History of the Company. 127 



Hall," and alludes to the Saddlers* Company in 

 the following distich : — 



"'Twas kindly done of the good-natured cits 

 To place before thy door a brace of tits." 



proceeding — 



"For Pegasus would ne'er endorse the weight 

 Of such a quibbling, scribbling, dribbling knight." 



Blackmore was knighted by William HI. upon 

 the publication of " King Arthur." 



Very little can be gathered concerning the old 

 Hall, i.e., the one built after the Fire of London. 

 From a minute on the i8th May, 1714, we learn 

 that it had a cupola, or '' Lanthorn," and in 

 another place there is an order for the flooring of 

 the room over the Hall. In 1668 the Company, 

 upon completion of the building, contracted with 

 the New River Company for a supply of water, 

 taking a lease for eleven years at 45^-. fine, and 

 45^-. per annum rent. The occasional mention of 

 a Pump in the Company's Kitchen, and of another 

 Pump in Day's Court close by, gives us an idea 

 of the Company's alternative supply. The Hall 

 did not abut on Cheapside directly, but was 

 approached from the main road by a small passage 

 known as Saddlers' Hall Court, in which was the 

 Clerk's House. Hatton, in his " New View of 

 London," published in 1708, describes Saddlers' 

 Hall as "adorned with fretwork and wainscot." 

 Maidand in 1774, gives the following account of 



