I haue seene and obserued among them a kind of madnes as I may call it but in the best sence it is a kind of ambitious or rather auaricious emulation wherein they striue one to outstrip another in giuing most as where my selfe haue had businesse of this nature namely of letting setting or selling of land for yeeres or liues being or neere being determined in farmes or other like whereby the Lord hath bin at liberty to dispose therof at his will for best aduantage by choice of a new tenant Proclamation to that effect hath bin made in opeÌ„ court where I haue seene and it is dayly in vse that one wil outbid another as at an outcry in London in so much as I haue wondred at their emulation and could not haue asked what they haue raysed it vnto themselues And should any that is in authority in this case who in duty is not to hinder the Lord or the Lord himselfe inhibit such hot spirits to clyme as high for the Lords aduantage as the ladder of their owne will and supposed ability will reach This is not as one Swallow in a Summer but they are many and euery where Winter and Summer and yet are other meÌ„ accused and condemned for theÌ„ and their faults if there will be a fault in itselfe but I should thinke it greater madnes for a Lord wilfully to refuse what is so voluntarily offered and so willingly by giuen Now who is the cause of raysing rents and fines Farm I know such rash ouer forward meÌ„ there are in the world not a 〈…〉 eâ—ery Mannor who are especially priched forward to this reuelation through enuy and a 〈◊〉 hauing meanâ—â— to atchieue their desires But this bidding and out-bidding is in things wherein the Lord iâ— at his libertie to take a tenant whom holist But in 〈◊〉 tenemâ—nts of inheritâ—nce the case is otherwise where the rent is and the fiâ—e for the most part certainâ— what needes the Lord haue this surueyd or any free-hold lands Sur. It is fit the Lord should know what hiâ— tenant holde to be it free or customary though at this day there be a needlesse nicenesse in some free-holders of Mannors who seeme to conceale their estates and to kick against the view of their lands but if they knew what they did they would reforme that error Farm Call it you an error for a free-holder to refuse to shew his estate to the Lord or not to suffer his land to be surueyd Sur. I may well so call it nay I may call it a great fault or an iniury done against the Lord and hurtfull to himselfe There is none it may be you know it that holdeth of any Lord land but he holdeth the same by some kind of rent or seruice and when he comes to take vp his land after the death of his auncester or vpon purchace but he doth or ought to do homage and fealty or one of them vnto the Lord of whom he holds it the doing whereof how ceremonious it is if you be a Tenant to any such land you know and wherein he maketh a solemne vow and oth to be true Tenant vnto the Lord for the land he holdeth And someâ—â—mes the Tenant of such a Tenure is forced to be ayded by his Lord for the same land if he be impleaded for it now if such a Tenant refuse to shew his estate or to permit his land to 〈◊〉 seeâ—◠〈…〉 to â—e true Tenant and to 〈…〉 are due vnto the Lord among which this of permitting the Lord to know his owne is not the least nay he â—â—ght by his oth of fidelity to further it by all meanes both by his proper knowledge and eâ—idence not only his owne but other 〈◊〉 lands and thereby he shall not only not preiudice himselfe but he shall fortifie his title so much the more by hauing his euidence inrolled and his land recorded â—n the Lords booke of Suruey that when his heire shall take vp the land or he alâ—en the same it appeareth that he is true Tenant vnto such lands for such rent and for such seruices but there be so many scruples thrust into mens heads by such as haue a pretended skill in matters of policie in this kinde and Lords 〈◊〉 Mannors haue bene so remisse in taking knowledge of the things in this maner appertaining vnto them that questions of Titles and tenures are dayly had and moued to the great trouble oftentimes both of Lord and Tenant as is seene by experience dayly as well of land holdeÌ„ of the King as of inferior Lords which may be reconciled if Tenants were not too curious and Lords too negligent Besides this there are other reasons to mooue the Lord to know what land is holden of him and by what title rent and seruice for free-holders may forfeit their land and their land may escheat vnto the Lord if then he should be ignorant what land it is where it lyes and how much it is he may be easily abused for want of records and so are many Lords of Mannors who for want of due knowledge of their tenants and of their land tenures other men are intitled to their right Far. You haue said more then I heard or dreamed of and it holdeth in some sort by reason how it is by law I cannot dispute but in all y t you haue said you haue not satisfied me in the thing before I spake of touching the 〈…〉 which as I said before 〈…〉 â—igâ—er then in former times â—y your 〈◊〉 Sur. You strike alwayes one string and I find the â—ound of your meaning you would always 〈◊〉 easily charged in your â—iâ—es as might bed and in that I blame you not 〈…〉 mans case to beare as light a burden as he can But if you remember what I spake before touching the cause of this raysing of fines where I prooued it came most by your owne meane you may be the sooner satisfied in this for it is in nature like the former Although this kind of Tenant hath seldom any competitor to emulate his offer because the Tenant leaueth coÌ„monly one either in right of inheritance or by surrender to succeed him and heâ—by custome of the Mannor is to be accepted Tenant alwayes prouided he must agree with the Lord if the custome of the Mannor hold not the fine certaine as in few it doth now this composition is commonly made by demaund of the Lord and offer of the Tenant The Lord asketh according to his conceit of the value of the thing and eyther his knowledge must arise by his owne experience or by information the information is eyther by secret intelligence of same officious neighbour or by due iudgement of an indifferent Surueyour 〈◊〉 such a one as carieth equall respects to Lord and Tenant And although as you alledge former times did affoord Tenants more fauour in rating and arbitrating fines as you suppose if you consider it well it is now as
King gaue Lands vnto his followers in such quantity as did exceed the proportion of a mans manurance and occupation as a thousand two thousand Acres more or lesse which quantity of Land being at that time as it were in a lump or Chaos without any distinction of parts or qualities of Land he to whom such Land was giuen to hold to him and his heires for euer enfeoffed some others in parts thereof as one in ten another in twenty and some in more some in lesse Acres and iâ—â—onsideration of such feoffements euery of these were to do the feoffer some kind of seruice as he and they agreed vpon reseruing such a part vnto himselfe as he might conueniently occupy in his owne hands and by this meanes the Land thus giuen by the King and thus proportioned out to others by the Donee became to be called a Mannor And he that was thus inuested in this Land by the King was in respect of such as he infeoffed called the Lord and such as were infeoffed were called Tenants Lord in respect of gouernement and commaund and Tenants in respect of their tenures and manner of holding vnder the Lord whom they were to obey Lord. But when or about what time was this erection of Mannors Sur. As I take it and as it seemeth in the time of the Normans for among the Saxons was no such name as the name Mannor yet the thing euen in substance was then for they had Demeisnes and seruices in substance but the demeisnes they called Inlands and the seruices Vtlands so that it differeth only in name but in Iurisdiction little or nothing at all Lord. Whereof is it called a Mannor Sur. There is some differeÌ„ce of opinioÌ„s wheÌ„ce the woâ—d Mannor should be deriued it is in Latin called Manerium yet a word not vsed among the Romans or ancient Latins therfore to find the etimon by it cannot be for the word is vsed among our Lawyers as many other made words are which haue bin termes raised by our Lawes are not elsewhere in vse and therefore the neerest way to find the signification of the word is by the quality of the thing so that some hold it should proceed of the Latine verbe Manerâ— which signifieth to abide or remayne in a place as the Lord and his Tenants did in this wherof the head house or the Lords seate was called Berrye which signifieth in the Saxon toong a dwelling place which continueth yet still in Hartfordshire and in diuers other places and is also taken sometimes pro castro which was also the seate of the Lord of some Mannorâ— Mannor houses were also and yet are called in some places Halls as in Essex and Northward Courts and Court-houses Westward as in Somerset Deuon c. as also Mannor places all which are places of the Lords owne abode and therefore it may not vnfitly be said to take name of abiding or dwelling Some thinke and not improperly that it taketh name of the French word Manemirer which signifieth to till and manure the ground And of the two I take this latter to be the most proper deriuation of the word Mannor for thereof are many chiefe houses of tillage called Predia Graunges It may also take name of Mainer to gouerne and guide because the Lord of the Mannor had the managing and direction of all his Tenants within the limits of his iurisdiction Of these deriuations qualem mauis accipe necessity tyes to neyther Lord. These significations of the word may stand all with sence and much materiall it is not whence the word ariseth but the likelyest is indeed that which most agreeth with the propertie of the thing But I haue within my Mannors sundry mesuages whence is the name deriued Sur. Of meisus or mesuager which is as much to say as familiam administrare to gouerne a houshold for euery of the Tenants had his family and of diuers of them and of the Lords family did a Mannor consist Lord. Then no doubt if a man haue a thousand Acres of Land more or lesse to him and his heires which lyeth in one intire péece not yet diuided may be diuided into parts as a portion for the Lord himselfe and some parcels to erect such mesuages for Tenants to do him seruice as he may make a Mannor where none was before Sur. No Sir for although a man haue a competent quantity of Land in his manurance and would conuert it to the end you speake of were it neuer so great and could establish many mesuages and could erect whatsoeuer seruices this would not become a Mannor because all these must haue long continuance which can not at this day be confirmed by any priuate man but by the King only but he may haue thereby a kind of seignory a Lordship or gouernement in grosse ouer his Tenants by contract or couenant but no Mannor No man at this day can create a seruice or a tenure or by any meanes rayse or erect a Mannor for there must be very Lord and very Tenant in fee-simple and that of auncient coÌ„mencement and continuance or else it can inure no Mannor For a man may haue demeisns to occupy and Tenants to do him seruices and that of continuance and yet no Mannor As if a man that had Land did giue part of this Land in former time to some others in tayle to do him seruices heere are demeisnes in the donor and seruices in the donees and a tenure yet because there be not very Tenants in fee simple remaketh no Mannor Lord. Whether are all Lands holden of a Mannor parcell of the same Mannor Sâ—r. No Lands may be holden of a Mannor by certaine seruices the seruice may be parcell of the Marnor and yet the Lands not Lord. But may not this Land be made parcell of the Mannor at this day Sâ—r. By no other meanes but by escheat for if the Land fall vnto the Lord by escheat then it comes parcell of the Mannor for then is the seruice extinguished and the Land commeth in place of it Lord. May not a man purchace Land that lyeth néere his Mannor and annexe the same and make it parcell of the Mannor though it held not of the Mannor before Sur. Forraine Land newly purchased though it lye within the precinct and bounds of the Mannor can not be annexed though the Tenant thereof be willing to do his seruices there for this is in nature of a new creation of a tenure which at this day the lawe will not admit only the King by his prerogatiue may Lord. What if it were tyed vnto the Lord of a Mannor for the payment of an annuity is not the annuity then parcell of the Mannor And if that Land be purchased by the Lord and thereby extinguish the annuity doth not that Land come in place of the annuity and so become parcell of the Mannor as the Land you spake of before which by the escheat
conuent but what say you to the Rents of Assize What meane you by Assize Sur. Truly for my part I take it to signifie set in certainty for these kind of rents are as in the beginning neither risen nor falne but doe continue alwayes one and the same and only they and none else can be properly called rents of Assize Lord. I thinke you take it rightly and are all rents of one kind Sur. No there are properly three kinds as rent seruice Rent seck and Rent charge Lord. These termes are strange to me though I be Lord of many Mannors and no doubt I receiue rentes of euery of these kindes but how to distinguish them I can not tell And whether I haue bin abused by mine Officers or no I know not for they neuer told me of these many kindes of rentes and therfore let me intreat you for my satisfaction a little to explaine their seuerall natures Sur. These Seuerall rentes are paide vpon seuerall considerations and haue seuerall grounds and commencementes and are diuersly to be leuied and recouered if they bee denied That which is called Rent seruice is so called because it is knit to the tenure and is as it were a Seruice whereby a man holdeth his Landes or Tenements As where the Tenant holdeth his Lands by Fealty and certaine rent or by Homage fealty and certaine rent or by any other seruice and certaine rent the rent is called Rent seruice for as the Seruice followeth a Tenure so the Rent followeth the seruice And if this rent bee behind the Lord of Common right may enter and distrayne for it The Rent charge is so called because when a man graunteth any Land whether it bee in fee-simple â—ee tayle for life for yeares or at will and in his deede reserueth a rent with clause of distresse for non payment by vertue of this clause the Land is charged with payment of the rent by expresse wordes and by force of it the Lord may distraine for his rent behind Lord. This kind of rent is at this day I thinke most common for fewe will graunt Land but they will make such prouision that the Land shall stand charged with the rent Sur. It is true for at this day there can be no rent seruice raysed because it cannot bee without a tenure which can not be at this day created Lord. What is that you call Rent seek Sur. It is a bare rent reserued vpon a graunt wherein there is no mention made of charging the Land by distresse and it signifieth redditum siccum a dry rent for the recouery whereof the Land is not charged Lord. Few such rents are now adayes for a man had nâ—ede to make all the prouision he can to secure his rent and yet he may be driuen to try his vttermost meanes to recouer it But you haue satisfied me also touching these rents now let me intreate you to shew something of oâ—â—er things incident vnto a Mannor by which the Lord receiueth profit or prerogatiue Sur. Profits may rise by infinite meanes and wayes out of a Mannor to the Lord but all Mannors yeeld not profits or commodities alike neither in nature or value Lord. I thinke indéede all Mannors are not alike profitable to the Lord neither hath euery Mannor like meanes yet I desire to know for my experience sake what may grow out of a Mannor that I may the better looke into the natures qualities of such as are vnder my power and commâ—â—nd Sur. If you haue a Mannor or Mannors there is as I sayd before a Court Baron at the least incident thereunto and to some a Leeâ—e or Law-day which is called the view of franck pledge by which Courts do grow many and diuers perquisites and casualtyes as fines of land Amerceaments heriots rehefes wayues estrayes forfeitures escheates profits growing by pleas in Court and such like Lord. You may doe well to shew mée though briefly what euery of these former things doe properly import for to tell me the names and not the natures of the things is as if I should know there is a Sunne but whether he giue light and heate to be ignorant Therefore before you passe further in any discourse shew me how fines of Land doe arise vnto the Lord and what amerceaments are and the rest Sur. Fines of Land are of sundry kindes and yet properly and most especially they arise of copyhold or customary Lands and Tenements which are in diuers Mannors of diuers kinds for there are customary Lands which are called copyhold of inheritance and they are such as a man holdeth to him and his heires according to the custome of the Mannor at the will of the Lord. When such a Tenant dyeth and the heire commeth to be admitted if the custome of the Mannor beare a fine certaine he giueth but the accustomed fine If it be vncertayne and arbitrable he agreeth and compoundeth with the Lord or Surueyor or Steward for the fine Some hold Customary Land for liues as for one two or three liues whereof the fine is alwayes at the Lords will as is also the fine for yeeres There are also fines for licences of Surrenders of Customary Land and for alienation also of free-hold Land and these are called Fines which signifieth as much as a finall composition and when the fine which is the end of the contract is answered all but the yeerely rent during the terme agreed vpon is payd These and such like summes of money raysed aâ— a Courtâ—arâ—â— are parcell of the peâ—quisites of the Court as are all amerceaments which are summes of money imposed vpon the Tenants by the Steward Surueyor by oth and presentment of the homage for default of doing sute or for other misdemeanours punishable by the same Court infinite in number and quality Lord Whence taketh the word Amerceament name Sur. Of being in the Lords mercy to be punished more or lesse crumenally at the Lords pleasure and will It is no doubt a borrowed word as many other words vsed in our common lawes are for hee that is amerced is sayd to be in misericordia that is in the mercy of some body Lord. These wordes may be vnderstood by vse and by the manner of the vse of things but he that should seeke the etimon among the Latines of the substantine Amercâ—â—mentum and the adiectiue Amerciatus might seeke long be neuer the nâ—ere But I perceiue we must take it as our â—athers first framed it and left it I vnderstand what it meaneth in our common sence and that sufficeth Sur. Other words not a fewe in like sort to bee vnderstood we find in vse amongst vs which doubtles the Romans neuer knew and yet they that haue to do with the things wherein they are vsed vnderstand the meaning although their deriuations be strange as amoÌ„gst others it is questionable whence the name of a heriot may be deriued Lord. That would I be
