THE FOREST OF THE HIGH PEAK 171 



The names of the foresters attending a great court of attach- 

 ment for the whole forest, held at Tideswell on October, 1524, 

 are given in full. 



Another great court of attachment was held at Tideswell on 

 ist August, 1525. 



The large number of seventy-four vert offenders were fined 

 in sums varying from i2d. to zd., yielding a total of 34^. 2d. 

 Among the offenders were Thomas Pursglove, who was fined 

 8d. , and Edward Barber, vicar of Hope. 



In the midst of this reign, the evil results of letting out 

 or leasing the herbage of the district, to be farmed by those 

 who were not forest ministers, became apparent, so far as the 

 interests of maintaining a deer forest were concerned. The 

 king, in July, 1526, issued a commission to Sir Thomas 

 Cokayne and three others to inquire into the overstocking of 

 "our Forest of the Champion in the High Peak" more than 

 was ever wont with numbers of " capilles, 1 bestes, and 

 shepe " by Henry Parker, the farmer of the herbage, and 

 his deputies, insomuch that there was no grass left in the 

 forest "for our game of dere," and that thereby many of 

 the deer are like to perish in the coming winter through lack 

 of meat. The Commissioners were to inquire what number 

 of cattle and sheep the forest could maintain, and whether 

 Parker had more than previous farmers ; also as to the number 

 of the deer, and whether they had decreased under Parker. 

 The Commissioners met at the Chamber of the Forest, on 

 1 5th September, and heard the following witnesses; Hugh 

 Fretham, 30, deposed that there were five herds of cattle within 

 the forest, whereas aforetime there were but two, and that the 

 five herds numbered 903 beasts last St. Thomas's Day; that at 

 the same time there were 4,000 sheep and 16 score "capilles." 

 Roger Wryght, deputy to George Barlowe, one of the foresters- 

 of-fee, said that there used to be but two herds, and now five, 

 and in all other respects confirmed the previous witness. 

 William Bagshawe, 34, Thomas Bewell, 46, Thomas Bag- 

 shawe, 26, also confirmed the statement of the first witness. 



The Commissioners further reported that they walked through 

 the forest and saw, that same day, 18 score of red deer, in- 



1 Capille, capulle, or capul, is an old English term for a horse, chiefly north 

 country. It is used in Piers Ploughman and the Canterbury Tales. 



