Chap. 7.] PARISH OF RIBCHESTER. 163 



fiirebook, ploughbook, and loflgebook in and upon the premises, for 

 necessary reparation, maintenance, uphoulding, and fenceing thereof. 

 The Tennants to mayntayne the premisses, chauncell, etc., with hedging, 

 fenceing, and ditching the same, and so to leave it at the end of the 

 said tearme, and in the meane t3'me to ciitt downe no greate timber 

 trees without lycence of the said Bishopp or his successors, except for 

 necessary reparations of the premisses or some part thereof. 



"The Impropriate Eectory is now held by Richard Sherburne, of 

 Stonj'hurst, in the County of Lancaster, Esq., who is Lord of the 

 Mannor ; there is one life in being only, viz., Mr. John Sherburne, 

 aged seaventy-three yeares. There is, belonging to the Parsonage, a 

 ffaire Parsonage house built with bricke, and one barne, about five 

 bayes in good repair ; there was another barne of about eight bayes, 

 which is blowne downe about three years agoe, and not yet built 

 againe, most of the tymber lost. 



"There belongeth to the Personage, about one hundred acres of 

 land, and about twenty acres of it is woodland, in which both tymber 

 and underwood is much destroj-ed since these late troubles. The gleabe 

 and house have beene worth in the best tymes sixty pounds per annum. 

 There is alsoe three Tenements and twelve Cottages more which belong 

 to the said Personage and Rectorj-. 



"There is belonging to the parrish ffive Townships, viz., Eibchester, 

 Dilworth, Howston' [Alston], Veeresee," and Button ; the tythes of 

 the said parrish have beene estimated worth Two hundred and fifty 

 pound per annum, besides the gleabe and Tennants' rents, but they 

 are now held by the Tennants dureing the lease. 



" The Minister hath power to fEsh, soe far as the gleabe land goeth, 

 but there is not any benefit made of it.' 



"The Bishopp hath always allowed twenty marks per annum towards 

 a Ministery out of the rent ; thej' are at present without any Minister, 

 only liire soe often as they can, and pay the Minister sc farre as the 



^This is one of the first variations of 'How was tiii.s? There was, let us 



the modern way of spelling Alston that hope, no poUntion in the " good old 



I have been able to find. times" of the Ribble, as there is unfor- 



^Hothersall. tunately in these civilised days. 