debitiet de iure consuet And because some of you doe not perchance vnderstand the meaning of the words thus they signifie that you are to hold your Tenements to you and your heires c. For such rent and doing such seruices as haue beene heeretofore due of right accustomed Is not this a condition for if you pay not the rent or denie the seruice you are at the Lords mercy to be compelled I doe not thinke therefore that any of you of any discretion will aduenture the losse of his intrest for not performing a seruice at his Lords commaund that tendeth also to his owne benefite and to no preiudice at all The end therefore of all mine admonition is to mooue you being a thing of common right to shewe your selues like vnto your selues true and faithfull Tenants vnto the Lord concurring all in one minde to doe the Lord this seruice in loue and the Lord no doubt will recompence it with like fauour although there be no recompence due for that which dutie bindeth to be done By this meanes you shal confirme your owne strengths by gaining retaining the Lords kind countenāce and he againe shall bee the more fortified by your true affections towards him for what a ioyfull thing is it for Lord and Tenant to dwell together in vnitie Now hauing thus prepared you to attention vnto the matters of your charge I will heere reade explaine vnto you such Articles as shall be for your instruction and leaue them with you in writing for your better memorie for I know and haue often found that a bare deliuerie of many words and of diuers things as in the charges commonly giuen in Courts Baron and leet◠euen to cares well prepared may be little effectuall lesse to him that heareth and regardeth not but least of all to him that will not heare at all Such hearers there are of diuine things but many more of humane of this kind but were they matters of carnall pleasure delight they would be both heard and practised And therfore I the more moue you to attend vnto the things which I now am to deliuer vnto you The substance of the charge of a Court of Suruey contained in the Articles following 1 First as no doubt you all know that A. B. Knight the reputed Lord of this Mannor is the true vndoubted owner of the same and of all the lands meddowes pastures and other hereditaments within and belonging to the same And that you and euery of you do hold your lands belonging vnto this Mannor of him if not who hath the interest and right of the same to your knowledges 2 You shall duly and diligently set downe or shew vnto the Surueyor in his perambulation of the Mannor all the circuit buttes bounds and limits of the same and vpon what and whose Mānors Lordships lands and parishes it bordereth on all partes And whether any confining Lord or his tenants do any where intrude or incroche vpon this Mannor where it is by whom how much is so incroched As for the bounding of the Mannor it is fittest to be deliuered vnto the Surueyor when he treades the circuit that the best experienced tenants accompany him for information and some of the youth that they may learne to know the bounds in times to come 3 Whether there be any other Mannor or Mānors lying within the limits or circuit or extending in part into this Mannor what are the names of the Manners and who are owners of them how they are distinguished from this Mannor And whether this Mannor do any way extend into or lye within any other Mannor It is often seene that one Mannor lyeth within another and intermixed one with another in such sort as the true circuits buttes and bounds become confounded necessarie therefore it is that their distinctions should be carefully obserued and recorded for oftentimes one is deuoured or otherwise iniured by the other when Lords are remisse and Tenants carelesse to bring that to certainty which is or may become doubtfull 4 What Freeholders there are within or doe belong vnto and hold their land of this Mannor what are their names what land hold they what rent pay they by what tenure doe they hold and what seruices owe they to the Lord The negligence of Lords in the due continuance of the substance of this Article hath bred preiudice to many for where Freeholders dwell out of the Mannors whereof they hold and pay vnto their Lords but a small acknowledgement as a rose a pepper corne a Ielsoflower or some such trifle or are to doe some seruice at times whereof in manie yeeres hath beene no vse they haue not beene looked for neither haue their sutes beene continued for long time insomuch as they and their tenures haue growne out of memorie and their seruices out of vse and other Lords haue intitled themselues to the land and the right Lord lost all possibilities of estate wards marriage c. As cōmon experience maketh more plaine by the daily questions and sutes which rise when profits apparent may growe by any of the former casualties And therfore it is most necessary to haue alwaies a true sute roll whereby the Steward should euery Court call the Freesuters by name to expresse what rent he should pay and what seruices he ought to do that at the death of euery suter his heire with the land rent and seruices would be inserted in his steade The profit that will hereby grow vnto the Lord and tenants is manifest and this roll is to be made by the Surueyor and to be indented the one for the Lord the other for the tenants vpō view of euery Freeholders land 5 Whether you know that any Free-holder within or belonging to this Mannor hath committed any felonie or treason and hath bene thereof conuicted the Lord not yet hauing the benefit of the forfeiture or whether hath any such tenant died without heire generall or speciall If so who hath the present vse and possession of the land and by what right what land is it where lyeth it how much in quantitie and of what value It is a great defect in the Suruey of a Mannor which remaineth to posterities being inrolled or ingrossed for perpetuall memorie when the Suruey or doth superficially passe ouer the obseruation of the lands of euery Free-holder their tenures quantitie of land the place where it lyeth the rent and seruices For vpon sundrie necessary occasions the Lord is to seeke in euery of these and some are worthie because they loue not to be at charge to find out and continue that which is not presently profitable 6 Whether doth any Bastard hold any land belonging to this Mannor as heire vnto any what is his name what land is it and where lyeth it and what is it yearely worth A Bastard though he be knowne to be the son of that father that leaueth him
not plow vp or sow his Coppy-hold meddow or ley ground that hath not bene vsed to be tilled in some Mannors contrarie So that these kinds of forfeitures are according to the custome of euery Mannor 18 What are the customes of the Mannor in generall both in the behalfe of the Lord to perform or suffer to the benefit of his tenants and of the tenants to performe to the seruice of the Lord. In euery mannor there hath bene such a mutuall concurrence of ayde between the Lord and tenants as through the force of time hath bred a Custome And the Lord may exact it of his tenants by law if they deny the performaÌ„ce of the things to be done in the right of their Customarie lands And these customes are of diuers kinds diuersly to be performed Some in the course of inheriting of land some in the way of womens dowries some in the estates of land some in matters of forfeitures some in works some in rents some in fines some of the Lords beneuolence in allowing his tenants meate drinke mony c. in time of their works as these customes in seuerall Mannors seuerally are allowed And because it behoueth euery tenant to know whereunto he is bound by custome if there be no ancient Custome roll to leade them it behooueth the Surueyor to renew the same wherein he is to set downe euery tenants name his tenements lands meddowes pastures c. the rent and seruice due for euery of them and whether workes be turned into rent and to indent the same that the Lord may haue the one part and the tenants another The neglect whereof hath bred many inconueniences both to Lords and tenants 19 Whether is there within this Mannor any villaine or niefe namely any bondman or bondwoman if there be what are their names what land do they hold and keepe and what is the same yeerly woorth Although this kind of tenure be in manner worne out of vse yet some there are no doubt though conceiled in some MaÌ„nors neuer infranchized or manumized 20 Whether hath any tenant or other person within this Mannor stocked vp any hedge-rom plowed vp any Baulke or land-share remooued any Meere stone land-marke or other bound betweene the Lords demeisnes the tenants Free-hold or customary laÌ„d of inheritance or between his Free-hold and customary land or between this and another Mannor or Lordship where is any such offence committed by whom and where ought the same bound so remoued altered taken away or displaced to stand This is a necessarie Article to be duly considered because that by this meanes of remouing or taking away Meere-stones and land-markes the Lord oftentimes incurreth great preiudice for that when a Leassee of the Lords demeisnes being either a Free-holder or a customary tenant of inheritance hath land of his owne adioyning vnto the demeisnes or intermixt he take away the markes of diuision leaueth the matter doubtfull which is the Lords especially where a long lease or patent is whereby the Tenant hath time to make alteration and it is no new or strange thing to attach some by name and place that are culpable and haue yeelded to reformation being found out before their intents were fully ripe And aboue al such are most worthy to be punished for altering any such knowne markes vnder whatsoeuer pretence of ease or necessitie which is the common cloake of the mischiefe vsed most in the Kings lands where long Patents are granted 21 What customarie Cotages are there within this Lordship tostes croftes or curtelages what are the Tenants names what rent pay they and what seruices doe they It is to be vnderstood that the word Câ—tagium signifieth as much as casam a little house or a place of abode only or a little dwelling whereunto little ground belongeth but an Orchard garden or some small toft croft or Curtelage but Cotages of themselues are not ancient as I take it 22 Whether are there within this Mannor any new erected Tenements or Cotages barnes Walls sheddes Hoâ—ells Hedges Ditches or such like erected set vp or made or any Watercoarses or Ponds digged vpon any part of the Lords waste without the Lords licence where is it and by whom was it done and by whose licence and vpon what consideration The ouermuch libertie of too many newe erections breedeth sundry inconueniences not only to a Mannor and the Lord and Tenants thereof but to a whole Common-wealth and therefore not to be permitted without good consideration although it is most conuenient that the poore should haue shelter places to shroud them in if they be found honest vertuous painfull and men of abilitie to gaine their owne and their families reliefe But it is obserued in some parts where I haue trauelled where great and spacious wastes Mountaines and heathes are that many such Cotages are set vp the people giuen to little or no kind of labour liuing very hardly with Oaten bread sowre whay and Gotes milke dwelling farre from any church or chappel are as ignoraÌ„t of God or of any ciuil course of life as the very Salâ—ages amongst the Infidels in maner which is lamentable 23 What Tenants are they within this Mannor that doe hold any lands or Tenements by Indenture of lease what are their names what land hold they for what rent vnder what conditions and couenants for what termes of yeeres or liues This Article is most especially to bee obserued touching the couenants by view of the Tenants leases but the Iurie is to find the names and to present them with the land and rent 24 Whether hath or doth the Lord imploy any land to Iustment as in taking in cattle to pasture and herbage who hath the disposing of the same what quantitie of land is so disposed and how many cattle will it pasture what is a Cowe Oxe Horse or sheepe-gate woorth by the yeere or by the weeke Much land is thus vsed in Yorkshire and other places Northward very beneficially 25 Whether hath the Lord of this Mannor any customarie Water-mill Wind-mill Horse-mill Griest-mill Mault-mill Walk-mil or Fulâ—ing-mill Whether is there within this Mannor any other Mil Iron-mil Furnace or HaÌ„mer Paper-mill Sawing-mil Shere-mil or any other kind of Mill what is it woorth by yeere and in whose occupation is it Where sufficient riuers brooks stagnes ponds or water-courses are there are commonly some kinds of Mils or other profitable deuices that humane wit and inuention hath set vp for necessarie vses for the benefit of man and for the Lords profit of the Mannor where such deuices are erected And yet all kinds of deuices are not conuenient in all places as where no Lead or Tinne is there is no need of the vse of water to moue a wheele to blow the fire for the melting trying thereof yet there may be like vse for Iron oare and where neither of them is there may be vse of Walk-milles or
Sir because I say you are in some sort the Lords I tell you that I mistake it nothing at all for as the King is Supreme head and Prince and defendour of all his Subiects so vnder the King is euery Lord of a Mannor chiefe and head ouer his Tenants namely 〈◊〉 such as hold of him And he hath a kinde of commaund and superior power ouer them as they are his Tenants and for that cause he is called and they doe acknowledge him to be their Lord. And what doth the word Lord import but a Ruler or Gouernor If he be your Lord then are you his to be gouerned in causes determineable within the Mannor and as I will heereafter prooue the Lord of the Mannor may commaund his Tenants to accompanie him into the Field against the enemyes of the King by reason of some tenures and they are to follow and be commanded and directed by him and if they refuse the seruice the Lord may distraine for it or may enter vpon their Lands and resume it as his owne in some case so that I may well say that in a sort euen your lands and your selues are the Lords The vse and occupation iâ— yours but if the land were so yours as were none aboue you you might then call it yours but so is none but the Kingdome which the King holdeth of none but of God And no man is so absolute within the Kingdome but he holdeth his land of some Mannor or person or of the King And of whom such land is holden the same is called the Lord of that land after a sort because it is held of him by some kind of 〈◊〉 or seruiâ—â— and by possibility this land may come vnto and by law be cast vpon the Lord 〈◊〉 whom it is holden as if you be so willing as you seeme to talke of these mysteries you shall anon perceiue And therfore you can not but say that the land and your selues are in some sort the Lords And therfore is it not lawfull for the Lord of the Mannor to enquire and examine of the things in those kinds belonging vnto him And if there be cleane and plaine dealing among tenants they need not feare who looke into their lands and estates But if there be deceits and wrongs against the Lord policie willeth you to banish any man and to barre all the meanes that may discouer them though equitie and honestie be contented to discouer all things to the manifestation of truth Are not these the matters of chiefe importance that disquiet you The measuring of your lands the obseruation of the quality and estimating the value of your lands Farm It is true for these are the causes that our rents are increased and our fines raysed and this would the Lord neuer do if such as you did not inkindle the Lords desire by your soo seuere scrutations examinations impositions imputations for were the Lords of Mannors ignorant of these things us in former times poore tenants might haue things at the rate they had in former times Sur. My friend if I compare you to a dead Image be not offended for I perceiue you haue eyes to see and yet you see not you haue a heart to vnderstand and yet your vnderstanding is amisse Farm I am beholden to you Sir to make me worse then a beast for a beast hath the things you say I want how prooue you what you haue sayd Sur. Because you impute your great impositions vnto the acte of an honest Surueyor when I will assure you and prooue that the cause is in and of your selues Farm Then in déede you might account vs brutish if we would worke our owne woe Sur. I perceiue though you may be a good worldly Farmer you are but a meane obseruer of the course and carriage of things passing dayly vnder your nose He that hath seeing eyes and an vnderstanding mind may easily see and perceiue that there is no Mannor nay no Farme be it great or little farre off or neere hand but hath bin and dayly is discouered by priuate intelligencers lurking in or neere the same prying into estates â—yming at the quantity wide short or ouer seldome hitting right obseruing also the quallity and glauncing at the value of euery mans land and therefore secretly and vnder-hand do informe the Lords of the Farme and they being credulous ouermuch and not a little couetous build their demaunds both of rents and fines vpon these most deceiueable informations whereby the Lord is abused and the Tenant wronged whereas were the things seeme viewed and surueyed by a iudicious and faithfull Surueyor who vpon due consideration and discreet obseruation of all particulars giues in a true and indifferent certificate vnto the Lord vsing rather his vttermost indeuour to moderate and mitigate the Lords excessiue demands then aggrauating the validity beyond reason or a good conscience you would be of another minde and I protest I hold that Surueyor a very bad man that will either for affection or bribe carry a parciall hand betweene the Lord and his Tenants yee sith he holdeth as it were the beame of the â—â—â—tance he should rather giue the better waight to the weakest respecting nothing but a charitable course to be held by the Lord for whom he trauaileth with the Tenant against whom if he speake not he shall be often suspected of the Lord to be parciall But if there be equall consideration on all sides the Lord will beleeue the Surueyor deales iustly and the Tenant rest satisfyed willingly to leaue or râ—dely to accept as his owne iudgement agreeth or disagreeth with the things propounded For this haue I obserued that oftentimes Tenants consider not when they are kindly vsed neither see they at all times when they are abused Farms Truly I beléeue you in part for indéede there are euen amongst vs to y e Mannor wherein I dwell officious fellowes that to procure the Lords good opinion will pry into mens estates indéede as you say into y e quantity quality value of mens lands and giue false information oftentimes and I know it is a foule abuse and of the two I rather allow a true suruey then a false report for such fond fellowes as are thus busy in other mens causes are of all meÌ„ least to be beléeued for they speake always for affection or gaine for they wil 〈◊〉 the value of them they loue or haue gaine by and aggrauate the same as their hope is of the Lords reward all this I know without your report But what is that to the thing you charge poore tenants withall that they art the cause of their owne hard measuree 〈…〉 Sur. That can 〈…〉 and I thinke I shall haue the whole world to witnes it for your further satisfaction who can not your selfe be ignorant of the same thing for you haue in part 〈…〉 of whom you â—ast spake 〈…〉 case theÌ„ not all nay I â—â—cuse none in particular for
