COMMONS & OPEN SPACES 195 



of their outrages, they made a bonfire in the square of 

 the invaluable books collected by Lord Mansfield. Their 

 temper may be imagined as they marched by Hampstead 

 to commit the same violence at Caen Wood, Lord Mans- 

 field's country house. The proprietor of the " Spaniards " 

 invited them in, and threw open his cellars to the mob. 

 Fresh barrels of drink were sent down from Caen Wood, 

 and meanwhile messengers were despatched for soldiers ; 

 so that by the time all the liquor had been consumed, and 

 the drunken rioters began to proceed, they were confronted 

 by a troop of Horse Guards, who, in their addled con- 

 dition, soon put them all to flight. The name of the 

 other inn on Hampstead Heath, which stands con- 

 spicuously on the highest point, 443 feet above the sea, 

 is Jack Straw's Castle, and has also some connection with 

 a riot. Jack Straw was one of the leaders in the Wat 

 Tyler rebellion, and after burning the Priory of St. John 

 of Jerusalem, he came up to Hampstead and Highgate, 

 though there is no direct evidence to connect him, in 

 1 38 1, with any tavern on the spot on which the inn 

 stands. The addition of Castle to the name is from 

 the fact, that there was some sort of fortress or earth- 

 works on this commanding point. The inn on the 

 site was known as the Castle Inn, and not until 1822 

 is there any mention of it as Jack Straw's Castle. The 

 wood of the gallows on which a famous highwayman 

 was hung behind the house in 1673 was built into 

 the wall. Jack Straw's Castle is now quite modernised, 

 but the view from it, on all sides, is still as lovely as 

 ever. The Whitestone Pond in front is really a 

 reservoir, and to the south of that lies the Grove, with 

 fine trees and some old-fashioned houses. The most 

 picturesque walk is that known as the Judges' or 



