34 THE PEPYS OF SOUTH DORSET. 



and schooling." The school fee, iz p. ami., was equal to 

 about 24. in the present day. The Diarist kept an inventory of 

 John's outfit at Wimborne; this comprised, amongst other things, 

 two silver spoons, twelve muslin neck-cloths and five night- 

 caps ; quite a sufficient number of nightcaps, one would suppose, 

 for a boy at a public school ! Mr. Richards says but little about 

 his younger son, William, beyond carefully recording the follow- 

 ing : " This afternoon (2 6th Augt., 1697), my boy Wm. was put 

 into trowsers for good." 



Wimborne School was renowned for its cock-fighting; this 

 usually took place on Shrove Tuesday, but Mr. Richards 

 mentions it as occurring once on the Thursday in Shrove 

 week; he writes: "Wednesday, igth Feb., 1700-1, I went to 

 Wimborne, where I saw the scholars' cock-fight the next day, 

 being Thursday, the 2oth." The next entry refers to one of his 

 fighting cocks: "izth March, 1701. This evening my great 

 shake-bag cock, given me by Coll Trench d , was mortally 

 wounded with a pike-prong by Mr. Bound's * man and dyed 

 thereof the same night." 



Mr. Richards was accustomed to meet on easy and familiar 

 terms the landed gentry and the clergy of the neighbourhood. 

 Amongst his friends, all or most of whom were hospitably 

 received at Warmwell House, were Mr. Tregonwell Frampton, 

 of Moreton, keeper of the running horses to William the Third, 

 Col. Trenchard, of Litchet, Mr. Weld, of Lulworth Castle, Mr. 

 Serjeant Bond, of Grange, Major Floyer, of Stracton, Mr. Henry 

 Henning, the owner of Poxwell and M.P. for Weymouth and 

 Melcombe Regis, 1679 to 1694, Captain D'Oyly Michel, of 

 Dewlish, Captain Edward Lawrence, of Affpuddle, Mr. John 

 Williams, of Lewel, the Churchills, the Frekes, the Goulds, 

 Parson Bound and Parson Read, Rectors of Warmwell and 

 Moreton, respectively. 



A cousin of Mr. Richards was Idith Long, of Dorchester. 

 We only get occasional glimpses of her in the diary, but she 



* He was Rector of Warmwell ; we note, then, that he kept a man-servant. 