is fit but for their euidences as their copyes and leases the Lord hath the Court-rolls of the one and counterpanes of the other and for fâ—ée holders déeds their Land is their owne and whether they may be compelled to shew them or not I can not tell Sur. These are â—â—iuolous doubtâ— that some haue formerly made but they haue bin answered to their cost for the law compelleth them all For admit the Lord of the Mannor haue the rolls wherein the copyes are recorded may not copyes be abused after their entryes or counterfetted in some things preiudiciall to the Lord as may also the Lease as hath been found oftentimes names and liues of men parcels of Lands dates of yeeres and such like â—azed inserted or altred And is it not fit therefore that they be seene entred together that without search of so many court rolls the Lord may be satisfyed the Tenants iustified And what preiudiceth it the Tenant to haue his euidences truly recorded if he meane plainely be it copy lease or free deede he will thinke it a confirmation of his estate what casualty soeuer come to the same he may be the better assured that such a record will witnes with him whereas if none such appeare his intrest will be the more suspicious and therefore such as are wise and discreet will not only consent to this good course but be thankefull vnto the Surueyor as behooueth If it be iust and right that the Lord should know his owne who should manifest it but the Tenant himselfe and how should hee doe it but by his euidence And most vniust it is in that Tenant that by any wilfull or sinister meanes or couert practice doth either detract his fellow Tenants from the seruice or concealeth any thing that may further the same Farm This I can not deny although indéede some â—oly fellowes will 〈…〉 doubt héerein but I sée it is to good purpose and for our better security to do all things requisite in this businesse and that all the Tenants within the Mannor should conioyne in 〈◊〉 and euery one for himselfe and all for one and one for all should séeke examine and declare the vttermost truth of euerything towards the exact performance of this seruice and that the Surueyor should know the quantities qualities and indifferent painâ—â—â— of euery mans Tenement and Lands their rents seruices customes worâ—s and whatsoeuer the Tenant is in lawe or conscience bound to yéeld or performe to his Lord and indéed thus 〈◊〉 haue I heard giuen in charge at a Court of Suruey with many other articles which are now out of my mindâ— all which may be done by Tenants with a good conscience both by relation in Courts and in the perambulation but the concealing of these can not stand with an honest mind for these things of themselues can not preiudice the Tenants but the misconceiuing misenâ—ring by the Surueyor may be erroneous and the ouer-racking vrging and ouerburdening the Tenants by the Lord may be extortious These things may fall out by meanes of an vniust and vnskilfull Surueyor and a couetous Landlord And the feare of this maketh the Tenants to exteâ—â—ate the values and to smother the truth of things to their soules danger therefore happy are those Tenants that haue a gracious Lord and an honest Surueyor for then there can not be but an equall and vpright course held betweene them then can not the Tenants but be faithfull and louing to their Lords and their Lords fauorable to them so should the Tenants be defended by their Lords and the Lords fortified by his Tenantâ— which were the two principall causes of the originall foundation of Mannors as I haue heard Sur. You say rightly and I am glad to heare you conceiue so well of this apparant necessity for so may I say that it is of necessity that the Lord should know the full and absolute estate of his Mannor and of euery particular thereof for howsoeuer of late dayes Tenants stand in higher conceits of their freedome then in former times if they looke a little back into antiquity they shall see that Tenants for the most part of euery Mannor in England haue ben more seruice vnto theyr Lords and in greater bondage then now they are whom the fauorable hand of time hath much infranchised and it can not be altogether euery where forgotten because they may see as in a glasse the picture of theyr seruitude in many auncient custome rolls and in the copyes of theyr owne auncesters and many seruile works haue been due and done by them and in many places yet are though the most are now turned into money but neyther theyr infranchisements nor the conuersion of works into rents doe so farre free them but that they still owe seruices vnto their Lords in respect of their tenures as well freeholders as customary Tenants as both in most of their copyes and deeds is expressed by these words Proâ—editu seruitiis vnde prius debit de iure consuet which proueth their tenures in a sort to be conditionall which condition if it be wilfully broken by the obstinate carriage of any such Tenant he indangereth his estate Lord. It were hard if for not doing some small seruice vnto his Lord a man should forfeit his liuing Sur. And it were very foolishnes in a Tenant for wilfull refusall thereof to indanger the â—ame for if the Lord be in lawe tyed to mayntayne the right of his Tenant and to defend him against any other that shall pretend a false title vnto his Land the Tenant is againe bound to performe all such seruices and to pay all such dutyes as of right he ought And it is expedient that the Lord should see these dutyes continued and it hath been and is dayly obserued that the neglect thereof extinguisheth the remembrance of them and so the Lord loseth his inheritance for euery seruice of the Tenant is parcell of the same and the remisnes of looking into these tenures hath brought it to passe that infinite within this kingdome that hold in fee quillets of Land and some Mannoâ—s know not how or of whom they hold so that hereby Lords of Mannors of whom these quillets were heretofore knowne to hold haue lost their tenures and seruices and such as hold the Land by vnknowne tenures are cast into the danger to hold to their and their posterities further hurt Farm If Tenants will be wilfully obstinate and refuse to do and continue their vttermost seruices vnto their Lords as bound by their tenures béeing as you say parcell of the Lords inheritance they are worthy to be attached of disobedience and to pay for their contempts and if Lords will bée so negligent as they will not looke vnto their owne they are worthy to lose their right and therefore I hold it discretion in the one to do his duty and prouidence in the other to continue what is due
ran in place of the seruice Sur. The case is not alike for the annuity was not parcell of the Mannor neither can it be by such meanes as you propound by the way of Mortgage But in another sort it may as if a Mannor be to be diuided into sundry parts and because the parts fall out vnequall in value there must a rent or annuity be apportioned to make vp the value which rent becomes parcell of the Mannor Lord. If the Mannor be diuided as you say and a rent allotted to one part how can the rent be parcell of the Mannor forasmuch as in my vnderstanding the Mannor becommeth by this partition to be no Mannor for if there can be no addition to a Mannor there can be no diuision of a Mannor and yet the Mannor to continue still a Mannor Sur. Yes Sir of one Mannor may be made diuers at this day Lord. How I pray you Sur. If a Mannor descend to diuers partners and they make partition and euery one hath demeisnes and seruices euery one hath a Mannor and euery one may keepe a Court Baron Lord. What if a man make a feoffement vpon conditions of parcell of his Mannor or do graunt a Lease to another for life of part or do intayle part are not these parts still parcels of the Mannor Sur. If parcels of a Mannor be once thus seuered they immediatly become no parcels thereof yet may they all reuert and become parcels of the Mannor againe as if the condition of the feoffement be broken if the Tenant for life dye or the limitation of the entayle discontinue for want of heires Lord. Then a man may say that though such Land be not yet the reuersions are parcels of the Mannors Sur. So it is intended Lord. Well you haue reasonably well satisfied me in these poynts yet would I gladly haue some further satisfaction of some other matters touching the state and profits of a Mannor Sur. I would be willing to do my best to content you but you partly hinder me of other businesse What else would you know I wish breuity Lord. It shall be so neither shall you lose your labour for I meane to vse you if my future satisfactâ—on be answerable to this former May euery Mannor kéepe a Court Baron Sur. Euery Mannor in the beginning no doubt might keepe a Court Baron and so it may at this day vnlesse the Mannor be so dismembred as it wanteth that which may warrant the keeping thereof for if all the freeholders of a Mannor do escheat or all but one the Mannor is then disabled to keepe a Court Baron for the Court cannot be kept without suters which are the freeholders Lord. Then me thinks the Mannor loseth the name of a Mannor for if it lose the quality it is not the thing no more then a logge that had fire can be sayd a fire-logge when the fire is extinct Sur. It is true it becomes no Mannor but a Seignorâ— hauing no power to keepe a Court-Baron Lord. An ignorant Surueyor I sée may be easily deceyued in terming that which is no Mannor a Mannor and that no Mannor which indéede is a Mannor But satisfie me in this one thing A man hauing two Mannors lying together and the one of them is decayd and hath lost his power to kéepe a Court Baron and the Lord is willing to haue the Tenants of both these Mannors to do their suites and seruices to one Court namely to that which standeth yet in force and that me thinks were good for the Tenants to ease them and it would preserue the Lords right without preiudice to any for then one homage would serue both and both serue as one one Bayly and other officers as if it were an future Mannor Sur. Yet this can not bee for this vnion of the Mannors can not extinguish theyr seuerall distinctions for they will be still two in nature howsoeuer the Lord couet to make them one in name and the more powerfull Mannor hath no warrant to call the Tenants of the decayd Seignory but euery act done in one to punish an offendor in the other is trauersable and therefore it is but lost labour to practise any such vnion if it be considered by such as are forced to seruice in this kind they may refuse it yet if they will voluntarily submit themselues to such a nouation and the same be continued without contradiction time may make this vnion perfect and of two distinct Mannors in nature make one in name vse and I do not thinke but such there are Lord. Then is there as it séemeth no meane to annere two Mannors in one howsoeuer necessary it were both for the Lord and Tenants Sur. Yes Sir two Mannors may become as one if one Mannor do hold of another and it escheat to the Lord the escheated Mannor may be annexed and vnited and of two distinct Mannors become one if the Lord will in vse Lord. I am answered in this poynt and it standeth with more reason indéed then the former now I pray you tell me what things do properly belong to a Mannor Sur. There do belong to a Mannor Lands Tenements rents and seruices as I shewed you before in part which are a parcell in demeisne and parcell in seruice Lord. But speake I pray you something more at large of euery of these and first tell me what demeisnes are Sur. Demeisnes are all such Lands as haue bin time out of the memory of man vsed and occupied in the Lords owne hands and manurance as the site of the Mannor house Meddowes Pastures Woods and arable land that were reserued for the maintenance of the Lords house from the beginning Lord. This then is that you call parcell in demeisne what is that you call parcell in seruice Sur. All those lands tenements and hereditaments which yeeld rents of Assize as rents of freehold copyhold or customary land all which are parcell of the Mannor yet no demeisnes Lord. But are not all customary land copyhold land why then make you a distinction betwéene copy and customary Sur. All copy hold Land is commonly customary but all customary is not copyhold for in some places of this Realme Tenants haue no copyes at all of their Lands or Tenements or any thing to shew for that they hold but there is an entry made in the Couâ—t-booke and that is their euidence and this especially of the ancient Duchy land of Cornewall and other places Lord. These Tenants then may be called Tenants by Court-roll according to the custome of the Mannor but not Tenants by copy of Court-roll Sur. It is true but they are held only a kinde of conuentionary Tenants whom the custome of the Mannor doth onely call to do their seruices at the Court as other customary Tenants do Lord. The word conuenire where of they be called conuentionary doth as I conceiue import as much as to call together or
himselfe of any extremity that is only to be reprooued but the abetter there unto and if I wist that any Lord who shall â—â—quire the vse of my poore trauaileâ— would expect more at my hands then the performance of my duty with a good conscience I had rather leaue then take the reward for such a trauaile Neither do I find that you howsoeuer you reason of this poynt will commit any act towards any Tenants you haue that may not be iustified by the law of loue therefore I leaue further to perswade or disswade you herein And as touching the matter and manner of forfeitures I pray you vnderstand that they be of diuers kinds and diuers wayes committed for in some Mannors it is lawfull to do that as â—ath in others incurrâ—s a forfeiture Forfeitures grow either by brâ—â—ch of a custome as in Customary or copy hold Land or of a condition or promise in a Lease or graunt of which last the Tenant can not say he did not thinke it was so because the meaning is expressed in his deede but of 〈…〉 in some sort ignorant 〈…〉 them to leade them But for the most part causes of forfeitures are apparent and knowne of all within a manner as non payment of their rent not doing his seruice 〈…〉 where custome inhibits it letting his 〈…〉 to fâ—ll 〈…〉 the Lords 〈…〉 waste and such like which as I sayd before are not alike in all places and therefore it is most conuenient that the customes of euery Mannor were knowne and the Tenants made acquainted with them that when question groweth for any cause of forfeiture they may not say they knew it not for Lords commonly know better how to take aduantages of such casualties then the Tenants know how to auoyd them Lord. You speake that is reason I confesse But may a Lord enter immediatly vpon a forfayture Sur. The forfayture must be first presented to the homage at the next Court holden for the Mannor and there found recorded then hath the Lord power to shewe Iustice or mercy It were inconuenient that the Lord should bee iudge in his owne cause and â—his present caruer of things doubtfull And therefore hath the Lawe ordained in all controuersies euen in these inferiour courts a iust manner of tryall by Iury. Lord. May none but Copyhold Tenants forfayt their land Sur. I shewed you before that Tenants by deede indented for life or yeeres may forfeit their estates but that is by couenant or condition expressed in the deede according to the prescript agreement made and interchangeably confirmed betweene the Lord and his Tenant Lord. What is an Escheat for as I remember that followeth in your formerly râ—citeâ— perquisites of Court Sur. Eschete is where a freeholder of a Mannor committeth felony the Lord of whom his Land is holden shall haue his Land and that kinde of forfeyture is called escheat Lord. The Lord may then enter immediatly into this Land because the lawe hauing tried the felony it casteth the Land vpon the Lordâ— Sur. The King hath it for a yeare and a day and then commeth it vnto the Lord and his heires for euer Lord. Is this all the causes of escheats Sur. Escheat may also be where a Freeholder Tenant in ancient demeisne and a customary Tenant of inheritance dieth without heire generall or speciall none of the blood comming to claime the same it falleth vnto the Lord by way of escheat Lord. This then is immediatly the Lords and the King hath no part or time therein and without any further ceremony he may enter dispose of that his pleasure Sur. It must be also first sound and presented by the homage of the Mannor whereof it is holden and after proclamation made to giue notice vnto the world that if any can come and iustly claime it hee shal be receiued the homage then finding it cleere doth intitle the Lord therof as a thing escheated for want of an heire Lord. You speake of an heire generall or speciall what difference is there Sur. The heire generall is of the body of the deceased and the speciall of his bloud or kinne Lord. So haue you satisfied me thus farre nowe what say you to the pleas of Court for I remember it is part of that you before spake of Sur. It is true they are parcell of the Perquisites of Court Lord. Whereof commeth the word Perquisites Sur. Of the word Perquirâ— as I take it which signifieth to search for or to enquire diligently as also to get or obtaine Lor. It may well be so for these things before rehearsed vnder the name of Perquisites are all casuall and not at all times alike and therefore may be called Perquisita things gotten by diligent enquiâ—â—e And to that end so many things are giuen by the Steward to the Iury of a Court Baron Leeâ—e in charge that they should diligently enquire of them finde them and present them and yet scarcely one of forty of the seuerall things wherewith they are charged are found by the Iurie And some things happen at one Court that happen not againe in twentie Courts after and therefore are also called Casualties as happening now and then as I conceiue it hauing little experience in them Sur. Yes it seemes you haue the better part of experience namely comming in of the profite of the things where some know the same but they know them as appertaining to others not to themselues But of this nature are the profits that arise by Pleaâ— of Court which because they are diuers and doe diuersly arise there needâ— no long relation of them Lor. Are there no other Perquisites of Court but such as you haue already remembred nor other 〈…〉 Mannor Sur. There be many other profiâ—s that may grow also vnto a Lord of a Mannor yet they not certaine nor in all Mannors alike Lord. Then are they also casuall and may â—e called also Perquisites of Courts 〈…〉 Sur. Casuall But noâ— perquisites of Court yet foâ—â—e of them may be called perquisâ—â— in some sence because they bee gotten by search and inquitie as those that are hidden in the earth as Treasures which as long as they lie vnknowne benefit not the Lord but when they are found they are called Treasure troue as Siluer Gold Plate Iewels and such like before time hidden which appertaine vnto the Lord. So doe minerals of Lead Tiâ—â—e Copper and such like And quarries of stone Free-stone Sâ—aâ—e-stones Marking-stones and all such which may long lie vndiscouered As may also Colâ— Lime Chalke and such for which search being made are haply found yet because the benefite is vncertaine vpon the present and what continuance and vent it may afford they may passe vnder the name of Perquisâ—â—es and Casualties as may also Fishing and Fowling vnlesse the Lord can bring the same to bee a certaine conâ—â—â—uing rent Then are they no more casuall during the graunt
