a steep hill,
the cattle invariably chose the highest part of
the ground during wet weather when fine was

232 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

approaching. The bleating of sheep afforded the
shepherds climatic portents ; the movement of
insects had meaning. It is noteworthy that the
frog has a very golden skin when fine weather
prevails, or is expected. The cawing of rooks, the
crying of certain birds always portends a thunder-
storm. The buzzing and flying, as also the biting
of various insects, indicate changes In the weather.
There is a vein of quiet humour in the farm
labourer which is but little known. It is the fashion
to decry these honest good folk, and to give them
but little credit for astuteness and originality. My
experience is otherwise. I was accustomed at my
harvest home to entertain my men and their wives
at my residence in the town, and my wife gave them
prizes for the produce of their farm gardens. There
was a small lake in the grounds, with a boat upon
it, and the men with their wives were perambulating
the gardens, when it was considered a great
achievement to be able to get into the boat and row
on the water. The younger men were very desirous
of getting one of the older men, Harry Mason by
name, to venture into the boat, but nothing would
induce him to go. When John King, the head
ploughman said : ' Ah ! you'll never get old Harry
to leave old England ! ' alluding to his stepping off
the bank into the boat. At the supper, one of the
men remarked that he was a very quick feeder.
'Yes,' rejoined another, 'and you're a long time
about it.' After the meal sinoringf was the order of
the evening ; the chorus to the songs was somewhat

COMPENSATION 233

uproarious, generally either deeply sentimental or
broadly humorous. I am bound to say that of
late the vulgarisms and coarseness of former years
have been abandoned, as also the drinking to ex-
cess, although there was no stint whatever. There
is no doubt that the harvest home, with the show
of vegetables, was a most popular festival.

Whilst writing of my farm labourers I am re-
minded of the Act passed this last session, the
'Workmen's Compensation Bill,' and I am bound to
express my doubts as to its practicability on farms. I
had most of the modern improved machinery for my
farm, and was the first tenant farmer who bought
his own steam cultivating apparatus. This was the
so-called round-about system of Smith, of Wolstone,
Bucks, who was without doubt the inventor of steam
cultivation. The means by which this cultivator
worked through and over the land was by the wire
rope passing round a block and pulley fixed at the
corners of the field, and was called an anchor. It
was necessary to have a strong active young man at
each anchor, to keep the wire rope in place while
it was working in the groove round the pulley.
The strictest orders and injunctions were given to
this watcher, that on no consideration was he to
handle this rope on the travelling side of the pulley,
and that if the rope slipped out of the groove, he
was to pull it into its place after it had passed the
anchor, as if it was otherwise handled it tended to
drag the hand into the implement and would severely
crush it. A young man named Mason, about

234 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

eighteen years old, who superintended one of these
anchors, and was son of the man who refused to 'leave
old England,' most incautiously lifted the rope,
which had temporarily slipped from its place, with
his right hand, and it was instantly dragged into the
pulley, and three of the fingers were smashed and
partly torn off. As the county infirmary was
within a short distance, his hand was bound up, and
he walked immediately to the hospital attended by
his father. The house surgeon dressed the hand,
placing the fingers into place, and the lad was put
to bed in great pain, but by the evening he was
quite comfortable. The next day he was so much
better that he got up and walked in the grounds of
the institution. By the end of the week, five days
after the accident, he was still better, so that with
his left hand he wheeled about, in a bath chair,
another patient. The next day he complained to
the matron that he had ' a stiff neck,' and had some
difficulty in swallowing. She at once saw the
danger of these symptoms, and on the doctor
examining him, he found lockjaw had set in rapidly,
and to the grief and dismay of his parents, and all
of us, the next day he died of tetanus. Here was
an act of the victim's own imprudence — one to be
greatly deplored, as he was a promising young
fellow — and the accident was caused by a portion
of machinery in the open field, which was im-
possible to be fenced in. It would therefore be
difficult to decide how the new compensation Act
would work under such circumstances. No man

