DORSET AND KING JOHN. 139 



to November 30 two month?, was paid to him a little later ; from 

 wliich entry Ave learn that the pay of a Royal huntsman was about 

 £23 a year, or £400 a year in our money. In which Winterborne 

 did he live? Was it Winterborne Abbas'? The cost of the 14 

 prisoners at Corfe and the garments for four of them have been 

 noticed. £18 19s. 6d. was spent on the repair of the King's 

 houses at Dorchester and of the vivarium there, but whether the 

 vivarium was a stew pond in the meadows below the hill on which 

 the Castle stood, or a reserve for deer, &c., is not apparent. Two 

 approvers at Ilchester were paid 12s. 4d. for 74 days — twopence a 

 day. A penny a day per man Avas not large pay, but it Avas 

 sufficient ; it Avas the pension frec^ucntly granted by the King 

 to his aged servants. 



Sciatis q'd dedimus Joh'i de Constanciis lib'acio'em uni' den 

 singul' diebus p'cipiend' toto temp'e vite sue ad scacc'm n'rm, &c. 

 (Rot. Pat., Memb. 18.) 



Their armour for trial by battle came to 17s, 8d. Notes on 

 approvers, their armour, and trial by battle Avill be found in the 

 former paper. 



There was a very large expenditure on Corfe Castle this year, 

 being no less than £246 10s. 4d. in money of that day. AVilliam 

 de Boscus and Robert de Clavill Avere the vicAvers. 



£56 17s. 7d. Avas spent on the King's chamber at Bere, Avhcre 

 Elijah de Bere and Gilbert Calve Avere the vicAvers. Nicholas de 

 Meriet paid 45 marks for Hugh Hakepeat " ut p'sit se rcdd'e 

 religioni," " that he might return himself as professed in religion." 

 Would that necessarily mean more than that he miglit return 

 himself as a " cleric," and so perhaps be able to claim " benefit of 

 the clergy " and other privileges 1 



There Avas some mistake about the "donum ; " 45 marks charged 

 to the men of Wareham and 30 marks to the men of Cranbornc 

 should have been charged to W. de Faleisia. Osmund of Sher- 

 borne, Avas also charged 10 marks, for Avhich the Bp. of Salisbury 

 should have responded, and Richard Fromund 20 marks, Avhich 

 Avas due from the Bp. of Winchester. According to the evidence 