to vtter them Sur Things of themselues lawfull by the lawes of the Land where they be iudiciously and carefully handled as they are by the lawes intended and by the chiefe disposers meant namely the mariages of Wards and disposition of their lands in their minorities and the presentations of benefices in the gifts of priuate men Lord. For the first I haue yet no occasion to make proofe how or what they are but the second I haue had some power to bestow wherin I was not so remisse as that I presented such as were not fit for y e funâ—tion which I thinke is your meaning therefore let that passe awhile learne me what a Ward is and how he and his land is to be disposed by the lawe that I may learne it against the time I may haue vse Sur. The word Ward is as much as guard which signifieth tuition or defence and he that is in ward is vnder some mans gouernment and keeping and the word hath a passiue signification as it is vsed in our common speech and yet the same word is also vsed in the actiue sence as they that watch or attend for the defence of any are called the ward or guard of that person or thing they do protect But the wards whereof we are now to speake of are the sonnes or daughters heires to some person that held his land either of the king in chiefe or of some inferior person by knights seruice whose heire male being vnder the age of 21. yeeres and the female within the age of 14 yeeres the Lord shall haue the ward guard or custodie of the bodie and of the lands so holden of him to his owne vse vntill they come to these ages without making account to the heire when he or she comes to age as law bookes will tell you Lord. Then me thinkes the word as it is commonly vsed is improper namely to call â—uch an heâ—â—e a ward it is more proper to say he is in ward or as the Lawâ—er sayes a ward Sur. I take it as yâ—u do Lord But what is the reason that the Lord shuld haue the land to his owne vse why rather do not y e profits redound to y e vse of y e heire in his minority Sur. This kind of wardship had some reason for it in the beginning For you must vnderstand that he whose sonne or daughter is to be thus guarded and his land to be disposed by the Lord was in his life time bound by the tenure of his land to do manly and actuall seruice in person in the time of warre or to keepe a castle â—ith some kind of warlike weapon in the time of war and peace And these kinds of capital seruices were called either tenures in capite as holden of the king who is the chiefe Eâ—â—nage vncertaine grand seriâ—â—â—tie or some other like seruice and was called seruiciâ—m miâ—â—tare seruice of a soldier now called knights seruice These seruices were not to be discontinued for to that end were the lands first giuen by the king and other inferior Lords of MaÌ„nors that they might haue the continuall seruice of their tenants And therefore whensoeuer the tenant of such a tenure died hauing none to supply the place of like manly seruice the heire being vnder age and not of power the Lord was and is supposed to be bound for the defence of the Realme to performe the seruice by a person for whom he must answer in the heires minoritie And because the charge was in former times great and dangerous and the land giuen onely for that cause the Lord was to keepe the heire and to see him trained vp and to be made fit for the same seruice and for his maintenance supply of the seruice to haue the vse profit of his land vntill he became able to performe the seruice himselfe in person Lord. I thinke this to stand with great reason for if it had not bene thought reasonable the lawes would not haue prouided in that case as they haue done as it appeareth by your relation Sur. Many Statutes indeed haue bene made touching Wards Mag. cart ca. 4.7 28. Maâ—l cap. 6.7.8 c. Westm. 1. Westm. 2. and many Statutes since to which I refer you too long here to relate Lord. What néeded you then giue such a strict caueat touching Wardes Sur. Truely to put Lordes and others into whose hands they often happen in mind to be carefull of their education and disposing because many incoâ—ueniencâ—s follow if their Guarders be not faithfull and prouident for their wel bestowing Lord. How in bestowing Sur. In mariage For the Lordes haue the mariage both of the Male and Female if they bee vnmaried at the time of their ancesters decease And it falleth out many times that partly for their land and partly for their mariage they are bought and sold and marryed yong and sometimes to such as they fancie not when they come to riper iudgement they bewray their dislikes too late And sometimes their education is so slenderly regarded that when they come to gouerne themselues and their familyes their estates and patry monies they discouer what their education was good or euill Lord. There bée thrée especiall ends whereunto the good education of such an Infant should send The 〈◊〉 and principall is the feare of God in true Religion the second is the benefite that the Common-wealth shall reape by his vertue and sufficiencie the third and last the abilitie by which hee may gouerne his familie and manage his patrimonie for his best maintenance But what can you now say touching the second of these chiefe points Namely the presenting of Clarkes vnto Ecclesiasticall 〈◊〉 and how it commeth to passe that our Lay man as he is called may nominate and present a Clarke to a Parsonage Uicarage or 〈◊〉 Chappell whose function is high and diuine Sur. The reason why these Lay-lords of Mannors do presâ—nâ— as aforesaid is in right of the Parsonage Vicarage or free Chappell belonging to their Mannors where the Lord of the Mannor is very and vndoubted patron of such an Ecclesiasticall gift hee may make his choice of the parson or vicar Alwayes prouided by diuine ordinance humane instituâ—ions he must be Idoneus fit for the place Lord. But lye thâ—t in the Lords power onely to nominate and present such a one and is it then sufficient if hee deeme the partie fit Sur. No he must be approued fit by his Ordinarie the Byshop of the Diocesse by whom he must be instituted and 〈◊〉 Lord. Then is the Lord in his nomination and presentation cleared of offence to the Church if the partie prooue after insufficient Sur. He is in some sort But he is bound in conscience to be very circumspect in his choice For iâ— any carnall consideration mooued him to the partie he standeth not cleare before God into whose steade he intrudeth himselfe after
Euidences wherby they or any of them do hold or claime to hold of the Lord of this Mannor any lands tenements or hereditaments And that they then and there shew or cause the same to be shewed vnto the Lords Surueyor at the Court then and there to be holdeÌ„ for that purpose and to giue their further attendance as occasion of the seruice shall require Whereof faile you not c. Dated the 3. of Iune in the fourth yeare of the raigne of our Soueraigne Lord Iames by the grace of God King of great Brittaine France and Ireland c. Per I. N. Superuiss To the Bayly of the Mannor of Beauland or to his Deputie Commonly the Lords of MaÌ„nors do direct their letters of warrant vnto the tenants vnlesse the Surueyor be a knowne Surueyor by patent and performeth the seruice when and where he thinketh most fit for the Lords vse The order of a Court Baron being performed for a Surueyor hath not power to administer an oath ex officio vnlesse he be a Surueyor by patent or by commission out of the Chancerie or Exchequer Duchie Court Court of Wards or such like by a particular Steward or by the Surueyor who for the time may supply the Stewards office and the charge of the Court Baron ended the Surueyor may proceed to his admonition and charge to the effect following First taking note of the names of euery tenant both Free-holder Copy-holder Leaser tenant at will in a paper to whom after they be sworne the Surueyor may say You that haue bene here presently sworn to performe our vttermost duties in al the things that are shal be giuen to you in charge do or at least you may conceiue that as the Court Baron the charge wherof you haue already heard is with you ordinarily twice a yeere if the Lord wil euery 3. weeks this kind of Court which I haue now to admonish you in tending to the suruey of the MaÌ„nor hapneth not perchance in the time of a mans age thogh the Lord hath power no doubt occasion to keepe it oftner You must therfore shew your selues so much the more diligent in this by how seldome you are troubled therewith And it behooueth you to call to mind what by oath you haue assumed to performe namely all that shall be giuen you in charge wherof part hath bene deliuered vnto you alreadie which being so ordinarie amongst you it must needs be more familiar theÌ„ the things you haue seldom heard of And for that this busines of Suruey stretcheth a litle further then the Court Baron let your duâ— attentioÌ„ and examination and faithfull presentation witnes your true affections to the persons ends to which the purpose of our present meeting at this time aymeth The particulars inquirable are many and of many kinds but the persons and ends few The first is God in whose presence we all stand who loueth truth froÌ„ the inward parts that is when the action the wiâ—l concur hateth dissimulation The second is the King whose we al are vnder God whose lawes we are to follow as well in this busines as in any other for that it tendeth to the seeking and settling of truth the mother of true peace betweene you and your Lord in giuing both to you and him what is equall and iust The third is the Lord of the Mannor whose you are vnder God the King and therfore requireth at your hands at this time equall dealing neither to discouer for malice nor to conceale any thing for fauour to either party The fourth is your selues whoÌ„ you can in no better sort befriend in this action then to keepe your hearts lips pure in coÌ„ceiling or vttering for there is as great a danger in conceiling truth as in vttering a falshood And â—here is no such burden as the burden of a guiltie conscience which is laid on no man but of himself And lastly the persons to be considered in this businesse are your posterities whom your true or false relatioÌ„s will either helpe or hurt The ends wherunto it aymeth are first to explane vnto the Lord of the Mannor what is his by the examination of your estates rents customes and to establish you in all things that are rightly youâ—â— both which being truly found duly recorded caÌ„not but preserue amitie between you and your Lord which should be the principall end of all indeuors And sith God is the first and the last and wil be present in the beginning in the middle and in the end of all your consultations and will be a witnes for you or against you euen in your most secret counsels set him before the eyes of your harts so shall you tremble to conceale truth or vtter falsitie whether it be with or against your selues or dearest friends yea or the Lord of the Mannor himself whose purpose in this seruice is that the manifest truth might be confirmed the hidden reuealed and errors abandoned And all this lyeth in you and at your hands it is required to search and by searching and examination to find out and found to deliuer and present the whole and not a part of your sincere knowledges for from your mouths must that be taken and had which must be recorded for the direction of your posterities as a perpetuall glasse wherein the estates of all the particulars within this Mannor may be at all times seene and confirmed wherein you shall discharge your duties to God who commaunds and commends truth to the King who by the sword of his Iustice maintaines truth to your Landlord who desireth only to knowe haue his owne to your selues who by this meanes shall possesse your owne in peace and to your posterities who by this your trauaile diligence and true information shall partake of your sincere and faithfull seruice being inrowled and recorded vnder your names to your perpetuall commendation whereas if you delude me and abuse the Lord of the Mannor that hath sent me I by your sinister information may commit error and leaue it to your posterities by record yet shall I be free of the wrong and you shall answere it And if you should frame any defence against the seruice and plead either ignorance or shewe obstinacie pretending thereby to stand dispenced of your oath because you doe it not you deceiue your selues for the seruice is so inseperably knit to your tenures and your tenures to the Lord of the Mannor deny or refuse to doe the one you forfeit the other howsoeuer some may say that they are freeholders they are customarie Tenants of inheritance which in their conceit implyeth a kind of freedome let them not deceiue themselues their estates are conditionall as both by their deeds and copies they may bee easely resolued by these words Habendum sibi et haeredibus suis in the deed advoluntatem domini secundum consuetudinem manerii in the copie In both pro reditu et seruiciâ—s inde prius
the land cannot inherit 〈◊〉 hareditario but by conueyance Neither if he purchase land in his owne name can any inherite it after him of his supposed bloud vnlesse he be maried and haue children lawfully begotten to inherite Because it is contra formam Ecclesia as appeareth more at large Merton cap. 9. For a Bastard is no mans or euery mans sonne 7 What Demeysne lands hath the Lord within or belonging to this MaÌ„nor what how much woods vnderwoods medow pasture arable moores marshes heathes wastes or sheepe walkes And what is euery kind woorth yeerely by acre how many sheepe may the Lord keepe vpon his walke winter and sommer and what is a sheepe-gate woorth by yeere and what is euery acre of wood woorth to be sold Although this Article and sundry other hereafter mentioned be in substance enacted by a Statute made Anno g. Ed. 1. called extenta Mannerii to be inquired of by the tenants yet it is the part and office of a Surueyor to see examine iudge by his own experience knowledge euery particular comparing the Iuries presentment with his own opinion so shall he more truly attaine to the true vnderstanding of the things he seeketh and the more if he discreetly feele the minds of forraine inhabitants that are ignorant of the cause of his inquisition 8 What demeisne Lands hath the Lord lying in the common fields of the Mannor howe much in euery field and euery furlong And what is an acre of field arable land worth by yeere The like you are to present touching demeisne meddow lying in any common meddow within the Mannor 9 Also you are to present the names of all your common fields and howe many furlongs are in euery field and their names and the common meddowes and their names And what beasts and sheepe euerie Tenant ought to keepe vpon the same when the corne and hay is off And what a beast gate and sheep gate is worth by yeere Also at what time your field and common meddowes are layd open and howe are they or ought to be vsed And whether is it lawfull for the Tenants to inclose 〈◊〉 part of their common fields or meddowes without the licence of the Lord and consent of the Tenants This Article is duly to bee considered first in setting downe in certainty what euery man is to keepe vpon the fields and common meddowes because iniury is daily done by some of greatest abilitie to the meaner sort in oppressing the fields with a greater number of Cattle then according to a true proportion will fall vnto their share which is very eâ—tortion and a punnishment is to be inflicted vpon the offenders Also inclosures of common fields or meddowes in part by such as are most powerfull and mighty without the Lords licence and the Tenants 〈◊〉 is more then may be permitted the reason is that the rest of the Tenants loue 〈◊〉 much right 〈…〉 the same when the corne is off as he hath that encloseth the same Bayly But Sir if they lay it open at Lammas or at such time as custome requireth I think he doth neither Lord nor tenants wrong Sur. Yes for first be depriueth theÌ„ both of the feed of as much as his hedges ditches and enclosures take besides whether is it as conuenient for passe and repasse for cattle at one little gappe or two as when there is no estoâ—ell at all Bayly You like not enclosures then Sur. I do and I thinke it the most beneficiall course that tenants can take to increase their abilities for one acre inclosed is woorth one and a halfe in Common if the ground be fitting thereto But that it should be generall and that Lords should not depopulate by vsurping inclosures 10 What Commons are there within the Lordship which do properly belong to the Lord and tenants of this Mannor and how are the tenants stinted whether by the yard-land plow-land oxegang acres or rent how many may euery tenant keepe after either proportion or rate In this the like consideration is to be had as of the former but that this kind of pasture is called in the Statute of extenta Manerii 3. E. 1. pastura forinsica forraine herbage or pasture because no part of it is proper in any sort to any peculiar tenaÌ„t no not to the Lord himselfe as are the common fields coÌ„mon meddowes This kind of Common or pastura forinsica is in three sorts the one is where a Mannor or towne-ship hauing and holding their land in seueraltie haue by consent lymited a certaine parcell of ground to lie common among them and from the beginning haue stinted euery man according to a proportion betweene them agreed and that is commonly by the acre which the pasture containeth Another maner of such kind of common pasture is where certain waste grouÌ„ds one two or more lie within the MaÌ„nor or township and the Heard of the whole Towne is guided and kept by one appointed by the Tenants and at their generall charge to followe their Cattle in which kind of pasture there is also a limitation or stint both of the number and kinds of Cattle A third kind of this pasture or common feeding is in the Lords own woods that lie common to the Tenants as also common Moores or heathes that were neuer arable In all the former coÌ„mons of pasture there should bee a certaine stint and allotment both to the Lord and his Tenants but in this latter it seemeth that the Lord should not be limited because all these latter commons are supposed his owne and the Tenants haue no certaine parcell thereof layd to their holdings but only bit of mouth with their Cattle But the Tenants ought to bee stinted in all sorts of common lest as I sayd before the rich deuour the poore for the one can prouide sheepe and other Cattle for the summer and haue inclosed pasture for the winter or can sell againe when the forraine pasture is gone but the poore cannot doe so 11 Whether hath any man to your knowledges incroched any part of the Lords waste by inclosure or adding any part thereof to his owne land present who hath so done where how much and how long it hath continued This kind of incrochment is not rare especially where great wastes and mountanous grounds are where the Lord nor his officers walke not often and where Tenants for fauour or affection will wincke at euill doers or for their owne priuate lucre commit the same error themselues with hedges ditches pales walls shed is c. 12 Whether hath the Lord any Parke or demeisne wood which by stocking may turne to the Lords better benefite by pasture Arable or meddowe and what is an acre worth one with another the stocking and how many acres is the wood and what will an acre of the wood be woorth and what will an acre of land be worth by the yeere to be let when the ground is stocked
