THE FOREST OF DARTMOOR 343 



East. 2,641 cattle and 198 horses agisted, and five peat- 

 cutters licensed producing 34 js. $d. 



West. 1,408 cattle and thirty-seven horses agisted, and 

 twenty-two folds and twelve peat-cutters licensed producing 

 10 2s. g^d. 



North. 298 cattle, 163 horses, fourteen folds, and thirty-one 

 peat-cutters producing .5 is. 6\d. 



The charge right through these accounts for a long period 

 was i\d. a head for cattle and 2d. a head for horses, 2d. for 

 each fold, and $d. from each peat-digger. Those who dug 

 peat for fuel are termed carbonarii, which has been absurdly 

 translated colliers, and mention of early coal-getting on Dart- 

 moor has been more than once printed. But the geological 

 formation makes such an idea impossible. 



Ralph Houle was the receiver in 1370-1, and his accounts for 

 two wards yield the following particulars. 



East Ward. 2,762 cattle agisted within the forest, and 1,762 

 without the forest ; five horses agisted within the forest, and 

 twenty-nine without. This agistment, in addition to the pay- 

 ments of thirteen peat -cutters, $8s. lod. in rents, gave a 

 total of 29 15^-. nd. 



West Ward. 952 cattle and twelve horses agisted, whilst 

 thirty-eight men paid for folds and thirteen to cut peat. This, 

 with us. nd. rents, made a total of g gs. io\d. Among the 

 outgoings were the 6os. of tithe, which appears in every 

 account, 6s. 8d. to the clerk who drew up the returns, and the 

 stipends of two foresters. 



The court rolls of 1381-2 have the heading^ venatione infra 

 forestam several times, but no entry follows. 



The accounts for 1387-8 give John Copleston as the 

 king's steward in Devonshire. John Prik was the forester- 

 bailiff of the West forest ; the money wages for two foresters 

 was only 1 3*?. ^d. , but they each received an additional 6d. a week 

 during the four weeks of the deer-calving time, or fence 

 month. For the North forest, Robert Colleshull was forester- 

 bailiff, and Ralph Brante for the East forest ; in both cases the 

 wages were the same as in the West ward. Much of this roll 

 is illegible. 



The ministers' accounts for 1403-4 give Henry Burgeye as 

 receiver, and he accounts for the borough of Lydford. William 



