SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY 



to the actual wages which masters were content to pay for labour. The laws 

 against masters who gave more than the legal wage were, however, not en- 

 forced; there are no presentments of such offences, and the bench "' of magis- 

 trates even ordered a master to pay his servant wages that were due to her 

 at the rate of 32*. for the half year, although this exceeded by js. the 

 maximum amount for the most highly paid woman-servants. 



The scale shows, however, that agricultural wages were lower in the 

 Vale than in the Chilterns in the case of servants hired by the year. The 

 chief bailiff in husbandry had 6 in the Chilterns, but only 5 in the Vale ; 

 for ordinary farm servants this difference does not appear, all having 4, but 

 the boys both under and over sixteen received less in the Vale. The pay- 

 ment of boys from twelve years old was a new development in the seven- 

 teenth century, since in 1 562 no servant under sixteen years of age was allowed 

 to take any wages in money, but only his clothes and board. Another 

 feature in this scale of wages is the varying amount allowed instead of meat 

 and drink ; for a mower or reaper, the allowance was 8</. a day, but for men 

 hay-makers only $d.\ ordinary labourers out of harvest-time received ^d. ; 

 some women again had ^d. and others not more than ^d. The same varia- 

 tions occur amongst the artisans, the food allowance varying from ^d. for the 

 yelmers to SJ. for the more skilled artisans in summer, but the latter in winter 

 only received t^d. in lieu of food. 



It is perhaps interesting to enumerate the trades which appeared in the 

 scale in order to show the commonest occupations in the county. 



Free masons were the most highly paid artisans, then followed rough 

 masons, carpenters, plough-wrights, bricklayers, tilers and plasterers, gardeners, 

 and finally thatchers, servants of thatchers, yelmers, tailors, sawyers, and spinners. 

 The wages were fixed evidently with a view to regulating the payments for 

 agricultural labour and those trades which were practised in country districts. 

 The men in the paper mills, weavers and others employed in the clothing 

 trade, for instance, did not come under the magistrates' restrictions. As a 

 matter of fact the regular rate for ordinary labour seems already to have been 

 is. m a day with but little variation, though the legal amount was 8</. at 

 most ; but in the more skilled work the difference as usual was even greater. 

 Instead of is. zd. a bricklayer was entered as receiving 2J., a carpenter 

 is. 6d., and a plumber, whose trade did not appear in the scale of wages, had 

 2s. bd. a day." 1 



Undoubtedly the question of the greatest historical importance dealt 

 with by the justices of the peace was the administration of poor relief, 

 since the central government, as it gradually assumed responsibility in the 

 matter, acted almost entirely through the local magistrates of the county and 

 borough. In mediaeval times the relief of poverty was left entirely to private 

 charity. The monasteries gave largely and indiscriminately to all who came 

 to their doors ; the nobles kept open tables, while, for the old, almshouses and 

 hospitals were numerous all over the country. Large towns sometimes had 

 organized the charitable benefactions of their citizens by the action of the 

 municipality, but the government took no real responsibility for the relief 

 of the poor until the sixteenth century. 



'* Quart. Scss. Rec. uo n. a day was paid at Ayletbury, Eton, and Wing. 



171 Wing, Churchwardens' Acct. 



7' 



