INTRODUCTION XXXI 



written on paper in a late fifteenth century hand ; the writing 

 is not good, there are several careless omissions of words, 

 and no attempt at punctuation ; it presents many curious 

 features, and has been printed below. It appears to be 

 founded on the same French text as the Latin translation 

 in the Bodleian at Oxford (see below p. xxxv), for it con- 

 tains considerable insertions about sheep farming. It also 

 contains a curious passage about gleaners pocketing corn, 

 which is not found in any of the MBS., but which appears 

 in Fleta II. 82 § 2, and in Seneschaucie (see p. 98). A state- 

 ment of the English measures is also inserted as Chapter II. 

 Besides these insertions, the text has also suffered from 

 mutilations ; the introductory chapter in particular is much 

 curtailed. The title states that the treatise was written in 

 French and translated into English by Bobert Grosseteste ; 

 this is not impossible, perhaps, but it is surprising that 

 Walter of Henley's treatise had been so much corrupted 

 before the bishop's death in 1253. Though this, as we shall 

 see below, is not impossible, it appears more probable that 

 some knowledge survived of the fact that Grossteste had 

 written Rules for the management of an estate and house- 

 hold, and that the transcriber supposed this treatise to be 

 identical with that of the Bishop of Lincoln. 



(6) The MS. of Fleta in the Cottonian Collection, from 

 which Selden printed his edition, contains very large ex- 

 tracts from Walter of Henley's treatise. They occur in the 

 final chapters of the second book. The framework of this 

 part of the work is furnished by the Seneschaucie, but this 

 is the merest skeleton, and the largest portion of the matter 

 is taken not from the Seneschaucie but from Walter of 

 Henley. The translator showed considerable skill in the 

 use he made of his materials ; the following table which 

 refers to the chapters and sections in Selden's edition may 

 be of interest as showing how the two treatises have been 

 inter-combined. He also made use of other materials which 

 were drawn upon by a later interpolator of Walter of Henley, 

 but I do not know whence they were all derived : the Ex- 

 tenta Manerii of the Statute Book is included. 



