By John Watson- Taylor. 95 



fences and the scouring of ditches and water-ways and the correct 

 observance of the boundaries between the different strips so that 

 no one should in ploughing encroach on his neighbour's lands or 

 on the grass baulks which furnished the better part of the feeding 

 in the common fields when these were fallow. 



Twice a year — in May and November — the homage and all 

 others concerned met "at the cross" at eight o'clock in the morning, 

 for purposes that are variously described as : to " perambulate to 

 show the bounds, landmarks, and merestones," and " to see the 

 bounds be well amended," " to have a view for the settling of 

 grievances " and ' things that are amiss in our parish," to decide 

 controversies between neighbour and neighbour " and " to see all 

 the conserves done." The dates of these meetings followed soon 

 after those of the chief drifts — May 10th and November 25th — 

 when the amendment of the bounds of those places to which the 

 cattle were to be moved was of particular importance. Two of 

 the homage were appointed to give notice of the amendment orders 

 and two others to give notice of the view, and it is evident that 

 some enjoyment was combined with the work of inspection, for on 

 two occasions presentment was made that the overseer of the poor 

 was to pay lO.s. " to be spent by the homage and all persons con- 

 cerned that do their duty on those days." 



As a survey of the manor the inquisition of 1309 siipplies many 

 valuable facts which have been incorporated in the accompanying 

 map, together with details as to the boundaries, taken from the 

 tenants' schedules of the court book and some other particulars 

 found in Andrews and Dury's Map of Wiltshire (ed. 1753).^ 



The positions of the chief messuage and of some of the houses 

 are taken from Dury's Map, which shows the street called Water 

 Street, that until near the end of the eighteenth century ran 

 southward from the county road at the point where it crosses the 

 water, and whose name can be traced to " a little brook or stream 

 running down the street," referred to in a deed of the year 1759. 

 From Dury also the woods have been taken, and of these the 



' The Society is indebted to Mr. J. Watson-Taylor for the cost of the map 

 illustrating this paper. Ed. 



