Notes, Arclueological and Historical. 265 



above, in which case stbone should be read sthong, 1660 should be 1669, and 

 the " tree " should be more correctly described as a flower. See Wilts Arch. 

 Mag., vol. sxvi., p. 394,. This token is stated by WiJliamsou to be also claimed 

 by Lincolnshire, but there can be little doubt that it really belongs to the 

 Wiltshire Awborne, or Aldbourne. 



e. h. goddabd. 



Spurs found at M.\lmesbury Abbey. 



The pair of spurs, of which an illustration is here given, from a drawing by 

 Mr. T. Leslie, were found in 1894, during some alterations at the Bell Inn, 

 which stands close to the west end of Malmesbury Abbey. The house apparently 

 still retains walls which must have formed part of the abbey buildings, and in 

 digging for foundations a number of stone coffins were discovered, some of which 

 were removed. On the lid of one of these, which was left undisturbed, was a 

 small square stone box, containing these spurs. They are of a peculiar jointed 

 type, and are apparently of sixteenth century — probably late sixteenth century 

 — date. They have been submitted to the authorities of the British Museum, 

 which possesses no specimen quite like them. They remain in the possession of 

 Mr. J. Moore, of the Bell Inn. The supposition that suggests itself is of course 

 that they belonged to the person buried in the stone coffin on the lid of which 

 they were found ; but the difficulty is to understand how such a burial could 

 have taken place in that position in the last half of the sixteenth century. 

 Have any similar finds of spurs ever been recorded ? 



E. C. Tbepplin. 



A Curious Wiltshire Pamphlet. 



The pamphlet from which an extract is given below was written by John 

 Watts, gardener to the Kev. John Knight, of Heytesbury. It is so singular 

 a production that it seems worthy of mention here. 



"Self Help." 

 The Autobioqbapht of Mb. John Watts, of Hettesbubt, Peofessoe 

 OF Gardening and Education. Price Qd. 1860. [Printed by Palmer, 

 of Warminster.] 7 pp. 

 The following is a specimen of its style : — " daved Rose from a shepherd boy 

 to a king and I rose from a shepherd boy to garddener. I head now eduction 

 and if I make eney stake you must Exquese me. I do not now Eney thing 

 bout grammer, I now more bout my granfather. My granfather wher very 

 claver man. He meade villen (sic) out of old tailbord. I have herd pepel 

 seay the did reember befre the wher born — the did rember hering the kees rattle 

 in ther mothers pocket. I can not rember so long is theat, I can rember 

 hering my mother seay that I was such a monster the coud Put me in to 

 teapot. I never walk for 3 years, I walk at last From a goosbery tree to goosbery 

 tree to fiend wich was the best, and was black one." 



G. E. Dabtnbll. 



VOL. XXVIII. KO. LXXXIV. U 



