INTRODUCTION. 5 



The cattle supplied under these compositions were kept in 

 certain pastures belonging to the Crown, appropriated for that 

 purpose; amongst them were the royal park at Windsor, the 

 King's meads at Beading, the Creslow pastures in Bucks, 

 Deptford, and other convenient and rich feeding grounds. 



During the first Parliament of James the First, Sir Francis 

 Bacon, on presenting a petition to the Bang, made his famous 

 speech against purveyors, which forms a sort of compendium of 

 the heavy charges made against them. After a proeme, in which 

 he soothes the royal ear with that flattery which was so acceptable 

 to the Scottish Solon, and interlarded with those quaint latin 

 quotations in which the learned king so much delighted, he tells 

 him that " there was no grievance in the kingdom so general, so 

 continual, so sensible, and so bitter to the common subject, as that 

 he was then speaking of, that they do not intend to derogate from 

 his prerogative, nor to question any of his regalities or rights; 

 they only seek a reformation of abuses and a restitution of the 

 laws to which they were born. He explains that the purveyors 

 take in kind what they ought not to take ; they take in quantity 

 a far greater proportion than cometh to the King's use, and they 

 take in an unlawful manner." 



We have an illustration of these charges in the case (3rd. Jao. 1.), 

 of one Richards, a Purveyor, who made a curious confession of the 

 rogueries practised by him and his tribe. He employed several 

 hands. They charged ten times the quantity wanted, sold the 

 surplus, and shared the money. They went to the most remote 

 places to take their purveyance, in order to induce the people to 

 come to a composition. They conspired with the high-constables 

 to charge more than enough, and took half the money of them, 

 but got receipts for the whole, the constables taking the rest. The 

 clerk of the market set the prices under the value, and shared the 

 gain. This confession did not save him; he was sentenced to 

 stand in the pillory at Westminster, Cheapside, and three market- 

 towns in Devonshire, and three in Somerset; to lose one ear in 

 Dorchester, the other at Wells ; to ride on a horse with his face to 

 the tail, and a paper pinned on him expressing his crime ; to pay 

 one hundred pounds fine, and to be imprisoned during the King's 

 pleasure. Several negotiations took place in that reign for the 

 purchase of the prerogative of purveyance, but nothing was done. 



During the reign of Charles I., although many efforts were 



