ADVANCE OF PRICES CHAP. XIX. 



" gayne goeth another way." He farther adds " In 

 " this realm are a great many folkes, and, amongst 

 " many, I know but one of tender zeale, at the 

 '* motion of his poore tenants, hath let downe his 

 " landes to the old rentes for their relife. For 

 " God's love let not him be a phenix, let him not 

 " be alone, let him not be an heremite closed in a 

 " wall : some good man follow him, and doe as he 

 " giveth example." 



An act passed at the end of the reign of Henry 

 the eighth, in the year 1545, which gives some 

 idea of the expense of subsistence in that age, and 

 shows it to have increased, though it is nearly as 

 indefinite as the passages before extracted from 

 the sermons of Bishop Latimer. By that act it 

 is provided, that when the church of any parish 

 whose benefice does not exceed six pounds a year 

 is within a mile of another church, the small parish 

 may be annexed to the other church ; but if the 

 parishioners of the small parish shall raise their 

 benefice to eight pounds a year, the annexation 

 may be dissolved. This shows that eight pounds 

 a year was deemed a sufficient remuneration for 

 the services of a parish priest, and enough to 

 maintain him, though it might not enable him to 

 buy books or exercise hospitality, which is the 

 subject of Latimer's complaint. 



Whatever may be the rate of advance on the prices 

 of commodities in the period between the first 

 discovery of America and the accession of Edward 



