47 



may be gathered from an adventure of comical John Taylor the 

 Water poet. Being as he describes himself a youth of three score 

 and ten, with only a leg and a half, he set out from London on the 

 21st June, 1649, for a walk to see the wonders of the west, and 

 on the 28th, came to the "famous, renowned, ancient, little, 

 pritty city of Bathe." " I lodged," he continues, "in the mayor's 

 house, but his worship was as ignorant as myselfe, for he being a 

 baker had let halfe his house to a victualler, so he sold bread 

 without and I bought drinke within. The next day, I had 

 notice where I was, wherefore I went to his stall, or shop window, 

 and told him what I was, and that I was he who came nine years 

 agoe from London to that City, with a small sculler's boate. Mr. 

 Mayor was pleased to entertain me most kindely (with both hands 

 in his pockets), and like a man of few words forebore to say 

 Welcome to towne. So parting dryly (the dryness was evidently 

 not to John's taste), I left him in his shop, Lord Baron of the 

 Browne Loaves and Master of the Rolls. But there is no doubt 

 but the man may live to a faire age and dye in his bed, if he 

 escape the unfortunate destiny of Pharoah's baker."* 



Noting one more incident in the order of time, in 1673 the 

 prices of corn were again at famine rates, and rose from 10s. and 

 lis. to 12s. the bushel, when the poor suflPered so much they 

 were " fain" to make bread of peas and beans. The material 

 thus produced was so hard a hatchet was necessary to chop it to 

 pieces, " yet it went down as sweet as honey." But the trial was 

 too much for them, they rose, went into the markets, seized the 

 farmers' sacks, cut them open, and filled their pockets mth grain. 

 Such suffering, attributed to the "wretched covetousness" of 

 those who would not bring then* corn to market, so struck the 

 heart of a farmer of Welling, three miles from Wells, that he 

 sold out his own store at 6s. the bushel, or half the market price. 

 For this he was derided by his neighbours, as acting foolishly and 



* Wanderings to see the West. 



