28 



THE HAMPSHIRE ANTIQUARY & NATURALIST. 



number of priests, deacons, sub-deacons, acolytes, 

 and others, were ordained there by David Martin, 

 Bishop of St. David's. 



The book contains a map of the ancient jurisdiction 

 of the Manor of Basingstoke, a map of the electoral 

 divisions of the county, and a map ot the town at the 

 present time on the six-inch scale. It contains also 

 plans of St. Michael's, the parish church, and of Holy 

 Ghost Chapel. It is illustrated also by engravings of 

 a view of Basingstoke from the Holy Ghost litten as 

 it appeared in 1669, views of the church from various 

 points, a portrait of the Marquis of Winchester, who 

 defended Basing House, facsimiles of seals of the 

 deeds at Merton College, facsimiles of charters, illus- 

 trations of Basing and of Lord Sandys's Chapel. 



It is not necessary to refer to the well-known inter- 

 est which Dr. Millard takes in the parish of which he 

 is vicar. His desire to co-operate in a History of 

 Basingstoke such as this most able volume, is suffi- 

 cient evidence of this, and will be a memorial for many 

 generations. He has been most fortunate in securing 

 such a co-worker as Mr. F. J. Baigent, whose fame 

 in the special department of literary work he has 

 made his own is so widely knewn and acknowledged. 

 No one who desires to possess a collection of Hamp- 

 shire books can do without this volume. 



T.W.S. 



FOOLS. 



F.A.E. (ante, Nov. 30) is in error in supposing 

 that Sir Pexall Brocas, who died in 1630, was prob- 

 ably the last to retain a professional jester. There 

 are some well-known lines in the churchyard of 

 Berkeley, Gloucestershire, written by Dean Swift on 

 Dicky Pearce, fool to the Earl of Suffolk, who was 

 buried June 18, 1728, aged 63. Douce says Dicky 

 was an idiot. The following are the lines 



Here lies the Earl of Suffolk's fool. 

 Men called him Dicky Pearce ; 



His folly served to make men laugh 

 When wit and mirth were scarce. 



Poor Dick, alas ! is dead and gone ; 

 What signifies to cry ? 



Dickies enougk are still behind 



To laugh at by and by. 



Very much might be written on the subject of pro- 

 fessional fools, jesters, and clowns, and I would refer 

 those who are interested in the subject to Douce's 

 "Illustrations of Shakespeare," 2 vols., 1807; some 

 information will also be found in Hone's " Year 

 Book." I will, however, state on the first mentioned 

 authority that in Shadwell's play, "The Woman 

 Captain " (1680), it is stated that it was then " ut of 

 fashion for great men to keep fools," but that the 

 practice was by no means abolished in this country 

 so late as the beginning of the last century, and the 

 author proceeds to cite instances (vol. 2, pp. 308-10). 

 On the staircase at Muncaster Castle, Cumberland, is 



a portrait of Thomas Skelton, "The fool of Mun- 

 caster," who is said to have lived at the time of the 

 Civil War, and of whose sayings there are many 

 traditional stories. Some curious lines, entitled, 

 " Thomas Skelton late Fool of Muncaster's last Will 

 and Testament," are inscribed beneath the picture. 

 (Jefferson's " History and Antiquities of Allerdale 

 Ward above Denvent," 1842, pp. 215-6.) 



Plymouth. J. S. ATTWOOD. 



PROVINCIAL SOBRIQUETS. 

 [Ante, Nov. 30.] 



I would add " Sussex calves," who are said to have 

 earned their name from an astute native, who, in his 

 perplexity, cut off the head of a calf which had 

 become fixed in a five-barred gate, in order to release 

 him. " Peter Pindar" (Dr. John Wolcott), in a note 

 to his ode " The Frogs and Jupiter," says " Bolting ; 

 a term to be found in the Hampshire Dictionary ; 

 implying a rapid deglutition of bacon, without the 

 sober ceremony of mastication. It is, moreover, to 

 be observed that Hampshire servants who are bacon- 

 bolters have always less wages than bacon-cheivers." 



Plymouth. J. S. ATTWOOD. 



THE CIVIL WAR IN HAMPSHIRE. 

 The following extracts from the exhaustive 

 " History of Basingstoke," by Mr. Francis Baigent 

 and the Rev. Canon Millard, D.D., recently published 

 by Mr. C. J. Jacob, Basingstoke, throw interesting 

 light upon the troublous days of the Civil War in 

 Hampshire. In the Churchwardens' accounts for St. 

 Michael's Church, Basingstoke, we read (pp. 516 



52i): 



1643-44. Received for Henry Roe, a soldier's knell, is., 

 and for Joachim Van Herne, a soldier's knell, 25. 



Paid for digging 21 graves, 75. ; and for carrying 6 men 

 and digging their graves, 8s. ; Richard Beckley (the beadle) 

 for digging 5 graves, is. 8d. Paid Richard Beckley for 

 making clean about the church, is. lod. 



1645. Reed, for a captain's knell, is., and for another 

 captain's knell, is. Fora soldier's knell, 23. 



Paid Binfield for digging a grave for a soldier, 6d., and 

 for carrying the soldier, is. 6d. 



Paid Roger Binfield for digging 2 graves for soldiers, is., 

 and for burying them, 53. Paid for burying 2 soldiers, 

 33. 6d., and for digging a grave, 6d. Paid Richard Beckly 

 for digging a grave for a soldier, 4d. Paid Andrew Bastin 

 for carrying a soldier to burying, 23. Paid Roger Binfield 

 for digging three graves for soldiers, is. 3d. Paid Binfield 

 for digging 2 graves for soldiers, lod. Paid Andrew Bastin 

 and Binfield for digging a grave for a soldier and burying 

 him, 2S. 6d. Paid William Hawkins for a shroud fora 

 soldier, 33. 



1646. Received for an Engineer's burial, is. 



Monies given towards the reparation of the Church by 

 those whose names are hereunder written. Here follows 

 a list of 25Q names, many of them for amounts not exceed" 

 ing 6d. or is. The highest donation was 405., given by 

 Stephen James. The learned authors thus explain the 