and cleared Although it be the part of the Iurie to yeeld their opinions in this case yet it behooueth the Surueyor to haue so much iudgement in euery of these points as hee may be able to satisfie himselfe and his Lord by sufficient reasons lest hee be deceiued and the Lord abused either through ignorance or parciality And aboue all it behooueth the Surueyor to looke into the nature of the soile of the wood for there are some wood grounds that are good for no other vse as a drie or cold grauelly ground whose vertue and disposition may be easely obserued by the herbage 13 Also you must present the names of all customarie Tenants within or belonging vnto the Mannor what mesuages Tenements or lands they hold what euery mesuage or Tenement is called what rent it payeth and what profit ariseth to the Lord by the death of any such customarie Tenant or by the death of any freeholder by fine heriot or reliefe by the cuâ—tome of the Mannor CoÌ„monly these customary tenants vpon death alienatioÌ„ do pay a fine which in som places is certain in some euen in the most they are at the Lords will and in most places they are also heriotable Bayly In this maner there be some customary tenants heriotable and some not how comes that can there be two custoâ—â— in one Mannor Sur. There may be so And the reason may grow by the escheating of a Mannor that had in this point a contrary custome to the Mannor to which it was escheated and annexed and so the customes of either may hold vnder one Court Bayly Your reason in good and I take it it may also be that these that pay no heriots are tenements of a newer erection so vpon their first grants the heriots were omitted Sur. That is not so likely for that if any such new erections were they were granted in such forme as other tenements with these words HabinduÌ„ c. ad voluntatem Dom. secundum consuet Manerii which words do imply all duties seruices which the most ancient tenements are bound vnto There is also a copy-hold estate called ancient demeisne the tenaÌ„ts Sâ—kemains wherof some are of frank-tenemeÌ„t some of base tenure Tenants of Base tenure are they that hold by verge at the will of the Lord the Franktenement therof is in the Lord. It is to be noted that Copy-hold lands are very ancient before the Conquest in the Saxons time who called this kind of land Folkland and their Charter lands were called Bokeland 14 How doth the Customary land of this Mannor by your custome descend after the death of an Auncestor to the younger or elder sonne And whether will the custome of the Mannor allow an intaile by copie and whether doth it beare widowes estate or whether may she haue it during her life though she marry and whether may a man hold by the curtesie Sundrie differences there are in sundrie Mannors touching the substance of this Article The custome of some Mannors is that the youngest sonne shall inherite as in Burrough English if he haue not a sonne his yongest Brother as at Edmunton in Middlesex The custome of some Mannors is that al the sonnes and all the daughters shall inherite alike as in Gauelkind at Islington neere London The custome of some Mannors is that if the tenant die seized of fiue acres or vnder then the yongest sonne shall inherite but if aboue then all the sonnes shall inherite as in Gauelkind 〈◊〉 The custome of some Mannor is that neither the wife shall haue dowre neither the husband hold by Curtesie And the custome of some other Mannor is that shee shall haue the third part of the rent as at Bushie in Middlesex and no part of the land in dowre In some Mannors the wife being a virgin at the time of her mariage shall haue all the Copy-hold land for her franckbanck wherof her husband died seized And many such 15 Whether are there any customariâ— tenements that are heriotable dismembred and diuided into parcels to the weakening of the tenement and who be they that haue these heriotable parcels what quantitie hath euery of them Although there be no immediate profite can accrue vnto the Lord by the presentmeÌ„t of the substance of this Article yet it behoueth the Lord to know who be the tenants to any part of the land belonging to an heriotable tenement because euery part continueth heriotable and draweth vnto the Lord the best goods of the tenemeâ—â— of such land deceasing though the land in regard whereof he payeth it be but an acre and he haue elsewhere free or copie that maintaineth horsâ— or other cattle of great value the Lord may seize the best for his heriot 16 Whether are not the Fines for admittances of a new customarie tenant being heire or coÌ„ming in by purchase or vpon Surrender at the will of the Lord or are the Fines alwaies certaine This is an Article whereat some close-hearted tenants will seem to stagger being the nature of all men to fauour themselues and their posterities and â—o worke so as they will if it be possible make the Fines certaine by looking back 〈◊〉 past wherin they haue found by old Râ—cords stand by report of tenants before that the fines haue bene certaine and so they may be in some places though in few at this day And it may be former times did affoord such fauor vntill land became of more value but of late yeeres that course hath bene broken and Fines become arbitrable Wherein I wish that Lords and their ministers would vse a meane in exacting 17 How and by what meanes may a customary tenant forfeit his Copy-hold tenement whether for felling of timber trees plowing vp ley grounds or meddowes neuer tilled before or for suffering his houses to decay or for pulling downe any houses or for committing any other wilfull waste or deuising his customarie tenement or lands for longer terme then the custome of the Mannor will beare Or for committing any other act contrarie to the custome of the Mannor And whether hath any tenant of the Mannor offended in any of the former things who it is and wherein is any such offence committed Diuers Acts there be whereby a tenant in one Mannor may forfeit his Coppy-hold tenement which Act is no forfeiture in another Mannor For Customes are very different in diuers Mannors for in some MaÌ„nors a man may cut downe wood and timber trees vpon his Coppy-hold land sell them at his pleasure which in some mannors is a forfeiture Some Mannors do allow the customary tenants of the same to let their land for 3. yeeres some for more without the Lords licence and in some Mannors to let the same aboue a yeere and a day is a forfeiture In some Mannors a man may let fall all his customarie houses which in some other Mannors is a forfeiture In some Mannors a man may
found by the fall of the wandring Index so the other protracteth from the degree whereupon the needle falleth Bayly This differs as much as if the bell should strike the hammer to make it strike where it is more ordinary that the hammer should strike the bell but if the sounds be like certaine and sencible it makes no great matter whether do strike the other And if either of these instruments will performe the worke let men vse whether they list But I pray you let vs proceed in our intended businesse we haue company sufficient both for your instruction of euery mans land and to ayde you to carry the chaine as for your instrument I will carry Is it much materiall where you begin Sur. Truly no yet I hold it most fit to beginne abouâ— the middle of the Mannor and then to take a course as the conuenient lying of the land will moue vs or at one end or side all is one Bayly Then I thinke here is a conuenient place to begin the busines here is a spacious waste and neere about the middle of the Mannor Sur. I pray you then set down your instrumeÌ„t there Baylie What will you doe with that paper Sir Sur. I must fasten it vpon the table that as I goe I may drawe out the forme of euery particular Bay But what is that braâ—se Ruler that you haue taken out of the â—ase Sur. It is the Index of the plaine table Bay Wherefore strike you that line vpon the paper throughout the table at aduenture Sur. It is a meridian line vpon which at euery station as you shal see I lay the Index obseruing to lay it alwaies alike lest I mistake the North point for the South and the contrary Bay Wherefore serueth this great box and néedle vpon the middle of the Index Sur. It directeth to set the table alwaies precisely vpon one point Bay Must it stand alwaies one way and direct alwaies to one point how then can you find the true curuings of the angles Sur. When the needle of the Index standeth true as I take it now it doth Looke vpon it Bay Indeede it is right ouer the line Sur. Then I pray you let me haue one to goe before me alwaies to stand with a marke at â—uery angle Bay There is one gone Sur. I see him Loe I stirre not the table now it is truly rectified and vpon this line I make a pricke which is the very station where the instrument is supposed to stand and now from this pricke laying the Index hard vnto it I by the sights of the Index lay it vnto the mark which is set vp in yonder angle let him not remooue it till I come to it then as you see I draw a line froÌ„ the prick by the index as it lieth truly and firmely to the marke Come on with the line How many stickes is it Baylie Sir it is 25. stickes Sur. That is 75. pole Baylie Is your chaine thrée pole Sur. Yea. Baylie Oh Sir what do you now with your compasses that you first laid to your Index and after to the paper Sur. I lay out the true distance which is from the place where we begun to the place where the marke stands Bayly How do you know whether you strike that line too long or too short do you ayme at it as a man would diuide a thing in diuers parts by his eye Sur. No there is in all arts sundry parts and euery part hath his seuerall practise A man is not presently a Musician as soone as he can say his Gammaâ—th There are steppes and degrees to euery perfection But this little note that you take hold of is not the least of the practise in this facultie Bayly What call you it For as Arts haue diuers parts so euery part hath his seuerall denomination Sur. And this whereof we are now in hand is called The vse of the scale Bayly I pray you if I trouble you not too much let me see the demonstration Sur. You see in this Index diuers inches diuersly diuided one you see is diuided into 16 equall parts another into 20. another into 60. these are called scales of ascending or descending to a higher or lower computation and extention according to the number of perches found betweene station and station This as you see is 75. pole and the scale or diuided inch which I haue chosen is 20. as you see the inch so diuided Bail But how can you take 75. out of 20. for that you say is your scale Sur. I cannot take a greater out of a lesser therefore you see me apply my compasses to more inches then one though some of them be diuided more or lesse I must conceiue euery inch in the whole Index to be 20. Then I lay the one foot of my compasse ouer 3. inches which maketh 60. theÌ„ I lacke 15. to make 75. Therefore I set the other foote of my compasse into the scale of 20. and reduce it onely to 15. which 15. and the three inches next adioyning being imagined 20. a peece makes 75. And as you see the compasse thus spred I apply it without altering to the line which I drew from the first pricke and where the other foot of the compasse falleth there is the second station namely the place where this marke stood Bail Truly Sir I thanke you I conceiue it well for I perceiue I must alwaies accompt the inches not as they are in themselues diuided but euery of them 20. And if it be vnder 20. then I must reâ—erre me to the very scale it selfe which is diuided 20. and take the number out of it and if it be aboue 20. I must take the next inch or inches to the scale and take the odde out of the scale it selfe Sur. If your sudden apprehension haue as strong a retention you will do well but commonly quickest conceits do soonest forget Therefore must you often chew it in your mind and apply it to your memory and as we passe in this busines you may make some practice Bai. Sir I thanke you Sur. What call you this common Bai. Yeâ— that are Tenants and are swornâ— informe the Surueyor Iurie Sir it is called Water-hurst common Sur. So you that carry the marke I pray goe to the next angle and set vp your marke and stirre it not till I come Master Baily set downe the instrument againe heere where the marke stood Bai. I perceiue you lay the Index vpon the line againe and then you turne the table till it be by direction of the néedle North and South as before Sur. I doe so Bai. But why doe you now lay the Index and by it looke backe againe Sur. Only to try whether the needle be right for if the Index from this last pricke doe fall truly vpon the first station then may I be bold that I shal make the next angle true Bai. Nowe you lay the Index to the yonder
thou can not plead thus to seeming friends Alas my friends abortiue I began Who me began thus meanely foorth me sends That I might send him how I passe the taunts Of tanting touÌ„gs that seek their praise by vaunts I vaunt it not but am content to be Where meanest be that blush to shew their face Who sees my face a picture base may see Yet may he see farre fayreâ— find disgrace Disgrace not him that sends me for good will But will him well Requite not good with ill Inuidia sibi aliis venenum The Contents of the fiue books of the Surueyors Dialogue THe first Booke containeth a communication betweene a Farmer and a Surueyor of land wherein is proued that Surueyors of Mannâ—rs and land are necessarie both for the Lord and Tenant and in what maner Tenants ought to behaue themselues towards their Lords in respect of their tenures In the second Booke is intreated between the Lord of a Mannor and a Surueyor concerning the estate of a Mannor of the parts and profits thereunto belonging how the Lord of a Mannor ought to deale with his Tenants In the third Booke is contained the maner and method of keeping a Court of Suruey and the Articles to be inquired of and the charge how to enter inroll Copies Leases and Deeds and how to take the plot of a Mannor In the fourth Book is shewed the maner of the casting vp of the quaÌ„tities of acres of al sorts of grounds by the scale and compasse with Tables of computation for ease in accompting In the fifth Booke is shewed the different natures of grounds and whereunto they may be best imployed how they may be bettered reformed and amended fit for all Farmers and husbandmen ⧠The Surueyors Dialogue betweene a Farmer and a Surueyor wherein is prooued that Surueyes are necessary and profitable both for Lord and Tenant and wherein is shewed how Tenants ought to behaue themselues towards their Lords The first Booke Farmer SIr I am glad I haue so happily met with you for if I be not mistaken you are a Surueyor of Land Surueyor Admit it so Sir what then Farmer I haue heard much euill of the profession and to test you my conceit plainely I thinke the same both euill and vnprofitable Sur. You seeme to be but a yong man in yeeres and are you so deeply seene in the abuse of this Faculty that you can so peremptorily condemne iâ— Far. Call it you a Faculty What meane you by that word Sur. Abilitie to performe a thing vndertaken Far. Then this faculty of yours I say is a vaine facultie and a needlesse worke vndertaken Sur. Speake you this by coniecture by report of others or by due experience of your owne Far. I speake indéede as indured to the opinion I hold by all the three reasons oftentimes you are the cause that men lose their land and sometimes they are abridged of such liberties as they haue long vsed in Mannors and customes are altred broken and sometimes peruerted or taken away by your meanes And aboue all you looke into the values of menslands whereby the Lords of Mannors do rack their tenants to a higher rent and rate then euer before and therefore not only I but many poore tenants else haue good cause to speake against the profession Sur. Be you not offended at the comparison which I will make to your allegations Why should not such persons as are inhibited by the lawes of the Realme to commit certaine acts within the common wealth cry out against them that by the same lawes are appoynted Magistrates and Officers to see these lawes executed vpon them as Roagues Beggers and other like vagabonds for if such officers and ouerseers were not these offensiue persons might haue their wills so would it follow that men of peace and good members of the Common-wealth should be endangered to be sacked of that they haue by such lewd persons Necessary therefore it is that there should be such as should see vnto informe punish and reforme these And by your assertion you may as well intend vnder like reason against keeping of Courts in a Mannor wherein many abuses are found out reformed and punished which without such Courts would lye smothered festering so long that there would be few sound members left within the same Farm It séemes you compare tenants of Mannors that are many of them honest ciuill and substantiall men to Roagues and vagabonds You forget your selfe Sur. My plaine words are that as well these euill members of the common wealth may speake against the Surueyors of the common wealth which to speake only of the vnder officers are the Iustices of the peace Constables and such like as may tenants of a Mannor speake against the surueying of their lands within the same Farm That were strange for by the one the whole state of the kingdome is kept in peace and by the other many millions disturbed that might liue quietly in their Farmes tenements houses and lands that are now dayly troubled with your so narrow looking thereinto measuring the quantity obseruing the quality recounting the value and acquainting the Lords with the estates of all mens liuings whose auncesters did liue better with little then loe can do now with much more because by your meanes rents are raysed lands knowne to the vttermost Acre fines inhaunced farre higher then euer before measuring of land and surueying came in and therefore I thinke you cannot but confesse that other men as well as I haue gâ—â—d cause to speake of you and your profession as I doe Sur. I perceiue that the force of your strongest arguments is as before I sayd your â—eare and vnwillingnes that the Lord of the Mannor vnder whom and in whose land you dwell should know his owne and that you thinke it better for you that he should continue still ignorant of what he hath and that your estates should be alwayes hidden and what iniury you doe should be concealed then that he should be acquâ—â—â—ted with what you hold and your abuses incrochments vsurpations intentions and wrongs discoâ—â—red Farm Sir we acknowledge that the Lord ought to haue his rent and that is all and our seruices at his Courts but the land we haue is our owne Sur. Howsoeuer you may accompt them yours yet the Lord hath such an interest and propertie in them as he may also call them his nay I may say you are not in such sort your owne but next vnder the King you may be sayd to be the Lords Farm Fye vpon you will you bring vs to be slaues neither lawe nor reason least of all religion can allow what you affirme and therefore as I before conceiued so I may now protest that you and such as you are are euen the cords whereby poore men are drawne into seruitude and slauery and therefore I say againe it is pitty any of you haue any imployment in a Common wealth Sur. What
then it was Farm There you much mistake you for I will shew by auncient Court â—â—lls that the fine of that which is now twenty pound was then but thirteene shillings foure pence and yet will you say they are now as they were then Sur. Yea and I thinke I 〈…〉 in it For if you consider the state of things then and now you shall find the proportion little differing for so much are the prices of things vendible by Farmers now increased as may well be said to exceed the prices then as much as twenty pound exceedeth xiii s. iiii d. Farm You speake farre from truth and I maruell you will erre so much pretending to be a 〈◊〉 of that reach that men imploy you â—o ouer reach others Sur. To shew you then â—n instance looke into the Chronicle in the time of Henry the sixt and you shall finde that a quarter of Wheate was sold at Roystâ—n in Hartfordshire for twelue pence and I trust if you be a Farmer you are a Corne-seller and I thinke if a man offer you thirty times as much for a quarter you will say it is better worth Farm Was it possible that â—â—ane was then and there so cheape and to rise since to this raâ—â— it is very strange Sur. Not at all for since 〈◊〉 grew such emulation among Farmers that one would ouâ— bid another which in the beginning was little seene it grew at length that he that bought deare must sell deare and so grew the prices of things by degrees to this â—â—te as 〈◊〉 they be and a Farmer gets as much by his Farme noâ— aâ— then he did Far. You erre therein I assure you for else could Farmers keepe as good houses hospitality now as they did then and alas you sée how vnable they be Sur. It is true and the reason is manifest for where in those dayes Farmers and their wiues were content with meane dyeâ— and base attire and held their children to some â—â—stere gouernment without haunting Alehouses Tauerns Dice Cards vaine delites of charge the case is altred the Husbandman so publikely for Vinâ— mendibiâ—â— suspâ—â—â—sa heder a non est upos A gâ—â—d workeman néeds not stand in the stréetes Sur. I confesse in this you haue sayd truly for none that is in deede fit for imployment will or needs to craue it in such manner for they will be sought vnto and solicited But euery one that hath but a part of the arte nay if he can performe some one two or three parts is not thereby to be accounted a Surueyor as some Mechanicall men and Countrey-fellowes that can measure a peece of Land and though illiterate can accompt the quantitie by the parts of money as a peny to a 〈◊〉 a groat to a day-worke ten groats to a Roode and consequently a marke to an Acre which manner of calling sufficeth and satisfyeth them in their small accomptâ— but the maner of their measuring to 〈◊〉 erronious as I will shew you hereof 〈…〉 serue Some haue the skill of plotting out of ground and can neatly deliniate the same and by Arithmetike can cast up the contents which is a necessary point of a Suruey on office Farm Sauing your 〈…〉 we poore Country men due not thinke it good to haue our Lands plotted out and we thinks in déede it is to very 〈◊〉 all purpose for is not the Field it selfe a goodly Map for the Lord to looke vpon better then a painted paper And what is he the better to see 〈◊〉 out in colours He can adde nothing to his land nor diminishâ—utâ— and therefore that labour aboue all may be saued in mine opinion Sur. They that speake at any time againste any thing done or propounded to be done do either shew their reasons against it or else they conceale their conceits and without any good argument inueigh only against the thing And I know your meaning in misliking ploâ—â—ing of your land and yet you 〈◊〉 doo what you thinke for a plot rightly drawne by true information describeth so the likely image of a Mannor and euery branch and member of the same as the Lord sitting in his chayre may see what he hath where and how it lyeth and in whose vse and occupation euery particular is vpon the suddaine view which tenants mislike not that the thing it selfe offendeth them but that by it they are often preuented or discouered of deceitfull purposes For a tenant that is both a free-holder and a copy-holder for life or by indenture for life or yeeres holding these lands interâ—â—â—â— may easily vnlesse the land for life or yeeres be very specially butted and bounded in their copies or leases as seldome they are through the sloth of some stewards or for default of a true suruey led guide them appropriate vnto himselfe copy or leased land to a free and especially hauing time â—nough to alter names and propertiâ—â— to remooue meeres and to call downe ditches to stock vp hedges and to smothee vp truth and falshood vnder such a 〈…〉 conueniency as before 〈◊〉 be suspected 〈…〉 view it will be cleane for gotten 〈…〉 shall be able to say This is the land whereas if it be plotted out and euery parcell of free copy leased and the rest be truly distinguished no such 〈…〉 can be done against the Lord but it shall be 〈◊〉 readily reconciled And I dare presume to say that the want of due plots and descriptions of land in this forme hath bin the occasion of infinite concealements and losses of many mens land and many intrusions and inâ—roâ—hmenâ—s haue bin made and to long continued that now neither memory or record can reforme them besides infinite other abuses which are dayly done to the preiudice of Lords for want of such a monument to be always at hand for their instructioÌ„ Far. You ayme vnhappily I thinke to some mens purposes but for my part I promise you I had no such thought in me yet what you say may indéede be easily wrought in moâ—â— Mannors if they be as y t Mannor is wherein I am a Tenant for I am perswaded there hath not bin any view taken of it or perumbulation made or suruey had within the memory of any man aliue And to tell you truly I thinke the Lord hath much wrong both by his owne Tenants and by confining Lords for so the Lord haue his rent and his other duties of vs he is contented but I may tell you if he did better looke into it it would be better for himselfe and his hereafter yet we wish he would let it rest as it doth for we may do in manner what we list and if a Surueyor come we shall not do as we haue done nor hold that that some haue held long without any trouble but that I leaue Then you say that plotting is the chiefe part of a Surueyors skill Sur. I say not so but I say it is necessary for him
