RURAL ECONOMY IN YORKSHIRE IN 1641. 135 



rant to soe many townes to meete him att such a place on such 

 a day, and another to other townes to meete him againe att 

 another place, or perhapps att the same place on such a day ; 

 and the townes that are first called, are the most privilerlged ; 

 for masters that wante servants, and servants that wante mas- 

 ters, have the benefitte of the next sittinge to provide for them- 

 selves ; whereas those townes that are not called till the latter 

 sittinge have but one day to provide themselves in, for the ser- 

 vants in these townes cannot bee hyred till the townes bee 

 called, that theire masters, or some for them, bee there to sette 

 them at liberty ; the first thinge that the cheife constable doth 

 is to call the constables of everie towne, and to take in the 

 bills, and then to call the masters by theire names, in order as 

 they are sette in the bills, and to aske them if they will sette 

 such and such a servant att liberty ; if the master will, then 

 hee maketh the servant his tickett, and the servant giveth him 

 2d. for his paines ; if the master will not sette him att liberty, 

 then the cheife constable is to lette them knowe what wages 

 the statute will allowe, and to sette downe a reasonable and in- 

 different wage betwixt them, and hee is to have one penny of 

 the master for every servant that stayeth two yeares in a place, 

 or is not sette att liberty, and this the pettie constables are to 

 doe for him, viz. ; to sende in bills of the names of all such 

 servants as stay with theire olde mastei's, and to gather the 

 money, and sende it him. Our sittinges Weare both att Kirk- 

 burne this yeare ; the cheife constable sate att Mr. Whipps, and 

 the servants stoode in the church-yard , there is allwayes a 

 sittinge att Killam the morrow after All Saint day, and usually 

 another at Sledgmour, two or three dayes after. A master 

 cannot turne away his servant, nor a servant goe from his mas- 

 ter, without a quarters warninge ; servants will usually give 

 theire olde masters a day, some two dayes, and some will stay 

 three dayes with theire olde masters, and goe away on the 

 fowerth day after Martynmasse. They stay usually two or 

 three dayes with theire friends, and then aboute the fifth or 

 sixth day after Martynmasse will they come to theire newe 

 masters ; they will depart from theire olde services, any day in 

 the weeke, but theire desire (hereaboutes) is to goe to theire 

 newe masters eyther on a Tewsday, or on a Thursday ; for on a 

 Sunday they will seldome remoove, and as for Munday, they 

 account it ominous," for they say 



Ilundny flitte, 



Neaver sitte : 



■ The dales-men are always superstitious; a fact confirmed by the following ex- 

 tract from the Visitation of the churches within the juristliction of the Dean and 



