A HISTORY OF NOTTINGHAMSHIRE 



There is evidence that the ' superstitious use ' 

 which might have wrecked the school founda- 

 tion, the obit of the Mellerses, was resumed. 

 John Heskay, alderman, an innkeeper, by will 

 29 September I558, 29 gave all his tithes of hay 

 in the meadows and fields of the town of Not- 

 tingham to Alice his wife, and John Mellers his 

 brother-in-law, who was seemingly the John 

 Mellers mentioned in Dame Agnes's will, for 

 their lives, and after their deaths to the mayor 

 and burgesses ' to the intent and on condition that 

 they should yearly bestow the full rents and 

 profits of the same to the uses thereinafter 

 specified, viz. that they should pay on the day 

 of the yearly obit kept for the late Lady Mellers, 

 foundress of the free school, IDJ. among poor, 

 sick, and needy people, to pray for the soul of 

 himself and the souls of the foundress and his 

 wife Alice, and should permit the wardens of the 

 free school to receive all the residue yearly to 

 employ the same for and towards the increase 

 and augmentation of the schoolmaster's wages 

 and living of the said free school.' This is 

 probably one of the latest gifts for an obit, as 

 two months later they again became 'supersti- 

 tious uses.' He also bequeathed a messuage in 

 Swine Green to Thomas Mellers, his wife's son, 

 for his life, and, after his death, to the mayor 

 and burgesses for the schoolmaster. 



The next thing known of the school is 

 another endowment. By deed of 26 September 

 1567, John Colynson gave to two feoffees a 

 messuage near the Hencross in ' Cuckstoole 

 Rowe ' [the alley in which was the cuckstool 

 pit (or public latrine), in which scolds were 

 ducked in the cuckstool] with three shops and a 

 barn newly built, with a garden adjoining and 

 all other his lands in the town, to the intent that 

 they should yearly pay 53*. t\.d. half-yearly to the 

 masters of the free school and their successors, 

 and, if it should be dissolved, to the poor. 

 Cuckstool Row became the Poultry, and the 

 annuity is still paid. 



Ten years later we have the earliest extant 

 school account. It is in Latin, and is rendered 

 by Gilbert Seele and James Hartley, ' guardians 

 of the free school in the town of Nottingham.' 

 On 21 May 1578, for the year from Lady Day 

 1577 to Lady Day 1578, the total 'charge' 

 (onus) or receipts amounted to ^29 6s. Sd. But 

 of this 8 4*. "d. was the balance from the year 

 before. So that the real income was 21 2s. id., 

 of which 205. came from a legacy by Master 

 Bonner, and the rest from issues (exhibits) of the 

 lands. One item of the ' charge,' ' And for 

 nothing given in presents (in regardo] to the 

 same school,' shows that it had been usual to 

 receive voluntary subscriptions or donations for 

 the support of the school, as we saw was done 

 in 1512-13 ; but these had now ceased. The 

 1 allowance ' (allocating or payments, admitted as 



19 Char. Cm. Rep. xx, 386. 



good on the audit, came to 18 los. 6d. Of 

 this ji3 61. 8d. was paid to John Depupp, 

 schoolmaster (ludimaghtro), for his salary. The 

 amount paid to Richard Slacke ' le ussher ' for 

 his salary is not legible through defect in the 

 MS., but was probably, as five years later, ^3. 

 A fee of los. was paid to the schoolwardens 

 and 2s. to Nicholas Plumtree, gentleman (and 

 probably therefore attorney), for making the 

 account. 



It is rather remarkable to find that repairs 

 were done at the school next year by the Bridge- 

 masters out of their moneys, and not apparently 

 out of the school income. 30 



Item payd to Stonsbe for the frame of 



the house at Fre Scole and for the 



frame standyng over the Cow Bar <) \s. 

 Item payd to Frybus and hys man for 5 



days burning plaster at Fre Scole 



at \6J. a day 6s. %J. 



Item payd for carydg of tymbar to the 



Fre Scole 2*. 



Item payd for tymbar to the Fre Scole. los. 4</. 



Item payd to Selfe for workyng 6 days 



at the Fre Scole at l^J. a day . . 6s. 



Item to hys 3 men for 6 days at loJ. a 



day I5/. 



Item payd to William Wyldy for 



makyng of the chymney at the 



Fre Scole and grounselyng of alle 



the house 3 \\s. %d. 



Item payd to Selfe and hys man for 2 



dayes makyng of 5 dors, z 



pentyces (i.e. penthouses) and 



mendyng of the pale at the Fre 



Scole 3/. 4^. 



Depupp, the master, seems to have been 

 already master for some time and to have been 

 appreciated. For in 1579, when Slack, the 

 usher, had apparently gone, the Mickletorn jury 

 said : 31 ' We present to have an hussher for the 

 Free Skoole, a thing very neydfull for this 

 towne ; and to geve him jCio a yeare to have a 

 good won : hitt will be a credett to have a good 

 maister and a good hussher in one skoole.' The 

 jury had no idea of allowing the wardens to be 

 too independent : 'Wee presente the Wardens of 

 the Free Skoole that the shall geve upp there a 

 counte be twyxt this and Chryssonmas nexte and 

 to have two newe chosen in ther romm by the 

 elexysyon of the 48.' 



The same two, however, were chosen and 

 rendered the school accounts for 1582-3. To 

 the new usher (subludimagistrd) ^3 was paid, 

 but the Bridgemasters' account for the same year 

 shows that they paid him 53*. ^d. So that he 

 received altogether ^5 13*. \d., a good deal more 

 than the previous one. In the same account is 

 an item of 3*. 4^. for ' copyes of the charter and 

 of the ordinaunces of the Free Schoole ' the 

 latter is thought to be the extant copy quoted 

 above. 



80 Borough Rec. iv, 182. 



31 Ibid, iv, 191. 



224 



