A HISTORY OF DURHAM 



The first and most striking result of the collation of A with the other texts is that point for 

 point (with a few trifling exceptions to be discussed presently) it agrees with C and D as against B. 

 Take first the disposition of the material. To illustrate this k will be convenient to describe 

 A, C, and D as M, and to refer to the pages of the Surtees Society's edition : 



Pencher B 7, following Newbottle. 



M 6, Little Burdon. 

 Butterwick to Horncliffe . . . B 37-42, from Sheraton to the end of the text. 



M 1325, between Norton and West Auckland. 

 Stockton to West Auckland . . B 13-25, between Norton and Little Coundon. 



M 3742, from Sheraton to the end of the text. 

 Preston B 14, following Hertburn. 



M 14, between Stockton and Hertburn. 



Heighington B 21. 



M 2 1 . The notice of Simon's land is removed 



from the body to the end of the entry. 

 Newton-by-Thickley . . . . B 23, follows Red worth. 



M 23, precedes Redworth. 

 Smallees B 33, follows Britley. 



M 33, precedes Britley. 



The interpolated passage 'Scien- B 39-40, stands between Bcdlington and 

 dum quod ... a servitute.' . Norham. 



M 38, follows West Sleckburn. 



All this, taken in connexion with a pretty steady consistency in the reading of words and 

 phrases on the part of M as against B, raises the presumption that either A, C, and D (M) have a 

 common parent or else that C and D were copied directly from A. 



At this point, accordingly, the exceptions to the rule of agreement among A, C, and D become 

 of importance, and must be examined. They are as follows : 



Wearmouth, p. 5. A and B retain the record of the cottiers omitted by C and D. 

 Middridge, p. 22. The position of the last two clauses in the sentence, ' Wekeman . . . 



Episcopi,' is reversed in A. 



The clause, ' et falcat i die,' in the succeeding sentence is omitted by C and D. 

 Stanhope, p. 30. The first half of the sentence ' pinderus . . . ova ' is omitted by A. 

 Langley, p. 32. The word ' Domino ' preceding ' Henrico ' is omitted by A and B. 

 Bedlington, p. 38. A gives 'cassum' for the clearly correct 'tassum' of B, C, and D. 

 Tillemouth, p. 41. A and B give 'Ellmouth,' C and D ' Tillemouth.' 



This evidence suggests that A, C, and D were probably copied from a common original rather 

 than that C and D were copied from A. For on the second hypothesis the restitution of a lost 

 word or clause, as in the Stanhope and Langley entries, although not impossible, is scarcely probable. 



Assuming then that A, C, and D have a common parent which we may designate X, it becomes 

 of importance to determine the date and authority of this text. At the outset we must dismiss Sir 

 T. D. Hardy's conjecture that A might have been copied directly from the original survey. A long 

 passage contained in all four texts records an elaborate composition of service for money payments 

 conceded by Bishop Walter. 1 Since A was copied in the thirteenth century, this must refer to 

 Walter de Kirkham, 1249-1260,* the only bishop bearing that Christian name who sat at 

 Durham before the year 1388. Then the Cornsay entry records that Robert of Caen is freed 

 from suit of court at Sadberge by reason of a payment made to the bishop. Now, although 

 this stands in A, it could not have formed part of the original survey, for the reason that 

 Bishop Pudsey did not acquire the wapentake of Sadberge until six years after the compilation of 

 Boldon Book, 3 and could not before that time therefore have dispensed anyone from suit of court 

 there. In like manner the Merley entry, which also stands in all the texts, contains the following 

 phrase, ' de aliis servitiis quieta est per cartam Philippi Episcopi,' and the only Bishop Philip of the 

 thirteenth century was he of Poitou, who succeeded Pudsey and died in 1207-08.* The Whitworth 

 entry affords a similar case. Thomas de Acley holds the vill for the fourth part of a knight's fee, 

 but this was a commutation of drengage service accorded by Bishop Philip in a charter which has 

 survived to us. 6 Finally, we read that at Stockton, Adam son of Walter holds I carucate and 

 i bovate of land tor i mark, but when he leaves the bishop's service he will do the same 

 services as pertain to the half-carucate of Walter ; and then that at Preston a member of the same 



1 ' Sciendum quod Dominus Walterus . . . perpetuum a servitute,' Boldon Bk. (Surtees Soc.), pp. 39-40. 

 1 Le Neve, Fasti, etc. iii., 287. 8 Vid. sup. p. 9. 



* Le Neve, Fasti, iii. 284. BoUon Bk. (Surtees Soc.), App. No. vi. 



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