'By John Watson- Taylor. 93 



in 1690, when it was found "that there is a little plot of ground 

 taken oK from ye lord's waste," it was ordered " to be put into ye 

 possession of the lord of the manor at or before December 25th next 

 upon pain of 20s." ; and other presentments of like purport are 

 found referring to the erection of a cottage on the " tenants' 

 feeding," the inclosing of part of a common field, and the planting 

 of willows on the waste. 



The chief business of the court was that relating to the admission 

 of new tenants and the surrender and re-taking of copies on new 

 lives. In the case of copy -holders the homage reported the death 

 of a tenant since the last court and the name of the successor in 

 reversion, who thereupon appeared, and, having done homage to 

 the lord, was admitted, and when a tenant surrendered his copy 

 the terms of the agreement were recorded, and if this included a 

 . renewal, a duplicate of the minutes with a schedule of the strips 

 carefully defined was handed to the tenant to serve as the title by 

 which the yard-lands were held. When the land of a free-tenant 

 changed hands the details of the transaction were reported to the 

 court and recorded on the minutes, and if an admission was claimed 

 the fact was announced and the claimant appeared and did homage. 



Next in importance was the business of appointing the officials 

 of the manor — the haywards, the tellers or drivers of the beasts 

 and of tlie sheep, the shepherd, and tjie mole-catcher. Of the last 

 two the only information is contained in two minutes which record 

 that in 1680 three tenants were amerced 3s. M. each " for not 

 paying ye wanter his wages," and that in March, 1688, the homage 

 presented "ye shepherd for putting ye flock of sheep into ye Low- 

 field after there is corn sewn and is contrary to custom and he is 

 amerced 6s. M." These men were probably employed at a fixed 

 wage, payable by the tenants, and belonged to the cottier class, 

 but the other officials were honorary, their only emolument being 

 a share of the fines charged for breaches of the regulations it was 

 their duty to enforce, and each tenant served the office in turn for 

 a year, or provided a substitute, under pain of a fine to the lord. 



The haywards (mcssor, or cnstos oyri), who were the most im- 

 portant and the only officials who were sworn on appointment, 



