21 6 ON THE PRICE OF GRAIN. 



English famines. I have little doubt that the actual loss of life was 

 considerable, and that the hardships of this year had its effect on 

 facilitating the terrible and last visitation of the Levant plague, which 

 was at hand. 



1662-3. Prices are much lower, though it is plain that the harvest 

 is below the average. The Cambridge wheat rents are at 42^. gd. t 

 the lowest price being at Midsummer, the highest in August. The 

 bakehouse buys every four weeks, at an average of 39^. 4</., and more than 

 200 quarters. The Eton rents fall from Michaelmas to Midsummer, 

 and are at an average of 52,?. The purchases, of which there are 

 eleven entries, are at 47^. 4f</., the highest being the last but one. 

 The Oxford rents are at 48*. The Winchester purchases are at 

 38-$-. gd. Two entries from Hickstead give an average of 33^., and 

 an assise published by the Portsmouth corporation, which will become 

 more frequent, shows that wheat was at 38^. in that town on October i. 

 The Cambridge malt rents are at 2>js. n^d. The Eton malt rent 

 average, 34.$*. 8^., is lower than that at which the College purchases, 

 for the average of the two is 35.$*. 7 ft/. At Oxford it is 28^. \d. At 

 Winchester the purchases are effected at an average of 27^. 5|^., the 

 grants and solitary rent given being at 30^. Oats are at 15^. gd. in 

 Cambridge, at i8s. ^\d. at Oxford, at 14,$-. in Hickstead, at i6s. ^d. 

 in Oxford, at i6.r. 6\d. in Winchester, and at i6s. at Votes Court. 

 Meal is as dear as it was the year before. Beans and peas are at 

 moderate prices. 



1663-4. We are now entering on a cheap decade of years, in which 

 every year but this is below the general average. The Cambridge 

 wheat rents are at an average of 44^, \d., and the bakehouse pur- 

 chases are a little higher, at 45.9. i^d. The Eton wheat rents are at 

 53.?. 8|^., but the purchases for the College are effected at 45.?. l\d. 

 The Oxford wheat rents are high, and at the same level through the 

 year, 52^. Wheat is cheap at Winchester, the purchases being made 

 at an average of 38^. 6d. Barley is found at Hickstead at iSs. But 

 the malt rents are much higher; at Cambridge, 24^. %%d. ; at Eton, 

 30^. 6\d., while the purchases are effected at 28s. 8d. ; and. the Oxford 

 rents at 25^. lod. The Winchester grants and purchases are again 

 the cheapest, at 2 is. i%d. Oats are cheap at Cambridge, but are only 

 found in the winter; dearer at Eton, where they are bought from 

 December to June. The average at Winchester is 15^. 3^. There 

 are a few other purchases of oats. Beans are rather dear. Peas, 

 found at Biggin only, are cheap. 



1664-5. The evidence for this year is limited to the four centres 



