By the late F. A. Carrington, Esq. 67 



administration both of civil and criminal business here. In addition to that 

 gift James gave a local magistracy rendering it unnecessary for you to go to 

 distant places for the transaction of local business. King James also gave you 

 places and a suit of offices for markets and three fairs in the year, ■which at one 

 time were a great source of business in this town, but the railway and other 

 causes have done away with this to a great extent. For these you are indebted 

 to Sir Henry Neville and his influence with the Government of James the First. 

 I find that the Corporation of those days were jolly fellows. Within the last 

 twelve months 1 looked at the lists of healths then drunk at the pubHc dinners, 

 and I found that most of them were miich the same as would be drunk at a 

 Corporation dinner now; but there was one very peculiar feature. In the list, 

 there were eight toasts to be drunk in succession similar to those of modern 

 days, and the ninth and tenth were the ' healths of the Royal Family and the 

 Prince of Wales.' and above these was put the health of the ' Recorder.' 

 Kow, although I have read or heard of ' a live dog being better than a dead 

 lion,' I had not heard of a present nobody or Recorder being better than absent 

 royalty. (Laughter and applause.) But this does not turn out to be so, because 

 it will be seen that the two great loyal toasts are put at a considerable distance 

 from the others, making a sort of supplement or addendum, and the suggestion 

 is, that supposing; the Alderman to be extremely liberal with his wine, then 

 these toasts would be taken and drunk in their proper places ; but if he was 

 ' near ' or sparing, they would be omitted. However, assuming, as I do, that 

 there was a great deal of strong beer drunk at the Corporation dinners, 

 when a gentleman had ten glasses of wine put under his belt, the chance is that 

 he would feel very comfortable. That is a specimen of those days, and I am 

 happy to say that they have not degenerated, because I know from my own 

 experience that yoiir dinners are extremely good, and your hospitality excellent,* 

 Before leaving James's reign, I would refer to the old Hall, I have been enabled 

 to discover the date of its erection within twelve years. In 1612, King James 

 gave the Corporation liberty and authority to build a Hall, and in 1625 the 

 Corporation made a code of laws to the efiect that Corporation meetings were to 

 be held in tbe Town Hall, and every member of that Corporation who did not 

 oome in his black gown was to be fined 3s. 4d. for his neglect, but this fine has 

 never been imposed, as they all come in their gowns and look very well. Later 

 still you have a benefactor in the shape of a donor of some very beautiful paint- 

 ings which hang around the hall. There is some difficulty to ascertain the 

 subjects of some of them, and a still greater difficulty to know by whom they 

 were given. I should have ascribed them to Prince George of Denmark, the 

 husband of Queen Anne, who took the title of Baron from your town ; but there 

 is no picture known here as the picture of Piinee George, and there are two, 

 one of King George the First, and another of George the Second, and this 

 would lead to the supposition that the gift was that of some monarch, and the 

 probability is that they were presented by King George the Second. However, 

 here they are in excellent order and a great ornament to your Town Hall. I 



• [Among Mr Carrington's memoranrta, out of which this paper has been put together, is "The List 

 of the Corporation Toasts drank at the dinner on Easter Tuesday. 1613, in the handwriting of 

 George Willington, first Towu-Clerk : " hut the list itself has not been found among Sir. C.'s 

 documents sent to me. J, E. Jackson.] 



r2 



