1780 THE ORIEL STATUTES 43 



Harry will be materially benefited by her will, as he has a 

 large family and is of our trade, which is not a very thriving 

 one as times go." 



There is something perhaps a little incongruous in 

 the anxiety lest his friend should continue to hold 

 his Fellowship without warrant, coming as it did 

 from a man who at the time was a much (though 

 legally) beneficed pluralist. It will, nevertheless, 

 be well to endeavour to ascertain whether or no 

 Gilbert White was justified in continuing to retain 

 his Fellowship. 



The original statutes of Oriel College, of January 

 21st, 1325-6, provide for the avoidance of a Fellowship 

 on the obtaining of a ''uberius beneficium." By an 

 ordinance of 1441, made by the College in pursuance 

 of its power under the original statutes and duly 

 confirmed by the Visitor, it was provided that any 

 of the Fellows who obtained ''aliquod beneficium, 

 redditus, patrimonium, officium, pensionem, seu plura- 

 litatem eorundem, seu aliquam aliam promotionem, 

 quocunque nomine censeatur, unde potuerit ad suam 

 exhibitionem [i.e. support] annuatim, ad terminum 

 vitae, decem marcas de importatis percipere Oxoniae 

 residendo, eo facto, et alias per acceptionem hujus- 

 modi promotionis," should be deprived of his Fellow- 

 ship. 



This standard of ten marks became inapplicable 

 after the change in the value of money, but no other 

 sum was ever authoritatively substituted for it. It 