that is a Surueyor to be able to do it and that he be painefull industrious hauing this quality with the rest more necessary he may be then called a Surueyour Farm What are they I pray you Sur. To little purpose I thinke I shall tell you yet because you may know that euery one that hath the name is not indeede a Surueyor for besides the former faculty of measuring and plotting he must haue the vnderstanding of the Latin toong and haue some sight in the common lawes especially of Tenures and Customes and must be able to reade and vnderstand any auncient deeds or records French and Latine and to iudge of the values of Land and many other things which if time will permit I will hereafter declare more at large vnto you Farm Why is there such a precise knowledge required in a Surueyor Sur. Because they are imployd in such businesses as concerne greatest persons in their estates for although men be indowed by the prouidence of God and in his â—ounty with Honors Mannors Castles houses lands tenements woods and other like reuenues which indeed are the sinnewes and ligaments which conioyne tye Honor and Habilitiâ— together yet if these be not managed guided and carefully continued and increased by a discreet honest Surueyor foâ— and in the name and behalfe of his Lord and the Lord agayne proportion his expence and charge according vnto or within the compasse of his knowne Incomes the Lord may be disabled to maintaine that which he hath gotten the title of Honor where Honor is without meanes it wanteth the substaÌ„ce hath only y e shadow of it self to looke vpoÌ„ Far. It behaues not only men of Nobility but inferior meÌ„ also to looke vnto theÌ„selues for y e preseruation of their estates but they indéed y t haue but little may quickly view it Sufficit exigno strigilatio curta caballo But he that hath many Honors Mannors Lordships Tenements Farmes can not of himselfe take view with ease for indéede they lye for the most part dispersed in many parts they must be ayded by the skilfull industrious trauaile of some iudicious Surueyor who finding by his view examination the true values yearly possibilities of his Lords Lands may be a good meane to retaine his Lord within compas of his reuenues and to worke him to be good to his Tenants and by that meanes the Surueyor shall deserue prayse his Lord win more honor But I maruell how such great persons did before surueying came vp for this is an vpstart arte found out of late both measuring and plotting Sur. You speake I thinke according to your conceit but I will proue it far otherwise that measuring plotting and surueying hath bin vsed in ages of old As for description it was vsed in Egipt by Ptolomy the King who described the whole world And where the Riuer Nilus in Egipt ouerflowed the bancks as at this day it doth about haruest the violence of the inundations were such as they coÌ„founded the marks bounds of all the grouÌ„ds that were surrounded in such sort as none knew his own land wherupon they deuised to measure euery mans land to plot it so that afterwards alwayes at the waters recesse euery man could finde out his owne land by the plot Far. Truly that was a most excelleÌ„t inuention I thinke it indéede a most necessary course to be held in some grounds y t I know in England which are subiect to like coÌ„fusion many marsh lands néere the sea coast in Kent Sussex Essex Suffolke Lincolneshire Cambridgeshire other Shires confining the Sea or subiect to great waters if they were thus plotted out as you say I must needs confesse it were a good worke howsoeuer these kind of grounds should be hereafter surrounded increased or diminished by the force of Seas continuall rage whereunto they are dayly subiect for by y e meanes if the ditches which are the ordinary méeres meates bounds betwéene seueral meÌ„s lands be confounded this deuice might after the winning of these surrounded grounds againe truly reconcile them and allot euery maÌ„ his own which otherwise will be impossible to bring to true appropriations And this in my conceit is not the least part of your professioÌ„ to lay out grounds in their true formes that euery seuerall parcell may be distinguished froÌ„ other for I know where great strife hath risen by confounding one Mannor with another where y e sea hath woon lost grouÌ„d deuoured y e true bouÌ„ds of which I am not alone witnes it is dayly seene y e questioÌ„s do rise by like casualties where townes houses fields woods and much land hath béen and are dayly deuoured and in some places augmented Riuers by force turned out of their right courses vpon other confining lands whereof time hath takeÌ„ such hold as y e truth is now brought in question to the stirring vp of quarrels betwéene parties which if these places had béen formerly laid out in plot the doubt would be easily answered In these things I can not but agrée with you that your profession may stéed men that haue vse of your trauaile in this kind although no such arte hath bin nor is it reported to haue had any vse in y e word of God Sur. Is there a necessity to produce the vse of this from examples out of the word of God when these indifferent things are left to the discretion of man for matters of politike and ciuill society If euery profession should be driuen to fetch authority from the vse in sacred things many things plentifull amongst vs that liue in a Common-wealth would be found prophane but because you seeme to vrge it I will not stuck to let you know that it is not without example in the diuine old Testament If first you wil haue the proofe of measuring looke into the second Chapter of Zachary and there shall you finde that the Prophet reporteth that hee saw a man with a measuring line in his hand and he asked him whither he went and he said vnto him To measure Ierusalem that I may see what is the bredth thereof and what is the length thereof Farm I doe remember now that I haue read such a thing indéede but as I take it this measurer was an Angell of God Sur. Then is the warrant of measuring so much the more strongly coÌ„firmed vnto meÌ„ But you may perceiue that measuring was then in vse in other things for had not there bin the vse of the measuring line before how could the Prophet haue knowne it to be for that purpose Farm Yes being a Prophet Sur. He could not haue called a thing by it proper phrase that had not bene in vse before neither could his relation thereof bene vnderstood of them to whom he declared it vnlesse they also had before knowne the like Farm Can you prooue the like of Surueying Sur. Ioshua
glad to learneâ— for I haue to doe sometimes with Herioâ—s But because I know not why they are so called what they bee how where when by whom for what they should bee answered I do feare I am sometimes abused Sur. I may tell you as I haue heard and of my selfe coniectured whence the word commeth But I haue no certaine authority for it Iâ— may beâ— said and most likely it is that it should come of the word Hâ—rus a Lord and Master and Heriotâ—â— belonging to the Lord. And it was in the beginning a thing for the warres as the best Horse a man that died had at the time of his death Sixe Controlâ— 11 26 maketh a Barony 25600. acres whose reliefe is 100. Marks One Barony ½ make an Earledome 38400 acres whose reliefe is 100. pound Lord. Do these proportions of Land alwayes hold with their titles of honor Sur. Surely no for we may obserue they are increased and diminished as men are in disposition to spend or saue to adde to or to dismember their patrimonies But these were the proportions at the first institution of these particular allotments and the denominations do hold though the quantities of the Land be more or lesse the lesser parts we see as yard lands plow-lands c. differ as the custome of euery Countrey drawne by time doth at this day hold and allow but that is no preiudice to the first purpose which allotted a certainty to euery part and a certaine reliefe to be paid according to the first institution of euery part and the payment followeth the title not the quantity Lord. You haue sayd inough of reliefs now speake of the rest and as I remember the next after reliefs was waynes what are they Sur. Waynes or wayned goods are goods or chattels of what nature soeuer stolne in the fugacie of the thiefe he leâ—ues them behind him for want of conuenient carriage or conueyance being pursued and wheresoeuer such goods are they are y e Lords of that Mannor oâ— liberty wherein they are fouÌ„d if the prerogatiue of y e Mannor wil beare it for euery Mannor wil not but such as haue it by graunt from the King Lord. Whence commeth the word Waiffe Sur. The goods thus stolne and left behind the thiefe are called in Latine Bona or catalla waniata a word which our common Lawyers only vse and the signification is gathered by the vse for I thinke none that is a stranger to the 〈…〉 he be neuer so well seene 〈◊〉 can say this word signifies the thing for which it is now â—â—ken Lord. Well then as long as we vnderstand the meaning by the vse it sufficeth without further examination or disputation about the word it selfe But how is it to be 〈…〉 goods for it may be as 〈◊〉 casually lâ—st as 〈◊〉 stolne Sur. Therefore when any such thing is found within a Mannor the Bayliffe or other the Lords officer seizeth it to the Lords vse as a thing wherein at the instant no man claymeth propertie And if it be nor euident by the pursute of the theefe that it was stolne it is proclaymd and presented the next Court and found by the Iury of what nature it is and that the property is in the Lord and because these and estrayeâ— are spoken of at large at euery Court-Baron by the Steward no man can pretend ignorance of them therefore I will omit to speake any more of them But a little of forfeitures though no doubt you being Lord of many Mannor know right well what they are and how they grow and the 〈…〉 no doubt could wish you and other Lords knew lesse then generally you do Lord. Tush if there were no penaltyes men would commit offences without feare and if there were no forfeitures for abuses done against Lords of Mannors Tenants would too boldly make wasteâ—â— spoyles of the Lords inheritance without regard of law loue or humanity and therefore let me heare your opinion what forfeitures are and for what causes Lords of carelesse Tenants may take aduantage of forfeitures Sur. I know many Lords too forward in taking aduantage of forfeitures vpon small occasions and if manifest cause be giueÌ„ them they shew little compassion And if I knew you were a man desirous to take aduantage in this kinde I would beâ— sparing to discouer any thing tending to that liberty for I well conceiue that the lawe did not to much prouide to enrich the Lords of Mannors by their Tenants forfaytures as to keepe Tenants in good order and to restraine them with feare of losing their Tenements from rash and wilfull abuses And therefore in all forfaytures there are diuers circumstances to bee considered as whether the Tenant did it ignorantly negligently or as constrained through necessity In these cases whatsoeuer lawe in extreme iustice alloweth a good conscience forbiddeth to take aduantage though the second be worthy to suffer some smart for negligeÌ„ce cannot be excused for nature it self teacheth beasts they in their maner of liuing vse a kinde of prouidence But if the forfayture be coÌ„mitted wilfully or maliciously it deserueth in the first little in the second lesse pity Yet where a good mind is there lodgeth no reuenge or couetous desire And where neither of these are there all extremities die Yet I wish that in these last two cases the offendors should be punished more in terrorem for examples sake then to satisfie the greedy desire of a couetous Landlord who though he may say he doth no more then the law warranteth doth yet straine a point of Christian charity by which men are bound to measure all mens cases by a true consideration of their owne So shal he that is Lord of much and of many Mannors looking into the law of the great Lord of whom he hath receiued 〈◊〉 whatsoeuer he hath finde 〈◊〉 himselfe hath committed a forfayture of all if his high Lord should take aduantage of all the trespasses 〈◊〉 wrongs hee hath done against him Lord. You are out of the matter wherof our talkâ— consisted I desire you not to tell 〈…〉 I may take a forfeiture by a good conscience but what a forfeiture is and 〈◊〉 the taking and leaâ—ing the aduantage vnto such as haue the power to punish or forgiue Sur. So must I when I haue spoken all I can But I hold it not the part of an honest mind in a Surueyour to be an instigator of the Lords extremities towards his Tenants though I confesse he ought to do his vttermost indeuour to aduance the Lords benefit in all things fit and expedient yet ought his counsaile and aduice to tend no further then may maintaine obedieÌ„ce in the Tenants towards their Lords and loue and fauour of the Lords towards their Tenants which being on all sideâ— vnfained neither of them shall haue iust cause to complaine of or to vse râ—goâ— to the other for it is not the actor
things at full which are required in the Mathematickes whereof this is but a pâ—râ— Bayly I thanke you for your present willingnesse when better your oportunitie and leasure wil permit you I will be bold â—o trouble you further I will be thankfull I will not now let you I pray you procéed Sur. What house is this Bayly These men of the Iury will tell you better then I for I am but a stranger here to speake of and I dare not be too bold to speake either by gesse or by report of things which must be recorded to posterities Sur. You do better to forbeare and to be silent indeed then to speake what may leade vs into error as many busie and forward fellowes do to the hurt sometimes of the Lord sometimes of the tenant And some Surueyors ouer credulous will take their raw reports for matter of record and so leaue doubts or vntruths to them that shall come after But what say you that haue bene sworne Iury. The name of the house is Fullers but why it is so called we cannot tell Sur. It is so called no doubt of some former tenant of that name for houses and farmes are oftentimes called after sundry names according to the varietie of the tenants names and it is a good course to set downe all the ancient names of a farme because in ancient records names are found both of farmes and closes and such like that are out of knowledge for want of the continuance of expressing them in their Copies Deedes Leases Rentals fute Rols and custome Rols But whose is the house now Iury. It is now in the renure of W. Sands Sur. How doth he hold it Iury. By Lease for 21. yéerâ—s Sur. When I come to any of the land that belongeth to this house let me vnderstand it for it is conuenient to mention in setting down euery peece of ground to what house farme or tenement it belongeth Bayly Here you are now come to the Lords wood Sur. What call you this wood Bayly I take it it is called Frith-wood Sur. It is parcell of the Lords demeisnes is it not Iury. It is so Sir Sur. Here are good timber trees we will number them Bayly Number them how is it possible to nuÌ„ber them they are so many and stand so thicke Sur. I confesse especially if it be thicke of bushes and vnderwoods there is difficultie in numbring them yet if you will follow my direction we will come neere the number Bayly How I pray you we will all giue any ayde we can Sur. Then go you along by this hedge and wheÌ„ I bid you stand stand you still and let another go vp this path and when he comes right against you let him stand likewise another must stand here at the end of the wood and must not moue vntil I call him to remoue and I and my man will accompt the nuÌ„ber of the trees that are within the square which you three and the corner of the wood doth make Sirra go you along by the hedge and let your eye be alwayes vpon the trees that are betweene vs and as you see me moue so moue you and I will number the trees as I go So now call away the 〈◊〉 that stands at the end of the wood and place them again in another square and do as before and so from place to place till all the wood be viewed and the trees numbred Bayly To what end is this what is the Lord the better to know the number of the trees Sur. Howsoeuer the Lord be pleased to thinke of the seruice a Surueyor ought to know it that wheÌ„ he shall be demanded of the Lord what he thinketh the wood to be woorth to be sold he may be able to answer it and giue a reason for that he saith and not to speake at randon or by gesse without some ground of reason or proofe For how can a man value a wood when he knowes not what crop it beareth For a wood may haue an hundred trees in an acre some woods not twenty some not fiue and therfore it were great negligence in a Surueyor that would passe by a wood of the Lords and would not take note of the trees yea and of the reasonable value of them one with another that he may be readily able to satisfie the Lord when he shall demaund the Surueyors opinion though he cannot answer precisely yet neere Bayly You say truly But what if there be no trees at all in the wood as here is a wood adioyning called Buckes-groue that hath the name of a wood but hath no trées at all Sur. Then is it vnderwood which must be considered in another kind for there is difference betweene timber trees and vnderwoods for an acre of timber trees may be woorth forty pounds and far more or much lesse when an acre of vnderwoods can not lightly exceed fiue pounds and may not be woorth twenty shillings Therefore must the Surueyor be heedful I say to note what trees are among the vnderwoods and must also haue skill to iudge of the values of the trees namely to iudge what a tunne of timber or a loade is worth and how many loades a tree will make And because this is not alike in all places he must be carefull to obserue the plentie or scarcitie the vse and little vse of timber or fire-wood in the place where he is to deale and accordingly in discretion to iudge of the values of that he hath in hand else may he deceiue himself and his Lord much if he prize wood in the wield of Sussex as it is woorth about Salisburie plaine Bayly Sauing your spéech the like is to be considered in the letting and sale of land Sur. It is true we haue had a good walke betweene these two stations and a long discourse of woods But me thinkes I see a quarry of very good stone here Bail Yea Sir here is both excellent frée-stone and good Marble and as we shall go you shall find diuers sorts of minerals and earths which you can not note vpon your plot because they are things hidden vnder the earth Sur. Yea but I will for so I ought set downe in the plot the places where euery of these commodities are found But for the matter and substance and the profite and value I know the Iurie will bring in in their verdict for they are all giuen them in charge Bail It is true these things are necessarily giuen them in charge But here is a Mill Sir will you take note of it vpon your plot Sur. In any case for it is not the least ornament of a Mannor a faire streame and a well conditioned and well wrought Mill vpon the same In whose vse or occupation is this Mill Bayly It is one G. Iohnsons Sur. By what right Bayly Let them of the Iury speake Iury. He holdeth it fréely for a pepper corne a yéere But it was parcell