CHEAP BREAD 235

has a higher appreciation of the value of the agri-
cultural labourer than I have. His honest, hearty,
co-operation in all matters, and at all times, in the
work of the farm always excites my greatest admira-
tion. Even in the science of politics he is no block-
head. I remember at a political meeting, in that
aboriginal village of Lee, in Bucks, held just before
the Parliamentary election for the borough and hun-
dreds of Aylesbury, that the questions of protection
and of wages were mentioned, when an old fellow
got up, and with the greatest confidence addressed his
brother farm workers. ' Look here,' he said, ' you may
take my word for it, that cheap bread isn't every-
thing in favour of the poor man ; it's regular work as
he wants ; it's never no good for us when bread is
under 6d. for the 4 lb. loaf. Now, when I was a
young man, forty years ago, I went a thrashing in
the barn for 9^. a week, and when I got home on
Saturday night my wife would meet me and say,
"John, I beat you," and she'd hold up a half sovereign
which she had taken for her week's work for straw
plaiting, making between us igjr. Well then, my
friends, I now get 14^. a week, and all as she can
earn by plaiting is, 'cos o' this free trade and China
plait, about \s. 6d. or 2s., so we get 15^. bd. now
against igs. then.' Here was good common sense,
and it made a great impression on me, as I am a
thorough free trader and am dead against protection.
Yet there are circumstances of such importance
acting against the best interests of the agriculturist
that I cannot be blind to their injustice. I may

236 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

mention the continental bounties on the cultivation of
sugar-beet, which have quite precluded the possibility
of growing sugar-beet and manufacturing it into
sugar in this country, and prevented a revival of the
prosperity of agriculture. I have the greatest con-
fidence that this industry can be profitably carried
on in England if fair play were accorded to us. I
have given the past five years to its promotion, and
feel sure that the 14,000,000/. sterling which we pay
annually to the Continent for sugar could be saved
for our colonies and our own country. I have been
busy during the past two years, and have given great
attention to the promotion of another great agricul-
tural industry, which has no bounty to combat, and
which I am certain can, and will be, most profitably
carried into effect immediately, viz. the growth of
flax and hemp. Some twenty-five years ago I grew
some acres of flax most successfully on my farm,
with some of my neighbours, but when grown
we had no market for it nearer than Belfast, which
was five hundred miles distant, so we were obliged
to relinquish the cultivation. But now a company
is formed called the ' English Fibres Industries,
Limited,' which proposes to erect works for treating
both fibres, and bringing them into perfection in
various parts of the kingdom. This year, 1897,
there are 3,000 acres being grown in the Eastern
Counties, with the greatest success, and as we pay
the foreigner, first and last, nearly 18,000,000/.
sterling per annum for these articles, it appears that
there is a prospect of the future prosperity of the

FLAX AND HEMP 237

agriculturists being assured ; as I well know, from
my own practical experience, that many, if not all,
of these supplies can be grown in this country at a
profit of at least 3/. per acre. In the present day,
every panacea is recommended for trial to the land-
owners and farmers to alleviate the present terrible
distress that overspreads our land, and I feel assured
that if strong efforts are made, and some assistance
for this industry rendered by the Government, by
affording cheap capital — which could be most satis-
factorily secured — a great future is before us, and
revived prosperity for agriculture, which is the
greatest of all industries, in every clime and country.
I express myself thus strongly on this subject, and
though I am happy to write my records of sport,
politics, and other matters, I am reminded by my
old schooldays, of the First Ode of Anacreon :

®«Aa) Aeyeiv ArpfiSa?,
OcAo) &i KaS/xoi' d'Setv "
'A ySap/JiTos &i )^oijSaL';

"E/JWTa IXUVVOV y]\€l, K.T.A.

Yet my harp, instead of sounding only of love,
will sing solely of agriculture.

Let us all do our best for this ennobling science,
and we may then see the exodus of the labourer
from the country arrested, and the fearless, industri-
ous, and grateful countryman will again rally round
the country parson, the country gentleman, and the
British farmer ; whilst the villaore tradesman and
mechanic will become once more prosperous and
happy, and continue to be, as they were in old times,
the backbone of Old England.

238 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES

The highly distinguished quahty of our flocks
and herds ; the fleetness, tractability, noble bearing
and stamina of our thorough-bred horses ; the
grandeur, strength and docility of our draught
horses ; with the high feeding qualities and delicacy
of our porcine denizens of the farmyard, have been
shown as superior to all other countries in the show-
yards throughout the world. Let it not then be
said that our tenant farmers and their contented
labourers are lacking in energy or in emulation in
the great struggle that is going on throughout the
world ; and whilst we have our beloved Queen
and our popular Prince of Wales showing them-
selves good farmers and lovers of the land, England
has nothing to fear, and we shall be proud of our

country.

Great, glorious, and free,
First flower of the earth
And first gem of the sea.

PRINTED DY

SPOTTISWOOUE AND CO., NEW-STREET SyUAKE

LO.NDON

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