THE LOWER THAMES BASIN ^361 



nant to a messuage, and hence maintained a household; two were 

 situated in river townships, two in the center of the county; all 

 were in open field, and in all the parcels were largely arable. Yet 

 in none was there any grouping of the strips by fields. At Ep- 

 som a " common field " appears once, but without further speci- 

 fication and on a par with hills and furlongs. At Battersey no 

 fields or even furlongs are mentioned, while the field names are 

 curious. At Chobham we get trace of four " fields," Burifeld, 

 Beanlonde, Gretestene, and Lytilstene; but one of them, Grete- 

 stene, with an adjacent parcel contained half of the holding. At 

 Chertsey the arable was divided among three fields, Estfeld, 

 Myllershe, and Estworth, but in the proportion 3^, 2, and 

 i|. No one of the terriers therefore pictures a three-field 

 system. 



In two grants made by the abbot of Chertsey at East Clandon 

 in 1 1 Henry IV we are able not only to follow the description of 

 a virgate but to compare with it the account of a fourth-virgate, 

 or " ferHngata." ^ The virgate was large, containing 13^ acres 



^ Exch. K. R., M. B. 25, f. 284. The respective descriptions are as follows: — 



" Unum mesuagium et unam virgatam terre vocatam Crouchers continentem Triginta 

 quatuor acras et dimidiam terre que William atte Crouche quondam . . . tenuit in 

 villenagio in Estclendone in diversis locis, unde 



mesuagium et curtUagium iacent per viam Regiam ducentem usque Shure versus Ripplee 



una crofta et quatuor acre et dimidia terre vocate Clausland iacent . . . 



due crofte vocate puricroftes continentes tres acras terre iacent . . . 



due crofte vocate northecroftes continentes sex acras terre iacent . . . 



una roda terre vocata Shamelondesbutte iacet iuxta mesuagium predict! tenement! . . . 



una acra terre iacet in Penstede . . . 



dimidia acra terre iacet in Penstede predicta . . . 



una alia dimidia acra terre iacet in eadem Penstede . . . 



due acre terre vocate Swythecroftes iacent . . . inter . . . halvyncroft . . . 



alia dimidia acra terre iacet in le Haluyngcroft predicto . . . 



tres rode terre iacent in halewyngcroft predicto . . . 



alia dimidia acra terre iacet in le Overshorebrude . . . 



una acra terre iacet in le Overshorebrude . . . 



una dimidia acra terra iacet in le Overshorebrude inter terram communem vocatam le 

 Doune . . . 



una alia dimidia acra terra iacet in le Nethereshorebrude . . . 



alia dimidia acra terre iacet in quodam forlango vocato horeslowe . . . 



alia dimidia acra terre iacet apud Lytelhegge . . . 



una acra terre vocata Cowshoteacre iacet . . . 



tres rode terre iacent apud Longedenesende . . . 



una acra terre iacet apud Coppedthorn . . . 



dimidia acra terre iacet sub le Coppedthorn . . . 



una roda terre vocata le houstedell iacet inter terram vocatam Stonycroft . . . 



una alia roda terre iacet in Scoldmere ... 



una alia roda terra vocata Rokeyerdmele . . . 