Records and bookes of Suruey of great antiquitie which doe shewe that the Lords demeisnes were measured with a Pole of 20. foote which was called maior mensura the customary by a Pole called mensura minor which I take to bee but 16 8 2 foote though in some places the Tenants claime the 18. foote Pole Bay Then let me aske you another question You shall shortly come into a Mannor of my Land-lords where the Copyes doe speake of an Acre ware or warr which I neuer could finde or heare what it truely meant nor what quantity it containeth But the Tenants make good vse in their conceites of the name for vnder that title they will carry away 2.3.6.10 Acres though they lie in 20. parcels it is all but an Acre warr and yet I haue séene some vnder that title not 3. Roodes of ordinary measure Howe comes it to passe thinke you Sur. To speake truely I cannot precisely tell you for I haue seene the like especially in Suff. Norff. and Essex But as I coniecture it is a measured acre as an Acre by warrant Acre warre an approued Acre and the true sence being lost by time they make it like a finger of waxe to drawe it more or lesse as will best serue their purpose Bay I haue also séene Land vnder the name of Molland and I haue heard much disputation about the etimon of the word Some holde it to be de Mollendo of custome grinding at the Lords mill Some otherwise and leaue it vncertaine Sur. There is no difficultie in it for Molland is vp-land or high ground and the contrary is Fenland low grouÌ„d a matter ordinary where they vse to distinguish betweene these two kindes But we will leaue these ambiguous words and so take my leaue and betake me to my taske Bay Sir I will not be troublesome vnto you onely when you haue cast vp your particulars and finished your businesse of this Suruey I wil bee bold to trouble you againe to sée what euery man holdeth and the value both of the customary leased lands and the Lords demaynes May I be so bold Sur. It is a thing which I seldome consent vnto for I must tell you this he is no true Surueyor for the Lord that will make the same knowne to strangers I haue vndertaken the busines for the Lord not for strangers And as he putteth me in trust so will I bee secret in these things therefore I pray you in this pardon me Bay You shewe me reason and I was too rash But by your leaue how shall the Iurie giue their allowance to your doings as you say you will acquaint them with them vnlesse you deliuer euery particular playnly Sur. You must thinke there are some things which may be publique as the names of grounds the owners their estates buts bouÌ„ds such like their answers to the Articles And some things priuate to be concealed as the quantities and supposed yeerely values These are for the Lord. Bay I thought I should haue seene the whole method of your collections and obseruations to the end that seeing I haue waded thus farre into the Art I might be somewhat instructed how to haue marshialed and ingrossed my Booke when such a worke were done Sur. Euery man in that case may vse his owne method yet if you bee desirous to see an exact course in that kinde I must referre you to the most commendable worke of Master Valentine Leigh whom in that if you imitate you shal tread the right way to the marke Bay Then I shall onely remaâ—â—â— thankefull vnto you for your patience and puynâ—â— and bee studious euermore to doe you any seruice Sur. I thanke you I haue a desire to haue some communication with you when I haue past ouer this little worke in hand Bay Willingly Sir I will giue my diligent attendance But I pray you Sir in what especially do you purpose to conferre wiâ—h me to pose me I feare whether I haue forgotten that you taught me Sur. Not so but you being Bayly of this Mannor about which I haue as you see taken a serious perambulation haue not as I perswade me bene so carefull prouident for the Lords profit as you may for there bee diuers grounds which good and industrious husbandry would be much bettered as I will tell you further at our next leasurable meeting For this time fare you well The end of the fourth Booke The Surueyors Dialogue shewing the different natures of grounds how they may be imployed how they may be bettered reformed and amended The fifth Booke Bai. I Perceiue Sir you are now at some leasure you are walking abroad to take the ayre after your long and tedious sitting I thinke indéed you are wearie Sur. I am somewhat wearie but a man that vndertaketh a businesse must apply it and not be wearie or at least not to seeme to be so Bai. But me thinkes you apply it too hard you might sometimes ease you and giue your selfe to some game for recreation Sur. They that are idle may take their pleasures in gaming but such as are called to liue by their labors and haue a delight therin as all men ought take pleasure and thinke it a pleasing sport to get meanes by their lawfull labors to liue Bai. You say truth indéed for the old Prouerbe is Dulcis labor cum lucro But I pray you whither walke you Sur. Into this next peece of ground Bai. Nay it is an ill ground to walke in for it is full of bogges a very moorish plot ouercome with wéedes and indeed is of no vse Sur. I therefore go to see it and worthily to attach you the Lords Baily of remisnesse negligent looking vnto the Lords profit suffering such a peece of ground as this to lye idle and waste and to foster nothing but bogges Sedges Flagges Rushes and such superfluous and noysome weedes where if it were duly drained and carefully husbanded it would make good meddow in short time Bayly I thinke that impossible for there be many such plots you see in this leuell and in many mens occupations and some of them thinke themselues good husbands I can tell you and they sée that it is a matter of difficulty and charge and therfore they thinke and so do I that it is to no purpose to begin to amend it Sur. I thinke they haue more land then they or you haue experience how to conuert to best vse they their owne and you your Lords Bayly If you be so skilfull I pray tell me for the Lords profite how it may be amended Sur. If you be ignorant how to amend it and simply desire to learne it were a fault in me to conceale from you the meanes how to do it But if you be carelesse or wilfull it were good to leaue you in your ignorance and to informe the Lord of your vnfitnesse that a more skilfull might take the place Bayly
That is the woorst that you can do But I trust I may be a Bayly good inough yet want one part of that which my place requireth to performâ— Sur. Euen as well as a horse may be said to trauell well inough and yet lacke one legge Bai. I would be sorie that comparison should hold for than I could not but confesse that I were a same officer as there be in other kinds â—uen of your owne profession many But I am not onely not wilful but I am willing to learne and I do not thinke any man so absolute in his place and calling but he may learne some point of his function if at least he will confesse his owne imperfections Sur. Whether he verbally confesse them or not the execution will bewray them and the world will obserue them in him And therefore it behooueth all such as vndertake and enter into any office or function to examine the duties appertaining to such an office and finding his fitnesse or vnfitnesse to performe it so to leaue or take though few stagger at any If his abilitie be weake reason and duty may moue him to seeke expedient knowledge lest he shame himselfe and slander the place he is in And therefore I wish you to aske aduice not onely in this case but in all other belonging to your charge For as it is commendable to know more and more so is it no shame to aske often Bay I pray you then tell me Sir how must this péece of ground be handled to be made meddow as you say it will be made or good pasture Sur. It must be drained Bayly If that be all I thinke I can say it is to little purpose for I haue made trenches to that end as you may sée where and how But it became little or nothing the better and therefore I thinke cost will be but cast away vpon it Sur. It is a true Prouerbe Ignorance is an enemy to art and experience What you did it may be you had good will to do the Lord seruice in it but the course you tooke was not in the right kind It is not enough to make such ditches as appeareth you haue done they are too few too wide Neither did you rightly obserue the fall of the water Baylie That were hard to be done in such a place as this where the water hath no fall at all neither is y e water séene much as you sée but it is the moistnes of the earth that â—arres the land Sur. But the moisture comes by water and the water is swallowed vp in this spungâ—e ground and lyes vnseene yeâ— if you marke it well you may obserue which way it reâ—les for as you see though this plot of ground be very leuell in apparence yet if it were tried by a true leuell it would be found declining towards yonder forlorne brooke which you see is stopâ— vp with weedes that iâ— permitteth not the water conuenient passe Therefore the first worke is to rid the sewer or chiefe water-course and then shall you see that the grounds neere the cleansed brooke will become more drie by the moisture soking into the sewer then make your other draines vsing discretion therein namely in cutting them streight from the most boggie places to the maine brooke euery of them as it were paralelly then cut you some other draines sloping which may carry the water into these first draines which againe will conuey it into the maine Bayly You see the ditches that I made they were broade enough and deepe fit to conuey much water yet they did no good can you prescribe a better forme Sur. Your ditches for the forme were too broad and as it seemes too deepe and that makes the water to stand in them and being broad aboue and narrow in the bottome makes the loose earth to fall in and choake the ditch But if you will make profitable draines you must first obserue how the water will runne in them for so will it appeare presently and to make them as narrow aboue as at the bottome which at the most must not be aboue one foot and a halfe broadâ— and the crust of the earth will hold that the earth fall not in againe So will it in short time make it appeare that the moisture will decay and the grounds become more drie and as it becomes freed of the superfluous moisture so wiâ—l the weedes that are nourished by it beginne to wither as they are depriued of their nouriture which is too much water which breedeth too much cold and too much cold is the life of such weeds as increase in this ground and therefore the weedes should be often cut downe in the spring time and by that meanes they will consume and better grasse come in their steade and the better if cattle feed the ground vpon the draining as bare as may be Bayly But the â—raines you speake of may be dangerous for cattle especially for shéepe and lambes Sur. Not if they be kept alwaies cleansed and open that sheepe and cattle may see them for the bigger sort may steppe ouer them and the lesser may haue little bridges of the same crust by vndermining the earth some three or foure foote that the water may passe vnder Bail Indéed if the crust of the earth will hold it this course is necessary But there is much land in England lost for want of draining as the Fennes and low grounds in Lincoln-shire Cambridg-shire Northfolke and other places which I did thinke impossible euer to be made dry by the art or industry of man And yet as I heare much of it is made lately firme ground by the skill of one Captaine Louell and by M. William Englebert an excellent Ingenor And truly it is much to their owne commendation and to the common good of the inhabitants néere But these grounds are not drained by such meanes as you speake of Sur. Indeed the draines are of vnlike quantitie but like in qualitie one and the same rule of reason doth worke both the one and the other But to say truly vnto thee the people of those countries especially the poorer sort where this kind of publike benefite is thus gotten had rather haue the want by their Fathers error then to reape good and more plenty by other mens art and charge And in their conceits they had rather catch a Pike then feede an Oxe Bayly They are either very vnwise or very wilful But no doubt authority is aboue such country wilfulnesse and doth or may inioyne them for the common weale to consent and yeeld all ayde in the businesse But if they will needes fish and foole and refuse rich reléefe we will leaue them to their wils till reason in themselues or compulsion bring them to a more generall desire of so great a blessing Sur. Let it be so What Alders are in the next ground Baylie They are the Lords too Sir but the ground is so rotten
according to a slubberd patterne of ancient ignorance by which they onely shape all their courses as their Fathers did neuer putting in practise any new deuice by the rule of more reason And therefore indeed we that are yet in a plodding kind of course may conforme vs â—o new and probable precedents as time and â—riall will yeeld experience But â—urely I hold your opinion good for the planting of fruit trees not only in Orchards but in the hedge rowes fields for I thinke we haue of no tree more necessarie vse Sur. It is true in respect of fruite But in other respects the Oke Elme and Ash are more precious Bayly These indéed are building trées and of the three the Oke is of most request a timber most firme and most durable I haue bâ—â—ne no great traueller and therefore I can speake little of the increase or decrease of them other then in the places where I am most resident and where my ordinary affaires do lye And for those parts I can say that they increase not though they seeme not to be wanted for you see this country inclinable to wood and timber much yet within these twenty yeeres they haue bene diminished two parts of three and if it go on by like proportion our children will surely want How it is in other countries I know not Sur. I haue seene many places of note for this kind of commodity for so â—t is howsoeuer it hath bene little preserued and I find that it hath vniuersally receiued a mortall blow within the time of my memorie notwithstanding there is a Statute for the preseruation and maintenance of the same and the same continued to this day but not with wished effect as we haue thereof spoken before Bail I will tell you Sir carelesse Gentlemen that haue Mannors and Parkes well woodded left them by their carefull auncestors that would not strip a tree for gold are of the mind as it seemeth that the shadow of the high trees do dazle their eyes they cannot see to play the good husbands nor looke about them to sell the land tiâ—l the trees be taken out of their sight Sur. Can you breake a iest so boldly vpon men of woorth Bail You see as well as I some do it in earnest and I thinke indeed it is partly your fault that are Surueyors for when Gentlemen haue sunke themselues by rowing in Vanities boate you blow them the bladders of lauishing helps to make them swim againe awhile counselling first to cleere the land of the wood in the sale whereof is great abuse perswading them they shall sell the land little the cheaper And indeed I hold iâ— prouidence where necessitie commands to chuse of two the lesser euill namely to sell part of a superfluous quantitie of wood where the remanent will serâ—â— the partie in vse rather then the land But withal it is the part of a good Surueyor to counsell frugalitie and a sparing spending according to the proportion of the means of him he trauelâ—â—or And â—f that great Emperor Necessitie will needes haue hauâ—cke sell the wood or pâ—ize it so as he that buyes the land haue not the wood for nought as is often seene when the wood and timber sometimes is woorth the price of wood and land Sur. It seemes when you come to be a Surueyor as you labor to be I hope you will be very carefull in your counsell but it may be when you seeme to haue best skill and earnest desire to draw the line straight for a man inclinable to his owne will he will rather giue it into the hands of some one that feedes his conceits with flatterie and he shall mannage the building when you haue laid the foundation And what he doth be it right or crooked is leuell with the marke And therefore leauing euery man to him he likes I say onely this that sith timber and timber trees and wood by due obseruation are found to decay so fast me thinkes in common discretion it should behooue euery good husband for all would be so accompted both vpon his own â—and as also vpon such as he holds of other mens not onely to maintaine and to the vttermost to preserue the timber trees and saplins likely to become timber trees Oke Elme and Ash but voluntarily to plant young and because there is not onely an vniuersall inclination to hurle downe it were expedieÌ„t that sith will will not authoritie should constraine some mean of restauration namely to enioyne men as well Lords as tenants to plant for euery summe of acre a number of trees or to sow or set a quantitie of ground with Acorns Baylie I remember there is a Statute made 35 Hen. the 8. and the â— Eliz. for the preseruation of timber trees Oake Ash Elme Aspe and Beech and that 12. storers standils should bee left standing at euery fall vpon an acre but mee thinkes this Statute is deluded and the meaning abused for I haue seene in many places at the faâ—s where in deed they leaue the number of standils and more but in stead they cut dowâ—e them that were preserued before and at the next fall them that were left to answere the Statute and yong leâ—t againe in their steads so that there can bee no increase of timber trees notwithstaÌ„ding the words of the Statute by this kind of reseruation vnlesse such as were thus left were continued to become timber trees indeed And therefore it were not amisse that some prouision were made to maintain the meaning of the Statute in more force but I leaue that to such as see more then I see and haue power to reforme it Sur. It is a thing in deed to bee regarded for indeed there is abuse in it Bayly Surely it is especially in places where little timber growes for there is no CouÌ„try how varraine of timber soeuer but hath vse of timber and therefore if neither mens owne wils seeing the imiâ—ent want nor force of Iustice will mooue and worke a reformation we may say as the Prouerbe is Let them that liue longest fetch their wood farthest Sur. But some Countries are yet well stored and for the abundance of timber wood were excepted in the Statute as the Welds of Kent Sussex Surry which were all anciently comprehended vnder the name of Holmes dale There are diuers places also in Darinshire Cheshire Shrâ—pshire wel woodded And yet he that well obserues it and hath knowne the Weles of Sussex Surry and Kent the grand nursery of those kind of trees especially Oake Beech shal find such an alteratioÌ„ within lesse then 30. yeres as may well strike a feare lest few yeeres more as pestilent as the former will leaue fewe good trees standing in those Welds Such a heate issueth out of the many forges furnaces for the making of Iron and out of the glasse kilnes as hath deuoured many famous
more stronger ground the white Wheate and gray Ball as they call it in the West parts is best And in some more hot and sandie grounds Rye as men shall by experience find the land to like the graine and the graine it For there is a naturall affinitie or enmitie betweene graines and grounds as between stomacks and meates And therefore the husbandmans experience will best guide him But I do not a little wonder of men in this age whom whether I may rather accuse of idlenesse or ignorance I cannot tell for where I haâ—â— trauelled in sundry parts of England I haue in many of them found many old drie pits anciently digged in fields Commons Moores and other grounds many of them bearing still the names of Marâ—e-pits and by search haue bin found to yeeld very excellent Marle first found and digged by the prouidence and industrie of our forefathers and left by the negligence of later times Bayly But by your fauor fat Marle me thinks is not good for this kind of ground because it is a strong â—lay it is better I take it for a hot and sandie soyle and a hot chalke better for this Sur. It is very true that obseruation should not haue bin forgotten but it is well remembred of you Bai. We haue indéed a kind of plodding and common course of husbandry hereabouts a kind of péeuâ—sh imitation of the most who as wise men note are the worst husbands who onely try what the earth will do of it selfe and séeke not to helpe it with such meanes as nature hath prouided whereas if men were careful and industrious they shuld find that the earth would yéeld in recompence for a good husbands trauell and charge Centum pro cento without corrupt vsurie Sur. I am glad you can now approue it so in reason for I think experience doth not yet so fully teach you I haue knowne where land hath bene very base and barren and so continued many generations as ground in manner forsaken and forlorne abandoned of the plow which after hath come into the hands of a discreet and industrious husband that knew how and would take the paines and bestow the cost to manure it in kind hath much enriched himselfe by it and where before it would not beare a crop of requitefull increase by marling and good vsage hath borne crop after crop 12.16 or 20. yeares without intermission The benefit of marling Lancashire Chesshire Shropshire Somerset Middlesex Sussex Surrey among many other places can witnesse though not all by one kind of soyling and marling For neither is all kind of Marle in one place neither any one kind in all places But few places are so defectiue but it yeeldeth of it self or is neere vnto some place of helpe And men that will haue profite must vse the means they must not sit and giue aime and wish and repine at others increase There must be obseruation to marke how others thriue inclination and imitation to do the like indeuor charge And if one experiment faile trye a second a third and many looke into places and persons note the qualities of the land of other men and conferre it with thine owne and where there is a resemblance marke what the best husband doth vpon his land like vnto thine if it prosper practise it and follow the example of him that is commonly reported a thriftie husband And by this meanes will experience grow of one principle of reason many conclusions will proceed If a man looke into Cornewall there shall he find that in diuers places especially vpon the North coast about Paâ—â—sâ—ow that the inhabitant Farmers do soile their lands with sea sand which because the country affoordeth not in al places passe for cart-cariage men fetch this kind of sand 3.4.6 miles in sackes on horsebacke And poore men liue 〈◊〉 â—etching and selling it to the more wealthie In 〈◊〉 and Somerset and in some places of Cornewall Sussex and in the South part of Surrey besides their other commendable courses of husbandrie they burne their land and call it in the West parts Burning of beate and in the South-East parts Deuonshiring and by that meanes in barren earth haue excellent Rye and in abundance In Shropshire Deâ—highshirâ— Flintshire and now lately in some part of Sussex the industrious people are at a more extraordinarie charge and toyle For the poore husbandmeÌ„ and Farmers do buy digge and fetch limestones 2.3.4 miles off and in their fields build Lime kilnes burne it and cast it on their fields to their great aduantage which kind of lime is of the nature of hot chalke great helpes to cold and moist grounds Bai. But this kind of stone is not to be had in all places Sur. That kind or some other is to be found in or nere most places and there is no kind of stone but being burned will worke the like effect So will also especially the beach or pibble stones burned that frequent the sea shore in many places as vpon the Camber shore neere Rye and at East-bourne in Sussex neere Pâ—msey about Folkestone and vpon the coast of Kent vpon Orford nesse and about Albâ—row Hoseley and that coast in Suffolke and sundry other places vpon the sea shore In some places in so great aboundance as if there were wood in competent measure would make good great store of lime for building Bay It is farre to fetch it for I do not thinke but euery land fetched 5. miles is worth 5 shillings the cariage and foure pence at the pit this is very chargeable Sur. Yet it quiteth the cost well enough he that is able doth find at profitable But you are in the mind of some that I haue heard when they haue bin mooued to entertaine a helpe for their land either it is too deale or too farre to fetch or too deepe in the earth or some difficultie they pretend in it that few vndertake the right way to good husbandrie like vnto them that Salomon speaketh of that in winter will hold his lazie hands in his lowzie amnerie and for slouth will not looke about his land in the cold and sleepe out the time in Summer Many difficulties and impediments preuent them that will neuer be good husbaÌ„ds nor thrifty But such as mean to liue like men will shake off the cold with trauell and put by sleepe by their labor and thinke no cost too great no labor too painefull no way too farre to preserue or better their estates Such they be that search the earth for her fatnes and fetch it for fruites sake Many fetch Moore-earth or Murgion from the riuer betweene Colebrooke and Vxbridge and carry it to their barren grounds in Buckinghamshire Hartfordshire and Middlesex eight or ten miles off And the grounds whereupon this kind of soile is employed will indure tilth aboue a dozen yeres after without further supply if it be thorowly bestowed In
part of Hamshire they haue another kind of earth for their drie and sandy grounds especially betweene Fordingbridge and Ringwood and that is the slub of the riuer of Auon which they call Mawme which they digge in the shallow parts of the riuer and the pits where they digge it will in few yeares fill againe this Mawme is very beneficial for their hot and sandy grounds arable and pasture And about Christchurch twineam and vp the riuer of Stowre they cut and dig their low and best meddowes to helpe their vpland hot and heathie grounds And now of late the Farmers neere London haue found a benefite by bringing the Scauingers street soyle which being mixed as it is with the stone cole dust is very helpefull to their clay ground for the cole dust being hot and drie by nature qualifieth the stiffenesse and cold of the soyle thereabouts The soyle of the stables of London especially neere the Thaâ—es side is caried Westward by water to Chelsey Futham Battersay Putney and those parts for their sandie grounds Bai. Whether do you accompt the better the stall or stable dung Sur. The stable dung is best for cold ground and the stall dung for hot grounds if they be both rightly applyed And of all other things the Ashes that proceed of the great rootes of stocked ground is fittest and most helpefull to a cold clay So is the sinders that come from the Iron where hammers or forges are being made small and laid thin vpon the cold moist land Bay I was once in Somersetshire about a place neere Tanton called Tandeane I did like their land and their husbandry well Sur. You speake of the Paradice of England and indeed the husbandrie is good if it be not decayed since my being in those parts as indeed to be lameÌ„ted men in all places giue themselues to too much ease and pleasure to vaine expence and idle exercises and leaue the true delight which indeed should be in the true and due prosecution of their callings as the artificer to his trade the husbandman to the plow the gentleman not to what he list but to what befits a gentleman that is if he be called to place in the commonwealâ— to respect the execution of Iustice â—he be an inferior he may be his owne Bayly and see the managing and manuring of his owne reuenewes and not to leaue it to the discretion and diligence of lither swaines that couet onely to get and eaâ—e The eye of the idle master may be worth two working seruants But where the master standeth vpon tearmes of his qualitie and condition and will refuse to put though not his hand his eye towards the plow he may if he be not the greater for I speake of the meaner gentlelize it awhile but he shall find iâ— farre better and more sweet in the end to giue his fellow workmen 〈…〉 in the morning and affably to call them and kindly to incite them to their businesse though he foyle not his fingers in the labor Thus haue I seene men of good qualitie behaue them towards their people and in surueying of their hirelings But indeed it is become now contemptible and reprochfull for a meane master to looke to his laborers and that is the reason that many well left leaue it againe before the time through prodigalitie and improuidence and mean men industrious steppe in and where the former disdained to looke to his charge this doth both looke and labor and he it is that becomes able to buy that which the idle and wanton are forced to sell. Now I say if this sweet country of Tandeane and the Westerne part of Somersetshire be not degenerated surely as their land is fruitfull by nature so do they their best by art and industrie And that makes poore men to liue as well by a matter of twenty pounds per annum as he that hath an hundred pounds Bayly I pray you Sir what do they more then other men vpon their grounds Sur. They take extraordinarie paines in soyling plowing and dressing their lands After the plow there goeth some three or foure with mattocks to breake the clods and to draw vp the earth out of the furrowes that the lands may lye round that the water annoy not the seed and to that end they most carefully cut gutters and trenches in all places where the water is likeliest to annoy And for the better it riching of their plowing grounds they cut vp cast and carry in the vnplowed headlands and places of no vse Their hearts hands eyes and all their powers concurre in one to force the earth to yeeld her vtmost fruite Bai. And what haue these men in quantitie vpon an acre more then the ordinarie rate of wheat which is the principall graine Sur. They haue sometimes and in some places foure fiue sixe eight yea ten quarters in an ordinarie acre Baily I would thinke it impossible Sur. The earth I say is good and their cost and paines great and there followeth a blessing though these great proportions alwaies hold not And the land about Ilchester Long Sutton Somerton Andrey Middlesâ—y Weston and those parts are also rich and there are good husbands Bai. Do they not helpe their land much by the fold Sur. Not much in those parts but in Dorset Wilt-shire Ham-shire Barke-shire and other places champion the Farmers do much inrich their land indeed with the sheepfold A most easie and a most profitable course and who so neglecteth it hauing meanes may be condemned for an ill husband nay I know it is good husbandrie to driue a flocke of sheepe ouer a field of wheate rye or barly newly sowne especially if the ground be light and dry for the trampling of the sheepe and their treading doth settle the earth about the corne keeping it the more moist and warme and causeth it to stand the faster that the wind shake it not so easely as it will doe when the roote lyeth too hollowe Bai. I cannot reprooue you But I knowe grounds of a strange nature in mine opinion for if they be once plowed they will hardly graze againe in 6. or 7. yeeres yet haue I seene as rich wheate and barly on it as may well approoue the ground to be very fruitfull And if a stranger that knoweth not the ground looke vpon it after a crop he will say it is very barraine Sur. Such ground I knowe in many places as in the Northwest part of Essex in some places in Cambridgeshire Hartfordshire Buckinghamshire Wiltshire But commonly where you find this kind of earth it is a red or browne soile mixed with a kind of white and is a mould betweene hot and cold so brittle in the vpper part and so fickle as it hath no firme setling for the grasse to take rooting so soone in such sort as in other firmer grounds and for this kind of ground good and well rotted stable
you are of so qualified a disposition your example may do good to others if not it will giue euidence against the contrarie minded in time to come And so for this time I must intreate you I may take my leaue of you I will attend your other occasions foorthwith Lord. That is my will But who comes yonder Sur. I take it is your Tenant that lately departed from vs. Lord So it is I will leaue you two together farâ— you well You know the placeâ— where mine occasions will draw you and in the meane time I will make you a warrant to go in hand with it The end of the second Booke The Surueyors Dialogue betweene the Farmer and Surueyor wherein is shewed the manner and method of keeping a Court of Suruey with the articles to be inquired of and the charge how to inroll Copies Leases and Deeds and how to take the plot of a Mannor The third Booke Farmer YOu are happily met here againe Sir haue you euer since had conference with my Landlord Sur. Yea. Farm He is a man of good vnderstanding and very inquisitiue of things of profite And yet to tell you truly he is a good man to his tenants Suruey Loue him then for such deserue loue Farm He is beloued of his tenants indéede for they will go and ride and fight for him Sur. It is the part of good tenants and an argument of a good Landlord But fare you well I cannot now stay I haue bene long letted by your Landlord and you Farm Are you presently to vndertake the suruey of my Landlords Lordships Sur. I am now going about it Farm I thinke it be in your choice where to begin let me therefore intreate you to begin with Beauland a Mannor of his here at hand whereof I am both tenant and Bayly and therfore I will and must attend you and yéeld you my best ayd both by my trauell information and records of the MaÌ„nor Sur. Keepe you the Lords records Bay The key is in my keeping that leads to the Chest but the key of the Chest is in my Lords kéeping but I will send for it that you may haue y e full view of the euidence Sur. So it behooueth Is it a large Mannor Baylie It is spacious in circuit and of great apparance of Tenants full of diuers commodities both vnder and aboue the earth as also of fishing and fowling and beareth not the name for nought for the Mannor is faire and very commodious Sur. Be you then my guide Is yonder it with the faire house by the Woods side Baylie That is it and a stately house it is indeede Sur. It seemes to be a large and loftie cage if the Bird be answerable Baylie What meane you by that Sur. I meane that a Titinus may harbour in a Peacockes cage and yet the cage maketh her not a Peacocke but will be a Titinus notwithstanding the greatnes of the cage So if this loftie Pyle bee not equalized by the estate and reuenewes of the builder it is as if Paules steeple should serue Panâ—ras Church for a Belfrey Baylie I thinke my Landlord sent you not insteaâ—e of surueying his Land to deride his house Sur. The house is beautifull and faire I deride it not you doe your selfe wrong in attaching mee neither discommend I the builder For he that hath gold enough let him build a house of gold with Nerâ— who made vnto it a pond Mariâ— iâ—stâ—r and woods full of all kind of wild Beasts Publius Clodius whom Milâ— slew bought a house which cost him 147000 Sestâ—rties Let Princes haue their Palaces and great men their pleasant seates for the poorest will please his fancie if he be wilfull But to tell thee by the way for this is but idle communication that I haue obserued in nothing more sudden and serious repentance then for building I could point out places and persons too with my finger but what needs that I wish their repentance could redeem the thing repented of but it cannot no more then Quintus Curtius could redeeme himself out of the deuouring gulfe We haue in our dayes many and great buildings a comly ornament it is to the face of the earth And were it not that the smoake of so many chimneyes did raise so many duskie cloudes in the aire to hinder the heate and light of the Sunne from earthly creatures it were the more tolerable Bayly Nay truly I will excuse that fault the fire is made most in the kitchin Sur. Then it besmoketh not the hall as old worthie houses did whose kitchins smoake sent foorth cloudes of good meate and showres of drinke for the poore Bayly Yea Sir that was a comfortable smoke but Tempora mutantur omnia mutantur in illis no earthly thing continueth constant but hath his change Lo Sir now you are come to the house it selfe Sur. Truly here is a pleasant ascent neither too steepe nor too flat and of a good length And now we are come to the top of the hill here is a goodly prospect and pleasant And these springs I like well For a house without liuely water is maymed and the water is well conueyed that it cannot annoy the foundation of the house and yet serueth the most necessarie offices very commodiously and I see the Conducts are made of earthen pipes which I like farre better then them of Leade both for sweetnes and continuance vnder the ground The trees are well placed about the walkes but that they are somwhat too neere together their branches confound one the other they are but twenty foot and I like better thirty It standeth warme and comfortable towardâ— the South-east to which the best lights are made fitly to serue but iâ— the ground would haue serued I like plaine South the better point for the comfort of the Sunne at all times of the yeere And nature hath planted this wood most commodiously in the North side of the house And it is delicately aduanced vpon the edge of the hill it is not possible to seate a house more delightfully for Winter and Summer in mine opinion Now if vpon view of the demâ—â—snes and the rest of the parts it be not found like vnto a child borne in Chesshire with a head bigger then the bodie I shall like it well Now to our businesse you are Bayly take this Precept and summon the tenants to make their appearance according to the purport of the same The forme of the Precept THese are to will and in the name and behalf of the Lord of this Mannor to require you to giâ—e notice and warning vnto all and singular the tenants of the same Mannor that they make their personall appearance on Munday next being the tenth of this instant â—une at the place where the Lords â—ourts of this Mannor are vsually kept And also to warne them and euery of them to bring with them all such Deedes Copies Leases other